asked the Prime Minister what representations she has received from the Greater Manchester Association of Metropolitan Authorities about the decline in the industrial and employment structure of Greater Manchester and the need to designate the county a development area; what reply she is sending; if she will be agreeing to receive a deputation from the association; and if she will make a statement.

I have received a memorandum entitled "The Case for Development Area status for the County Area". While I shall not myself be able to receive a deputation, I would refer the right hon. Member to the reply he has been given today by my hon. Friend the Minister of State for Industry.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department has given any guidance or instruction to forensic science laboratories to deduct a value of 6 mg. from the average analytical value for alcohol in blood or urine in drink drive cases in order that results may be expressed as being "not less than x mg. per 100 ml."; and what is the scientific basis for current practice in this regard.

Forensic science laboratories have been advised to deduct 6 mg. where the mean of the analyses lies between 11 mg. and 100 mg. per 100 ml. and 6 per cent. where the mean is above the latter figure. This deducation is made to safeguard the motorist by allowing for at least three times the coefficient of variation of the analytical method, thus taking account of the known margin for error in any analytical determination.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional cost it is estimated will fall upon each of the police authorities concerned in consequence of the projected presence of the Pope in Great Britain.

I refer the right hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Local Government and Environmental Services to the hon. Member for Ogmore (Mr. Powell) on 26 November 1981.—[Vol. 13, c.465.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will give the number of persons at each of the areas where the stated riots recently took place; who were arrested, charged and with what stated offences; in which cases the charges were proceeded with and dropped; and, in the cases which were proceeded with, what were the sentences imposed and, where fines were imposed, how many of these have been paid and remain unpaid.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to questions by the hon. Member for Barking (Miss Richardson) on 30 November 1981.—[Vol. 14, c.4–5.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why no criminal or disciplinary charges are being laid against PC David Wildbore and PC Stephen Hollowell for their treatment of Mr. Erroll Madden.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action has been or is to be taken against PC David Wildbore and PC Stephen Hollowell in connection with the case of Mr. Erroll Madden, in the light of the report of the Police Complaints Board on this matter.

The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis informs me as follows. The report of the investigation into the case was referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions who considered that the evidence then available was insufficient to justify criminal proceedings against any police officer. Should Mr. Madden agree, as he has so far declined to do, to see the investigating officer appointed by the commissioner and make a statement, the director would give the matter further consideration. On the disciplinary aspect, the Police Complaints Board agreed with the commissioner's conclusion that formal disciplinary action against police constables Wildbore and Hollowell was inappropriate. They and other officers involved have been given or are to receive advice from senior officers. Another officer faces a formal disciplinary charge.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been given leave to be discharged from Moss Side hospital, Merseyside, through successfully winning an appeal to him under the terms of the Mental Health Act; how many are still there; how long it takes on average between a patient winning an appeal and being allowed to leave; and if he will make a statement.

I presume that the hon. member has in mind those patients at Moss Side who are subject to the restrictions set out in section 65 of the Mental Health Act 1959—known as "restricted patients"—and who can be discharged only with my right hon. Friend's authority. Most restricted patients are discharged conditionally in the first instance; and the usual practice is for my right hon. Friend to give his consent to discharge in principle some time in advance of a contemplated date for discharge so that suitable arrangements for residence and supervision in the community can be made. As soon as these arrangements have been approved, my right hon. Friend will issue his warrant for discharge. No such arrangements are necessary if he has given his authority for an absolute discharge. Discharge warrants—whether for absolute or conditional discharge—take effect immediately.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will instruct his officials at Harmondsworth detention centre not to refuse letters from hon. Members addressed to prisoners held at the centre; and if he will make a statement on the refusal of his officials to accept a letter delivered by the Post Office from the hon. Member for Wood Green, and addressed to Mr. Samuel A. Quaye.

Persons detained at the immigration service detention centre at Harmondsworth are permitted to receive, without any restriction, any correspondence addressed to them.I informed the hon. Member in a letter dated 10 November that arrangements would be made for Mr. Quaye's removal to Ghana, and he was removed on 14 November. A letter addressed to Mr. Quaye, in an envelope indicating that it had come from the House of Commons, was received at Harmondsworth after Mr. Quaye had been removed. It was returned to the Post Office to be forwarded to the the sender.

asked the Minister for the Civil Service what was the number of persons employed in the Civil Service at(a) 1 May 1979 and(b) 1 November 1981.

Figures for the months of May and November are not held centrally. However, at 1 April 1979 there were 732,300 staff in post and at 1 October 1981—the latest date for which figures are available—there were 679,800.

asked the Solicitor-General for Scotland how many persons have been proceeded against for breach of the peace during the past 12 months.

The latest figures available for breach of the peace are those for 1979, when 34,335 cases of this type were prosecuted.

asked the Solicitor-General for Scotland if he will make a statement on the extent to which the backlog of cases has been reduced since the strike of the clerks of court; and how long it will take for the backlog to be dealt with.

The effects of industrial action taken by clerks of court were confined to Glasgow and Edinburgh sheriff courts. As a result of that action, a considerable backlog of cases built up at both courts. In Edinburgh sheriff court, however, it is anticipated that the situation, in regard to both solemn and summary cases, will have returned to normal by the end of the year. In Glasgow, due to the need for the courts to deal with cases which had been re-raised, it is not possible to state how long it will take for the backlog to be dealt with, but it is intended to provide additional trial courts after the new year.

asked the Solicitor-General for Scotland if the experimental small claims procedure in operation in Dundee sheriff court will be continued after December.

On 1 January 1979 a three-year experiment with a small claims procedure was introduced in Dundee sheriff court. As planned that experiment will finish at the end of December 1981 and accordingly the experimental procedure will not be available after that date. My noble and learned Friend the Lord Advocate will carefully consider the results of this experiment when they become available in 1982.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what support he is giving to the proposal made jointly by the Scottish Development Agency, the local authorities and BSC (Industry) for a Lanarkshire industrial field executive.

I welcome this proposed initiative on which I hope the parties involved can reach agreement shortly.If and when the field executive is launched, "Locate in Scotland" will be prepared to co-operate in its efforts to promote the Lanarkshire area and to attract inward investment.

asked the Secretary of State if he will increase the capital borrowing consent of Strathclyde regional council to enable it to proceed with the electrification of the Ayrshire railway lines.

My right hon. Friend has promised to consider whether it would be possible to increase the council's allocation for roads and transport capital expenditure. The grant he has already offered the council in respect of rolling stock will, of course, be a substantial help in financing the project.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if it is his intention that the 1983 quinquennial revaluation will take place.

My right hon. Friend hopes to make an announcement soon concerning the revaluation.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the number of places awarded to pupils already attending a fee-paying school under the assisted places scheme.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Argyll (Mr. Mackay) on 12 November 1981.—[Vol. 12, c.127–28.]

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress he is making on his review of the rating system in Scotland.

The review of domestic rating, which has been carried out on a Great Britain basis, will be published shortly as a Green Paper, as indicated by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment on 2 December.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will take steps to develop timber-based industry in Scotland.

Yes. My right hon. Friend announced yesterday a study to examine the strategic development of the wood processing industries in Scotland and to identify early opportunities to make use of the increasing quantity of timber becoming available in Scotland. The study will be jointly funded by the Scottish Development Agency and the Highlands and Islands Development Board and will be conducted in collaboration with the Forestry Commission and the private sector timber growers in Scotland. A press notice issued by my Department giving fuller details of the scope of the study is available in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress has been made in finding a system to equate the cost of passenger and freight transport to the Scottish islands with road equivalent.

I have not yet reached conclusions on a revised system. I confirm my commitment to increasing the financial support I give to transport serving the island communities. Revenue support for these services has increased from £4·8 million in 1979 to £7·5 million in 1980, and to £9·3 million in the current year. An additional £1·7 million will be available for 1982–83 and will be distributed on the present basis. This represents further real progress towards road equivalent tariff, and I remain committed to increasing the available resources as circumstances permit.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many young people, male and female, were unemployed in Scotland at June 1979, June 1980 and June 1981; what are the latest available figures; and what percentages of the Scottish work force these figures represent.

The unemployment register is not analysed by age in June. In July 1979, 18,372 males and 14,533 females under the age of 18 were registered as unemployed in Scotland—representing 1·5 per cent. of the total work force. The corresponding figures for July 1980 were 22,172 males and 19,627 females—1·9 per cent. of the work force—and for July 1981 20,685 males and 17,801 females—1·7 per cent. of the work force.The latest available figures, for October 1981, were 16,857 males and 14,143 females—1·4 per cent. of the work force.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, in view of the fact that during the stormy conditions on 19 and 20 November Caledonian MacBrayne managed to maintain its ferry service from Gourock to Dunoon while both Western Ferries vessels on the parallel route were either stranded or grounded, if he will reconsider his decision on its future operations.

I am still considering, in the light of the report of the Transport Users Consultative Committee for Scotland, how best to provide for pedestrian passengers between Gourock and Dunoon. I hope to announce my conclusions shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is now in a position to ensure that the car ferry docking facility at Gourock will continue if Caledonian MacBrayne withdraws its Gourock to Dunoon car ferry.

My right hon. Friend hopes to announce his conclusions shortly on how pedestrian passengers are to be provided for on the Gourock to Dunoon route. Caledonian MacBrayne will in any case retain its general facilities at Gourock pier.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on progress with negotiations towards a common fisheries policy and the 1982 guide prices for fish.

I refer to the reply that I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Moray and Nairn (Mr. Pollock) on 11 November.—[Vol. 12, c.97.].Although the council meeting arranged for 30 November did not take place, we have continued by means of bilateral discussions to work towards a settlement and I hope that this will facilitate progress at the Council scheduled for 14 December.In negotiations on the Commission's proposed guide prices for 1982 we have been pressing for significantly higher prices for species of importance to our industry where this is justified by market trends.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many pupils in secondary schools in Scotland are in the fifth and sixth years.

Provisional figures for September 1981 show 45,416 and 16,087 pupils in the fifth and sixth years respectively of education authority schools. Figures for the grant-aided sector are not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any proposals to change the grants available to local authorities for the provision of permanent caravan sites for travelling people; and if he will make a statement.

It is not my right hon. Friend's intention to change the existing arrangements, under which grants are available of 100 per cent. of approved capital costs of local authority sites for travelling people. The present scheme was introduced in June 1980 to offer assistance to those local authorities faced with the difficult problems posed by unauthorised sites and has been generally welcomed.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the "Locate in Scotland" unit in encouraging overseas investment in Scotland and the extent to which these activities have contributed towards the provision of employment in Scotland.

It is too early to make conclusive judgments about the effectiveness of "Locate in Scotland", but I am greatly encouraged by the promising start that it has made.LIS has taken a leading role in securing several new investments by overseas companies and further investment by overseas companies already established in Scotland. The number of jobs expected to arise or be safeguarded as a result of investment decisions announced this year is about 4,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress has been made in the remedial work at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow; if he is satisfied with the rate of progress; and if he will make a statement.

Good progress has been made and all wards in the high rise block will have been handed back by the end of this year. A good deal of the scaffolding has already been removed. Work remaining to be done on the low rise buildings and on the service and administration areas of the high rise block will be completed by the autumn of 1982. Considering the difficulties the contractor has had in working in a functioning building this seems to me to be a satisfactory performance.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will issue guidance to members of regional health boards on the conflict of personal financial interest with the discharge of their public duties.

I have written to the hon. Gentleman in response to a letter from him about the particular case he had in mind. I see no need to issue fresh guidance on the general issue he has raised.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he intends to take any new initiatives to deal with the increasing unemployment problem in the Irvine-Ardrossan corridor.

I am currently reviewing the needs of this area, which already benefits from special development area status and from the activities of Irvine development corporation, the Ardrossan, Saltcoats and Stevenston enterprise trust and the Garnock Valley task force.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects to be in a position to report on the experiments in tape recording questioning of suspects detained under section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1980.

Further developments in the experiment are under discussion with the chief constables immediately concerned. I hope to be in a position to make a statement about the experiment early in the new year.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether proposals for development associated with the Trident project have yet been referred to his Department.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has received the document produced by the National Farmers Union of Scotland entitled "The Scottish Highlands and Islands—the Case for an Agricultural Development Programme"; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. My noble Friend the Minister of State has discussed this matter with representatives of the National Farmers Union of Scotland and other organisations on several occasions.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what information he has been requested to provide to the Comptroller and Auditor General in connection with the British Leyland tractor plant, Bathgate.

I have now received preliminary enquiries from the Comptroller and Auditor General's staff regarding information held in the Scottish Office about the use and disposal of BL's assets in Scotland. I shall be happy to provide any information which may be helpful to the Comptroller and Auditor General and to give him full access on the normal basis to Scottish Office records.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in the light of his decision to postpone the introduction of any change to the method of collecting tax on car and car fuel benefits, he will consider similarly postponing from 1982–83 the introduction of the scale charge on car fuel benefits imposed by section 69 of the Finance Act 1981.

Yes. For a number of reasons I consider it advisable to postpone the introduction of the scale charge for car fuel for one year and amending legislation will be included in the next Finance Bill. It is, however, intended that directors and higher-paid employees enjoying the benefit of car fuel for use for private motoring in company cars will be liable to tax for 1982–83 if they receive such fuel by means of company credit cards, vouchers, the payment of expenses or by their employer meeting a pecuniary liability of theirs.The Inland Revenue is currently reviewing the procedures by which tax on car and car fuel benefits is collected and that review will take account of any special problems arising from the form of the car fuel charge.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in theOfficial Report a table consistent with table 4.13 of Cmnd. 8175, which analyses relative price changes, distinguishing separately those relating to(a) central Government,(b) local government and(c) public corporations.

No. An analysis by spending authority was not prepared at the time table 4.13 of Cmnd. 8175 was produced. But if the hon. Member has a particular point in mind, I would be happy to consider whether any relevant information is available.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what working assumptions of unemployment levels for 1981–82, 1982–83 and 1983–84, on the basis used in paragraph 2.12 of Cmnd. 8175, he is making for the purposes of expenditure projection.

For the calculation of revised national insurance contributions, the Government Actuary has been instructed to use new assumptions about unemployment in 1981–82 and 1982–83. These are shown in paragraph 10 of the Government Actuary's report on the financial provisions of the Social Security (Contributions) Bill 1981,—Cmnd 8443—published on 3 December.The statement on public expenditure circulated in the

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer to what extent the general level of productivity in internationally traded goods and service reflects differences in wage levels in terms of a common currency.

There is no satisfactory explanation of differences between productivity levels in the United Kingdom or other developed economies or in changes over time in the growth of trend productivity. Taken over a number of years there will be an association between international differences in productivity and wage levels expressed in a common currency. This relationship can, however, vary over time and it is not clear how far relative wages effect relative productivity or vice versa.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the amount by which the money supply has been reduced as a result of the outflow of capital following the removal of exchange controls; and to what extent, and by how much, this has affected interest rates.

It is not possible to quantify the outflow of capital due to the removal of exchange controls or its monetary effect. The effect on capital flows was discussed in the October 1981Economic Progress Report. As this articles notes, it is not possible to distinguish the effect of ending exchange controls from all the other influences over the period. The effect on the money supply depends on further factors that are difficult to quantify, including the degree of substitutability between money, other sterling assets and overseas securities.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) by how much he estimates central Government(a) in England,(b) in England and Wales and(c) in the United Kingdom exceeded current expenditure plans, as contained in Cmnd. 7841, in 1980–81 (i) in percentage terms, (ii) in November 1980 prices and (iii) in cash terms;(2) by how much he estimates the central Government

Volume information is no longer held centrally now that public expenditure is planned in cash. It is therefore not yet possible to compare directly outturns with the plans published in Cmnd. 7841.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what factors would make it difficult for charities to reclaim directly relief of income tax paid at rates above the basic rate and which led to the Inland Revenue's deciding that higher rate taxpayers could keep the extra tax involved.

Confidentiality would preclude the Inland Revenue from passing on information, such as the rates at which a taxpayer is liable to tax, to a third person; and making repayments to charities at more than one rate would involve the Revenue in additional administrative costs.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what total value of(a) loans and(b) guarantees to loans have been made by the European Investment Bank to each member State for the last convenient 12 month period.

Details of loans and guarantees made by the European Investment Bank are published in the bank's annual reports. The figures for 1980, taken from the most recent annual report, are as follows:

	(£ million)
	Loans	Guarantees to Loans
Belgium	83	—
Denmark	44	—
Germany	—	8
France	151	—
Ireland	178	—
Italy	615	—
Luxembourg	—	—
Netherlands	—	—
United Kingdom	417	—

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total yield of development land tax in Wales to date.

I regret that the information is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether there have been any changes in policy on the tax treatment of the costs of abandonment of offshore oil and gas platforms since the written answer to the hon. Member for Gosport on 23 February 1979, particularly in the light of the discussions then referred to and of the introduction for supplementary petroleum duty.

No. Discussions between my officials and the industry have suggested that some technical problems might conceivably arise from the detailed application of the existing provisions of tax relief against costs of abandonment. But any difficulties in practice are not likely to arise for many years to come, and I do not think that the industry generally attaches any immediate priority to remedial action.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer further to his reply dated 2 December,Official Report, column 128, to the hon. Member for Grimsby on the exchange rate, whether he will now calculate the corresponding figures for changes in the real exchange rate using the measure which he believes most realistic; and what effect, if any, the change in the notional central rate against the European currency of account has had on United Kingdom prices under the common agricultural policy.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, further to his reply dated 1 December,Official Report, column 66, to the hon. Member for Grimsby concerning tax allowances for investment, whether he can give a date for the issue of the Green Paper; and if he will publish the estimates as soon as they are available.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer further to his reply dated 2 December, Official Report, column 130, to the hon. Member for Grimsby, whether he will publish in theOfficial Report a table showing the number of investigations in hand and the number started in each of the five years to 1980 and this year to date to detect such overseas tax evasion, and the number of cases in which help has been requested from contracting parties.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, further to his reply dated 2 December,Official Report, column 127, to the hon. Member for Grimsby, whether normalised unit labour costs have risen faster or slower than unit labour costs relative to those of the United Kingdom's principal competitors and by how much; and if he will make a statement indicating the reasons for the difference, if any.

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

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the draft clauses on the capital transfer tax treatment of discretionary trusts will be published.

As foreshadowed in my Budget speech I have authorised the Inland Revenue to publish today, for further discussion, draft clauses that set out the basis on which I propose to deal in next year's Finance Bill with the treatment of discretionary trusts for capital transfer tax purposes.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what recent contact he has had with the countries of sub-Saharan Africa regarding the famine; what specific aid currently is extended by the United Kingdom in this respect; and what plans he has for the future.

None. A number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa have experienced food shortages over the past year, and commitments or offers of United Kingdom food aid to the region in 1981 amount to over 50,000 tonnes of cereals. We shall continue to allocate food aid in accordance with the needs of individual countries, as well as encouraging higher food production with our normal bilateral development aid.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment in regard to how many establishments the Wages Inspectorate is responsible for ensuring the payment of legal minimum rates of pay and holiday entitlements for employees.

At the end of 1980 the Wages Inspectorate was aware of approximately 392,000 establishments at which employment of workers was covered by the Wages Councils Act 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how much money has been recovered since May 1979 for workers found by the Wages Inspectorate to be underpaid; how many underpaid workers this sum represents; and what is the average for each worker underpaid.

The information requested is not readily available for the period since May 1979 but for the period from January 1979 to the end of October 1981 the amount recovered by the Wages Inspectorate was £5,381,529 for 73,026 workers. The average amount recovered per worker underpaid was £73·69.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the percentage reduction in the numbers of wages council inspectors employed since May 1979.

Since May 1979 the number of outdoor wages inspectors employed has fallen by 26 per cent.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the organisations with which he has had consultations on the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981; and if any of the organisations has expressed objection.

Under the previous Administration consultations on the draft regulations were held with the TUC and CBI in the usual way. In addition, a number of organisations have written to the Department with comments. These include:

• The Insolvency Practitioners' Association.
• The Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies.
• The Law Society of Scotland.
• British Institute of Management.
• The Committee of London Clearing Banks.
• The Stock Exchange.
• Panel on Take-overs and Mergers.
• The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators.
• Imperial Chemical Industries Limited.
• The National Federation of Clay Industries Ltd.

Most of these organisations expressed some dissatisfaction with one or more of the provisions, and their views have been taken into account as far as possible, within the constraints of the directive that the regulations are to implement.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if the Government will be able to honour their pledge that every young person who left school in the summer of 1981 and is still without employment will be placed in a youth opportunities programme by Christmas.

It is still too early to say whether the Christmas undertaking will be met. However, I am confident that all concerned are making every effort to ensure that it is.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what constitutes an offer of a place on the youth opportunities programme.

An offer of an opportunity or place on a scheme by a sponsor constitutes an offer of a place on the youth opportunities programme.However, if a young person, without justifiable reason, refuses to attend an interview for an opportunity, the offer of an interview may be considered to constitute an offer.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what discussions have taken place with the Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress on the proposals of the Confederation of British Industry to initiate improved training of young people in industry in enhanced schemes with concentration on specialist and craft training.

My right hon. Friend is studying a report from the Manpower Services Commission on the response to the "New Training Initiative", including comments by the Confederation of British Industry. No discussions have yet taken place.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether special measures will be introduced to train young people for skilled work when he abolishes the majority of training boards.

My right hon. Friend hopes to make an announcement on new training arrangements by the turn of the year following consultations on the "New Training Initiative.".

asked the Secretary of State for Employment, in view of the estimate of 225,000 unemployed school leavers in 1982 announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 2 December,Official Report, c. 254, what additional measures he intends to introduce to provide young unemployed people with vocational training and work experience.

My right hon. Friend intends to make an announcement shortly of the Government's proposals to improve the vocational training of young people, including the young unemployed.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps the Manpower Services Commission is taking to review the present sponsorship and supervision requirements for the sheltered industrial groups scheme.

The Manpower Services Commission is concerned by the relatively slow build-up in the number of sheltered industrial groups that it believes have great potential as a method of providing work for severely disabled people. It is therefore reviewing the administrative arrangements for such groups, including questions of sponsorship and supervision. In the course of the review, opinions have been sought from the national advisory council for the employment of disabled people and from the sheltered employment consultative group, which include representatives of organisations currently sponsoring and operating groups. The commission is also inviting views of other interested parties.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how much money has been allocated to date in Ceredigion under job creation schemes; what are the estimates for the next 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

I regret that the information is not available in the manner requested.The youth opportunities programme, the temporary short-time working compensation scheme, the job release scheme and the community enterprise programme are available in Ceredigion, as in other parts of the country.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment, pursuant to his reply,Official Report, 16 November, concerning the illegal underpayment of wages council minima in the clothing industry, if he will publish corresponding data giving the number of employees whose wages were examined and the number and percentage of these employees found to be underpaid in the clothing industry in each year since 1970.

The information requested is as follows:

Workers in the clothing industry covered by wages councils
Year	Number of workers whose wages examined	Number of workers underpaid	Percentage of workers underpaid per cent.
1970	24,885	991	4·0
1971	24,293	903	3·7
1972	22,216	1,461	6·6
1973	20,017	699	3·5
1974	21,598	827	3·8
1975	18,937	726	3·8
1976	10,341	1,442	13·9
1977	11,812	1,679	14·2
1978	13,461	834	6·2
1979	19,371	664	3·4
1980	20,071	1,311	6·5

asked the Sescretary of State for Employment whether guidance is given to recipients of redundancy payments on the manner in which the sums should be invested or otherwise applied.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade when the secretary-general of the food and drink industries council may expect a reply to his letter of 12 August to the Minister for Consumer Affairs regarding the Monopolies and Mergers Commission's report on discounts to retailers.

I replied on 8 December following a lapse in departmental procedure, for which I apologise.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade whether any restrictions have been placed on the sale of Rolls-Royce engines on airbus A300/A310 aeroplanes to Libya.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Trade when he last carried out an overall review of the need for retaining the advisory committee on historic wreck sites; whether he considered alternative privately funded sources of advice; and what conclusions he reached.

[pursuant to the reply, 19 November 1981, c.208]: The need for the advisory committee, which was established in 1973 to assist the Secretary of State in carrying out his duties under the Protection of Wrecks Act is reviewed annually. It brings together people with a wide range of expertise and knowledge, connected with both privately and publicly financed bodies, including salvors, archaeologists and museum specalists.The committee including the chairman, Lord Runciman, consists of 14 members and three associate members representing Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It usually meets three times a year at an average annual cost of £300, representing principally travel and subsistence. Since 1973 a total of £2,375 has been incurred in travel and subsistence as well as additional expenditure of £1,827 on two special meetings and a dinner. The committee is serviced by the marine division of the Department of Trade at an estimated cost of £4,050 in 1981–82. I am satisfied that such a committee represents the best available method of obtaining objective and cost-effective advice on implementation of the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, but I have now decided to reduce the size of the committee from 17 to 12, with effect from 1 January 1982.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade whether he has considered seeking to amend the Restrictive Trade Practices Act to encourage companies that have complementary information to collaborate in the production of new products in the electronics industry.

[pursuant to the reply, 7 December 1981, c.273]: My right hon. Friend continues to keep the working of the Restrictive Trade Practices Act 1976 under review but does not consider that the Act need present a barrier to the kind of collaboration the hon. Member has in mind. If she has specific evidence of difficulties that have arisen perhaps she would write to me.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will take steps to cancel agreements on air services between the United Kingdom and South Africa, in view of the release there of 33 persons concerned in the Seychelles hijacking; and if Her Majesty's Government will urge Governments who participated in the Ottawa summit to take similar action.

I have been asked to reply.Five men were charged in Durban on 2 December in connection with the hijacking of the Air India aircraft from the Seychelles, and the incident is still under investigation by the South African authorities. The South African Minister of Justice has stated that the Attorney-General of Natal has the authority to bring further charges against all those involved. Meanwhile, the question of action over air services by Her Majesty's Government and other participants at the Ottawa summit, with whom we are in close touch, does not arise.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what steps are being taken to control pollution in Hong Kong; and if he will make a statement on the work of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Existing arrangements for pollution control are being reviewed and a programme of new legislation has commenced. Ordinances have recently been enacted to control waste disposal and water pollution. Drafting is at an advanced stage on Bills to replace with comprehensive new measures the clean air ordinance 1959 and existing controls on noise. The Environmental Protection Agency is the principal policy-making and coordinating body for environmental protection in Hong Kong.

asked the Lord Privy Seal when, and in what form, either the Governments concerned or any organ of the European Economic Community have published the text of the proposed European Act.

Neither of the Governments concerned, nor any organ of the European Community has officially published the texts of the German/Italian draft "European Act". Copies of the draft have, however, been made available by the German and Italian Governments and were distributed at the European Parliament on 19 November following addresses there by Herr Genscher and Signor Colombo.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what discussions have taken place between Her Majesty's Government and the Government of the Irish Republic regarding participation of the British National Oil Corporation in the exploration of oil reserves in the waters of the Republic; and if he will make a statement.

There have been no discussions between Her Majesty's Government and the Government of the Irish Republic about participation by the British National Oil Corporation in oil exploration in the waters of the Irish Republic.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if he will list the cases, with dates, in which the Foreign Office has paid the costs of members of the Foreign Service who have sued in libel actions.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not paid the costs of any members of its staff who have sued in libel actions. The analogous cases referred to in my reply of 29 October to the right hon. Member include rare occasions where the Home Office has given approval to requests for the cost of civil proceedings by a police officer to be met from the local police fund to the extent that they are not recovered from the defendant. Approval has been given only when the action was considered to be in the interests of the police officer and of the police service. In addition, a prison governor and a Service officer have received help from public funds in defamation proceedings.

asked the Lord Privy Seal whether any assistance has been offered to the Nigerian element of the Chad peacekeeping force by Her Majesty's Government; and if he will make a statement.

Her Majesty's Government have explained to the Nigerian Government and to the chairman of the Organisation of African Unity their willingness to assist with essential logistic support for the Nigerian contingent to the Chad peacekeeping force. We await the Nigerians' response. It is not yet clear what help is required.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what plans there are to appoint a defence attaché to the British embassy in Santiago.

The defence attaché post at the British embassy, Santiago, which was discontinued in 1978, is to be re-established early in the new year. The embargo on arms sales to Chile was lifted in July 1980. We continue to prohibit the sale to Chile of arms likely in our judgment to be used for internal repression.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what representations he has received from the Greater Manchester Association of Metropolitan Authorities about the decline in the industrial and employment structure of Greater Manchester and the need to designate the county a development area; what reply he is sending; what action he is taking; if in particular he will be meeting a deputation from the association; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has received a memorandum entitled "The Case of Development Area Status for the County Area" and the association has been advised that I am ready to receive a deputation on a date to be arranged.

asked the Secretary of State for Industy what has been the total value of projects supported under the product and process development scheme since its inception in September 1977 to date; and what financial assistance the Government have made available towards these costs.

As at the end of September 1981 the number of projects supported, the project value and the departmental commitment under the scheme were as follows:

	No. of projects	Project Value £000	Departmental Commitment £000
25 per cent. Grant	547	296,574	71,940
50 per cent. Shared Cost contract*	87	25,967	13,035
Pre-Production orders†	107	16,259	16,259
Total	741	338,800	101,234
Notes:
*to be recovered though a levy on sales.
†the Department buys a pre-production model for loan to a user who is expected to buy it at the end of the trial period.

Full details of the scheme are given in the Department of Industry's "Notes for Guidance of Applicants", copies of which are in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what are his plans for the future of the Falkland Islands and their dependencies.

The Royal Marines garrison on the Falkland Islands will be maintained at its present strength and, until she returns to the United Kingdom next spring, HMS "Endurance" offers a limited military capability in the area. It would not be in the nation's interests to discuss what additional measures might in future be required to maintain our commitment.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals he is considering for the construction of a new headquarters building at Woolwich arsenal; and what effect such a scheme would have on the availability of surplus land at Woolwich arsenal.

Planning is currently in hand for a new headquarters building at Woolwich arsenal west for the recently amalgamated quality assurance directorate (ordnance), to replace existing accommodation that is dispersed in several older buildings throughout the site. The exact location within the Woolwich arsenal west site has yet to be decided but one option that is being examined would involve the use of the site adjacent to Beresford Square, which has been in disposal for some years and would incorporate one or more of the historic buildings located there. If this option is chosen, we would hope to be in a position to release for disposal an alternative package of land at the eastern side of Woolwich arsenal west. We shall be discussing the possible use of the site adjacent to Beresford Square with the local authority in the new year.In the meantime negotiations for the sale of 2·5 acres of the site to the GLC for road improvements, which will be unaffected by the possible MOD requirement, are continuing.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the present estimated cost of developing the second and third stream of the SSN refit facilities at Devonport planned for completion in 1986.

The facilities that have been provided at Devonport were originally intended to support two SSN streams and the increase to three streams will largely be met by increased utilisation of these. Some additional facilities will be required and studies are in hand to determine the precise needs but additional capital expenditure arising from three-stream refitting is expected to be relatively small.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence in what year the two stream nuclear submarine refit and refuelling facility at Chatham dockyard was completed; and at what total cost.

The main refit/refuelling facilities were completed in 1968 at a total cost of approximately £7 million. Further improvements and additions have taken place between 1968 and 1979 at an approximate cost of £1·5 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what charge his Department makes to the BBC for meteorological services; and what charge is made to ITV companies for the same service.

Weather forecasts are provided free of charge to the BBC in return for it undertaking to broadcast shipping forecasts, reports from coastal stations and gale and other public warnings. They are, however, charged the staff costs of the weathermen's national and regional TV appearances and preparatory work, currently £76,000 per year.Commercial TV companies are charged for services, there being no similar obligation on them. The charges depend on the services required and wide variations between regions render comparisons meaningless. They are, however, charged at the same rates for staff time, computer time and transmission costs as apply to other repayment customers.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to make a statement on the cancellation of Sea Eagle.

No such decision has been taken.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the total expenditure on the Trident programme up to the most recent convenient date; and what proportion of this has come out of the naval target heading.

[pursuant to his reply, 4 December 1981, c.265]: Estimated expenditure on Trident in financial years 1980–81 and 1981–82 was about £4 million to £5 million and £60 million respectively. Expenditure on Trident to date remains within these estimates. Current expenditure is controlled by the Vote system, not by target heading.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will give details of the latest estimates he has made of expenditure in 1981–82 by the intervention board for agricultural produce on market regulation under the common agricultural policy, together with comparable figures for 1980–81.

Details are given below of the latest estimates for the financial year 1981–82 together with comparable figures for the outturn in the financial year 1980–81.

Expenditure by the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce
	Latest Estimate of Outturn 1981–82	Actual Outturn 1980–81
	£ million
Cereals	200·1	157·2
Beef and Veal	59·1	131·6
Pigmeat	-30·1	-16·7
Sugar	33·1	21·3
Herbage Seeds	6·1	3·9
Hops	0·8	0·8
Processed Products	25·2	16·7
Milk Products	213·5	187·0
Sheepmeat	95·6	42·3
Oilseeds	53·6	50·6
Others	8·2	8·5
	665·2	603·2

Expenditure by the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce includes the beef premium and sheep variable premium schemes, refunds on imports and exports, certain production subsidies the butter and school milk subsidies, the gross cost of aids for private storage and animal feed and the net cost of commodities bought into intervention and subsequently sold. It also takes account of certain receipts treated as negative expenditure, namely monetary compensatory amounts levied on intra-Community trade, clawback of variable premiums on exports of sheep and sheepmeat and the coresponsibility levy on milk producers. Of the estimated outturn for 1981–82, £651·5 million is expected to be financed from the guarantee section of the European agricultural guidance and guarantee fund (EAGGF); the balance being financed from Exchequer funds. In 1980–81 £527·5 million was financed from EAGGF. Some of the expenditure shown in the preceding table benefits consumers and trade interests rather than United Kingdom producers.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will give details of the latest estimate he has made of the cost in 1981–82 of expenditure by his Department, the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland and the Welsh Office agricultural department under the United Kingdom price guarantees and other agricultural grants and subsidies, together with comparable figures for 1980–81.

Details are given in the following table of the latest estimates for the financial year 1981–82 together with the comparable figures for the outturn in the financial year 1980–81.

	Latest estimate of outturn 1981–82 £ million	Actual outturn 1980–81 £ million
Price Guarantees (a)
Sheep(b)	—	32·9
Wool	8·5	3·9
Potatoes	9·9	8·7
	18·4	45·5
Production Grants and Subsidies
Guidance Premiums for Beef and Sheepmeat	7·1	10·2
Milk Non-Marketing Premiums	24·7	30·5
Suckler Cow Premium Scheme	20·5	14·6
Annual Premium on Ewes	28·5	—
	80·8	55·3
Support for Capital and Other Improvements
Agriculture and Horticulture Development Scheme(c)	85·8	97·3
Farm Accounts	2·5	2·1
Farm Structure	0·6	0·6
Agriculture and Horticulture Grant Scheme(d)	76·0	88·4
Co-operation Grants	2·1	1·4
Others	0·5	0·3
	167·5	190·1
Support for Agriculture in Special Areas
Hill Livestock Compensatory Allowances	(e) 87·6	95·0
Additional benefit to farmers in special areas under AHDS and AHGS	17·7	21·9
Others	1·7	1·4
	107·0	118·3
Grand Total	(f) 373·7	(f) 409·2
(a) Residual expenditure under the milk guarantee arrangements which terminated on 31 December 1977 is attributed to food subsidies.
(b) Price guarantee arrangements for sheep were superseded by the EC sheep variable premium scheme on 20 October 1980.
(c) Formerly the farm and horticulture development scheme.
(d) Formerly the farm and horticulture capital grant schemes.
(e) Takes into account the 1982 rates announced on 19 November 1981, including an increase in the rate of allowance for hill cows.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will seek to amend schedule 5 to the Land Drainage Act 1976 so as to include in the description of the River Brent in sub paragraph 1(1)(e) a specific reference to Costons Brook.

No. Specific reference to Costons Brook in the schedule would change its status from a "metropolitan" to a "main metropolitan" watercourse, and transfer the powers to carry out drainage work from Ealing borough council to the Greater London Council. I see no reason for making such a change.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many licences to permit the felling of trees have been issued by the Forestry Commission to British Railways; in respect of what quantity of timber; and for what purposes.

None in the last two years.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will estimate the cost of raising the school leaving age to 17 years; to what extent this would be offset by the reduction in the cost of youth opportunity and other programmes; and how many additional teachers would be required.

The net recurrent cost of providing for all young people to remain in full-time education in England—in school or college—until 17 is estimated to be of the order of £600 million—£700 million at current prices, allowing for savings of some £300 million on other programmes. About 30,000 additional teachers/lecturers would be needed in a wide range of subjects. There would also be substantial additional capital costs.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what factors have caused the delay in reaching a decision on granting a seat to the Association of Polytechnic Teachers on the Burnham Further Education Committee following the decision in principle reached earlier in the current year.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answers given on 1 December. My right hon. Friend believes that it is important that all parties interested in this matter should have a full opportunity to present their views and that those should be carefully considered before the final decision is taken.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will seek to amend the provisions of the Education Act 1980 so that pupils from one education authority can apply for places in selective schools in another education authority.

No amendment is necessary as this is already provided for in the Act.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has any plans to extend the operation of the microelectronics education programme into the further education sector, with special reference to microprocessor applications.

To the extent that the work of schools and colleges overlaps, the programme already includes elements that can be expected to help the further education sector; for instance, the Royal Society of Arts is being commissioned under the programme to produce materials for the in-service training of business studies teachers. There are, however, no present plans to extend the scope of the programme to cover further education more generally.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many local education authorities have now published their schools' examinimation results for the year 1980–81; and whether parents and others concerned are able to obtain this data as required under the Education Act 1980.

The information is not available in the department. The Education (School Information) Regulations require the publication of examination results, for the first time in relation to the 1982–83 school year. Each year information must be published at least six weeks before parents choose schools to which their children are seeking admission in the autumn term.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations he has had calling for a new independent engineering research and development council outside the Science and Engineering Research Council; from whom; and if he has considered such a proposal.

I have received no such representations.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how much has been allocated to the Science and Engineering Research Council for each of the last five years at constant prices for(a) engineering board and research projects and(b) engineering studentships; and what percentage of the council's budget this represents in each case.

The Science and Engineering Research Council has discretion to allocate the grant-in-aid that it receives from my department between its various activities, according to its own priorities. During the last five financial years the council has spent the following sums—at constant October 1980 prices—on engineering-related work:

	Top lines £m, bottom lines percentages of Councils Budget
	1976–77	1977–78	1978–79	1979–80	1980–81
Engineering Research	29·5	20·7	22·4	28·9	30·9
	9·5%	10·4%	10·5%	13·7%	15·4%
Engineering Studentships	7·5	8·9	9·3	9·1	9·6
	3·5%	4·5%	4·4%	4·3%	4·8%
Engineering (Total)	28·0	29·7	31·7	38·0	40·6
	13·0%	14·9%	14·9%	18·0%	20·2%

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he has any plans to change the law in regard to the duty on local education authorities to provide adult or further education.

As announced in answer to the question from my hon. Friend the Member for Wokingham (Sir W. van Straubenzee) on 17 June last, the Government will in due course bring forward their own proposals for any changes in the law relating to further education, including adult education. The comments received on the report by officials are now being considered by my Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his latest estimate of the number of students admitted to first degree courses and awarded a grant from public funds who do not pursue their course beyond the end of the first year, and who are subsequently refused a grant in respect of a different course of studies even though they have obtained the necessary academic qualifications for a place.

Students who abandon a course of study for a first degree after more than one term are not entitled to a mandatory award for a subsequent course. Awards to students in this position are at the discretion of the local education authority and the Department does not collect information on the numbers made or refused. A survey undertaken in 1977–78 indicated that 75 per cent. of local authorities considered each case of this kind on its individual merits: only 6 per cent. were never prepared to offer assistance.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list in theOfficial Report those local education authorities in England which, in the autumn of 1981, provided free school meals(a) only for children from families in receipt of supplementary benefit or family income supplement,(b) for children who qualify under the former income eligibility limits and(c) for children who fall in between these two tests.

Information currently available in the Department is not sufficiently detailed to enable the question to be answered exactly in the form in which it was asked. Based on informal inquiries, it appears that authorities are awarding free school meals as follows.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the price charged to consumers for school meals in each local education authority in the autumn of 1981.

Informal evidence currently available in the Department indicates that authorities in England are making the following charges for fixed price.meals

	pence
Avon	50
Barking	50
Barnet	45
Barnsley	40
Bedfordshire	60
Berkshire	50
Bexley	55
Birmingham	45
Bolton	42
Bradford	45
Brent	35
Bromley	50
Buckinghamshire	60
Bury	45
Calderdale	40
Cambridgeshire	50
Cheshire	50
Cleveland	45
Cornwall	50
Coventry	45
Croydon	50
Cumbria	40
Derbyshire	45
Devon	45
Doncaster	40

	pence
Dorset	—*
Dudley	40
Durham	36
Ealing	50
East Sussex	48
Enfield	55
Essex	50
Gateshead	45
Gloucestershire	50
Hampshire	50
Haringey	45
Harrow	50
Havering	50
Hereford and
Worcester	45
Hertfordshire	60
Hillingdon	45
Hounslow	40
Humberside	50
ILEA	35
Isle of Wight	45
Kent	50
Kingston on
Thames	45
Kirklees	35
Knowsley	40
Lancashire	40
Leeds	47
Leicestershire	50
Lincolnshire	—*
Liverpool	45
Manchester	40
Merton	53
Newcastle	40
Newham	42
Norfolk	53
Northamptonshire	55
North Tyneside	35
Northumberland	45
North Yorkshire	50
Nottinghamshire	50
Oldham	40
Oxfordshire	50
Redbridge	45
Richmond	50
Rochdale	40
Rotherham	40
St. Helens	40
Salford	40
Shropshire	45
Sandwell	40
Sefton	50
Sheffield	40
Solihull	50
Somerset	50
South Tyneside	40
Staffordshire	40
Stockport	50
Suffolk	55
Sunderland	35
Surrey	50
Sutton	45
Tameside	35
Trafford	45
Wakefield	45
Walsall	35
Waltham Forest	40
Warwickshire	52
West Sussex	50
Wigan	40
Wiltshire	50
Wirral	55
Wolverhampton	35
* Dorset and Lincolnshire do not provide fixed-price school meals.