asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection whether he has made any estimate of the effects of the Consumer Credit Act on the day-to-day workings of the clearing banks; and if he will institute a review of the working of the Act.

I have no reason to believe that the provisions now in operation have an appreciable effect on the day-to-day workings of the clearing banks. The Director General of Fair Trading has a statutory responsibility to keep the working of the Act under review.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what recent representations he has received from members of the public, from the clearing banks, from the merchant banks, and from secondary banks and finance houses, respectively, about the working of the Consumer Credit Act.

One clearing bank has made representations about section 75. A few letters have been received from members of the public on other provisions of the Act; some of the letters inquired when further provisions were to come into operation. The clearing banks and finance houses—which includes the secondary banks—have made representations in response to consultation on regulations which I propose to make under the Act. All such representations are considered with great care. The clearing banks have also sought partial exemption from certain provisions of the Act. I have received representations opposing such exemption. The merchant banks have made no representations.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what was the level of the retail price index on the most recent date for which figures are available; and what was the comparable index figure in January 1974.

The level of the retail price index in mid-February 1979 was 208·9, compared with the base level of 100 in January 1974.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what is the percentage increase in all retail food prices in the United Kingdom since January 1973 compared with the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Holland, Belgium and Denmark.

I will reply to the hon. Member shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what action he proposes to take regarding chloroform in toothpaste in the light of studies in the United States of America which indicate that chloroform is carcinogenic in animals.

After consideration of the expert advice now available to me, I have asked my officials to prepare amendments to the Cosmetic Products Regulations so as to prohibit chloroform in non-medicinal toothpastes. These draft amendments will be circulated to interested bodies for comment.

asked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Pro- tection what action he proposes to take to prevent the sale of potentially harmful novelty goods or jokes such as tear gas bombs; and if he will make a statement.

I am proposing to make a prohibition order under section 3(1)(a) of the Consumer Safety Act 1978 prohibiting the supply in the United Kingdom of any novelty intended to afford amusement by causing discomfort by the use of a substance capable of causing personal injury. Notices to this effect are being widely published this week and any representations made to my Department not later than 26 April 1979 will be carefully considered in determining the terms of the order.

asked the Minister of Overseas Development what aid and trade contingency fund money has been made available to which developing countries since the fund's inception.

Offers of assistance from the aid trade contingency provision have been made to the following countries:

• Belize
• Burma
• Cameroon
• Colombia
• Costa Rica
• Cyprus
• Ecuador
• Egypt
• Guinea Bissau
• Honduras
• Indonesia
• Jordan
• Kenya
• Malawi
• Malaysia
• Mauritius
• Nigeria
• Pakistan
• Peru
• Philippines
• Senegal
• Sudan
• Syria
• Tanzania
• Thailand
• Tunisia
• Venezuela
• Vietnam
• Zambia

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now give his conclusions on his study of the judgment of Sir Robert Megarry in relation to the need to safeguard the liberty of the subject in the area of telephone tapping.

I have nothing to add to the reply I gave to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Handsworth (Mr. Lee) on 8 March.—[Vol. 963, c. 750–51.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children are in prison with their mothers on the last date for which figures are available.

On 15 March 1979 there were 31 children in custody with their mothers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will introduce legislation to implement the unanimous recommendation of Mr. Speaker's conference in 1973 that multiple registration for parliamentary elections should be prohibited and that where an elector has more than one home address he should be entitled to choose where to register provided that there is a considerable degree of permanence at that address.

We have ho present plans to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to receive the report of the working party on the salaries of probation officers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to receive the working party's report on probation officers' pay.

I refer the hon. Members to the reply I gave to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Mr. Crowther) on Thursday 8 March.—[Vol. 963, c. 761.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the salary negotiations of probation officers.

The staff side's claim for an increase from 1 July 1979 was submitted at the end of last week and will first be considered at a meeting of the joint negotiating committee for the probation service on 9 April.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will apply the same criteria as apply to hotels and boarding houses regarding television licences for retirement pensioners, and handicapped people who live in specially provided accommodation; and if he will make a statement.

The Government are reviewing the whole question of the licensing of television sets in hotels but any change would require legislation. I have initiated, without commitment, a study into the possibility of free television licences or concessionary arrangements for pensioners and other groups such as the disabled. I hope that a report on this study will be published by about the middle of the year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has received any letters from hon. Members about the recently published crime statistics for London.

Up to 27 March none had come to my attention.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent meetings he has had with his EEC counterparts; and if he will make a statement.

I attended meetings with the Italian Minister of the Interior in August 1978, and the Minister of the Interior of the Federal Republic of Germany in September 1978. My ministerial colleagues in the Department attended meetings of EEC Ministers of Justice in October 1978, of EEC Ministers responsible for internal security in November 1978; and the Social Affairs Council meeting on illegal migration and illegal employment, also in November 1978.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any plans to meet the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis to discuss the latest statistics of crime in London.

I meet the Commissioner frequently and discuss with him a wide range of matters.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when next he will meet the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.

No meeting is planned at present, but I meet him at frequent intervals.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is satisfied with police recruitment in the Metropolitan area; and if he will make a statement.

Metropolitan Police strength increased from 20,850 at the end of 1974 to 21,961 at the end of 1978, a gain of 1,111. There was a further increase of 116 during January 1979 bringing the strength to 22,077, and the total increase since the end of 1974 to 1,227.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he proposes to make any changes in the criminal injuries compensation scheme.

As my right hon. Friend indicated in reply to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Chorley (Mr. Rodgers) on 19 March, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and my right hon. Friend have decided that the recommendations of the working party on the criminal injuries compensation scheme should be accepted, subject to some very minor modifications, and that a revised version of the scheme will be brought into effect as soon as the necessary administrative arrangements have been made.—[Vol. 964, c. 407–8.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when last he met the chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality.

On 10 January. I shall be seeing him again later today.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offences of burglary in 1978 were committed by persons of 16 years or less; and what percentage increase or decrease this figure represents over the previous year.

Such information can be given only in respect of offences which result in a finding of guilt or a caution. In 1977, the latest year for which information is available, the number of persons aged 10 and under 17 who were found guilty or cautioned by the police in England and Wales for the offence of burglary was 41,600 compared with 40,000 in 1976—an increase of 4 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is satisfied with the operation of the Fire Precautions Act 1971.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there is an entry on the Metropolitan Police computer on the hon. Member for Bristol, North-West; and, if so, what it contains.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether there is an entry on the Metropolitan Police computer on the hon. Member for Barking; and, if so, what it contains.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there is an entry on the Metropolitan Police computer on the hon. Member for Birmingham, Perry Barr; and. if so, what it contains.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there is an entry on the Metropolitan Police computer on the hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead; and, if so, what it contains.

I refer my hon. Friends to the reply I gave to questions by my hon. Friends, the Members for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Mr. Litterick) and Newham, North-West (Mr. Lewis) on 27 March.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will list those who responded to his invitation to respond to the consultative document on proposals for replacing section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966; and whether he will summarise the effect of these representations.

Yes.The following made comments on the proposals in the consultative document.Select Committee on Race Relations and Immigration.Local authority interests:Local authority associations:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received about the introduction of citizens band radio.

Representations in favour of the introduction of citizens band radio have been received from a small number of organisations, including the National Electronics Council and the British Radio Equipment Manufacturers' Association which forwarded reports to my right hon. Friend on this subject last year, and from the Citizens Band Association and other members of the public.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will state the reasons for the continuing delay in the confirmation of the byelaws submitted by the London borough of Bromley in respect of model aircraft flying in parks; and when he expects such confirmation now to be made.

The byelaws to which the hon. Member refers do not deal only with the flying of model aircraft, but with the regulation of conduct generally in the borough's parks and pleasure grounds, and the objections which we received related also to other provisions of the byelaws. The hon. Member will be glad to know that, after consideration of the objections, we have now decided to confirm the byelaws.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what further steps he proposes to take to ensure that those mentally ill prisoners requiring detention in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1959 are transferred to hospitals.

I do not think that at present I can usefully add to the reply given to the question by my hon. Friend on 12 February. Prison medical officers are urged to seek the transfer of prisoners under section 72 of the Mental Health Act 1959 in any case in which they think this justified.—[Vol. 962, c. 378–9.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of parliamentary constituencies in England remain to be reviewed by Boundary Commissions in the current review of parliamentary constituencies; when he expects this remaining work to be completed; and if he will make a statement.

The Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England has so far published provisional or revised recommendations for constituencies in six counties. This leaves about 90 per cent, of the 516 English constituencies to be reviewed. It seems likely that the Commission will complete its general review in 1981.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what trends there are in the monthly totals of indictable offences reported in the Metropolitan area for the last six months for which figures are available.

In the last six months of 1978 there appears to have been a small decline in the trend of the number of indictable offences recorded by the police in the Metropolitan Police district.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what improvements he has been able to make to accommodation for officers in Her Majesty's prisons in recent years; and what plans he has for speeding up improvements in the future.

Some prison service quarters are already of a good modern standard and not in need of improvement. Others have been, or are being, improved and further improvements are planned for the next few years within the resources available to the Department.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation to permit wives of men serving in the Armed Forces to register for voting purposes as civilians.

We have no plans to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to complete the provision of the revised local government boundaries.

Local government boundaries are the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment. My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has responsibility for electoral arrangements for local government areas. On the assumption that the Local Government Boundary Commission for England completes its current review of the electoral arrangements for districts by the end of this year, it is likely that orders implementing the Commission's final proposals for all districts in England, with or without modifications, will be made by the middle of 1980. It is not possible at this stage to say when the Commission is likely to have completed its review of the electoral arrangements for counties.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department to what extent responsibility for juveniles made the subject of supervision orders has been transferred from probation officers to social workers; and if it is his intention that this process should continue.

The Children and Young Persons Act 1969 (Transitional Modifications of Part I) (Amendment) Order 1974 had the effect of transferring from the probation and after-care service to local authorities responsibility for the supervision of all children below the age of 13 unless a probation officer was already working or had worked with the family and the local authority requested the court to name a probation officer as supervisor. No further transfer of responsibility is contemplated at present, but responsibility for the exercise of supervision orders in respect of persons aged 13–16 varies from area to area as a result of discussions and agreements between the local agencies concerned.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many juveniles were involved in crimes of violence in England and Wales in 1978; and what were the corresponding figures for the previous two years.

Offences are known to be committed by juveniles only if the offenders are apprehended. The numbers of persons aged 10 and under 17 found guilty or cautioned for offences of violence against the person are published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales "—table 5.9 of the volume for 1977, Cmnd. 7289. Information for 1978 is not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when first he instituted a licence fee for the adaptation of public places to help those disabled by deafness; what was the total income for the last year; what was his estimate of the cost of collection; and if he will make a statement.

Radio induction communication systems have been licensed under the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 for over 25 years. These systems may be used to assist the hard of hearing in such places as church and public halls, and the fee for each system, payable by the owner or manager of the building, is £5·60 for five years. The income from licence fees and costs of collection relating to these particular systems cannot, without disproportionate effort, be separated from those relating to induction systems generally; but fees for radio licensing as a whole are fixed to cover total administrative costs.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he can now announce the date of publication of the Bill setting up the Open Broadcasting Authority.

Work on the preparation of the Bill is continuing, but it will not be possible to introduce it this Session.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any proposals to improve procedures for establishing refugee status.

We hope to announce some provisional proposals shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will bring forward legislation to provide for restrictions governing the manufacture, sale, possession and use of crossbows.

I have no evidence that such legislation would be justified.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department to what level it would be necessary to raise the licence fees for (a) colour and (b) monochrome television sets to restore the revenue raised from this source to the level in real terms of 1974 and 1970.

No increase would be necessary as, between 1970 and 1979 and 1974 and 1979 the gross television licence revenue increased faster than the general index of retail prices.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will bring forward legislation to provide that school buildings should not be used as polling stations where other suitable public buildings are available.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he now expects the Paliamentary Boundary Commission for England to publish its provisional recommendations for constituencies in Staffordshire.

I understand that the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England is likely to publish its provisional recommendations for constituencies in Staffordshire later this year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is satisfied with the effectiveness of existing controls over sales by mail order of weapons for which a firearms certificate is required.

Yes. Mail order sales are subject to the same restrictions and controls as sales by other means.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the progress of the inquiry into pay and conditions in the prison service.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for St. Pancras, North (Mr. Stallard) on 21 February.—[Vol. 963, c. 182–183.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to close Bullwood Hall girls' borstal within the next three years.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will request a report from the chief constable of West Yorkshire on the gassing of badgers at Riddlesden, Keighley, during 1978.

We have already been in touch with the chief constable about the matters to which my hon. Friend refers and I am currently considering a recommendation by the Nature Conservancy Council that I should exercise my powers under section 6(1) of the Badgers Act 1973 to declare West Yorkshire an area of special protection for badgers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will published in the Official Report a table showing for each parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom the number of electors on the 1979 electoral register, giving provisional figures if final figures are not yet available.

Provisional figures for the 1979 electoral register will be published by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys in an OPCS monitor in the next few weeks. Figures for the 1978 register were published in the OPCS monitor on electoral statistics, reference EL 78/2, copies of which are in the Library of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there are any State registered, State enrolled or registered mental nurses working in prison hospitals—or hospitals in other penal establishments—who are not members of the prison service; how many such nurses are employed by the Home Office; how many are agency nurses; and in which prison hospitals they are situated.

At 27 March there were 35, all of them agency nurses. Their places of employment were Askham Grange, Drake Hall, Holloway, Styal, and Wormwood Scrubs prisons; Bullwood Hall and East Sutton Park borstals; and Low Newton and Pucklechurch remand centres.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will estimate, in the case of each quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisation for which he is responsible, the total expenditure for each year to 1977–78 since its establishment.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his estimate of the numbers of (a) men and (b) women currently serving prison sentences suffering from alcoholism or a serious drinking problem.

No records are kept because of the difficulty of defining with any precision alcoholism or problem drinking, and any attempt to estimate the numbers would be of doubtful value.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many

There is no agreed definition of the term "quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisation ". Following is the information in respect of the bodies which were mentioned in the answer given to a question by the hon. Member for St. Marylebone (Mr. Baker) on 5 March.—[Vol. 963, c. 408]:extraditions have been refused by magistrates' courts in each of the past five years; and how these are broken down into countries, offences and grounds for refusal;(2) how many times he has refused requests for extraditions in each of the past five years; and how these are broken down into countries requesting extradition, offences, and grounds for refusal;(3) how many requests from foreign States there have been for extraditions in each of the past five years; and how these are broken down by country and by offence.

The following tables give information about magistrates' court proceedings for the period 1974–1978 in respect of persons whose surrender was formally requested under treaties to which the Extradition Act 1870 applies, or under the Fugitive Offenders Act 1967, and whose cases have been finally determined.Where the magistrates' court did not commit the person concerned for surrender, this will normally have been because the court was not satisfied that

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officers employed by the prison service in England and Wales are

There are 731 hospital officers in the prison service. This is 4·68 per cent, of the total number of prison officers.Complete records of qualifications are not held centrally but information available shows numbers qualified as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what way unqualified prison officers are trained to be hospital officers; how long the training is; where they are trained; who runs the courses; who teaches the trainees; what is the content of the training course; and whether a syllabus of the course can be published.

Prison officers wishing to become hospital officers attend a 13 week course at one of the two hospital officer training schools at Liverpool and Wormwood Scrubs prisons designed to equip them to undertake the basic nursing care required. They are assessed by a course tutor at two-weekly intervals throughout the course duration and upon completion there is a written, oral and practical examination. If successful, they are normally posted to establishments where they can be supervised by full-time prison doctors and experienced senior hospital officer staff. The courses are run by senior hospital officer staff who hold registered nursing qualifications and have completed courses in teaching recognised by the General Nursing Council. Doctors lecture on medical and specialist subjects. The content of the course which is kept under review includes the following main subjects: elementary biology, anatomy, physiology, bacteriology, psychology, chemistry and physics. Basic nursing techniques are taught including ward management; the elements of medical, surgical and psychiatric disorders; emergency resuscitation and prison medical administration. Four weeks are spent in practical attachment to outside hospitals. I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of the syllabus.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what types and quantities—giving average weekly figures—of barbiturates are prescribed for use in the following penal establishment: Her Majesty's prison, Brixton, Her Majesty's prison, Ford, Her Majesty's prison, Gartree, Her Majesty's prison, Holloway, Her Majesty's prison, Kingston (Portsmouth), Her Majesty's prison, Maidstone, Her Majesty's prison. Wormwood Scrubs, Her Majesty's borstal, Feltham and Her Majesty's borstal, Manchester.

The information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade, further to the reply of 22 March to the hon. Member for Putney, what would be an appropriate way of securing the objective of a resale royalty payable to artists upon the resale of their works.

United Kingdom law does not give artists the right to an interest in any resale of their works and the Whitford committee on copyright and designs law has recommended against the introduction of such a right, concluding that it is not necessarily fair or logical and that it is not practical. The report of that committee is at present under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade whether, without incurring disproportionate costs, he will give, for the longest and most convenient period of time, the total number of persons in those quasi-autonomous nongovernmental organisations for which he is responsible which have claimed expenses and subsistence and travel allowances, and the totals of all such allowances claimed.

This information in respect of the bodies to which I make appointments is not readily available.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade whether he will estimate, in the case of each quasi-autonomous nongovernmental organisation for which he is responsible, the total expenditure for each year to 1977–78 since its establishment.

I shall reply to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what quantity of harp seal products is imported into the United Kingdom from Canada.

Imports of harp seals and their products are not separately distinguished in the United Kingdom Overseas Trade Statistics. Following are the numbers of fur skins of sea-lions, fur-seals and other seals imported from Canada as country of origin in the period February 1978-January 1979:

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what was the balance of trade in passenger vehicles with the EEC in 1971 and 1978.

The crude trade deficit—imports valued of minus exports valued fob—in passenger motor cars with the EEC as currently constituted was £59 million in 1971 and £1,010 million in 1978.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what is the balance of visible trade with the EEC for the most recent 12-month period.

In accordance with established practice to refer Members to published information where this is readily accessible, I advise the hon. Member that figures on a balance of payments basis for 1978 are given in table 4 of the article "United Kingdom trade in the fourth quarter and year 1978", which appeared in Trade andIndustry on 9 March 1979. A copy of this publication is available in the House of Commons Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what progress has been made in discussions with fishermen on the introduction of the special radio communications channel for fishing vessels which he announced during his statement on 12 February.

I am pleased to report that the new radio communications channel will operate through the coast radio stations at Wick, Oban and Stone-haven as from 1 April 1979. These stations will provide a listening watch between 1700 hours and 0900 hours for vessels fishing outside vhf range off the coasts of Scotland and in the North Sea. A "Code of Operation" has been drawn up and preparations to extend the coverage of the scheme, bringing in other coast radio stations and taking account of particular operational requirements of fishermen, are well advanced.It must be emphasised that the new channel does not replace the distress and urgency frequency of 2182 kHz. It is, however, intended to facilitate regular communications with shore, particularly when difficulties develop, and it is very important that fishermen, in their own safety interests, make full use of these new arrangements.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when she is proposing to have the Figures report on London symphony orchestras published; and whether she has any proposals of her own for moving surplus metropolitan orchestras to regions, such as the East Midlands, which have none of their own.

This was a private report made to the London orchestral concert board. Financial support of orchestras from public funds, and any conditions attaching thereto, are a matter for the Arts Council, the regional arts association and the local authorities concerned. The four major independent London orchestras are self-governing.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the value of grants and services in 1978 provided by the British Film Institute on encouragement of film and the cinematograpic arts in Scotland.

Grants to Scottish organisations from the British Film Institute in the financial year 1978–79 totalled £60,000. Grants and services are also provided by the Scottish Film Council which is grant-aided indirectly by the Scottish Education Department. At the request of that council the institute also provides advice and services to bodies in Scotland, but the cost to the institute is not identifiable.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what grants are available to law students, to enable them to complete their part II examinations as required by the Law Society.

So far as grants from public funds are concerned, local education authorities have power under section 2 of the Education Act 1962 to make awards at their discretion to students on courses leading to the new final examination of the Law Society. My Department does not collect details of the number of awards actually made for these courses.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether, without incurring disproportionate cost, she will give, for the longest and most convenient period of time, the total number of persons in those quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations for which she is responsible who have claimed expenses and subsistence and travel allowances, and the totals of all such allowances claimed.

This information is not available in a readily accessible form and could not be provided without disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, from her most recent information, what percentage of O-level examination candidates in physics and in technical drawing was girls.

The percentages of female candidates in the English and Welsh GCE board's summer 1978 O level examinations in physics and in technical drawing were 23 per cent, and 3 per cent, respectively.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many places exist in special classes specifically provided to cater for the needs of dyslexic schoolchildren in the Medway education division.

None. The local education authority's policy is to meet the special needs of these children through individual tuition at the Medway remedial advisory centre and remedial teaching in the schools.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy why, how and on what basis full details of the tax-free expenses of members appointed to quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations by his Department could not be obtained without involving disproportionate cost.

Total expenses reimbursed to individual members necessarily vary and to extract the necessary information and the calculation of their value should they be subject to income tax would involve considerable and undue staff effort.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether he is aware that the tax-free daily expenses allowance paid to members of committees, and quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations appointed by him are worth hundreds of pounds per day on a taxed basis to the recipients and that such daily sums are more than most of the lower paid public employees, including nurses, receive for a week's work and overtime; and if he will take action to stop these being regarded as tax-free.

The reimbursement of travelling and subsistence expenses necessarily incurred on public business cannot easily be compared with pay.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether, without incurring disproportionate costs, he will give, for the longest and most convenient period of time, the total number of persons in those quasi-autonomous nongovernmental organisations for which he is responsible who have claimed expenses and subsistence and travel allowances, and the totals of all such allowances claimed.

The necessary examination of individual records would involve disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what additional financial support the Government have agreed to give the National Coal Board for the financial year; and what are the implications for the DEN 3 cash limit.

, pursuant to his replies [Official Report, 24 November 1978; Vol. 958, c. 779–80, and 22 February 1979; Vol. 963, c. 307–8], gave the following further information:The DEN 3 cash limit for 1978–79 has now been reduced from £79·1 million to £75 million with the ending, as from 1 March 1979, of the coalburn arrangements between the NCB and the CEGB announced on 11 October 1978.I also informed the House on 24 November 1978 that the grants agreed for the NCB for 1978–79 would include a subsidy for coking coal. The amount of this subsidy will now be £7·7 million. No change in the National Coal Board's overall cash limit of £625 million for 1978–79 is involved.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what plans he has to increase the amount of participation in the off- shore oil industry of British investment companies, British industry and British workers in the next round of exploration area allocations.

The Government have yet to consider what the arrangements for future licensing should be. However, the matters referred to by the hon. Member will be given the proper consideration at the appropriate time.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy how many authorisations, and to which bodies, he has granted under section 40 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971.

Since March 1974 deemed planning permission under section 40 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 has been granted on six occasions in connection with power stations, and in respect of some 15,400 overhead electricity lines. No deemed planning permissions have been granted in respect of gas industry developments.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he has taken to ensure that the civil servants' dispute does not delay the payment of grants to students in Scotland; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend is considering what action can be taken to ensure that grants are paid to students in Scotland in the third term of the session 1978–79. He is not yet ready to make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what reduction there has been in the number of farm businesses in Scotland since the United Kingdom joined the EEC.

Between June 1973 and June 1978 the number of holding of significant size recorded in the Scottish agricultural census fell by 650 or 2 per cent. This net figure is the result of statistical adjustments, as well as real factors such as the amalgamation or splitting up of holdings and the transfer of land to other uses. It represents a continuation of a long-established trend, but at a slower rate than formerly.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how many objections have been received to the amended application for the Tweed Basin fresh water fisheries protection order; and what action he intends to take;(2) whether he will hold a public inquiry into the amended application for the Tweed Basin fresh water fisheries protection order.

My right hon. Friend has received 100 objections. We are considering the proposals in the light of the recommendations of the consultative committee that a protection order should be made for a period of three years. The committee took into account the points made by the objectors before making this recommendation but my right hon. Friend is required under the Act to consider the objections. The Act provides for the holding of a public inquiry if objections duly made are not withdrawn, but no decision has yet been made on such an inquiry.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the order books and prospects of the boat building yards in Scotland.

The order books of the Scottish yards which build fishing vessels vary widely.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total number of crimes and offences made known to the police in the most recent annual period for which figures are available; and what were the comparable totals in 1973.

The provisional number of crimes and offences made known to the police in Scotland in 1978 was 643,923; the published figure for 1973 was 505,699. Due to the reorganisation of police forces and the subsequent stan- dardisation of reporting procedures in 1975 these figures are not directly comparable.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total number of houses completed in the most recent annual period for which figures are available; and what was the total for the year 1973.

The number of house completions in 1978 is provisionally estimated at 25,778. The number for 1973 was 30,033.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the average number of persons unemployed in Scotland in the most recent annual period for which figures are available; and what were the comparable average figures in 1973.

In the period April 1978–March 1979 the average number of persons registered as unemployed in Scotland was 182,500. The average figure for the period April 1973-March 1974 was 90,100.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether his Department has received evidence from any organisation which indicates that unemployment is likely to rise above 2 million in the next decade.

My Department is aware of plenty of predictions but no evidence.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Leek, Official Report, 14 March, for what internal purposes his Department takes a view on employment and unemployment on various assumptions about the growth of output.

My Department takes a view on employment and unemployment as a basis for considering policies and programmes, for which it is responsible, including, for example, the special employment measures.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will estimate, in the case of each quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisation for which he is responsible, the total expenditure