asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total number of patients awaiting treatment in each of the eight area health authorities; and if he will give the number waiting for more than (a) one, (b) three, (c)

The latest available information on waiting lists, which is not in precisely the form requested, is given in the following table:

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 4 March.

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asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 4 March.

This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House I shall be having further meetings later today.

asked the Prime Minister if she will make an official visit to Huddersfield.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister whether she is satisfied with the level of exploration for and development of oil and gas fields in the British North Sea.

I am satisfied with the level of exploration for and the development of oil fields in the United Kingdom sector of the North Sea. The level of gas exploration and development is less satisfactory, but freeing the market for gas, as proposed in the Oil and Gas (Enterprise) Bill, will help to bring about an improvement.

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 were expected to be lost in the closures discussed.

I have had no such meetings since 2 March.

asked the Prime Minister if she will make an assessment of the implications for the United Kingdom economy of the relationship between United States Government expenditure and international interest rates.

I welcome the recent falls in United States interest rates. The United States Government's efforts to reduce inflation have our strong support. Their success is in the interests of the whole world economy. The policy of restraining United States monetary growth is essential and this will be facilitated by President Reagan's proposed cuts in real federal expenditure for fiscal year 1983.

asked the Prime Minister what measures have been taken by Her Majesty's Government to improve the position of the engineering industry in Scotland.

The engineering industry is elegible for financial assistance under a wide range of schemes, including regional selective assistance and regional development grant which covers much of Scotland. To take a single important example, offers of assistance to the engineering and allied industry in Scotland under section 7 of the Industry Act since the beginning of 1981 total £32·4 million.

asked the Prime Minister if she intends to attend the opening of the United Nations special session on disarmament.

The Government mean to play an active part in the special session and the United Kingdom will be represented at a high level. It has not yet been decided which Minister will go to the special session.

asked the Prime Minister if she is satisfied with the co-ordination of policy between her Welsh Office and the Department of the Environment in relation to the bulk supply of water from Wales to regions of England.

Yes.

asked the Prime Minister when next she expects to take part in a meeting of the European Council.

I expect to take part in the next meeting of the European Council on 29–30 March.

asked the Prime Minister whether she has any plans to visit Paris.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister if she is satisfied that Her Majesty's Government are fulfilling the requirement of the Council of Ministers' resolution on the social integration of handicapped people to ensure that handicapped people do not shoulder an unfair burden of the effects, on both employment and resources, of economic difficulty; and if she will make a statement.

Yes. We are continuing actively to support programmes which aim to reduce the effects of disability on employment opportunities and which promote the vocational and social integration of disabled people. We have consistently sought to protect services and benefits for severely disabled people wherever possible. We have asked local authorities to do likewise and the evidence is that most of them are doing so.

asked the Prime Minister, pursuant to her answer of 25 February, Official Report, c. 982–83, to the hon. and learned Member for Colchester (Mr. Buck), whether the £175 million receipts from the sale of HMS "Invincible" will be added to the present naval budget for the purchase of extra warships.

As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence made clear on 23 February 1982—[Vol. 18, c. 734]—receipts from the sale of HMS "Invincible" will be credited to the naval programme.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will make a statement on her meeting with representatives of retirement pensioners held on Thursday 18 February; whether the subject of the abolition of standing charges for gas, electricity and telephones for retirement pensioners was discussed; and whether any undertakings were given.

I met representatives from the National Pensioners' Convention on 18 February and we had a wide-ranging discussion on matters of concern to the pensioners. We discussed principally the proposals contained in the convention's declaration of intent and the effects on public expenditure of improving benefits and services for elderly people. I pointed to our existing achievements on behalf of pensioners, in particular maintaining the real value of the pension and the improvements in help towards fuel costs for low income consumers. I made it clear that the working population could not at present shoulder the burden of the substantial increases in national insurance contributions and income tax which would be necessary to implement all the proposals in the declaration of intent. Standing charges for gas, electricity and telephones were also discussed. I said that my hon. Friends the Under-Secretaries of State for Health and Social Security and for Energy, the Members for Wallasey (Mrs. Chalker) and for Putney (Mr. Mellor) are looking into the effect of standing charges for pensioners and other low-income consumers. I am also giving careful consideration to the representations made at the meeting about telephone standing charges.

asked the Prime Minister whether Her Majesty's Government maintain a news cuttings file of reports in the newspapers printed in the Republic of Ireland, and of which papers.

The primary responsibility for drawing the Government's attention to significant articles or reports in the Irish media rests with Her Majesty's embassy in Dublin, which receives copies of the principal newspapers and periodicals published in the Republic.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will set up an interdepartmental investigation to ascertain why it is taking three and four times longer to receive replies from the various Departments on almost every subject compared with 30 and more years ago, to examine the effectiveness of the contributions being made by extra civil servants, new equipment such as electronic aids, electric typewriters, photostat machines, and so on, and to recommend the action that should be taken to restore the service to its former speed and efficiency.

There are fewer civil servants on a true comparison than 30 years ago and a lot more letters to Ministers. But I would hope that my ministerial colleagues could deal with most inquiries in three to four weeks, though there will be complex cases which take longer. I trust that they will keep up pressure to have all correspondence—including that from right hon. and hon. Members—answered as speedily as possible, and I know that they seek to use modern methods wherever these will help. A project on the greater use of new office technology in ministerial offices has now started. If the hon. Member has a particular case in mind perhaps he will let me know.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what consideration he has given to the privatisation of the National Girobank; and if he is satisfied with its current operation.

The National Girobank has proved successful in more than meeting its financial target in 1979–80 and 1980–81, and remaining within its external financing limit. I expect it to do so in 1981–82, and to continue to provide a welcome element of competition in the banking sector.In accordance with the Government's overall policy to reduce the size and scope of the public sector the position of the National Girobank is being kept under review. But before going ahead with any scheme I would need to be satisfied that competition would not be diminished, and that the interests of the sub-postmasters were adequately protected.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what action he has taken to support the recommendations of the PA Management report prepared for the National Enterprise Board on the development of the British information technology industry.

The main recommendations of the PACTEL report on IT prepared for the National Enterprise Board addressed issues which the Government have studied closely in building up their strategy for information technology in the United Kingdom. This strategy and the actions we are taking in this field are described in the paper "Response to the Electronics EDC Paper on a Policy for the UK Electronics Industry: A Programme of Action" which I presented to the National Economic Development Council on 3 February. Copies have been placed in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether, and in what circumstances, he expects the Phoenix II discussions to be resumed.

Discussions on Phoenix II, the proposed rationalisation of BSC and GKN engineering steel interests, are a matter for the companies concerned. In a joint statement on 12 February they indicated that the position will be reviewed from time to time in the light of changing market conditions.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will give figures for (a) production and (b) capacity for steel in each member State of the EEC; and how many were employed in the steel industry in each EEC country in 1977 and 1981.

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

asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many jobs were lost in the steel industry in Wales over the period 1978 to 1982.

Such information as is available shows a fall in employment in Wales of 26,090, 53 per cent., in the British Steel Corporation between September 1978 and September 1981, and of 3,050, 47 per cent., in the private steel sector over the three-year period January 1979 to January 1982.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what representations he has recently received from farming and land owning organisations concerning claims for compensation for damage arising from coal mining subsidence.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the 100 persons or bodies who bought the largest number of shares in Amersham International at the time of their original offer for sale.

No, I do not think it proper to disclose details of applications made by, or allocations made to, individuals in this issue. The register of shareholders will be lodged at Companies House in due course and will be available for public inspection.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what are the Government's latest forecasts of United Kingdom petroleum production.

The latest forecasts for United Kingdom petroleum production in the year 1982, 1983, 1984 and 1985 are as follows:

asked the Attorney-General, in each of the last five years, how many complaints have been made against policemen on grounds, respectively, of assault, corruption, oppressive conduct or harassment, mishandling property, irregularity in relation to evidence, neglect of duty, incivility, irregularity in procedure, and traffic irregularity; in each case for each year how many were prosecuted and how many convicted; and what percentage the last two figures in each case represented of total complaints for that year under that heading.

I regret that the information is not available in the form requested.I give below information regarding complaints against the police received by the Director of Public Prosecutions for each of the five years 1977 to 1981 inclusive.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many men, given limited leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom for 12 months as husbands, had their subsequent applications for indefinite leave to remain at the end of 12 months (a) granted and (b) refused in the periods 22 March to 31 December 1977, 1 January to 31 December 1978, 1979, 1980 and 1981; and if he will give a breakdown by nationality of those concerned.

The information available is given in the following table. A further breakdown of this information by nationality could be made available only at disproportionate cost. The information requested on refusals is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, in view of the fact that on 19 February Malcolm Sherman was sentenced to life imprisonment at Winchester Crown court for the sexual assault and murder of Mrs. Marion Hansford, and that this man, with a record of 76 sex offences had been released from Dartmoor only three months ago, he will make an investigation into the circumstances of his premature release.

Malcolm Ronald Sherman was released from Dartmoor prison on 12 June 1981 having served his full sentence of two years' imprisonment, less remission in accordance with prison rule 5. He was not released prematurely.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department to what extent the experience in riot control of police in Northern Ireland has been studied and applied by police forces in Great Britain.

Police forces in England and Wales exchange information with colleagues in Northern Ireland on matters of public order as on others.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his reply to the right hon. Member for Brent, East on 25 February, Official Report, c. 451–2, if he will provide details of the advice on the assessment of risks associated with the use of baton rounds that has been made available to him by his right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence.

It would not be appropriate to go into technical detail. I am satisfied that, properly used, baton rounds could be appropriate as a last resort in certain circumstances. Advice was included in the guidance, issued to chief officers of police, to which reference was made in my reply to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Altrincham and Sale (Mr. Montgomery) on 19 October 1981.—[Vol. 10, c. 29–30.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on future policies towards the granting of licences to cable television operators, particularly in central London, to ensure fair and open competition.

As my right hon. Friend stated in reply to a supplementary question by my hon. Friend the Member for Arundel (Mr. Marshall) on 18 February—[Vol. 18, c. 391]—he intends to make a further statement on cable broadcasting. He is not yet ready to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any plans to reopen Hendon police college.

No. Training for command is now carried out at the police staff college, Bramshill. Hendon has become the centre for general Metropolitan Police training.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what ratio of police to head of population there is in the United Kingdom, in other EEC countries and in the United States of America at the latest available date.

At the end of 1981, the total strength of the police service in England and Wales was 119,575, giving a police-population ratio of about 1:412. International comparisons are difficult to make because of the differences in the functions and organisation of police forces in different countries.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Rugby (Mr. Pawsey) on 30 October 1981, Official Report, c. 486, whether he places any special civil defence requirements on Cumbria county council which account for the relatively high figure of 25·03 pence per capita of expenditure in that county eligible for civil defence grant.

No special civil defence requirements are placed on Cumbria county council. The expenditure arises from the fulfilment of its statutory obligations under the Civil Defence (Planning) Regulations 1974.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Rugby (Mr. Pawsey) on 30 October 1981, Official Report, c. 486, if he will provide a detailed breakdown of the £117,629 of expenditure by Cumbria county council eligible for civil defence grant.

The expenditure of £117,629 by Cumbria county council in 1980–81 eligible for civil defence grant has now been audited. A detailed breakdown is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the statutory provisions governing, and the regulatory bodies responsible for, the regulation of safety testing on animals;(2) what proportion of laboratories in which experiments upon animals are undertaken maintain a round-the-clock inspection of the animals to prevent animals suffering unnecessary pain;(3) what advice is issued by his Department to laboratories applying for licences under the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876 on the criteria to be adopted in determining the level of pain suffered by animals undergoing the LD50 test.

My right hon. Friend has no responsibility for the statutory provisions and the regulatory bodies governing safety testing on animals. Arrangements are therefore being made for the information to be sent to my hon. Friend by the responsible Departments.Information about the proportion of laboratories maintaining round-the-clock inspections to prevent animals suffering unnecessary pain is not available centrally. However, all licensees under the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876 are required to make whatever arrangements are necessary, including those for regular observation of the animals, to prevent the infliction of unnecessary suffering and to limit unavoidable pain.The levels of permissible pain are specified in conditions attached to all licences. The particular considerations to be taken into account in LD50 tests and recommendations for the additional protection of the animals, including that urging that such tests should not be begun at a time which will not ensure adequate supervision during the period of maximum effect, are set out in the advisory committee's report of 1979, which has been drawn to the attention of laboratories registered under the 1876 Act. The inspectors also advise licensees of these considerations.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the planned cost of the new channel 4 television station.

The financial arrangements for the fourth television channel are, under and subject to the relevant provisions of the Broadcasting Act 1981, the responsibility of the Independent Broadcasting Authority. The authority has established a subsidiary company, the Channel Four Television Company Ltd., to assemble the programmes for the fourth channel service. On 31 July 1981, the authority announced that the operating budget of the company from its establishment on 1 January 1981 until 31 March 1983 would be £104 million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, further to the reply to the hon. Member for Thurrock (Dr. McDonald), Official Report, 15 February, c. 6–7, whether the use of the equipment for the purpose of prosecution of speeding offences in the Dartford tunnel will form any part of his consultations with chief constables.

No. The experiment has no connection with the prosecution of such offences, and the equipment being used is unsuited to that purpose.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in the light of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights on the case of X v. United Kingdom given on 5 November 1981, he is satisfied that the United Kingdom is fulfilling the requirements of article 5(5) of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Article 5(5) of the European Convention has never been at issue before the European Court in the case of X. However, the court is still considering a claim for compensation in this case under article 50. While the question of compensation is still before the court, it would be premature for the Government to express a view about compensation obligations under the convention.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is satisfied with the operation of section 4(1)(f) of the Broadcasting Act 1981.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why Ivor Jones, a convicted rapist serving a life sentence, was allowed out of prison and thus enabled to commit a further attack on a woman for which he was found guilty at Maidstone Crown court and sentenced for attempting to strangle with intent to rape and causing grievous bodily harm.

The Home Secretary may order the release of a prisoner serving a sentence of life imprisonment if he is recommended to do so by the parole board and after consulting the Lord Chief Justice and, if he is available, the trial judge. In November 1980, the parole board recommended that Mr. Jones should be released in 1981—when he would have been detained for 10 years—subject to the satifactory completion of six months on the pre-release employment scheme, which involves the prisoner living in a hostel attached to a prison but going out to work each day. After consultation with the Lord Chief Justice and the trial judge, my right hon. Friend decided to accept the parole board's recommendation and Mr. Jones was transferred to the pre-release hostel attached to Maidstone prison in April 1981. The further offences of which he was recently convicted were committed while he was on the pre-release employment scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to the recommendations of the Criminal Law Revision Committee that rape inside marriage should be made a crime.

A proposal that the offence of rape should be extended to all cases where a man has sexual intercourse with his wife without her consent was among those on which the committee's working paper of October 1980 invited comments. We think it right to await the committee's final report before reaching a conclusion on this matter.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will arrange for the cost of the hijack emergency operation at Stansted airport on 27 and 28 February to be borne by the Exchequer.

The costs of police operations are shared between the Exchequer and the local authorities, and the costs of the operation at Stansted will qualify for 50 per cent. police grant in the usual way.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the anticipated cost of the hijack emergency operation at Stansted airport on 27 and 28 February; and if he will make a statement.

It is too early to say what the cost of the police operation will be. I shall write to my hon. Friend when the information is available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many operations of a character similar to that which took place at Stansted have been undertaken in the last 10 years; at what cost; at which airports; and which authorities have contributed to the cost.

There has been no operation in the last 10 years directly comparable to that at Stansted last weekend. In January 1975 a British Airways aircraft was hijacked and landed at Heathrow and Stansted. Information about costs on that occasion is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there is a strategic plan to handle cases of air piracy in the United Kingdom; whether Stansted is the designated airport to receive hijacked aircraft; and if he will make a statement.

There are contingency plans for dealing with hijacking incidents. It would not be in the public interest to reveal details.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions in each of the last five years surveillance devices have been operated in each of the 43 police force areas under the bugging code he published in the week ended 26 February.

I regret that this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider revising the machinery under the Race Relations Act which gives a company a full right of appeal against a finding of discrimination by the Commission for Racial Equality; and if he is satisfied with the present procedure.

I assume that the hon. Member is referring to the recent judgment of the Court of Appeal that appeals against non-discrimination notices served by the Commission for Racial Equality can relate to all the commission's findings of fact. I understand that the commission is considering whether to appeal to the House of Lords against this decision. If the commission were to submit proposals for amending the relevant provisions of the Race Relations Act 1976 my right hon. Friend would naturally give them careful consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department in each year since 1977, what has been the annual cost in each police force area of work on police complaints; and, in each case, how many police and how many civil staff have been involved.

I regret that this information is not readily available. The Association of Chief Police Officers has, in consultation with all chief officers in England and Wales, estimated that the total cost to the police service of the existing system of complaints investigation in 1980–81 was about £9 million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why he is not prepared to give support to the Private Investigators Bill put forward to his Department by the Association of British Investigators, in view of the fact that it satisfies his requirements for self-regulation.

As I stated in reply to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, Wavertree (Mr. Steen) on 19th January 1981, we considered the need for statutory control of private investigators as part of our review of the private security industry, and concluded that the case for such control had not been made out. We think it is preferable to support and encourage self-regulation . By this we mean voluntary action, not the statutory impositon of requirements backed by penal sanctions. We have looked at this again recently, and our view remains unchanged.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to announce his determination under section 1 of the Horserace Betting Levy Act 1969 of the horserace betting scheme beginning 1 April 1982.

I have today sent the following letter to the chairman of the Horserace Betting Levy Board and the chairman of the Bookmakers' Committee:

"In your letter to me of 1st November you reported to me that the Board had been unable to approve the recommendations of the Bookmakers' Committee for the scheme to have effect for the 21st levy period and that the scheme accordingly fell to be determined by me. In my Private Secretary's letters to you of 17th and 30th December he informed you that, in accordance with section 1(5) of the Horserace Betting Levy 1969, I had decided to appoint Mr. R. N. D. Langdon of Spicer and Pegler, and of the terms of reference of the appointment, to inquire into and report to me on the matters covered by those terms of reference. Mr. Langdon has now reported to me and I have reached by decision. I enclose a copy of Mr. Langdon's report and of the scheme I have determined.

In reaching my decision I have taken into account in addition to the material in Mr. Langdon's report, all the submissions made to me about the bookmakers' capacity to pay, and all those about the needs of racing. I have also had to have regard to the widely expressed view that any increase in levy rates should not be such as to lead bookmakers to increase the deductions they make from money staked by the punter.

In paragraph F.6 of his report, Mr. Langdon refers to the extent to which the present level of deductions exceeds the liability to duty and levy for the various categories of bookmakers, which indicates that, even for those in the highest category, an increase in the existing levy rate of 11 per cent. could be met entirely out of the existing deductions. Bearing this in mind, and having regard to the needs of racing, I have decided that levy rates should be increased by 12 per cent. Mr. Langdon estimates that horserace betting turnover will increase by 4 per cent. in the period of the 21st Levy Scheme. On that assumption the rates of levy which I have determined should produce a yield of about £20 million. I am satisfied that bookmakers will be able to make their contributions to the levy at this rate without making any increase in their deductions from the punter.

The Scheme makes no provision for introducing the new levy charge on facilities provided by individual bookmakers and companies in racecourse grandstands, at present at Ascot and Epsom, as requested by the Levy Board in their memorandum of 6th November, 1981. I accept the principle that business conducted by such bookmakers which is directly comparable to the starting price business conducted on-course by the National Association of Racecourse Betting Offices Ltd. and the Tote Board should be subject to the same or similar levy charges. But I look to the Levy Board and the Bookmakers' Committee to explore how this can be done without damage to on-course pitch bookmaking business, so that provision can be made in the 22nd Levy Scheme.

I am writing in similar terms to the Chairman of the Bookmakers' Committee."

asked the Lord Privy Seal what regulations exist which prevent children of parents holding British citizens' passports from holding a British citizen's passport themselves.

Our practice is based on the established principle that countries should issue passports only to their own nationals.If children of citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies are not themselves citizens and require separate travel documents, these fall to be provided by the authorities of the country of which they are nationals or, if they are stateless, of the country in which they are resident. If there is any problem in doing this and the family need to travel urgently, we are normally prepared to add children's names to the mother's or father's British passport for a specific journey.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if, in view of the objections by the United States of America, it is the intention of Her Majesty's Government to sign the law of the sea convention next month; and if he will make a statement.

The United States has now decided to return to the negotiations. We welcome this decision. Our objective remains a generally acceptable convention which can be adopted by consensus. A decision on whether to sign the convention will depend on further consideration of the final text, but a treaty without the United States would be seriously defective.

asked the Lord Privy Seal if the Government intend to contribute towards the cost of measures to combat acts of piracy against Vietnamese boat people in the Gulf of Thailand.

Yes. Subject to parliamentary approval, we have pledged £110,000 following an appeal from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the estimated income from National Health Service pay beds in Scotland in the last year for which figures are available.

£688,427 in the year ended 31 March 1981.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the percentage change in real terms in the level of expenditure of each local authority in Scotland for each year from 1975–76 to 1981–82.

The information, for the years 1978–79 to 1981–82, is provided in the following table. The expenditure figures quoted are the latest available and, for 1981–82, relate to budgets revised, in some cases as a result of action taken under the Local Government