asked the right hon. Member for Middlesbrough, as representing the House of Commons Commission, what was the date of the recent increases in allowances to specialist advisers to Select Committees; and if he will set out details of the increases in money and percentage terms.

On 16 June 1980 authorisation was given for the fees paid to specialist advisers to Select Committees to be increased with effect from 13 May 1980. This brought their rates into line with those recently brought into operation for similar work done for Government Departments, on which the rates for Select Committee specialist advisers have always been based. The minimum rate has increased from £15 per day to £19 per day and the maximum rate from £40 to £60 per day, representing increases of 26·7 per cent. at the minimum and 50 per cent. at the maximum.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what action is being taken by his Department to increase the numbers of qualified chiropodists in Scotland; what need there is for the training of more chiropodists; and if he will make a statement.

The demand for trained chiropodists in Scotland is expected to increase in view of the contribution they can make to care and support of the elderly in the community. My Department is examining, in conjunction with health boards, how this demand can best be met within the resources available.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what is the average waiting time for chiropody treatment in each area health authority; what ambulance services are needed for such treatment; and if he will make a statement;(2) what is the cost to the area for which he is responsible, of inadequate chiropody services; what action is being taken to improve the services; and if he will make a statement.

Information concerning waiting time for chiropody treatment is not held centrally. I do not regard the service as inadequate and have no reason to believe that members of the priority groups—the elderly, the disabled, expectant mothers and children of school age—are unable to obtain within a reasonable time, with ambulance transport if necessary, such chiropody treatment as is clinically necessary. Any improvements in the services are for health boards to consider in the light of other demands on the resources available to them.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the latest total of unemployed people in Lancashire whose last employment was in the textile industry.

At 8 May, the number of people registered as unemployed in the county of Lancashire who last worked in the textile industry was 4,323.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the numbers unemployed in the (a) pre-19 years age group, (b) 20 to 24 years age group and (c) 25 years plus age group for each month for each year since 1970; and what percentage of the total unemployed the figures represent in each case.

[pursuant to his reply, 23 June 1980, c. 33–4]: The age analysis of the numbers registered as unemployed has been made quarterly since July 1978. Until then it was made half-yearly in January and July. Following is the available information for Great Britain.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many qualified teachers are currently registered as unemployed.

At 13 March, the latest date for which an occupational analysis of the unemployed is available, there were 9,827 unemployed people registered at employment offices in Great Britain for employment as school teachers—that is, other than in establishments for further and higher education.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what new initiatives he has taken to reduce the number of registered disabled workers who are unemployed.

The Government place great importance on assisting disabled people to obtain suitable employment opportunities. It remains our policy to support the Manpower Services Commission in encouraging and assisting firms to implement constructive policies towards the employment of disabled people. Our continued support for the commission's "Fit for Work" campaign and awards scheme, the first winner of which will be announced in October, reflects our concern.The commission also provides a range of measures for helping disabled people train for and obtain suitable employment and we have recently approved the establishment of its experimental job introduction scheme on a permanent basis.We have also sought the advice of the commission and the National Advisory Council on Employment of Disabled People on regulations, to be laid before Parliament shortly, to be made under the Companies Act 1980, requiring the disclosure of policies for the employment of disabled people in directors' reports.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many employed have become redundant in Great Britain since the coming into operation of the Redundancy Payments Act 1965.

The number of statutory redundancy payments made between 6 December 1965 and 31 May 1980 was 3,788,895. This figure does not include those employees dismissed by reason of redundancy but who for reasons such as age or length of service did not qualify for a statutory redundancy payment.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many people have been made redundant in the cane sugar refining industry in the United Kingdom in each year since the United Kingdom entered the European Economic Community; and if he will make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many redundancies have been notified to his Department in the first four months of 1980 compared with the first four months of 1979 and 1978.

I shall reply to my hon. Friend and to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the proposed cuts in the budget of the Health and Safety Executive in the West Midlands area.

I have asked the chairman of the Health and Safety Commission to reduce the 1979–80 level of staff-related expenditure by 6 per cent. in the three years to 1982–83. Staffing resources are at present under review, but as the review has not yet been completed, it is too early to indicate what level of cut will be applied to the West Midlands area.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many, in numbers and percentages of those who have been unemployed for three months or more in the Birmingham area are (a) aged under 19 years and (b) aged under 25 years.

At 10 April, the latest date for which an age analysis of the unemployed is available, there were 29,659 people who had been registered as unemployed for over 13 weeks in the Birmingham travel-to-work area. Of these, 2,132 (7·2 per cent.) were under 19 years of age and 6,932 (23·4 per cent.) were aged 19 to 24 years.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number of redundancies of disabled people notified to his Department in the Birmingham travel-to-work area in the 12 months commencing 1 June 1979.

I shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

UNEMPLOYED REGISTERED DISABLED PERSONS
							Males	Females	Total
Volumes	…	…	…	…	…	…	1,492	254	1,746
Percentage unemployment rate				…	…	…	14·2	10·9	13·6

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what will be the number of skillcentre places in Sheffield following the closure of the annexe; and what will be the principal trades covered.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that there will be 355 places available at Sheffield skillcentre after closure of the annexe. There will be 24 trades on offer, mainly in the construction, engineering servicing, engineering production, electrical/electronics, and plant and automotive groups.There are at present 317 places operational in the main centre and annexe, offering training in 21 trades.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what cuts in money terms will result from the reductions in the forward capital programme of the Manpower Services Commission;(2) what additional unemployment in the building trades will occur as a result of the cuts in the capital programme of the Manpower Services Commission.

I will reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will increase the retraining facilities in Liverpool, in view

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the numbers and percentages of unemployed male and female registered disabled persons in the Birmingham travel-to-work area at the latest convenient date.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the information requested is set out below. Figures are for 8 May 1980, the latest date available.of redundancies at BXL Plastics Ltd.; and if he will make a statement.

I shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will take immediate steps to ensure that young unemployed persons in the borough of Walsall have a reasonable opportunity of very shortly obtaining employment.

I will reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many jobs have been lost in manufacturing industry since the beginning of 1980; and how the current total of jobs in manufacturing industry compares with the monthly totals over the last 12 months.

I shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many hours a week of short-time were worked in April 1979 and how many in April 1980.

Statistics of short-time working are collected for one selected week in each month and relate to time lost by operatives in manufacturing industries. The numbers of hours lost in Great Britain in the weeks ended 7 April 1979 and 19 April 1980 were 488,000 and 2,096,000 respectively.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will set out

						Numbers of vacancies remaining unfilled
					Numbers registered as unemployed	At employment office	At careers offices
June 1979	…	…	…	…	3,837	570	79
July 1979	…	…	…	…	4,347	558	69
August 1979	…	…	…	…	4,654	639	60
September 1979		…	…	…	4,206	558	78
October 1979	…	…	…	…	4,117	564	101
November 1979		…	…	…	3,923	443	83
December 1979	…	…	…	…	4,016	530	73
January 1980	…	…	…	…	4,449	435	53
February 1980	…	…	…	…	4,085	424	42
March 1980	…	…	…	…	3,979	402	53
April 1980	…	…	…	…	4,361	426	47
May 1980	…	…	…	…	4,321	488	44
Notes:
1. The unemployment figures from October 1979 are not strictly comparable with those for earlier dates because of the introduction of fortnightly attendance and payment of benefit. Estimates are not available for local areas but for the country as a whole the monthly figures are about 20,000, or 1½ per cent., higher than they would have been under weekly attendance.
2. The vacancy statistics relate only to those notified to employment offices and careers offices. Vacancies notified to employment offices are estimated to be about one-third of all vacancies in the country as a whole. Because of possible duplication the figures for employment offices and careers offices should not be added together.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) whether he will circulate in the Official Report a table showing the weights used for (a) motor fuels, and (b) different heating and lighting fuels in the retail price index in 1952, 1962, 1972, 1974, and at the latest available date; and to what extent the change in the weight was due to a change in the amount consumed in each case;

					RPI weights per 1,000					Price in May 1980 taking prices in January 1962 as 100
					1952	1962	1972	1974	1980
Fuel and light
Coal	…	…	…	…	30	26	15	10	8	721
Coke	…	…	…	…		2	5	3	1*
Gas	…	…	…	…	18	12	13	13	16	303
Electricity		…	…	…	14	18	24	23	29	634
Oil and other fuel and light					4	4	3	3	5	—
Transport and vehicles
Petrol and oil			…	…	—	17	32	32	43	563
* Smokeless fuel.

The weights used in the retail prices index represent the amount spent by United Kingdom households on particular goods and services as a proportion of the numbers registered as unemployed and the number of unfilled vacancies in the Woolwich employment office area during each of the most recent 12 months for which figures are available.

Following is the information:(2) what is the description of the fuel and light products in the retail price index; what is their respective weight currently and in January 1962; and what is the current retail price as a percentage of the price in 1962.

The weights given to the components of fuel and light in the retail prices index are given below together with changes in their prices since 1962.their total expenditure. Changes in the weights therefore reflect changes in the relative movements both in the quantities of items purchased and in their prices. An indication of changes in the absolute levels of consumption of particular items can be obtained by taking actual expenditure on the items after allowing for

AVERAGE WEEKLY HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURE AT 1962 PRICES
					(£)
		1962	1972	1974	1978
Coal and coke	…	0·46	0·24	0·21	0·15
Gas and hire of gas appliances	…	0·22	0·41	0·45	0·53
Electricity and hire of electric appliances	…	0·38	0·53	0·51	0·48
Petrol and oil	…	0·35	0·69	0·73	0·73
Source: Family Expenditure Survey and RPI.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list trade by trade the number of building workers unemployed at the latest date for which figures are available.

The following table gives the numbers of unemployed people registered at employment offices in Great Britain at 8 May for work in certain selected occupations in the construction industry.

Carpenters and joiners	6,874
Electricians	2,572
Linesmen and cable jointers	87
Heating and ventilating engineering fitters	715
Plumbers, pipe fitters and gas fitters	4,380
Metal scaffolders	1,548
Other steel erectors and riggers and cable splicers	3,867
Painters and decorators	10,378
Bricklayers and stone setters	6,332
Plasterers	2,250
Terrazzo workers and tile setters	311
Roofers	1,774
Glaziers	366
General builders	1,011
Pipe layers and jointers	602
Site work concreters	256
Earth movers and civil engineering equipment operators	1,851
Crane, hoist and other materials handling equipment operators	1,948
Total of above	47,122

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how much progress has been made towards the Government's objective of reducing unemployment since taking office.

The Government believe that unemployment can only be reduced by a strong enterprising and expanding private sector. Their fiscal and changes in prices. The following table gives estimates of average weekly household expenditure on the various items of fuel and light at constant 1962 prices.monetary policies are designed to curb inflation and provide the climate in which such expansion will be encouraged.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what further steps he is taking to improve employment prospects for school leavers in the Greater Manchester county.

The employment prospects for school leavers in Greater Manchester, as elsewhere, depend on the success of the Government's policies designed to reduce inflation and create a better climate for investment and enterprise, which in turn will lead to lower unemployment. The Government nevertheless recognise that youth unemployment in Greater Manchester is too high and have accepted the proposal of the Manpower Services Commission that the size of the youth opportunities programme for unemployed young people be expanded by 25 per cent. in 1980–81. This will mean an estimated 13,500 unemployed young people will enter YOP in the Greater Manchester county this year.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many school leavers who left school in summer 1979 are still unemployed in the county districts of Greater Manchester.

The statistics do not distinguish those school leavers who left school in the summer of 1979 from other unemployed school leavers. However, in March 1980 there were 938 unemployed school leavers in the Greater Manchester metropolitan county. For later months, the numbers are higher and largely reflect registration of those who left school at Easter 1980 or subsequently.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how many school leavers in the summer of 1979 (a) found employment (b) were offered places on youth opportunities programmes and (c) were registered as unemployed; and what percentage this was in each case;(2) how many school leavers in the spring of 1980 (

[pursuant to his reply, 23 June 1980, c. 34–5]: I regret that the information is not all available in the form requested by the hon. Member. However, the Department of Education and Science estimates that some 700,000 young people left school for employment in the academic year 1978–79, of whom 600,000 left in the summer term and that 97,000 young people left school for employment during the Christmas and Easter terms of the current academic year.I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that no estimate can be made of how many of them found employment. The commission does not monitor spring and summer school leavers separately, but by August 1979 about 30,000 1978–79 school leavers had already entered the youth opportunities programme and about 175,000 were registered as unemployed and potentially covered by the undertaking to school leavers to find them a YOP place by Easter. Since then a further 100,000 have had a place on the programme; the remainder left the register—mainly for employment. It is not possible to say how many Christmas 1979 and Easter 1980 school leavers are at present unemployed.On 10 April 1980, there remained fewer than 500 1978–79 school leavers who were unemployed and for whom provision on the youth opportunities programme had still to be made. As in previous years the MSC has undertaken to find a place on the youth opportunities programme by Easter 1981 for all those 1979–80 school leavers who are unemployed.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many school leavers there are without employment in Carlisle and Cumbria, respectively; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 30 June 1980, c. 379]: At 12 June, the provisional numbers of school leavers under 18 years of age registered as unemployed in the Carlisle employment office area and in the county of Cumbria were 643 and 2,421, respectively.I recognise the seriousness of the situation. That is why the Government have agreed to a proposal from the Manpower Services Commission to expand the youth opportunities programme by 50,000 places (25 per cent.) in 1980–81 in all parts of the country. The youth opportunities programme is playing a significant role in helping unemployed school leavers and the Government will continue the programme while the need exists.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the numbers of full-time working females aged 18 years and over in each of the counties of Wales and for each of the standard economic regions of the United Kingdom in the following bands (a) under £40, (b) £41 to £50, (c) £51 to £60, (d) £61 to £70, (e) £71 to £80, (f) £81 to £90, (g) £91 to £100, (h) £101 to £110, (i) £111 to £120, (j) £121 to £130, (k) £131 to £140, (l) £141 to £150 and (m) over £150.

The table below gives the latest estimates of the percentage distribution of gross weekly earnings from the new earnings survey. The survey is based on a 1 per cent. sample of employees. Only a very small number of employees will appear in some cells of the table and, because of the response and sampling variation, the total number of employees in particular earnings bands cannot be confidently inferred from the number in the sample. Though the percentages calculated from the sample are shown to one decimal place they should not be taken as representing the total position necessarily to that degree of accuracy.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will draw up clear guidelines in consultation with the Trades Union Congress so that in future studies of workers' health in relation to their work there will be trade union involvement.

[pursuant to his reply, 30 June 1980, c. 385]: I am informed by the chairman of the Health and Safety Commission that guidance to occupational physicians on the carrying out of research and relationships with trade unions generally is included in the Royal College of Physicians, Faculty of Occupational Medicine, publication "Guideance on ethics for Occupational Physicians" published in January 1980, pre-

UNEMPLOYED REGISTERED FOR OVER 26 WEEKS
			Total, all ages	Aged under 19 years		Aged under 25 years (includes those aged under 19 years)
			Number	Number	Percentage of total	Number	Percentage of total
United Kingdom	…	…	633,257	30,413	4·8	155,673	24·6
North West Region		…	101,536	5,582	5·5	28,772	28·3
Blackburn travel-to-work area …	…	…	1,501	38	2·5	281	18·7

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the average waiting list time for cataract operations in the Thanet-Canterbury health district; how this compares with the national average; and if he will make a statement.

Average waiting time in England and Wales in 1977, based on a sample inquiry, was 21·8 weeks. Comparable figures for the Canterbury and Thanet health district are not readily available centrally, but I am aware that there is a long waiting list for cataract operations in this district.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he has reached a decision on charges to patients in the general ophthalmic service; and whether he will make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many, in numbers and in percentages, of those who have been unemployed for six months or more in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) the North-West and (c) Blackburn travel-to-work area are (i) aged under 19 years and (ii) aged under 25 years.

[pursuant to his reply, 24 June 1980]: Following is the information as at 10 April, the latest date for which an age analysis of the unemployed is available.

Yes. We decided not to charge for sight tests because we understood that there was risk that some patients who needed to be treated on medical grounds might be deterred from being examined. In order to help maintain the current level of finance for health authorities, we intend to revise the system of optical appliance charges so as to recover as much as possible of the revenue which sight test charges would have raised. We shall be laying regulations to achieve this in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what the Government intend to do to safeguard the value of pensions of those people who change their occupation.

The new State pension scheme will provide a substantial measure of protection for those who change jobs before pensionable age. The Occupational Pensions Board is considering what further steps should be taken to protect the occupational pension rights and expectations of employees who leave or change employment and I hope to receive its report and recommendations in the early part of 1981.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what further representations have been received regarding the date when the next pension increase will be paid in the current year.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has had any recent discussions with pensioners' organisations to discuss the date of payment for the annual increase in State retirement pensions.

We have received a number of representations, both from organisations and individuals, concerning the date of the uprating this year. The subject was raised when my right hon. Friend met the British Pensioners and Trade Unions Action Committee on 28 April.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will initiate a study into the possible link between spina bifida and children born in long-established coalfields.

While I am not aware of any evidence for a particular association with long-established coalfields, the variation in the incidence of spina bifida in different parts of the country is well documented and the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys, with which the Department works closely, will continue to investigate factors which could be relevant.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list in the Official Report representations he has received about the pensionable ages of men and women.

Recent representations on this subject have been received from the Institute of Personnel Management, the National Federation of Old Age Pensions Associations, the General Council of the Scottish Trades Union Congress and the National Union of Railwaymen. The representations were con- cerned with reductions in pension age and equal ages for men and women.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will take steps to create greater flexibility in the arrangements for retirement which would allow people to retire at a time best suited to their individual needs.

I refer the hon. and learned Gentleman to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. McCrindle) on 3 June.—[Vol. 985, c. 613.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what resources are available in order that action may be taken regarding the matter of pension age for men;(2) whether he will make a statement regarding an earlier retirement age for men.

There are no resources available to reduce men's pension age, and my right hon. Friend, therefore, has no proposals to that end.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in the Official Report a full list of salaries and wages paid to all hospital workers in each of the European Economic Community countries, including doctors, consultants, and each of the nursing grades, respectively; and if he will make a statement.

I regret that this information is not available. It could be obtained only at considerable cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the savings in each benefit affected by clause 1 of the Social Security (No. 2) Bill in weekly terms of the benefit payable to a claimant.

Under clause 1 of the Social Security (No. 2) Bill a single person qualifying for unemployment benefit, sickness benefit, injury benefit or maternity allowance will receive 90p less per week than if the benefit had been fully uprated in line with prices; for a married claimant the corresponding amount is £1·50. The effect of clause 1 on invalidity benefit and unemployability supplement will depend upon the rate of invalidity allowance or age of onset addition in payment. Where the maximum rate is in payment a single person will receive £1·40 less per week and a married claimant £2·10 less.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his policy regarding development of community services to support relatives caring for the elderly and handicapped at home; what guidance he has given local authorities on this matter; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend's policy is strongly to encourage the development of both voluntary and statutory community services which support the elderly and handicapped people at home, and relatives who look after them. It is widely known and widely shared. I see no need to issue formal guidance on it to local authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what analysis he has made of the increasing consumption of high energy snack foods by children; and what is his estimate of the effect that this will have on their health.

No nationally representative analysis is available of the level of consumption of high energy snack foods by children. The effect on health of any increase in consumption would depend on the nutrient content of the snack foods consumed and the extent to which their contribution to the total daily intake of food energy and nutrients met requirements.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what responses he has had to his consultation letter on revising the arrangements for approval of clinical trials under the Medicines Act; from whom; and if he will make a statement.

The following bodies have to date replied to the consultation letter, a copy of which was reproduced in my reply to the right hon. Gentleman, the Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Ashley) on 7 May 1980.—[Vol. 984, c. 154–9.] I shall be making a statement when I have considered these and other expected replies:

• The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry
• The British Association for Chemical Specialities
• The British Dental Association
• The British Dental Trade Association
• The British Association of Dermatologists
• The British Medical Association
• The Company Chemists' Association Ltd.
• The Consumers' Association
• Hoechst U.K. Ltd.
• National Consumer Council
• The Patients' Association
• Pfizer Ltd.
• The Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain
• The Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland
• Queens University of Belfast, Dept. of Therapeutics and Pharmacology
• The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
• The Royal College of Pathologists
• The Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh
• The Royal College of Radiologists
• St. Thomas' Hospital Medical School, Dept. of Medicine
• University of London, Joint Academic Unit of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Reproductive Physiology

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will increase the grants to the National Playbus Association and to the Gingerbread organisation; and if he will make a statement.

The Department has recently agreed to increase its grant to the National Playbus Association for this financial year from £6,500 to £13,000. Gingerbread is currently receiving a grant of £30,000 per annum. Officials of the Department are in touch with Gingerbread about its present financial problems. I am fully aware of the valuable work carried out by both these organisations.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services to what extent the 25p weekly age addition to retirement pensioners up to 80 years and over would require to be increased weekly with a view to restoring its original value at the time of its introduction in December 1971.

If the 25p age addition for pensioners aged 80 and over were to be increased to restore the purchasing power it had at the time of its introduction in September 1971, it would need to be increased to 81p a week. This increase takes account of movements in the general index of retail prices, as published by the Department of Employment, up to May 1980, the latest date for which a figure is available.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will consider the introduction of an inspectorate to monitor the operation of the regional health authorities.

While I do not propose to launch straight into the kind of national inspectorate which my hon. Friend has in mind, I have long been attracted by the idea of a free-standing body with a monitoring and advisory role in relation to the activities and standards of health authorities. As a start, as I said in my reply to my hon. Friend on 11 December 1979.—[Vol. 975, c. 578.]—I shall be considering arrangements under which, on an experimental basis in one or two regions, the quality and efficiency of the ways in which health services are managed at district level can be monitored by an advisory group of health service officers rather than by the regional health authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what role he sees for family practitioner committees in the future of the National Health Service.

As we made clear in "Patients First", family practitioner committees will continue with the same role as they have today. I shall, however, be studying suggestions to facilitate greater collaboration between the committees and health authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied with the manner in which the Health Acts and the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act are being operated by local authorities.

I am not required regularly to monitor the performance by local authorities of their functions under health and social services legislation, but believe it to be generally satisfactory.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what plans he has for improving supervision of private pension funds.

I have no proposals at present, but I shall give careful consideration to the recommendations contained in the report of the Committee to Review the Functioning of Financial Institutions and, in due course, to the recommendations of the Occupational Pensions Board when it reports on the need for further measures to provide greater security for occupational pension rights and expectations.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what response he has received from the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee to his recent announcement of a new review body; and whether he will make a statement.

I am pleased to say that the full committee has ratified the agreement which I reached with its representatives on 9 June and reported to the House later that day.—[Vol. 986, c. 70–80.] This agreement covered both the terms of reference of an independent review panel and other outstanding matters relating to retail pharmacists' remuneration. The agreed terms of reference of the new panel are:

"To advise the Secretary of State on any aspect of gross remuneration of chemist contractors providing Part II NHS pharmaceutical services and to act as a means of resolving disputes: either side to be able to refer a dispute to the Panel."

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will make a statement about the Government's plans for extending community-based care on the model of the Worcester development project.

My right hon. Friend's policy remains that services for the mentally ill should be community-based. In the present economic climate, it will not be possible for authorities to move quickly to achieve the comprehensive range of health and social services facilities now in use in the Worcester and Kidderminster districts as a result of the Worcester development project, but most districts now have at least some elements of a locally-based service and I expect these to increase steadily.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will amend existing regulations in order to ensure that the powers of an agent to disburse the mobility allowance of a severely handicapped long-stay resident in a hospital for the mentally-handicapped shall be the same whether the agent is a relative or an area health authority.

The existing regulations provide that, where a beneficiary is incapable of managing his own affairs, the Secretary of State may appoint a person to receive and deal with the benefit on the beneficiary's behalf. The powers vested in a person so appointed do not differ according to whether he is a relative of the beneficiary or an officer of a health authority.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he is satisfied with the resources and facilities available to assist the mobility of disabled persons.

Mobility help for disabled people is limited to what resources will permit. Only a strengthened economy will enable improvements to take place.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what discussions he will be holding with organisations concerned with the elderly before the regulations under the Social Security Act are laid before Parliament.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what discus- sions he will be holding with organisations concerned with the elderly before the regulations under the Social Security Act are laid before Parliament.

None further to the very extensive consultation which took place in the earlier stages of the review of the supplementary benefits scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Wolverhampton, North-East on 13 June, if he will separate the estimated number of claimants who will not now be gainers into (a) one-parent families, (b) two-parent families and (c) others.

The estimated numbers, based on the upper limit of 230,000 claimants who will not now be gainers, are (a) 19,000 (b) 41,000 and (c) 170,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list the spending cash limits for the Liverpool area health authority for 1979–80, 1980–81 and 1981–82.

The figure for 1979–80 was £85,740,000, and for 1980–81 it is £110,752,000. The figure for 1981–82 is not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will summarise the objections he has so far received to the proposed statutory sick pay scheme as set out in Cmnd. 7864.

Most of the 60 or so representations so far received have welcomed the principles underlying the Government's proposals. There have been a number of comments on the details of the scheme. These have expressed concern about the proposed level of sick pay, the proposed compensation for employers and the possible impact of the proposals on the employment prospects of the chronically sick.We are considering these and other comments very carefully and discussions are being held with a number of organisations

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied with the operation of the law relating to adoption and fostering.

The hon. Member will know that fundamental changes in adoption law were made in part I of the Children Act 1975 which neither we nor the previous Government have been able to implement in full because resources are not available. In this respect I cannot claim to be satisfied with the operation of the existing law on adoption. I know of no particular problems arising from the operation of the law on fostering.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services, if he will publish in the Official Report the reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Eccles to the Minister for Health regarding the monitoring of drugs.

The text of my reply to the hon. Member is as follows:

"Thank you for your letter of 20 June about the investigations which you and your researchers have carried out regarding adverse reactions to the injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera.

You have given no particulars of the suspected adverse effects reported to you and I cannot therefore make any comment on them. The Committee on Safety of Medicines welcomes any additional clinical data on suspected adverse reactions to this drug. I would be pleased to receive any data which you may have in the form of yellow card reports from the doctors of the patients concerned—if the doctors consider that such a report would be appropriate. Any such reports would, of course, be treated as strictly confidential.

At present I feel there is no reason to justify my taking any action which would have the effect of restricting the freedom of doctors to prescribe Depo-Provera for the limited short term indications for which it is currently licensed. An application for a licence for its use as a long term contraceptive is, as you know, currently being considered by the CSM and I cannot therefore comment on this at the moment.

Turning to the CSM's present monitoring system I am totally unable to accept your suggestion that the system is "slipshod, unprofessional and unscientific". On the contrary it is amongst the best systems in the world and some would say the best. I am well aware, as is the CSM, that improvements to the present system are desirable. It is well known that only a minority of all suspected adverse reactions to drugs are reported to the CSM. The number of reports however received from all sources including yellow cards, amounting to 10–12,000 per year, are regarded as adequate to enable many potentially serious problems with drugs to be identified and investigated in greater depth.

But I am not complacent about this country's drug monitoring system. The Department and the CSM itself are constantly seeking ways of improving the level of reporting and the efficiency of the analysis of the data obtained. Moreover, a variety of proposals are currently being considered including pilot studies for two schemes, Retrospective Assessment of Drug Safety and RADS and Record Linkage, put forward by the CSM. It must be remembered, however, that drug monitoring is an important and complex subject with very substantial resource implications and it is essential that any proposals are given very careful thought to ensure that the methods adopted provide the best value for money. I will, however, make a statement on this matter as soon as possible."

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what response he proposes to make to the Committee on Safety of Medicines' proposals, of December 1979, to improve post-marketing surveillance of licensed drugs.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the progress that has been made with the establishment of a system for the post-marketing surveillance of drugs.

Various proposals for improving the present methods of post-marketing surveillance, including those suggested by the Committee on Safety of Medicines and known respectively as retrospective assessment of drug safety and record linkage, are currently under consideration. This is an important and complex matter, with substantial resource implications, which requires very careful thought to ensure that the return from any scheme that may be introduced would justify the resources employed. As my hon. Friend indicated in the House on 23 April, a statement will be made as soon as possible.—[Vol. 984, c. 673–74]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list in the Official Report all drugs having product licences or licences of right which contain as their sole therapeutically active ingredient diazepam, and in each case the name of the company holding the product licence.

Product name				Number of licences*	Company
Atensine Tablets	…	…	…	2	Berk Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
C-PAK Diazepam Tablets		…	…	3	Sterling Winthrop Group Ltd.
Diazepam Capsules and Tablets			…	4	Regent Laboratories Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets and Syrup			…	4	Arthur H. Cox and Co. Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	2	Approved Prescription Services Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	3	DDSA Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	3	Evans Medical Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	3	Harris Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	3	Thomas Kerfoot and Co. Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	3	Laporte Industries Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	3	MA Steinhard Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	2	UAC International Ltd.
Diazepam Tablets	…	…	…	2	G. O. Woodward and Co. Ltd.
Evacalm Tablets	…	…	…	2	Unimed Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
Sedapam Tablets	…	…	…	3	Duncan Flockhart and Co. Ltd.
Solis Capsules	…	…	…	3	Galen Ltd.
Tensium Tablets	…	…	…	1	DDSA Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
Valium Roche (Capsules, Ampoule Syrup and Tablets).				8	Roche Products Ltd.
* Separate licences are held for different dosage strengths.

asked the secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to ensure that the specialist contribution made by the Farnham Park rehabilitation centre to the National Health Service will not be interrupted.

The future of Farnham Park rehabilitation centre is currently under discussion by the Oxford regional health authority. The factors to be taken into account will certainly include the centre's valuable contribution to rehabilitation services in the NHS and in this context my hon. Friend recently emphasised to the authority the need to keep skilled teams together in established units.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list all products marketed in the United Kingdom containing hexachloraphene.

The currently available information is that licences under the Medicines Act 1968 exist for:

• Remanex Solution
• Varecourt Suppositories
• Varecourt Ointment
• Scheriproct Suppositories
• Scheriproct Ointment
• Ultraproct Ointment
• Ultraproct Suppositories
• Phisohex Emulsion
• Phisomed Emulsion
• Phisomed Intraurethal

Such licences are recorded for: