asked the Prime Minister if she will make a statement on the practice whereby civil servants prevent Ministers from having access to files or information or records concerning public matters when taking over office from their predecessors after a general election; on what statutory authority such bans are enforced; and whether she will take steps to ensure that such matters concerning public affairs are made freely available to Ministers generally or to those Ministers with relevant departmental responsibilities.

No. I believe that the basis of the long-established convention that incoming Ministers do not have access to documents indicating the views expressed by their predecessors of a different political party is well understood, and there is therefore no need for the steps suggested by the hon Member.

asked the Prime Minister if she will answer questions on the operation of the security services.

No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will cease to maintain the Exchequer Office as a sub department of the Treasury in Edinburgh.

The Exchequer Office now carries out few functions on behalf of the Treasury, and the Prime Minister has agreed that from 1 April 1981 some of these will be undertaken by my right hon. and learned Friend the Lord Advocate through the Crown Office in Edinburgh, to which the relevant staff will be transferred. An order will be laid before Parliament to achieve this. Treasury functions in relation to lost and abandoned property in Scotland will, however, continue to be performed on behalf of the Treasury by the Queen's and Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer, but it is proposed to appoint the Crown Agent to be the Queen's and Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer.The majority of the present staff of the Exchequer Office work on company registration and related functions for which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade is responsible. From 1 April the staff concerned with this work will become part of the Department of Trade. The present head of the office will continue as Registrar of Companies and Business Names in Scotland. The Exchequer Office will then cease to exist.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list in the Official Report the names of persons serving on the board of Cumbernauld development corporation along with the dates of their original appointment and the expiry dates of their present term.

The information requested is as follows:

	First Appointed	Present term expires
Chairman
Mr. H. B. Sneddon, OBE, JP.	1 January 1979	31 December 1982
Deputy chairman
Mr. T. M. Barrie, JP	1 January 1979	31 December 1982
Members
Mrs. C. Campbell	16 May 1975	31 December 1984
Mr. F. M. Cook, OBE	1 January 1979	31 December 1982
Mr. L. G. Henderson	1 January 1981	31 December 1984
Mr. W. U. P. Lawson, MBE, TD	1 October 1971	31 December 1982
Mr. J. S. Moreland	16 February 1976	31 December 1982
Mr. W. Taylor	1 January 1981	31 December 1984
Mr. M. Turner, OBE, JP	1 October 1975	31 December 1982

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will discuss with the Civil Aviation Authority the opportunities for maximising the British content in the forthcoming contract to equip the London air traffic control centre with a computer-based radio network.

No. The Civil Aviation Authority is fully aware of the Government's policy of maximising wherever possible the British content in public purchasing contracts. This is one of the aspects which my officials considered when the re-equipment of the London air traffic control centre was submitted for approval.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade how many firms in (a) West Yorkshire, (b) Kirklees, (c) Greater Manchester and (d) Oldham went into liquidation in 1978, 1979 and 1980.

I regret that figures of company liquidations are not available by area. Bankruptety cases dealt with by county courts in three of the four requested areas are given below. Figures for Kirklees, whose cases are dealt with either at Dewsbury or Huddersfield, are not available. The figures cover bankruptcies affecting all individuals and partnerships, but firms are not separately identified.

	1978	1979	*1980
(a) West Yorkshire	124	96	130
(c) Greater Manchester	161	148	191
(d) Oldham (included in line (c))	13	12	22
* Before deducting orders consolidated or rescinded; could therefore be somewhat overstated compared with 1978-79.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the numbers of hearing aid dispensers registered as trainers, the number of trainees and the number of trainees who passed the examination to become dispensers on the register of the Hearing Aid Council for each of the last five years.

The number of registered dispensers, of trainees and of trainees passing their examinations is shown in the following table. I do not know how many of the registered dispensers were actually supervising trainees.

Year	Registered dispensers (at 31 December)	Trainees (at 31 December)	Trainees passing examinations during the year
1976	776	151	27
1977	695	132	20
1978	565	77	22
1979	573	61	13
1980	516	68	8
Source: Hearing Aid Council.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will take steps to ensure that those acting for the dependants of those who lost their lives in the Tenerife air disaster receive a translation in English of the final report into the accident prepared by the Spanish authorities.

When the definitive text on the final report on the accident to the Dan Air Boeing 727 at Tenerife is received the Secretary of State will decide whether publication is appropriate. In the event that the report is published it will be in English and available to all through the medium of Her Majesty's Stationery Office.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade how many metric tonnes of raw cane sugar were imported into (a) the United Kingdom and (b) the EEC as a whole from (i) the West Indies and (ii) Mauritius in each year since 1970 up to the latest for which figures are available.

[pursuant to the reply, 29 January 1981 c. 484]: The available information, together with separate figures for imports from Cuba, is as follows:

United Kingdom and European Community* Imports of Raw Sugar†
Thousand metric tonnes
Imports
Into:	U.K.	E.C.	U.K.	E.C.	U.K.	E.C.
From:	West Indies‡		Mauritius		Cuba
1970	735	862	412	412	32	33
1971	732	907	318	318	36	40
1972	775	910	422	422	41	51
1973	769	935	384	384	128	128
1974	489	626	419	419	68	68
1975	454	627	414	414	11	43
1976	615	805	497	497	128	163
1977	469	598	477	477	—	11
1978	473	576	461	462	—	—
1979	397	493	397	438	—	27
1980	350	n.a.	546	n.a.	12	n.a.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what value of used (a) heavy plant and machinery and (b) machines tools was exported during 1980; how this compares with the exports for 1978 and 1979; and which countries were the importers.

[pursuant to the reply, 5 February 1981 c. 161]: This information is not available. The statistics of overseas trade enable imports and exports of used machinery to be identified only to a limited extent.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will take steps to curb the export of secondhand plant, machinery and tools from the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to the reply, 5 February 1981, c. 161]: As I said in answer to the hon. Member for Workington (Mr. Campbell-Savours) on 14 January, I do not think that export controls would be justified in this instance; nor would they be consistent with our obligations under the Treaty of Rome and the GATT.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what instruction in the use of firearms the Royal Ulster Constabulary receives; and whether he is satisfied with the equipping and training of the Royal Ulster Constabulary for reaction under fire.

All members of the force are required to complete a course of weapons training before being issued with a firearm. Refresher courses must be taken twice a year. The Chief Constable is satisfied with the equipping and training of the force for reaction under fire.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of the total number of jobs in the public sector in Northern Ireland, excluding the Civil Service and the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, is filled by disabled people.

[pursuant to his reply, 5 February 1981, c. 214.] The figure is not readily available in the form requested and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what the receipts were from the levy on defence sales overseas in each of the past 10 years.

The estimated annual receipts for the levy on defence sales since 1972–73 are:

	£M
1972–3	10·6
1973–4	11·1
1974–5	14·6
1975–6	17·0
1976–7	26·5
1977–8	24·3
1977–9	28·8
1979–80	29·9

Complete figures for the years prior to 1972–3 are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what sums have been paid by way of value added tax on defence procurement in each of the past five years.

The net total value added tax paid by the Ministry of Defence in respect of goods and services procured in each of the past five years was approximately as follows:

	£ million
1975–76	119
1976–77	139
1977–78	167
1978–79	183
1979–80	353

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the funding of higher education as planned for each year until 1984; what are the amounts in constant prices; and what percentage decrease this represents from one year to the next.

The Government expect to publish a White Paper on Public Expenditure on 10 March covering the period to 1983-84, which will include plans for higher education.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many lecturers are currently employed in colleges of further education and polytechnics; and how many it is planned there should be for each year up to 1984.

The latest available information is for September 1980. There were then approximately 83,000 full-time and full-time equivalent or part-time lecturers employed in polytechnics and other maintained major establishments of further education in England.The Government's expenditure plans, as reflected in the Rate Support Grant settlement for 1981–82, assume a significant reduction in teacher numbers in colleges of further education and polytechnics. For later years the Government's plans will be set out in the forthcoming Public Expenditure White Paper. The precise distribution of the expenditure reductions in 1981–82 and in later years and the means of their achievement, are currently under discussion with the local authority associations.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proposals are being made for the future of the Medical Research Council's pneumoconiosis unit at Penarth; and if he will ensure that this unit remains fully open to continue its work.

As was indicated in the reply given by my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Wales, to a question by the hon. Member for Ogmore (Mr. Powell) on 4 February 1981, the Medical Research Council proposes to continue to support the pneumoconiosis unit in the effective pursuit of its research on occupational lung diseases.—[Vol. 998, c. 725.]

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the reduction in the current expenditure of Dundee university following the Government's revised expenditure plans in 1981–82.

The recurrent grant for Dundee university for the academic year 1981-82 will be determined in due course on the advice of the University Grants Committee.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the number of applications made for places at Dundee university for session 1981–82 from overseas students; and how this compares with the number of overseas students attending Dundee university in each of the past three years.

In the last three academic years for which information is available, the numbers of overseas students in all years of their course attending Dundee university were as follows:

	undergraduate	postgraduate
1977–78	195	154
1978–79	207	202
1979–80	171	159

Reliable information in respect of individual universities for 1980–81 is not yet available. Not all applications for entry in 1981–82 have yet been received, and in any case it is not the policy of the Universities Central Council on Admissions to issue figures in respect of individual universities. I would suggest that the hon. Member apply directly to the university if he requires further information.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many young people have secured permanent jobs after leaving youth opportunities programmes; and how many have secured these permanent jobs with their employers under a youth opportunities programme scheme in Wales, Mid Glamorgan, Ogwr borough and in Ogmore constituency; respectively.

Information derived from sample surveys and available only in relation to Wales as a whole indicates that about 34·0 per cent. of participants secure permanent employment with their sponsor and a further 26·0 per cent. with other employers.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what measures he has introduced or is now considering in order that European Economic Community funds can be easily utilised by local education authorities to promote milk consumption in schools.

The Government have put proposals to the Commission which, if implemented, should make it easier for local authorities to take

(thousands)
Industry Sector	Amlwch	Bangor	Barmouth	Beaumaris	Bethesda	Blaenau Ffestiniog	Caernarvon	Conwy
Primary Industries (Orders I and II)	0·2	0·1	0·2	0·1	0·3	0·2	0·1	0·3
Manufacturing Industries (Orders III and XIX)	0·4	0·7	0·3	0·5	0·2	0·1	3·5	2·0
Construction (Order XX)	0·3	0·2	0·2	0·1	0·1	0·2	1·0	0·4
Gas, Electricity and Water (Order XXI)	0·6	0·2	0·1	—	—	0·7	0·3	0·1
Distribution Trades (Order XXIII)	0·1	1·0	0·3	0·2	0·1	0·1	0·9	0·5
Miscellaneous Services* (Order XXVI)	0·2	0·7	0·8	0·4	0·1	0·3	1·0	0·8
Public Administration (Order XXVII)	0·1	0·6	0·4	—	0·1	0·1	1·6	0·2
Other Service Industries† (Orders XXII, XXIV and XXV)	0·4	5·2	0·9	0·2	0·2	0·3	1·8	2·2
Total, all in industries and services‡	2·3	8·9	3·2	1·7	0·9	2·1	10·4	6·6

(thousands)
Industry Sector	Holyhead	Llandudno	Llangefni	Llanwrst	Machynlleth (including Tywyn)	Penygroes	Porthmadog	Pwllheli
Primary Industries (Orders I and II)	0·3	—	0·5	0·3	0·5	0·1	0·2	0·4
Manufacturing Industries (Orders III and XIX)	2·4	0·1	0·9	0·7	0·3	0·1	0·5	0·3
Construction (Order XX)	0·4	0·5	0·7	0·1	0·1	—	0·2	0·3
Gas, Electricity and Water (Order XXI)	—	—	0·1	—	—	—	—	0·1

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of (a) the number of disabled people registered as unemployed in Wales but who are unlikely to obtain employment except under sheltered conditions and (b) the number of sheltered occupations there are for disabled persons in Wales, and the number of vacancies there were at the end of January.

At 15 January 1981 the number was 1,253. There are 1,670 places available at Remploy and sheltered workshops in Wales, and on 4 February there were 10 vacancies.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what was the number employed by order of the standard industrial classification in each of the employment offices in Gwynedd for November 1977, November 1978, November 1979 and November 1980.

The latest information relates to June 1977 and is available only for broad industrial sectors as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Wales why the commodities and animal health divisions of the Welsh Office are to move from Aberystwyth to Cardiff.

To bring together some closely connected areas of work at present being undertaken separately in Aberystwyth and Cardiff, and thus to improve efficiency.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what progress has been made with regard to the legal position on the ownership of St. George's hospital; what plans are now being proposed for the future of this site; and if he will make a statement.

I hope to make a further statement shortly. Meanwhile, while no negotiations have commenced, a planning application has been submitted as a first step towards clarifying the use that could be made of the site.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many young people resident in community homes on 31 March in the latest year for which figures are available were subject to care orders imposed in criminal proceedings.

6,700 on 31 March 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will not approve the establishment of any more secure unit places for children and young persons.

Apart from a few additional secure places to assist phasing out the remanding of juveniles to prison department establishments, my right hon. Friend does not expect to approve plans for any more.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many representations he has received since the Government took office in favour of (a) faster progress towards a distribution of resources for the health service regions that matched the formula devised by the resource allocation working party and (b) slower progress towards that end.

The Government have received 16 representations calling for faster progress in the redistribution of NHS resources, all on behalf of regions which would stand to gain from a speeding up of the process. There have been no representations directly calling for slower progress.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether there have been any changes in the formula for assessing health service needs first recommended by the resource allocation working party; and whether he has any plans to modify the formula.

Various refinements have been made to the resourse allocation working party (RAWP) formula since the working party reported in September 1976. The one having most effect on regional allocation targets, the use of an adjustment in respect of higher labour costs in London, was adoprted in 1980–81 on the advice of the advisory group of resource allocation. We have no plans to depart from the general principals set out by RAWP.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give figures to show the extent to which changes in the targets indicated by the resource allocation working party for revenue and capital allocation (a) in the health service regions, (b) to the area health authorities in the West Midland region and (c) to the Staffordshire area health authority in particular have changed since the Government took office; and what steps he intends to take with regard to existing changes.

Regional targets, as a percentage of national resources available, for 1979–80 and 1981–2 are shown below:

Regional health authority	Revenue		Capital
	1979–80 Per cent.	1981–2 Per cent.	1979–80 Per cent.	1981–2 Per cent.
Northern	7·02	6·96	6·95	6·90
Yorkshire	7·65	7·68	7·76	7·77
Trent	9·23	9·21	9·66	9·64
East Anglian	3·81	3·87	4·15	4·08
NW Thames	7·22	7·20	6·83	6·93
NE Thames	8·14	8·26	7·63	7·84
SE Thames	7·91	7·91	7·64	7·62
SW Thames	6·62	6·59	6·29	6·37
Wessex	5·40	5·50	5·78	5·83
Oxford	4·20	4·21	4·50	4·48
South Western	6·68	6·79	6·83	6·94
West Midlands	10·81	10·66	11·00	10·78
Mersey	5·56	5·50	5·41	5·37
Northwestern	9·74	9·66	9·57	9·42
England	100	100	100	100

Information on area targets is not held centrally. Changes in targets are reflected in the annual revenue and capital allocations to Regional Health Authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services on what date work on phase two of the Eastbourne district general hospital will be commenced; and when he expects that the new building will be completed.

Proposals for this scheme have not yet been submitted to the Department and my hon. Friend may, therefore, like to contact the South-East Thames Regional Health Authority for the information he seeks.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what would be the number of persons made redundant in the Civil Service if employers were made

Authority	1980—Resources element claimed	Resources element paid	Needs element paid	Total needs and resources paid	1981–82 Block grant estimate
Birmingham	30·47	28·97	156·83	185·80	164·82
Leeds	48·99	46·65	85·79	132·44	110·30
Sheffield	51·19	48·64	63·47	112·11	88·70
Liverpool	32·24	30·65	103·05	133·70	115·47
Manchester	23·55	22·39	102·46	124·85	110·00
Bradford	50·08	47·60	64·25	111·85	94·46

These figures exclude payments of domestic element in 1980–81 and the comparable domestic rate relief grant in 19817–82, both payable to domestic ratepayers as a reduction of 18·5p in the pound.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to her on 27 January [Vol. 997, c. 383]. It is also not anticipated that the proposals would cause any redundancies elsewhere in the Civil Service.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to publish a consultative paper on the role and membership of community health councils in England.

The document "Community Health Councils in England: a Consultative Paper on Role and Membership" has been published today, and copies are being sent to a wide range of interested bodies. I have placed a copy in the Library of the House and copies are available to hon. Members from the Vote Office.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will hold a public inquiry into the proposed demolition by Sandwell council of Haden Hall, West Midlands, in the light of its being one of the few buildings dating from the Tudor period in the area.

Yes, my right hon. Friend has decided to hold a public local inquiry into the proposed demolition of Haden Hill Hall.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what is his current policy towards "fair rent" co-operatives; what changes have been made in policy during the past year; and if he will make a statement;(2) what is his present policy towards par value cooperatives; what changes have been made in policy since May 1979; and if he will make a statement.

I assume that the distinction the right hon. Gentleman is making in referring to "par-value" and "fair-rent" co-operatives is between fully-mutual and non-fully-mutual co-operatives. The only substantive change brought about by the Housing Act 1980, was to extend elegibility to rent allowances to tenants of fully-mutual cooperatives. In considering projects for approval neither the Housing Corporation nor the Department makes a distinction between co-operative schemes (whether or not fully-mutual) and those put forward by any other form of housing association.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what species were present on Wintringham Marsh, North Yorkshire, which were of such special interest that led it to be designated as a site of special scientific interest in November 1975; and what species have been lost on that site since November 1975 that led the Under-Secretary of State, in his answer to a question from the right hon. Member for Norwich, North (Mr. Ennals) (Offiqal Report, 11 November, c. 171) to describe the site as having been destroyed.

Selection of the Wintringham Marsh SSSI by the Nature Conservancy Council was not made on the basis of the presence of particular species, although some of the 100-plus plants recorded during the original survey in 1968 were locally or nationally scarce, but because of the quality of its plant communities growing in a uniform graduation from dry pasture to marsh.It is not possible to say how many species have been lost since 1975 as no comparative survey has been made since the effects of the draining and ploughing of 60 per cent. of the site were investigated in 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, (1) if he will set out the effect of the Government's 1980–81 rate support grant for Solihull Metropolitan borough council in relation to other councils in the Midlands and in similar areas elsewhere; and if he will make a statement;(2) if he will make clear the detailed calculation of the block grant for the rate support grant settlement for Solihull metropolitan council in comparasion with the Birmingham city council;(3) if he will outline the details of the Government's decision on finance in respect of the rate support grant for the Solihull metropolitan borough, giving the effect of his reductions in local authority expenditure in late 1980 and in the current grant settlement combined.

I will answer these questions shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how he arrived at the figure for the housing revenue account factor in the grant-related expenditure assessment for South Tyneside; for what reason there is now a credit of £424,345 for 1981–82 while the original estimated deficit on the account for 1980–81 was £454,870; and whether he proposes to amend the housing revenue account element of the grant-related expenditure element to reflect actual figures for 1980–81;(2) what consideration he has given to the fairness of using a rate fund deficit contribution calculated net of the working balance brought forward to 1980–81 in the case of South Tyneside, in view of the inherent understatement of the longer-term fend of expenditure on the account; and what is the basis of the various weightings used in the calculation;(3) what consideration is being given to revising the basis of assessment of the grant-related expenditure assessment for 1981–82 or later years;(4) what area the regional level of rents used in the grant-related expenditure calculation applicable to South Tyneside covers.

I will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport, (1) what proportion of the cost of data collection for the three national traffic censuses is borne by his Department;(2) how many of the staff of his Department are involved in the processing of statistics collected under the national traffic censuses.

My right hon. Friend and I are steadily reducing the number of traffic censuses carried out for our Department. Virtually all the data collection costs for English sites in the national traffic census are borne by my Department, although some cost-sharing arrangements are being set up with local authorities where traffic counts can serve both national and local purposes.In 1980–81, 34 man-years were spent by staff of my Department in the organisation and analysis of national traffic censuses. In addition, two man-years at the Transport and Road Research Laboratory were devoted to similar work. However, when our proposals for automated collection of traffic census data have been implemented, there will be net savings of at least 5 staff and a reduction of between 200 and 250 man-years in manual traffic counting by local authority staff.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what financial scale it is envisaged that the probation and after-care service will make provision for intermediate treatment schemes under the proposals in the White Paper on young offenders.

We shall be obtaining assessments of need from the service which will be taken into account in the Government's expenditure plans. It would then be for probation and after-care committees in conjunction with local authorities to determine the level of expenditure in their areas.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, and in what way, information is given to prisoners in written form about the procedure for making a complaint.

Information about making complaints is provided for prisoners on printed cards placed in cells.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what regulations are in force in prison department establishments regarding the hair style and length of hair of male and female black prisoners and trainees, and the wearing of combs in the hair; and whether he will reconsider the necessity for retaining these regulations.

The Prison Rules 1964 provide that, unless excused or excepted by the governor or medical officer, every convicted male prisoner shall be required to have his hair cut as may be necessary for neatness. An exception is made for baptised members of the Sikh religion who are also permitted to wear a symbolic comb.Women prisoners are not required to have their hair cut unless the medical officer certifies that it is necessary for sake of health or cleanliness. Combs may be worn unless their design would permit their use as an offensive weapon. We are not aware of any special reason for changing these regulations.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why it is his practice not to allow prisoners serving life sentences to marry until their discharge date has been decided.

The practice has been changed. Life-sentence prisoners are now granted facilities for marriage similar to those granted to other prisoners.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the total unemployment figures of young school-leavers and all unemployed, respectively (a) for the Merseyside special development area and (b)for the Merseyside travel-to-work area at he latest date; and how these figures compare with the comparable figures for May 1979.

At 15 January 1981, the provisional numbers of unemployed school leavers under 18 years of age and of all unemployed in the Merseyside special development area were 6,061 and 109,483, respectively. The corresponding figures at 10 May 1979 were 4,051 and 83,371. The figures are not adjusted for seasonal variations. There is no area defined as the Merseyside travel-to-work area.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what publicity the certification officer proposes to give the scheme for the provision of public funds for trade union secret ballots; and what progress has been made since the passing of the Employment Act in encouraging trade unions to use such funds.

The certification office has prepared a leaflet about the scheme entitled "Funds for Trade Union Ballots", copies of which are available free of charge, from his office. The leaflet makes clear that the certification officer and his staff are ready to assist unions with advice on the operation of the scheme and to give any further explanation which may be needed. I understand that there have been a number of inquiries about the scheme but that no applications for refunds have yet been received.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many complaints the certification officer has received in the latest year for which figures are available concerning breaches of the trade union political fund rules.

During 1980 the certification officer received 20 complaints from union members about alleged breaches of political fund rules.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether the Certification Officer has received from trades unions, in the latest year for which figures are available, accounts which have had a qualified audit; and if so, if he will list their names in the Official Report.

I am informed by the certification officer that detailed information covering unions of all sizes is not readily available, and that it would be difficult to give precise figures because it may not be clear in a particular case whether an auditor's comment is meant as a qualification or merely as an observation on the accounting practices of the union concerned.However, in his annual report for 1979 (covering trade union accounts for the calendar year 1978) the certification officer stated that of 30 unions with a membership of at least 100,000, 11 appeared to be complying with the accounting and auditing requirements of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 and in the case of the other 19 there were one or more grounds for doubt as to their compliance. I understand that more up-to-date information will be given in the annual report for 1980, which is due to be published in May.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether there are any trades unions that have not yet submitted to the certification officer their audited accounts and returns for the financial years 1978–79 and 1979–80.

The Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 provides that annual returns must be submitted by every trade union before 1 June in each year and cover the year ending with the preceding 31 December. I am informed by the certification office that returns have still to be received from 15 trade unions for 1978 and from 38 trade unions for 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if the certification officer is satisfied that trades unions are keeping proper accounting records, that their accounts are properly audited and that they are submitting their annual returns on time.

In his annual report for 1979 the certification officer said that substantial progress had been made in establishing the extent of non-compliance with the accounting and auditing requirements of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974, especially among the major unions, and in ensuring that a start was made on introducing the necessary changes. I understand that further progress will be recorded in his report for 1980 which is due to be published in May.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) whether it is intended that the Community draft directive (COM(80)423 final) will control multinational or transnational undertakings moving their manufacturing balance from one member country to another or outside the perimeter of the European Economic Community;

The draft directive has been referred to the European Parliament and to the Economic and Social Committee for their opinions, and preliminary consideration by officials has also begun in the working groups of the Council. The question of acceptance therefore does not arise, and for a statement of Government policy, I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply my predecessor gave to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Maryhill (Mr. Craigen) on 16 December.The current proposals cover complex undertakings within a single member state, EC-base transnationals operating exclusively within the Community and other EC and non-EC-based transnationals operating both within and outside the Community. The draft Directive does not seek in any way to control movements by transnational undertakings of their manufacturing activities. However, if the draft Directive were to be adopted, the costs imposed by its obligations would doubtless be a relevant factor for undertakings in decisions about whether to invest within the Community.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons in the county of South Yorkshire who are registered disabled are currently unemployed.

On 15 January 1981, the latest date for which figures are available there were 1,439 registered disabled people unemployed in the county of South Yorkshire.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many young people are registered as unemployed in each employment exchange area within the county of South Yorkshire.

The following table gives the provisional numbers of young people under 20 years of age registered as unemployed at 15 January in the areas specified.

Employment office area
Barnsley*	2,146
Chapeltown	99
Dinnington	128
Doncaster*	3,447
Firth Park	121
Goldthorpe	153
Hoyland	85
Maltby	128
Mexborough	420

Employment office area
Rotherham*	2,370
Sheffield*	4,899
Thome	255
Wombwell	147
Woodhouse	122
* includes some unemployed young people from other parts of the county.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list for each industrial training board its headquarters location and the number of staff working at or from that office.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list in the Official Report the number of apprenticeships being supported by Government funds in each of the 24 industrial training boards; and how this compares with each of the last five years.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the information requested is not yet available. In any event the special measures programmes which ran from 1975–76 to 1978–79 and the current training for skills programme for action have different support criteria so that the figures would not be directly comparable. However I will write to the hon. Member when further information is available.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the total Government expenditure on support of training responsibilities of the Manpower Services Commission; how this compares with each of the last five years; and what are his estimates for the next five years at constant prices.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what measures he has taken to inform local authorities in areas of high unemployment of the availability of subsidies from the European Community social fund to help encourage the hiring of young workers:(2) what measures he has taken to inform local authorities of potential subsidies to be claimed from the European Community social fund, particularly for youth unemployment; whether he is satisfied with the take-up of those subsidies by local authorities; and what proposals he has for further publicising the availability of these funds.

Information about the availability of assistance from the European social fund for schemes to encourage the recruitment of young people was published in the Department of Employment Gazette and circulated to the local authority associations at the time of its introduction at the beginning of 1979 through the machinery established by the Department of the Environment for keeping local authorities in touch with developments on European community matters.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list those countries, excluding EEC member States, from which potatoes have been imported since 1 January 1981 and the quantities involved; why he has permitted imports on this scale in the light of the domestic supplies of surplus stocks of potatoes; and if he will make a statement.

The Potato Marketing Board estimates that last month 10,800 tonnes of new potatoes were imported from the following sources, excluding Community member States: Egypt—8,000 tonnes; Cyprus—2,500 tonnes; Canary Islands—300 tonnes. Our producers cannot meet consumer demand for new potatoes at this time of year and there is no justification for intervention, providing that this traditional trade takes place under conditions of fair competition.