asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement about the rates of grant for postgraduate studentships for the academic year 1981–82.

:: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and I have now decided on the rates of grant for 1981–82 for postgraduate studentships awarded by the education Departments and the research councils. They will be increased as follows:

For students living away from home and attending an establishment in London: from £2,570 to £2,770.

For students living away from home and attending an establishment outside London: from £2,090 to £2,245.

For students living in the parental home: from £1,565 to £1,640.

The rates for 1981–82 will be, on average, about 7 per cent. higher than the rates for 1980–81. This is the outcome of the assessment of the expected rise in living costs; but it also allows for an abatement by about 3 per cent. as a contribution to the Government's policy of restraining public expenditure. The increases are in line with those announced on 15 April for undergraduate students.There will be an improvement in the older students' allowance payable by the research councils to students who have supported themselves by full-time employment for a total period of at least two years, and in the postgraduate experience allowance payable by the research councils to students who have obtained at least two years of responsible experience, including at least one year since graduating by working full-time in an approved professional capacity. The rates of these allowances will be uprated by amounts varying between £30 and £105. These increases are proportionately higher than the increase in the main grant to encourage students who will normally have had experience in industry.The increase disregard for scholarship and sponsorship payments for postgraduates will be increased from £750 to 1,000, thus enabling industry to offer larger inducements to graduates to study science and engineering at higher degree level.Where other supplementary allowances are applicable to postgraduate students they will be at the rates applicable to undergraduate students announced today.The rates of grant for postgraduate and adult education bursaries will be the same as for undergraduate students.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in the light of recent findings in Birmingham prison, he will seek to require boards of visitors to satisfy themselves that prison hospital occurrence books and other records are correctly filled in.

Boards of visitors have a general duty under the prison rules to satisfy themselves about the administration of the prison. We shall consider what action is necessary to meet the criticism of certain administrative procedures expressed during the inquest into the death of Barry Prosser when we have received the coroner's recommendations.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the terms of reference of the expert scientific group established by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs; who are the members of the group and what are their qualifications for undertaking these terms of reference; who is responsible for their appointment; how often the group holds its meetings; when the advisory council may expect a report from the group; what individuals or representatives of what groups and organisations have been invited to submit evidence to the group; what scientific experts from other countries have been invited to submit evidence to the group; what scientific experts from the United Kingdom who are not members of the group have been invited to give evidence to the group; and whether the reports of the group will be published.

An expert group was established in March 1980 by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs

"to assist the council in its consideration of the implications, for future official policy on the use of cannabis and cannabis resin, of the current scientific evidence of the effects of such use".

The following were appointed by the Council to constitute the group:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many garages have been issued with a licence to sell intoxicating drinks.

The information requested is not collected centrally.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will amend the answer given to the hon. Member for Cheltenham (Mr. Irving) on 14 May, Official Report, c. 310–12, by removing those whose sentences were awarded as a result of a combination with other crimes, excluding cannabis.

The tables in my reply of 14 May to my hon. Friend the Member for Cheltenham (Mr. Irving) cover only sentences given for drugs offences involving cannabis, table 1 relating to principal and non-principal offences and table 2 to principal offences only. To adjust the figures to exclude those occasions when a sentence was also given for an offence not involving cannabis would involve disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) which subdivision of the Metropolitan traffic district covers the area of Islington, South and Finsbury; what rank of officers is in charge of that subdivision; and what is the command structure up to the commander of the traffic district;(2) how the Metropolitan Police District is subdivided under the commander of the traffic district for command purposes; what rank of officer is in charge on each subdivision and subsub-division down to the basic traffic warden; and whether commanders of police districts have any place in the line of command.

The constituency of Islington, South and Finsbury is in the north-east traffic division. Within the traffic district there are five traffic divisions, each under a chief superintendent. Each of these has four divisional controllers controlling a number of traffic and senior traffic warden controllers, under each of whom there are traffic warden supervisors and traffic wardens. Commanders of police districts are in close liaison with traffic district but are not in its chain of command.

asked the Attorney-General when the Government are going to respond to the findings of the Benson committee—Cmnd. 7648—particularly the recommendations that law centres be funded nationally.

asked the Attorney-General when he expects the Government to respond to the Royal Commission on legal services, the Benson Report, which reported in October 1979, and in particular to its recommendations on the national funding of law centres.

I refer the right hon. Member and the hon. Member to my reply to the right hon. Member for Manchester, Wythenshawe (Mr. Morris) on 18 May—[Vol. 5, c. 23–4].

asked the Attorney-General if he will introduce legislation preventing solicitors from receiving the damages awarded in civil cases and to ensure that successful plaintiffs receive the damages directly.

This would be undesirable. The solicitor rightly enjoys a lien on the amount of damages recovered through his services to secure his costs, which include out of pocket expenses.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would have been the loss of revenue if tax were not payable on any part of interest on Government securities or building society deposits which was at a rate less than the annual rate of inflation in 1978–79, 1979–80 and 1980–81; and if he will also show (a) how much less tax would have been paid by individuals in total and (b) how much less by building societies.

For interest on building society shares and deposits, about £900 million, £1,200 million and £1,400 million for 1978–79, 1979–80 and 1980–81 respectively. About 80 per cent. of the amount for 1978–79 was paid by the building societies on behalf of their investors and about 85 per cent. of the amounts for the other two years. The rest was paid by the investors themselves.To provide the information requested for Government stocks would involve calculations for each stock in the periods concerned and this could be done only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the number of foreign nationals employed in the United Kingdom by overseas companies who receive income tax concessions because they are regarded as being non-domiciles in the United Kingdom.

I regret that it is not possible to estimate the number of such individuals because the law under which these deductions are given does not distinguish between British subjects and others.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Newham, North-West on 28 April, c. 372, he will give whatever information may be available of the salaries or grades of the 512 full and part-time staff in Royal Households and parliamentary bodies; upon what range of Civil Service or public sector grades they are paid; and whether the 6 per cent. cash limits on salary increases have been and are applied to this group of workers.

The great majority of staff in the Royal Household, of which 355 are full-time and 129 part-time, are paid by analogy with Civil Service grades, but there are some exceptions in respect of staff for which no equivalent grades exist in the Civil Service.As regards the Parliamentary bodies the breakdown is:

Scale	Number
University Grades
Professional	1
Senior Lecturer	3
Lecturer	8
Clerical Grade 3	*3
	†1
Civil Service Grades:
Assistant Secretary	1
Principal	3
Senior Executive Officer	1
Higher Executive Officer	1
Executive Officer	1
Senior Personal Secretary	1
Personal Secretary	4
* Full-time.
† Part-time.

In line with other public service cash limits, the amounts payable to individual Royal Households and parliamentary bodies provide for a 6 per cent. increase in staff earnings from due settlement dates.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the current account balance of payments between the United Kingdom and the six original members of the European Economic Community in 1970 and in 1980.

I regret that figures are not available for the overall current account balance of payments between the United Kingdom and the six original members of the European Economic Community.Figures for the balance of visible trade are published in the

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will take steps to abolish the composite tax rate system for building societies.

No. This is a cost-efficient method of collecting tax relating to some 30 million accounts.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has made any estimate of the amount by which the United Kingdom gross contribution to the Community budget would be reduced if the common customs tariff and levies were applied in German internal trade to goods from the German Democratic Republic.

No. I regret that figures for the levels of trade between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic are not available since under the West German constitution this constitutes internal trade.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to announce his conclusions on the report of the Public Accounts Committee on the role of the Comptroller and Auditor General.

I expect the Government's conclusions to be announced before the Summer Recess.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update the answer given on 11 June 1979 to the hon. Member for Birkenhead on the number of prosecutions under the Customs and Excise Act.

I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update the answer given on 12 June 1979, Official Report, columns 181–2, to the hon. Member for Birkenhead on the Inland Revenue anti-avoidance work.

I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update the answer given to the hon. Member for Birkenhead on 13 June 1979 Official Report, column 244, on the amount of outstanding and unrecovered tax.

I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will take powers to intervene with the charging policies of the clearing banks and other financial monopolies.

I shall let my hon. Friend have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what he estimates would be the net extra yield of doubling the tax on one-armed bandits in clubs and public houses in the United Kingdom.

I shall let my hon. Friend have a reply as soon as possible.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is now satisfied that the threat from the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the Isle of Wight has passed; and if he will make a statement.

I am satisfied that the prompt and effective action taken to deal with this outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease was completely successful and that there is no remaining risk from this outbreak. My Department will, as always, be vigilant against further incursions of the disease.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the total cost to public funds, including compensation for animals slaughtered, of the recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease on the Isle of Wight.

Compensation for the animals slaughtered totalled over £90,000, to which must be added the costs of destruction of carcases and cleansing and disinfection of premises, estimated at £50,000. In addition, there was the Ministry's staff costs which cannot be readily quantified in relation to the outbreak.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied with the working of the European Economic Community sheepmeat regime with respect to the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

The sheepmeat regime has brought substantial benefits to producers and consumers in the United Kingdom. However, the present clawback arrangements continue to cause serious difficulties for our exporters; we are urgently seeking adjustments to these arrangements.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food why cuts have been made in Government grants to the Agriculture Training Board.

The board is funded entirely by the taxpayer and cannot reasonably be exempt from the Government policy of reducing public expenditure.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress there has been in Her Majesty's Government's actions to support the British turkey industry against the unfair competition from French producers in the British and other European Economic Community markets.

I am touch with Mr. Dalsager about the need for action by the Commission.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many days' supply of butter at present is held in intervention stocks in the European Economic Community.

Community stocks of butter in public intervention stores on 14 May 1981 were equivalent to approximately seven days supply.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his latest forecast for potato planting within the United Kingdom for the 1981–82 ware crop.

The latest estimate for 1981 United Kingdom crop plantings is 198,000 hectares.

asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food are his proposals for reform of the common agricultural policy.

Within the framework of a common policy geared to sustaining a healthy and efficient agriculture I want to see greater attention paid to the needs of the market and action taken both to tackle the problem of surplus production, particularly in the milk sector, and to contain the growth of guarantee expenditure.

asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food is the current British contribution to the common agricultural policy of the European Economic Community.

Expenditure on the common agricultural policy accounts for 69 per cent. of the 1981 Community budget as compared with 80 per cent. in 1978. The United Kingdom contributes to the financing of the budget as a whole. Information on our gross and net contributions is contained in pages 34–38 of the White Paper on the Government expenditure plans—Cmnd. 8175.

asked the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food recommendations he has received from his five marketing advisers on the subject of the marketing of agricultural produce.

The marketing advisers have made no formal recommendations. I keep in continuous touch with them and take their advice into account. They have looked at a number of areas including co-operation, bacon, potatoes, milk and apples. They are currently looking at several additional questions including the marketing of fish.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the level of damage to agriculture done by the recent snowstorms and subsequent flooding.

It is too early to make a precise assessment of the effect on farmers of the recent adverse weather. While damage is fairly limited in scope it is clear that some individual farmers will have suffered badly.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will seek to repeal the provisions of section 36 of the Slaughterhouses Act 1974 which allow exceptions to the pre-stunning requirements.

In considering this question, Parliament has always taken the view that, because the evidence of suffering which may arise from different methods of slaughter is not conclusive, religious slaughtering should be permitted, subject to the avoidance of unnecessary suffering, in the interests of religious tolerance. We have no plans to ask Parliament to repeal this provision.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if, in making any decisions arising from the publication of the Robinson report on untreated milk, he will take into account the implications for areas, such as West Cumbria, where large quantities of such milk are sold.

I assume the hon. Member is referring to a recent article in the British Medical Journal. The health risk from drinking untreated milk was one of the factors which my right hon. Friends and I took into account in the decisions which we announced last year.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied that pork producers are likely to receive adequate returns on their investment in the next six months.

Returns will depend on a combination of factors, including the relationship between feed and pig prices, which cannot be forecast precisely.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what criteria he has used in establishing the current position on milk pricing within the dairy sector of the agricultural industry.

In establishing the current position on milk pricing my aim has been to ensure a fair division of the revenue from the liquid milk market between producer and distributor; to protect the consumer's interest; and to help maintain the doorstep delivery system for milk for the benefit of producer, distributor and consumer alike.

(tonnes)
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sawn wood
1979	811	708	1,433	1,125	1,144	1,175	969	1,384	905	1,266	1,068	1,225
1980	905	1,196	971	1,007	1,360	1,163	1,564	1,044	1,283	1,246	1,826	1,272
1981	1,967
Wood pulp
1979	1,915	1,943	3,782	3,397	2,653	1,885	2,836	2,295	5,075	2,835	3,217	2,342
1980	3,569	3,621	3,459	1,411	3,246	2,097	3,399	4,09	4,200	2,328	1,052	20
1981	72

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied with the prospect for the horticulture industry.

The prospects for the horticulture industry are dependent on many factors, some of which, including the weather, are outside its control. Apart from these uncertainties, and provided that horticulturists keep abreast of the latest technology and gear their production and presentation to the needs of the market, the horticulture industry should have a healthy future. The Government will continue to play their part in seeking the right trading conditions within which the industry can operate.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what were the tonnages of wheat, sugar, dried milk and butter, respectively, subject to export refunds from the agricultural guarantee fund of the European Economic Community in 1980.

I regret that information of the type requested is not readily available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what contribution his Department will make to policies to redress the social imbalance between urban and rural dwellers.

My policies as a whole are directed to creating and sustaining a healthy and viable agricultural industry which is of fundamental importance to the maintenance and regeneration of the rural areas. If my hon. Friend has something specific in mind perhaps he would write to me.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will publish figures showing the volume of monthly importing into the United Kingdom of sawmilled and pulped timber from the Republic of Ireland over the past two years.

The information is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Trade how many working days have been lost as a result of the action taken by air traffic controllers in support of the pay claim made by the Civil Service unions.

I am told by the Civil Aviation Authority that the response to union calls to air traffic control staff to take part in stoppages varies from unit to unit, from watch to watch, and from day to day.About 6,480 man-hours were lost through strike action by operational air traffic control staff on 9 March. From 27 April to 8 May inclusive a total of about 4,110 hours were lost.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he has any evidence of the extent of the importation of blank audio cassettes over the past six years into the United Kingdom.

The number of audio cassettes prepared for recording but not recorded imported into the United Kingdom in January of this year was 7,959,734. In previous years audio cassettes were not distinguished in the trade statistics from audio magnetic tapes in general. Details of imports of such blank tapes are published in table IV of the "Overseas Trade Statistics" (copies of which are in the Library) as follows:

1975, 1976: Code No. 9212–0293 under SITC(R) Sub-group 891.2

1977 Code No. 9212–1107 under SITC(R) Sub-group 891.2

1978–1980: Code No. 9212–1110 under SITC(R2) Item 898.31

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he has any proposals to control audio and video piracy.

The Copyright Act 1956, already makes audio and video piracy a summary offence and in addition puts the full range of civil law remedies at the disposal of the copyright owner. Piracy is one of the matters being considered in a wide-ranging review of copyright law in the wake of the Whitford Committee report (Copyright and Designs Law: Cmnd 6732). This work is well advanced and it is the Government's intention to publish a Green Paper in a few months, setting out its views and inviting public comment.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade, whether, pursuant to his answer of 1 May, Official Report, c. 477, he is yet able to announce a decision on additional funding for citizens advice bureaux.

No, but I shall do so as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade whether any investigation is to be made into Staflex International Limited under the Companies Acts; and if he will make a statement.

The joint liquidators have informed my Department that they will not be making a report pursuant to Section 334(2) of the Companies Act 1948. In the absence of such a report, there are no grounds for further action by the Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) when he intends to make a decision on the recommendation of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission of September 1980 that credit card companies should be obliged to abandon their policy of preventing traders from offering different prices to credit card users and other customers;(2) how many letters he has received on the subject of the recommendations of the Monopolies Commission on credit cards since the publication of the report; and how many of the letters were in support of the commission's recommendations;(3) how many instances have been reported to him of garages and other retailers charging extra sums to credit card users since the publication of the recommendations of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission;(4) if he considers that the changes in the basis for charging consumers using credit cards and other means of payment which have stemmed directly from the publication of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission have, on balance, been beneficial or damaging to the interests of consumers.

My right hon. Friend is still considering the advice of the Director General of Fair Trading following his consultations with interested parties. I shall make an announcement as soon as practicable. Till then it would not be appropriate for me to comment on the effects on consumers' interest of surcharging credit card users.Since publication of the report my right hon. Friend has received 46 letters on the commission's recommendations. Three supported its findings. We are aware that many garages and a number of other retailers now impose surcharges on credit card transactions and, of the letters received, 15 cite specific instances of this. I am concerned that where surcharging occurs it should be clearly indicated.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade, if he will list those provisions of the Companies (No. 2) Bill [Lords] that flow directly from European legislation, detailing the relevant European measure in each case.

[pursuant to his reply, 20 May 1981, c. 85]: The provisions of the Bill which flow directly from European Community legislation are part I, clause 57, schedule 1 and schedule 2, which are required in order to implement the Fourth Council Directive of 25 July 1978 on the annual accounts of certain types of companies (78/660/EEC).

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether he will list in the Official Report(a) the amount given as foreign aid by the British Government in each of the last 10 years, (b) what percentage of (i) gross national product and (ii) gross domestic product this represents in each case, (c) what percentage of total Government expenditure this represents in each case and (d) what he estimates the sums to be for 1981.

The information is set out in the table below. In all years the figure for aid as a percentage of GNP is the same as that as a percentage of GDP. No estimates have been made for 1981 because of the uncertainties involved in forecasting figures for both GNP and net official development assistance. Technical factors largely explain the fall in the 1980 figures compared with 1979. No promissory note was deposited in respect of the sixth replenishment of the International Development Association because the replenishment agreement was not ratified. Slow bilateral drawings, by certain recipient countries against resources available was a further contributory factor.

Net Official Development Assistance, 1971–1980
Year	£ Million	Percentage of GNP	Percentage of Public Expenditure
1971	258	0·45	1·10
1972	269	0·42	1·02
1973	261	0·36	0·85
1974	335	0·40	0·85
1975	404	0·39	0·78
1976	487	0·39	0·83
1977	632	0·44	1·02
1978	761	0·46	1·06
1979	992	0·52	1·17
1980	767	0·34	0·74

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will state her official duties for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 21 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 21 May.

This morning I presided al a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in this House I shall be having further meetings later today, including one with the Kenyan Foreign Minister.

asked the Prime Minister when next she plans to meet the leaders of the Trades Union Congress.

I have no immediate plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in her consideration of the Government's proposals to be made at the October meeting in Mexico on the Brandt report, she will give particular attention to the role of intermediate technology.

The Government recognise the importance for developing countries of the acquisition of technology appropriate to their circumstances. Within our aid programme, we provide assistance for the development of such technology. It is too early to speak about possible proposals for the Mexico summit; the agenda will not be decided in advance of a meeting of Foreign Ministers in early August.

asked the Prime Minister what plans she has to meet the President of France.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Sussex (Mr. Renton) on 12 May.

asked the Prime Minister how many new non-departmental public bodies have been established since May 1979; and at what cost to public funds.

The following new bodies have been established since May 1979:

Department and Body	Approximate Annual Cost £
Department of Education and Science
Trustees of the National Heritage Memorial Fund	*3,212,000
Advisory Committee on Business Sponsorship of the Arts (Office of Arts and Libraries)	—
Advisory Committee on Micro Electronics in Industry	3,000
Review of Youth Service Provision in England	†121,000
Department of Employment Group
Industry Advisory Committee (for the Health Services)	5,000
Certification Board for Diver Training	2,000
Department of the Environment
London Housing Staff Commission	6,000
Property Services Agency Advisory Board	5,000
Merseyside Urban Development Corporation	‡16,285,000
Department of Health and Social Security
Working Group on Rickets	7,000
Steering Group on Health Service Information	72,000
London Advisory Group	90,000
Advisory Group on Hepatitis	5,000
Informal Working Group on Effective Prescribing	9,000
Working Group on Laser Safety	1,000
Home Office
Joint Committee for Refugees from Vietnam	††42,000
Department of Industry
Information Technology Focus Committee	25,000
Space Consultative Committee	—
Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise
Committee to Review the Powers of the Revenue Departments	32,000
Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland Departments
Visiting Committee, Hydebank Wood	13,000
Community Service Committee	2,000

Department and Body	Approximate Annual Cost £
Scottish Office
Council for Tertiary Education in Scotland	13,000
Standing Advisory Committee on List D Schools	2,000
Health Education Co-ordinating Committee	—
Department of Trade
Pilotage Commission	‡‡‡8,000
National Metrological Coordinating Unit	††††195,000
Welsh Office
Housing Management Advisory Panel	‡‡1,500

In addition, the process of rationalising previous arrangements has led to the creation of the following bodies, which result from amalgamations, reconstitutions, or replacements.

Department and Body	Annual Financial cost/saving £
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Farm Animal Welfare Council	85,000 cost
Ministry of Defence
Independent Board of Visitors for Royal Naval Detention Quarters and the Military Corrective Training Centre	No net additional cost
Department of Employment
Retail Food and Allied Trades Wages Council	10,000 saving
Retail Trade Wages Council (Non-Food)
87 Committees for the Employment of Disabled People (replaced 220 Disablement Advisory Committees)	60–100,000 saving
	Approximate Annual
Department and Body	Cost/saving
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Advisory Panel on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation	no net additional cost
Crown Agents for Overseas Governments and Administrations	**no net additional cost
Department of Health and Social Security
Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens	no net additional cost
Social Security Advisory Committee	136,000 cost
Home Office
Advisory Committee on Animal Experiments	††6,000 cost
Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland Departments
Northern Ireland Council for Educational Development	38,000 cost
Scottish Office
Scottish Crop Research Institute	no net additional cost
Health Departments
United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting, plus 4 National Boards	†††no net additional cost
* Part of grant is made by Department of the Environment.
† Total cost for expected life of review—18 months.
‡ The anticipated cost to public funds of Merseyside Urban Development Corporation for 1981–82 is £16,285,000, ofwhich£1,107,000 represents administrative costs.
†† Cost in 1979–80.
‡‡‡ Estimated expenditure to July 1980.
†††† Total cost to April 1981, when financing passed from central Government to local authorities.
‡‡ Approximate cost to date.
** Under the Crown Agents Act 1979 the Crown Agents for Overseas Governments and Administrations assumed on 1 January 1980 a commencing capital debt to the Minister of Overseas Development, now Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, of £30 million in respect of the property and rights transferred to them from the unincorporated Crown Agents. Interest is payable on this debt, during an

asked the Prime Minister how many hon. Members she has seen on matters relating to factory closures since she last answered oral questions; and how many jobs are expected to be lost in the closures discussed.

I have had no such meetings since 19 May.

asked the Prime Minister if she will afford the European Commission of Human Rights the same facilities and assistance for investigation of the complaints of Mrs. Edith Elliott which are now registered in Strasbourg No. 9348/81 and No. 9360/81 as she is giving to it to continue its investigations into the condition of the convicted murderers and terrorists in Her Majesty's prison Maze.

These applications have not yet been referred to Her Majesty's Government. Should they be referred, we would of course fulfil our obligations under the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms by extending facilities to the commission to investigate the complaints and find the facts.

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether he will make representations to the Prime Minister of Singapore at the continuing detention of political prisoners in Singapore.

No. British views about human rights issues, including long-term detention without trial, are well known to the Singapore Government.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what will be the total cost to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Vote of providing insurance for health care for those overseas students visiting the United Kingdom at Her Majesty's Government's invitation.

The Government are currently considering how the cost of health care for such students could be met. No conclusions have yet been reached.

asked the Lord Privy Seal how many British citizens were among the people killed and wounded as a result of terrorist activity outside Israel by the Palestine Liberation Organisation.

It has not been possible to check all relevant sources in the time available. Supplementary information will be placed in the Official Report if necessary. However, I am not aware of the death of any British citizen directly attributable to terrorist activity by Palestinian groups, whether or not affiliated to the PLO. A member of the PLO-affiliated Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) claimed responsibility for the wounding of Mr. Joseph Sieff in December 1973. Mrs. Dora Bloch's death in Uganda in 1976 followed the hijacking of an aircraft on which she was a passenger carried out by a group containing terrorists from the PFLP splinter group not affiliated to the PLO. A number of bystanders were injured in an attack on an El Al crew bus in London in 1978 carried out by the same group.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what consultations he had had with European Economic Community member Governments concerning terrorist activity by the Palestine Liberation Organisation.

Consultations within the European Community on terrorism, are not the responsibility of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. There is of course close co-operation in this field. The policies of the Palestine Liberation Organisation are regularly discussed in the framework of European political co-operation.

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether applicants who have applied to the Passport Office for a full British passport, but whose application has been held up by industrial action within the Civil Service, may nevertheless be issued with a British visitor's passport, regardless of age; and, if so, if he will take steps to ensure that all post offices are aware of his instructions so that Whitsun travellers may make appropriate arrangements.

The standing instructions to main post offices in Great Britain already provide for the issue of a British visitor's passport to someone whose application for a full passport is delayed, provided authority is given by one of the passport offices. The agreements concerning British visitor's passports do not cover the use of separate documents by children under 8 years of age, but such children may be included in the British visitor's passport of a parent, step parent, elder sister or elder brother.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will introduce measures to break up the monopoly of the National Coal Board.

I have no present plans to introduce such measures. Coal users are free to buy coal wherever they can get it cheapest.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the current figures of long-term unemployment in (a) Birmingham, and (b) the West Midlands; and what was the comparable figure in May 1979 and May 1980.

Analyses of the numbers unemployed by length of unemployment are made in January, April, July and October. The following table gives the numbers registered as unemployed for over 52 weeks at April in each of the years 1979, 1980 and 1981 in the Birmingham travel-to-work area and the West Midlands region.

	Unemployed for over 52 weeks
	April 1979	April 1980	April 1981
Birmingham travel-to-work area	11,667	12,632	20,030
West Midlands Region	34,154	34,619	57,700

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the salaries of the director general, the director of finance, the director of administration, the director of training and the legal director of the Road Transport Industry Training Board.

I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that the salaries are as follows:

Director General	£29,883
Director of Finance	£22,387
Director of Administration	22,731
Director of Training	£22,731
Legal Director	£19,525

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give for 4 May 1979, 1980 and 1981 the numbers of unemployed in the London borough Newham.

The following are the numbers registered as unemployed in the area covered by the Canning Town, East Ham and Stratford employment offices, which closely corresponds to the London borough of Newham, at the count dates in May 1979 and May 1980. Figures for May 1981 will be available from 28 May.

10 May 1979	5,408
8 May 1980	6,407

asked the Secretary of State for Employment when the Manpower Services Commission special programmes board will publish its suggested proposals for a broad framework of a cluster of related jobs, skills and occupations with respect to the youth opportunities programme.

Such proposals will be considered on their merits in improving the content of the youth opportunities programme. They will play their part in the overall effort to improve the quality of the programme.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of youth opportunities programme participants had (a) no qualifications, (b) CSE, (c) at least one O-level, (d) more than five O-levels and (e) A-level passes in (i) the United Kingdom, (ii) the Northern region, and (iii) the Bishop Auckland constituency for the latest available date and for each year since the programme's inception.

[pursuant to his reply, 20 May 1981, c. 70–1]: Annual surveys are made of the educational qualifications of young people entering the youth opportunities programme. The sample in all cases is not large enough to be reliable below national level. During the first two years of the programme, about 50 per cent. of the entrants had no qualifications, and a further 25 per cent. had CSEs below grade 1. Some 20 per cent. of entrants had between one and four O-levels, and 5 per cent. had five or more O-levels and A-levels. The results of the most recent survey are not yet available.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many private doctors are approved by the Health and Safety Executive for the purposes of conducting medical examinations under the various statutory provisions.

At present 688 doctors hold certificates of appointment to conduct periodic medical examinations under the relevant statutory provisions.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether the Health and Safety Executive has at any time received comments from the Comptroller and Auditor General, following his examination of its accounts, expressing concern at the level of fees charged for medical examinations.

Yes. In 1976, an Exchequer and Audit Department reference sheet observed that the fees for the Employment Medical Advisory Service had not been raised since 1971. Since then there have been two increases and the fees are now set at a level so as to recover the full economic cost of the service to the Health and Safety Executive.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current number of doctors employed by the Employment Medical Advisory Service.

The Employment Medical Advisory Service currently employs 96 medical doctors, of whom 71 are full-time employees.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many organisations consulted about the Health and Safety (Fees for Medical Examinations) Regulations 1981 (S.I., 1981, No. 334) endorsed the increase.

Some of the 13 organisations and individuals who commented on the Health and Safety Commission's consultative document "Fees for Statutory Medical Examinations: Draft Regulations" made detailed points on various aspects of the proposals and it is not possible to divide the comments into those endorsing and those not endorsing the increase.However, only one organisation objected to the principle that the fees should be set at a level which recovered costs, proposing instead that the fees be kept at a lower level as a subsidy to employers. One organisation considered the fees to be higher than charges made by non-EMAS doctors for comparable work but three considered the fees to be similar and one considered the fees to be lower. Three of those who commented questioned why certain specific charges were not lower, one questioned why one charge was not higher and two questioned why certain charges were not the same.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the response of the health and safety inspectorates to the proposed reorganisation.

Proposals relating to reorganisation of the health and safety inspectorates have been circulated to all inspectorates within the Health and Safety Executive and to trade union side representatives. A copy is in the Library.No formal response has yet been received; firm decisions on implementation will not be taken until management and staff representatives have had the opportunity of discussing them and necessary consultation and negotiations, including discussions with industry and other interested parties, have been completed.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate is provided with identically worded warrants of authority to factory, agriculture and mines inspectors; and if, in consequence, each inspectorate can authorise all statutory authorisations and exemptions.

With a few exceptions, the warrants are identical and consequently inspectors generally exercise the same powers. Administrative arrangements ensure that inspectors exercise these powers only in those areas with which they are directly concerned. Nuclear site licences are issued by the Health and Safety Executive and individual inspectors do not have any statutory power to give authorisations and exemptions in relation to them.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the cost of the last reorganisation of the Factory Inspectorate; and what is the anticipated cost of the current reorganisation proposal.

The last reorganisation of the Factory Inspectorate occurred in January 1977 when the original organisation consisting of 12 divisions and 115 districts, was replaced by an area office network based on 21 primary locations. It is not possible, however, to separate the cost of that exercise from costs which arose simultaneously from the planned expansion of the inspectorate in 1977 and the general restructuring of the headquarters and regional organisation of the Health and Safety Executive, including the employment medical advisory service and other inspectorates.The proposed changes in the organisation of the Health and Safety Executive do not in themselves involve any additional costs. The separate but related proposal to establish a common grading structure for inspectors within HSE may or may not involve some additional costs depending on the grading and salary level agreed for the various posts. Discussions on a possible common grading structure have not yet begun between the Civil Service Department and the trade unions concerned.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment when he expects to issue proposals for a new training initiative.

A consultative document on the primary objectives for future training policy and action needed to achieve them is being published by the Manpower Services Commission today. Copies are being placed in the Vote Office and the Library. My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Education and Science, Scotland and Wales and I, on behalf of colleagues, welcome this document and will be considering with the commission what can be done within the available resources to advance the objectives. We hope that all those concerned with the future of training will respond both to the request for comments by September and to the call for immediate action where it is needed.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many vacancies have been filled in the Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield, St. Albans area since May 1979.

[pursuant to his reply, 18 May 1981, c. 11]: 10,302 vacancies have been filled by the offices of the Manpower Services Commission at Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield and St. Albans since May 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the current total number of employees at the Manpower Services Commission employment service division in the general placing service.

[pursuant to his reply]: I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that 6,878 staff were employed in the general placing service in local offices of the employment service division on 1 April 1981. The figure excludes an estimated 830 staff in the division's head office, area offices and district managers' offices who provide administrative and specialist support.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he is satisfied that the staffing levels proposed for the employment service division general placing service in the Manpower Services Commission for the years 1981 to 1985 is adequate to provide an efficient and cost-effective employment service to meet employers' and job seekers' needs; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply]: The Government are concerned to keep staffing in the Civil Service under strict control. In keeping with this, the number of staff in the general placing service in local offices of the public employment service will be reduced to an estimated level of 6,155 by 1 April 1985. This estimate takes no account of the proposal for any cuts associated with making registration for work voluntary, which is under consideration.I am satisfied that the employment service division will be able to provide an effective service to employers and job seekers.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what staff savings are currently proposed in the general placing service staff at the employment service division, Manpower Services Commission, for each year until 1985; and what staff savings were proposed in 1980 for those staff for each year until 1985.

[pursuant to his reply]: The following information has been provided by the Manpower Services Commission about the staff savings proposed in the general placing service of the employment service division.

Projected Staffing Levels
	Current plans*	1980 proposals
April 1981		7,003 (-161)
April 1982	6,692 (-186)	6,692 (-311)
April 1983	6,377 (-315)	6,362 (-330)
April 1984	6,179 (-198)	6,428 (+ 66)
April 1985	6,155 (- 24)	6,427 (- 1)
TOTAL	(-723)	†(-737)
* This allocation of staff is provisional and subject to revision.
† Includes planned reduction of 161 during 1980–81.

The staff costs of administrative and specialist support services provided by the division's head office, area offices and district managers' offices are not included.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether his Department has found any difficulties using methyl tertiary butyl ether as an additive to petrol in replacement of tetra ethyl and tetra methyl lead; and what effect the new additive is likely to have on engine performance.

The Department is aware of the work being carried out by the petroleum refinery industry and accept that methyl tertiary butyl ether can be used as an alternative to lead-based products as an octane number boosting additive to petrol at some extra cost.The main difficulty is that MTBE lacks lubricating quality and therefore hard material exhaust valve seats are required to avoid excessive engine wear. As with lead products, the adverse emission and pollution effects have not been fully assessed.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many people were employed by the English Industrial Estates Corporation in December 1978, December 1979 and December 1980.

Excluding the chairman and members, 290, 293 and 310 respectively. But account has to be taken of the increased responsibilities placed on the corporation under the Industry Act 1980, including the transfer of certain functions from the Department of Industry, which is resulting in staff savings in the Department, as well as the additional work resulting from the normal annual growth of its estates, and the discontinuation of the use of Inland Revenue district valuers with the subsequent employment of EIEC's own qualified surveyors.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many people were employed by the National Enterprise Board in December 1978, December 1979 and December 1980.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 10 April to my hon. Friend the member for Louth (Mr. Brotherton).—[Vol. 2, c. 370]

asked the Secretary of State for industry how many people were employed by the National Research Development Corporation in December 1978, December 1979 and December 1980.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given on 10 April to my hon. Friend the Member for Louth (Mr. Brotherton).—[Vol. 2, c. 370].

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he is satisfied that offset arrangements with the United States of America have provided the anticipated net financial and employment benefits to the United Kingdom;(2) if he will make a statement on the operation of offset agreements in relation to defence purchases from the United States of America, giving as much detail as possible about the arrangements made for each contract placed with United States suppliers since 1971, specifying the benefits received in employment and financial terms.

It is not the policy of the United Kingdom Government to seek offset for each defence purchase made from the United States of America. To achieve an equitable balance in defence trade between the two countries, we rely primarily on the arrangements established under the 1975 memorandum of understanding between the two Governments on co-operation in R and D, production and procurement of defence equipment. Subject to any over-riding national considerations, the memorandum of understanding allows British industry to compete on equal terms with its United States counterparts for United States defence orders, whether or not the United Kingdom has a requirement for the equipment in question. Notwithstanding the 1975 memorandum of understanding the United Kingdom reserves the right to seek specific offset arrangements with United States industry where purchase of United States equipment would have a significant effect on the United Kingdom defence industrial base. There are currently offset programmes in operation covering the United Kingdom purchases of Chinook helicopters, and both Sub-Harpoon and TOW missiles. The offsets have covered approximately 30 per cent. of the dollar content of each programme and are to be achieved in defence related work. Progress towards achieving the specified level of offset is proceeding satisfactorily on two of the three programmes but is behind target on the third. We are discussing with this contractor the steps to be taken to increase the volume of work to be placed in the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out year by year the number of man-years of employment provided by United Kingdom defence procurement since 1975; what proportions were skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labour; and how many man-years he expects to be provided by the new heavyweight torpedo.

It is estimated that the numbers of job opportunities created directly by the defence equipment programme, the number of job opportunities created indirectly elsewhere in the economy, for each year since 1975, are as follows:

	Number of job opportunities
	Direct	Indirect
1975	203,000	162,000
1976	212,000	170,000
1977	215,000	172,000
1978	219,000	175,000
1979	225,000	180,000
1980	230,000	184,000

It is not possible to determine how those job opportunities would have been divided between skilled, semi-skilled or unskilled employees.If the new heavyweight torpedo were to be ordered in the United Kingdom, the project as a whole (including development) could be expected to require some 24,000 man-years of effort to the end of the main production run.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many man-years of work would be involved in manufacture and production if the contract for the new heavyweight torpedo was placed in the United Kingdom.