Written Answers

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Written Answers To Questions

Tuesday 15 November 1983

Prime Minister

Engagements

Q5.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q6.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q7.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q8.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q9.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q10.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q11.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q13.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q14.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q15.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q16.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q17.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q18.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q19.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q20.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q22.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q23.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q24.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q25.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q26.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q27.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q28

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her public engagements for 15 November.

Q29.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q30.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q31.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q32.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q33.

asked the Prime Minister if she will what are her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q34.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q35.

asked the Prime Minister what are her official engagements for 15 November.

Q36.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q39.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q40.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q41.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q42.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q43.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q45.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q46.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q48.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

Q49.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q50.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q51.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

Q52.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 15 November.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 15 November.

This morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House I shall be having further meetings later today, including one with the high commissioner for Papua New Guinea.

Minister For Fisheries

Q12.

asked the Prime Minister if she will appoint a Minister for Fisheries responsible for the United Kingdom.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I gave him on 12 July 1983.—[Vol. 45, c. 316.]

Hong Kong

Q21.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will make a statement on the progress of the negotiations with the People's Republic of China over the future of Hong Kong.

Confidential talks with the Chinese Government are continuing through diplomatic channels in Peking. Both sides agreed that the meeting held on 14 and 15 November was useful and constructive. A further session of the talks will be held on 7–8 December, again in Peking. As stated by my right hon. and learned Friend on 3 November, we are seeking a settlement which will secure stability and prosperity for Hong Kong and in a way acceptable to China and to the people of Hong Kong and to this Parliament.

Foreign And Commonwealth Office (Ethnic Minority Staff)

Q37.

asked the Prime Minister what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government towards the recruitment of British subjects of ethnic minority origin with a view to their serving in the Foreign Office division covering their area of origin; and if she will make a statement.

Recruitment to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is by open competition without regard to ethnic origin. Staff are deployed in the light of operational requirements, taking full account of their knowledge, experience and training.

Darlington

Q38.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will pay an official visit to Darlington.

I have at present no plans to do so.

Nhs Hospitals

44.

asked the Prime Minister how many National Health Service hospitals she has visited since May 1979; and, of these, how many she has visited since June 1983.

I have visited 11 National Health Service hospitals since May 1979. I have not visited one since June 1983.

Supplementary Benefit

Q47.

asked the Prime Minister how many children are now living in homes where parents are dependent on short-term supplementary benefit.

In December 1982, the latest date for which figures are available, 1·26 million children were living in homes where the parents were in receipt of the ordinary rate of supplementary benefit.

Heroin

asked the Prime Minister what proposals the Government have to counteract the increase in heroin use among teenagers and school children; and if she will set up a joint working group of the Department of Health and Social Security and the Department of Education and Science and other Departments to find ways and means of combating such drug abuse.

The Government are advised on all aspects of drug misuse by the statutory Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. Government Departments work closely with the council.The council last year completed a report on treatment and rehabilitation following which the Government made available an additional £2 million this year and in each of the next two years for new initiatives at local level. A further statement on the Government's response to this report will be made shortly. I understand that the council expects to complete within the next few weeks a report on prevention which is likely to include consideration of the ways in which young people can be encouraged not to misuse drugs. Its recommendations will be carefully considered.The Government are continuing their efforts to reduce the supply of illicit drugs coming into the country, not only in full co-operation with the appropriate international agencies, but by direct liaison with and assistance to the Government of Pakistan. The efforts of Her Majesty's Customs and Excise, which plays a major role in this area, have been maintained and its investigation services strengthened. Chief officers of police allocate a high priority to drugs squads concentrating their resources against traffickers in drugs.

Health Expenditure

asked the Prime Minister what is the distribution of overall health expenditure in the United Kingdom for each English, Scottish and Welsh region and Northern Ireland in money terms and as a percentage of total United Kingdom expenditure; and if she will also show in money terms the amount spent per person in each region.

I shall write to my hon. Friend as soon as the information is available.

World Population

asked the Prime Minister what action she intends taking to increase the awareness of the British people of the problems arising from the rapid expansion of the population of the world.

Information is already available to the public from the Overseas Development Administration on its support to developing countries for social and economic development work.

Attorney-General

Village Hall, Stanton

asked the Attorney-General if he will request the Charity Commissioners to institute an inquiry under section 6 of the Charities Act 1960 into the affairs of the Stanton village hall regarding the circumstances of the sale of Stanton village hall in the light of the information sent to him by the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds; and if he will make a statement.

I have studied the information passed to the Attorney-General by the hon. Member concerning the circumstances of the sale of Stanton village hall. I see no grounds for requesting the Charity Commissioners to conduct an inquiry under section 6 of the Charities Act 1960.

Name of body and notes	Appointments as at 1 July 1983
	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
Crown Court rule committee plus 2 ex-officio members Minister chairs body	—	—	—	—	9	—
Law Commission	1	—	—	—	4	—
Law Reform committee	1	—	—	—	11	—
Statute Law committee Minister chairs body	—	—	1	—	24	—
Advisory Council on Public Records Master of the Rolls is ex-officio chairman	—	—	—	—	14	2
Council on Tribunals	1	—	—	—	11	4
Insolvency Rules Advisory committee	1	—	—	—	7	—
County Court Rule committee	1	—	—	—	11	—
Supreme Court Rule committee Minister chairs body	—	—	—	—	12	—
Judicial Studies Board	1	—	—	—	10	1
Legal Aid Advisory committee	1	—	—	—	9	3
Legal Aid Advisory committee for Northern Ireland	1	—	—	—	8	2
Land Registration Rule Advisory committee [ ] = non-Ministerial appointments	1	—	—	—	[3]	—
Matrimonial Causes Rule committee Minister chairs body	—	—	—	—	10	—
Matrimonial Causes Procedure committee	—	1	—	—	8	2
Advisory committee on Juvenile Court Panel (London)	1	—	—	—	4	4
Advisory committee on Juvenile Court Lay Panel (Northern Ireland)	1	—	—	—	7	3
Advisory committee on the Training of Magistrates	1	—	1	—	11	3
Lay Observer 1 appointee supported by 3 civil servants	1	—	—	—	—	—
Advisory committees on Justices of the Peace	86	10	3	—	600	269
Advisory committees on General Commissioners of Income Tax	77	1	—	—	591	16
Circuit Advisory committees (including Court User committees) Committees (23) chaired by civil servants. One or two members may also be civil servants (ex-officio). Membership fluctuates	—	—	—	—	232	23
Totals	176	12	5	—	1,593	332

Road Injuries (Compensation)

asked the Attorney-General if the Government will implement the proposals of the Pearson Royal Commission for no-fault compensation for injuries sustained in road traffic accidents; and if he will make a statement.

The Government have not yet taken a final decision on these proposals, but in present circumstances their public expenditure implications would, in any event, preclude their early implementation.

Advisory Committees

asked the Attorney-General if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him or by the Lord Chancellor; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information is as follows:

Custodial Remand

asked the Attorney-General, for the last year for which figures are available, how many who were remanded in custody awaiting trial were subsequently acquitted.

I have been asked to reply.Information on the ultimate disposal of those received into prison department establishments in England and Wales on remand is published annually in "Prison statistics England and Wales"—tables 2.1 and 2.2 of the volume for 1982, Cmnd. 9027.

Transport

British Rail

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what information he has as to the percentage of British Rail passenger carriages which are currently equipped to accommodate wheelchairs and as to what plans there are for further such carriages.

The design of rolling stock is a matter for the British Railways Board. I understand from the board that about 60 per cent. of its present inter-city rolling stock is equipped to take wheelchair-bound passengers in passenger carriages, but only a small percentage of other rolling stock is similarly equipped. However, when the board designs new carriages or extensively refurbishes existing ones, provision is made for the disabled.

Goole And Gilderdyke Bridge

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has been consulted

Appointments as at 1 July 1983
	Chairman		Deputy etc.		Members
Name of Body	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites	1	—	—	—	10	1
Advisory Committee on the Landscape Treatment of Trunk Roads	1	—	1	—	12	2
Standing Advisory Commitee on the Carriage of Dangerous Goods in Ships	1	—	—	—	18	—
Standing Advisory Committee on Trunk Road Assessment	1	—	—	—	5	—

East London River Crossing

asked the Secretary of State for Transport when he now expects to publish the necessary highways and compulsory purchase orders in connection with the east London river crossing; and what is the most recent estimate of the duration of any public inquiry and the start date for the works.

The date for publishing draft orders has not yet been fixed, but it is likely to be in the early part of 1984. Because of the size and complexity of the scheme, the public inquiry is expected to last for several months.It is not possible at this stage to say precisely when works will start, but it is unlikely to be before 1987.

about the need for repairs to the Goole and Gilderdyke bridge; and whether he has received any proposals for its closure from British Rail.

No. The responsibility for decisions on repairs to the Goole swing bridge is a matter for the British Railways Board. I understand that the board intends to propose the withdrawal of passenger services between Goole and Gilderdyke, but it has not yet begun the statutory procedures.

Civil Servants (Travel Costs)

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the estimated annual cost of travel undertaken by civil servants employed by his Department (a) within the United Kingdom and (b) overseas.

For 1983–84, £7·3 million of which £1·3 million is for travel overseas.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The advisory committees whose members are appointed by me are listed in the HMSO publication "Public Bodies" published by the Management and Personnel Office. A copy of the most recent edition called "Public Bodies 1982", is held by the Library. A new edition, to be called "Public Bodies 1983", is being prepared: this will show the number and gender of appointees as at 1 July 1983.I list as follows those advisory committees to which I make appointments together with the required details of membership as they will appear in the Department of Transport section of "Public Bodies 1983".

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is his estimate of the total number of families who will need to be rehoused as a result of the construction of the east London river crossing.

That will depend on the date at which acquired properties will be needed, the type of tenure, how many are vacant and the extent to which the properties are simply being used as temporary accommodation. I hope to have firmer estimates in the next few months.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) residential and (b) commercial properties have so far been acquired in connection with the proposed east London river crossing; and how many remain to be acquired.

My Department has acquired 40 residential properties and is in the process of buying 14 more. No commercial properties have been purchased. Besides 135 of those already owned by the GLC, 87 more residential properties will be required and approximately 20 commercial properties.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the most recent estimates of the total cost of the planned east London river crossing, indicating the separate costs of (a) the bridge, (b) other structures, (c) road construction and (d) acquisition of property.

The information is as follows:

	£ million
Main bridge across the Thames	46
Other structures	32
Road construction, including consequential Statutory Undertakers' work	43
Land and Property acquisition	17

This accommodates some design changes, including better access from the royal group of docks.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the different responses to the proposed east London river crossing which he has so far received from the Greater London council; and whether he expects any further comment from the council on this scheme.

In April 1982 the Greater London council notified the Department that it did not accept the Department's scheme, but it provided a number of detailed observations in case it were to proceed.In July 1982, the council informed the Department that no objection in principle would be made, although its officers were instructed to prepare objections on environmental grounds to that part of the scheme south of the river, and to prepare alternatives in conjunction with Greenwich borough council. Further comment from the council is expected.

Vehicle Excise Duty

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he is satisfied with the level of enforcement of vehicle excise duty.

I am concerned about any evasion of vehicle excise duty, since every £1 of tax dodged has to be paid by someone else. With the co-operation of the police, enforcement activity has been made more effective.Intensive on-street campaigns are proving most effective and will cover further areas of the country. Drivers stopped who have no valid excise licence will be automatically prosecuted. While it is not possible to complete action on all offences reported in other enforcement activities, my Department expects that the number of reports followed up this year will be 62 per cent. higher than last year's level, and that the number of successful prosecutions will be 50 per cent. higher. I expect recovery of back duty, fines, penalties and costs this year to be some £.13·5 million compared with last year's total of £9·4 million. In addition, the campaigns have led to a significant increase in voluntary relicensing.

Coaches (Motorways)

Ms. Harman asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will consider legislation to ensure (a) the restriction of coaches from the use of the offside lane on three way motorways, except in emergencies, (b) that coach drivers do not act as tour guides and (c) that all time spent on employment with other employers prior to driving should be treated as on-duty time for the purpose of calculating driving and rest periods.

[pursuant to her answer, 14 November 1983, c. 292]: (a) Coaches need to be able to overtake slower moving traffic, and a ban on use of the offside lane could cause unsafe bunching of coaches and heavy goods vehicles.

(b) No. There are already adequate sanctions against drivers who drive without due care and attention, and against those who fail to take the prescribed breaks and rest periods.

(c) This is a matter covered by Community regulations on which, finally, only the European Court can give an authoritative interpretation.

Serpell Report

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list in the Official Report the representations he has received on the Serpell report; and if he will make a statement on those representations.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 290]: We have received well over 1,000 letters, including a number of petitions, about the Serpell report. Ministers have also discussed the report with members of the British Railways Board, the railway trade unions and others.The correspondence and discussions have covered a wide range of issues, the majority of which were based on the quite incorrect assumption that the Serpell report recommended major cuts in the network. The Government have been called on to state their policy on the future of the railways and to establish clearly the framework within which they are to operate. My right hon. Friend did both in his statement of 24 October and his letter of the same date to the chairman of the British Railways Board.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list in the Official Report for each of the preceding 10 years the levels of redundancies in British Rail, the total employed in 1973, 1983 and expected by 1988, using the general classification of employment most suitable to his Department.

[pursuant to his answer, 14 November 1983, c. 290]: These are matters for the management of British Rail. However, I understand from BR that the information the hon. Member requested is as follows:

BR Staff Redundancies 1973–83 (corporate total)
	Number
1973	1,993
1974	720
1975	817
1976	1,569
1977	1,694
1978	1,032

	Number
1979	1,097
1980	1,188
1981	5,722
1982	7,698
^*1983	3,111
^* At half year.

The majority of redundancies listed were almost without exception voluntary.

BR Employees (corporate total)
	Number
End 1973	250,088
Mid 1983	206,674
End 1988	^* 175,000
^* British Railways Board's forecast (contained in BR corporate plan 1983–88).

Energy

Isles Of Scilly

asked the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to announce a decision on the application by the mains electricity action group to have the electricity supply on the Isles of Scilly extended to the off-islands of Bryher, St. Agnes, St. Martin's and Tresco.

A decision on this issue depends on the costs of providing a supply. These are uncertain and the South-Western electricity board has agreed to my suggestion that it resolves this uncertainty by carrying out a marine survey of the off-islands. I welcome the board's decision as one that is both helpful and necessary to a decision on the islanders' application for a mains electricity supply.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

Details of advisory non-departmental public bodies in my field as at 1 July 1983 are as follows:

Name of Body	Chairman		Members
	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Council on Energy Conservation (ACEC)	1	—	16	2
Advisory Council on Research and Development for Fuel and Power (ACORD)	1	—	15	—
Offshore Energy Technology Board (OETB)	1	—	7	—
Oil Industry Liaison Committee (OILCO)	1	—	18	—

Appointments to the first three bodies are made by my right hon. Friend. Bodies invited to attend OILCO are approved by me, but they appoint their own representatives. Approved bodies include the main organisations representing trade union interests in the supplies industry as well as clients and suppliers.

The Arts

Advisory Committees

asked the Under-Secretary of State answering in respect of the Arts if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by the Office of Arts and Libraries; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information is as follows:

Appointments as at 1 July 1983
Name of body	Chairman/ Deputy	Members
Advisory Committee on the Government Art Collection	1 Chairman (M)	5 (M), 1 (F)
Library and Information Services Council	1 Chairman (M)	20 (M), 3 (F)
Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art	1 Chairman (M)	4 (M), 1 (F)
Science Museum Advisory Council	1 Chairman (M)	16 (M), 0 (F)
Victoria and Albert Museum Advisory Council	1 Chairman (M)	15 (M), 4 (F)
Theatres Trust	1 Chairman (M) 1 Deputy Chairman (M)	10(M), 1 (F)

Notes:

1. All the above appointments are made by the Minister for the Arts.

2. M denotes male, F female.

3. The Advisory Councils for the Science and Victoria and Albert museums are being discontinued as the new boards of trustees are established under the National Heritage Act 1983.

Office Of Arts And Libraries (Annual Report)

asked the Under-Secretary of State answering in respect of the arts if the Minister for the Arts will publish an annual report of the work of the Office of Arts and Libraries.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 312]: Annual reports are already published in respect of my noble Friend's responsibilities for libraries and information services. It has also been the practice to give extended answers to parliamentary questions about developments in the overall work and responsibilities of the Office of Arts and Libraries during the preceding year. These arrangements reflect the Government's policy to make available as much information as possible. The Select Committee report last year on public and private funding of the arts included several detailed recommendations relevant to these matters, however, and the Government's considered response will be published shortly.

Greater London Council

asked the Under-Secretary of State answering in respect of the Arts what information the Minister for the Arts has as to the current arts budget of the Greater London Council and how this is broken down by sector, and by capital and revenue, respectively; and on what assumptions as to the proportion of each category of expenditure that would be transferred in the event of the abolition of the Greater London council (a) to direct or indirect central Government funding and (b) to the London boroughs, his present policy is based.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 312]: My noble Friend the Minster for the Arts understands that the Greater London council is budgeting to spend £19,612,000 gross on the arts in 1983–84, as follows:

	1983–84 £000s (Budget estimates)
	Revenue	Capital
Museums and Historic Houses	3,428	686
South Bank facilities	7,103	611
Contributions to cultural bodies	7,784	—

The amounts which might be spent on these categories after the abolition of the Greater London council in 1986, by centrally funded bodies or by London boroughs, will depend on a number of factors, including the outcome of the present consultations, the needs of the activities at the time, and the decisions of the London boroughs. However, based on this year's budget, and assuming that the consultative document recommendations were accepted, the proportion falling to the boroughs would be about one-sixth.

Civil Service

Advisory Committees

asked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information is as follows:

Name of body and appointments as at 1 July 1983

Civil Service College Advisory Council—eight male; two female (figures exclude civil service chairman and members).

Civil Service Appeal Board—one Chairman (male); one Deputy Chairman (male); two members selected from panel (26 male; 1 female).

Civil Service Medical Appeal Board—one Chairman (male) and one Member selected from panel of consultant medical referees (257 male; 1 female).

Civil Service Medical Review Board—one Chairman and one Member selected as required (from the Medical Directory).

The annual Cabinet Office (MPO) publication "Public Bodies" includes details of appointments to a wide range of advisory and other public bodies, nationalised industries and similar organisations. This year's edition, due out shortly, will for the first time show men's and women's appointments separately.

Foreign And Commonwealth Affairs

Overseas Travel

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the estimated annual cost of travel undertaken by civil servants employed by his Department (a) within the United Kingdom and (b) overseas.

In the financial year ending 31 March 1984 the cost of travel undertaken by Civil Servants employed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, including the Overseas Development Administration, is estimated to be approximately as follows:

(a) within the United Kingdom	£629000
(b) overseas	£8,039,000

These figures do not include expenditure on the transfer and leave journeys of staff to and from posts abroad or the cost of maintaining the Queen's messenger and other courier services.

Embassies, High Commissions And Consulates

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list for each embassy, high commission and consulate the total number of staff employed.

The information requested is as follows. The list excludes staff, for example defence attaches, from other Government Departments attached to overseas missions who are not employed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

	United Kingdom staff	Locally engaged staff
Embassies
Abidjan	7	8
Abu Dhabi	17	36
Addis Ababa	13	67
Aden	8	14
Algiers	11	18
Amman	23	30
Ankara	23	52
Antananarivo	2	6
Asuncion	3	7
Athens	28	56
Baghdad	24	50
Bahrain	10	24
Bangkok	32	84
Beirut	12	45
Belgrade	20	26
East Berlin	20	14
Berne	12	15
Bogota	8	26
Bonn	76	107
Brasilia	21	41
Brussels	36	74
Bucharest	20	21
Budapest	29	36
Cairo	35	93
Caracas	16	25
Copenhagen	19	36
Dakar	8	17
Damascus	15	20
Doha	9	14
Dubai	9	27
Dublin	20	24
The Hague	25	23
Hanoi	6	7
Havana	15	20
Helsinki	22	22
Islamabad	63	119
Jakarta	26	86
Jedda	43	88
Kabul	6	43
Kathmandu	10	27
Khartoum	23	31
Kinshasa	9	23
Kuwait	21	45
La Paz	5	10
Libreville	2	4
Lima	10	28
Lisbon	18	35
Luanda	9	10
Luxembourg	7	4
Madrid	31	48
Manila	11	29
Maputo	7	16
Mexico City	21	47
Mogadishu	6	16
Monrovia	4	15
Montevideo	8	17

	United Kingdom staff	Locally engaged staff
Moscow	61	59
Muscat	16	31
Oslo	19	20
Panama	4	7
Paris	84	118
Peking	36	40
Prague	23	37
Pretoria	38	28
Quito	6	17
Rabat	10	17
Rangoon	8	46
Reykjavik	3	5
Rome	41	70
Sana'a	14	37
San Jose	5	8
Santiago	14	26
Santo Domingo	2	5
Seoul	15	38
Sofia	17	18
Stockholm	24	30
Tegucigalpa	3	4
Tel Aviv	20	31
Tokyo	47	86
Tripoli	19	29
Tunis	6	15
Ulan Bator	2	6
Vatican City	2	4
Vienna	28	36
Vientiane	2	8
Warsaw	42	57
Washington	110	142
Yaounde	8	9

	United Kingdom staff	Locally engaged staff
High Commissions
Accra	22	43
Antigua	2	4
Bandar Seri Begawan	6	8
Banjul	5	21
Belmopan	6	9
Blantyre	1	8
Bridgetown	19	20
Canberra	25	40
Castries	1	3
Colombo	13	57
Dhaka	43	114
Dar Es Salaam	18	32
Freetown	9	32
Gaborone	8	13
Georgetown	8	11
Harare	29	25
Honiara	2	5
Kampala	10	26
Kingston	14	30
Kingstown	1	2
Kuala Lumpur	30	49
Lagos	52	120
Lilongwe	12	20
Lusaka	26	30
Maseru	6	11
Mbabane	7	12
Nairobi	37	65
Nassau	3	8
New Delhi	55	219
Nicosia	24	37
Nuku'alofa	2	7
Ottawa	20	55
Port Louis	7	14
Port Moresby	4	5
Port of Spain	12	27
Saint George's	1	3
Singapore	32	62
Suva	6	9
Kiribati	1	3
Valletta	9	22
Victoria	5	9

	United Kingdom staff	Locally engaged staff
Vila	2	4
Wellington	12	28
Deputy High Commissions
Bombay	13	62
Calcutta	4	57
Kaduna	7	19
Madras	2	13
Consulates-General
Alexandria	2	14
Amsterdam	3	15
Antwerp	1	3
Antlanta	4	15
Auckland	4	12
Barcelona	4	14
Berlin	3	11
Bilboa	1	7
Bordeaux	1	10
Boston	2	8
Brisbane	2	7
Casablanca	3	12
Chicago	6	21
Cleveland	2	9
Dusseldorf	9	33
Edmonton	3	5
Frankfurt	6	9
Geneva	3	10
Hamburg	7	24
Houston	4	17
Istanbul	8	38
Jerusalem	4	14
Johannesburg	11	52
Karachi	12	13
Lille	2	10
Los Angeles	5	28
Lyons	2	11
Marseilles	2	11
Melborne	4	13
Milan	8	13
Montreal	4	15
Munich	9	18
Naples	2	12
New York	28	115
Osaka	3	13
Perth	3	6
Rio de Janeiro	9	25
San Francisco	3	13
Sao Paulo	6	19
Stuttgart	5	16
Sydney	5	22
Toronto	4	17
Vancouver	2	11
Zagreb	4	10
Zurich	3	19
Consulates
Algeciras	—	4
Alicante	1	5
Capetown	5	22
Dallas	1	3
Douala	3	7
Durban	1	6
Florence	1	9
Genoa	1	7
Gothenburg	1	3
Halifax	1	3
Hanover	1	7
Las Palmas	1	6
Malaga	—	7
Oporto	1	4
Palma	1	6
Port au Prince	—	1
Salonika	—	5
Seattle	1	4
Seville	—	4
Venice	—	5

	United Kingdom staff	Locally engaged staff
Vigo	—	3
Vice Consulates
Cagliari	—	3
Corfu	—	5
Heraklion	—	1
Ibiza	—	2
Izmir	—	2

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will estimate for each embassy, high commission and consulate the number of inquiries it receives from members of the public.

We have no collective records on which to base estimates and the cost of maintaining such records would not be justified. The number of public inquiries and visitors is, of course, an important factor assessed by the diplomatic service inspectors when they scrutinise the staffing levels of overseas posts.

Overseas Personnel

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his

Name of Body	Appointments as at 1 July 1983 Chairman/Deputy plus Members
Academic Council of Wilton Park	1M plus IF and 8M
Advisory Committee on Overseas Economic and Social Research	1M plus IF and 9M
Advisory Committee on Selection of Low Priced Books	1M plus 2F and 6M
Advisory Panel on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation	— plus 1F and 31M
Bureau of Hygiene and Tropical Diseases Managing Committee	1M plus 7M [1M]^*
Diplomatic Service Appeals Boards	2M plus 4M [2M]^*
Overseas Service Pensions Scheme and Fund Advisory Board	1M plus 3M [1M (Dep)]^*
Overseas Superannuation Scheme Advisory Board	1M plus 3M [1M (Dep)]^*
United Kingdom National Commission for UNESCO	5M plus 8F and 56M
^* Non-ministerial appointments.

Grenada

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will discuss with representatives of the Cuban Government means by which the United Kingdom may be able to assist those Cubans threatened by United States of America Forces in Grenada; and if he will make a statement.

There is now only a minimal number of Cuban embassy personnel on Grenada. We are not aware of any threat to them.

Home Department

Community Service Orders

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many community service orders were made on 16-year-olds between 24 May 1983 and the most recent convenient date.

The information is not yet available.

Supervision Orders

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many supervision orders were

Department maintains or supports the maintenance of any offices or personnel abroad other than at embassies, high commissions or consulates.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office maintains or supports the following:Missions and delegations to international organisations, committees and conference

British interests sections
Wireless relay stations
Honorary consulates
Trade offices
Development divisions
The Diplomatic Service mail office in Hong Kong
The British military government office in Berlin.

In addition the Foreign and Commonwealth Office provides and pays for some staff in the dependent territories, the aid programme employs others, for example technical co-operation officers.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information requested is as follows:imposed on juvenile offenders between 24 May 1983 and the most recent convenient date; and what was the figure for the equivalent period in 1982.

The information is published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales"—Tables SI. 1(B), S1.1(C) and S2.1(B), S2.1(C) of the supplementary tables volume 1 and volume 2 respectively. Information for 1983 is not yet available.

Firearms

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of those committing criminal offences in each of the past five years, while in the possession of firearms, held appropriate licences for the same.

I regret that this information is not available. I am writing to my hon. Friend.

Slough (Public Disorder)

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report from the chief constable of Thames Valley concerning incidents of public disorder which occurred in Slough on 17 and 18 June; what was the ethnic breakdown of those involved; and if he will make a statement on the substance of the report.

The chief constable has been unable to identify any incident of public disorder in Slough on these dates other than the disturbances at the Queen's club, Colnbrook on 18 June. I provided details of this incident in reply to a question from my hon. Friend on 1 July.—[Vol 44, c. 168.]

Overseas Personnel

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department maintains, or supports the maintenance of, any offices or personnel abroad.

The Home Office maintains no office or personnel abroad but meets the costs of a small number of immigration officers who are loaned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on a short-term basis each summer for work overseas as entry clearance officers.

Name of Body	Appointments as at 1 July 1983^*		Notes
	Chairman/Deputy	Members
Advisory Board on Restricted Patients	1 Ch (M)	4M; 1F
Advisory Committee on Animal Experiments	lCh(F)	9M;3F
Advisory Committees Service Candidates	1 Ch(M)+l Dep(M)	2M;4F
Advisory Council on Race Relations	—	18M; 3F
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs	1 Ch (M)	22M; 6F
Central Fire Brigades Advisory Council	—	33M; 1F
Criminal Law Revision Committee	1 Ch (M)	14M; 2F
Joint Committee for Refugees from Vietnam	1 Ch (M)	[3M; 2F]
Licensing Planning Committee	1 Ch (M)	—
New Town Licensed Premises Committees	2 Ch (1M; IF)	—
Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England	[1 Ch (M)] + 1 Dep (M)	1M	1 Vacancy at 1.7.83
Parliamentary Boundary Commission for Wales	[1 Ch (M)] + 1 Dep (M)	2M
Parole Board and Local Review Committees	1 Ch (M)‡ + 1 Dep	37M;‡ 10F‡	‡Parole Board
	(M)‡	390M; 175F
		[390M; 175F]
Poisons Board	1 Ch (M)	6M [10M]
Police Negotiating Board	1 Ch (M) + 1 Dep (M)	[51M; 4F]
Policy Advisory Committee on Sexual Offences	1 Ch (M)	6M; 8F
^* Information concerning non-Ministerial appointments is shown in square brackets.

Remembrance Day

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government towards the representation of political parties on Remembrance Day at the wreath-laying ceremony at the Cenotaph; and if he will make a statement.

Invitations to take part in the annual service of remembrance at the Cenotaph have traditionally followed the pattern set in the original development of this ceremony. The Government have now decided to review the arrangements for this and similar occasions to consider whether that pattern meets current needs.

Cable Services

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy towards applications for deregulation of cable services where the

Metropolitan Police

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many policemen have been retired from the beat in the Metropolitan area since April 1979.

Information in the form requested is not available but in the four years from 1 May 1979, 5,867 officers left the Metropolitan police force on retirement or for other reasons, of whom 4,708 were constables. During the same period, the net increase in the strength of the force was 4,308.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information is as follows:company concerned has announced its intention of withdrawing its service to provide network broadcasts to householders.

The policy is set out in paragraph 207 of the White Paper on "The Development of Cable Systems and Services"—Cmnd. 8866. My right hon. and learned Friend is prepared to license existing cable operators to offer additional services and, where necessary, to do so by removing BBC and IBA channels from their systems so long as they provide satisfactory alternative means of reception at no extra cost to the viewer.

Prison Population

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the average daily prison population in 1982 per 100,000 of the population as a whole.

The average population of prison department establishments in England and Wales in 1982 was about 88 per 100,000 of the population of England and Wales.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners, with the exception of remand prisoners and prisoners in open prisons, were required to share a cell in 1982.

The information requested is not readily available in this form and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. However, table 3 of the "Report on the work of the Prison Department 1982'', Cmnd. 9057, provides details of the highest numbers of inmates sleeping two or three to a cell for the years 1971–1982 in all prison department establishments.

Neighbourhood Watch

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department which forces are now operating the neighbourhood watch scheme or an equivalent scheme.

I understand that the following police forces are operating neighbourhood watch schemes under that or other names:

The Metropolitan police
Avon and Somerset
Bedfordshire
Cheshire
Dorset
Hertfordshire
Merseyside
Northumbria
North Wales
South Wales
Staffordshire

Trade And Industry

"A Plan For Action"

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what response he intends to make to the British Textile Confederation's "A Plan for Action" submitted in March 1983.

My right hon. Friend is not yet in a position to respond to the British Textile Confederation's "A Plan for Action" but he or my hon. Friend the Minister of State for Industry will shortly meet representatives of the confederation further to discuss its proposals.

Electrical Equipment

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) if it is anticipated that British Standard 1363 will be acceptable in terms of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations that will be established;(2) whether he has had any discussions with his counterpart in the Irish Republic about its proposed order prohibiting the sale of plugs and sockets unless they are to a particular standard and the acceptability under that order of products manufactured to British Standards 546 and 1363 or continental CEE No. 7

I understand that the Government of the Irish Republic have made an order providing that plugs and sockets shall not be sold unless they comply with certain safety requirements, and that compliance with British standards 546 or 1363, or CEE publication No. 7, shall be deemed to satisfy these requirements. I am considering whether to make new safety regulations for plugs and sockets and my Department will take the Irish order into account in its discussions with those concerned. One of the questions for consideration is whether we should require compliance with British standard 1363 in the form it may take following its current revision by the British Standards Institution

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if it is his intention in the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations that will be established to incorporate the present British Standards as acceptable.

In new draft Electrical Equipment (Safety I Regulations, which have not yet been circulated for comment, it is proposed to provide for the approval of standards, compliance with which would be deemed to satisfy the regulations. It would be for decision when the regulations are made which standards would be approved, but my Department will be consulting those concerned about what standards or parts of standards might be suitable.

Civil Servants (Travel Costs)

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the estimated annual cost of travel undertaken by civil servants employed by his Department (a) within the United Kingdom and (b) overseas.

It is estimated that the cost of travel and subsistence, incurred by civil servants in my Department, during 1983–84 will be £2,513,000 within the United Kingdom and £2,609,000 overseas.

Overseas Personnel

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether his Department maintains, or supports the maintenance of, any office or personnel abroad.

My Department maintains two staff abroad, one in the British trade development office, New York and the other as United Kingdom representative to the Airbus executive agency in Paris. In addition there are a number of staff on loan to other Departments for duties overseas.

Duty-Free Imports

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of total imports in each of standard industrial trade classification, divisions 51 to 89, is admitted duty-free from all sources under duty suspension or a duty-free rate.

Information in this form and detail is not readily available and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The following table gives the information sought in respect of appointments to advisory non-departmental public bodies made by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry or by other Ministers in the Department, and includes those made by officials on their behalf. It does not include advisory bodies where neither the chairman nor members are appointed by Ministers.

Appointments as at 1 July 1983
	Chairman		Deputy etc.		Members
Name of Body	Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Committee on the Safety of Household Electrical Equipment	1	—	—	—	14	3
British Overseas Trade Board	1	—	1	—	13	1
Cinematograph Films Council	—	1	—	—	14	—
Export Guarantees Advisory Council	—	—	—	—	7	1
Insurance Advisers	—	—	—	—	17	1
Overseas Projects Board	1	—	1	—	10	—
Standing Advisory Committee on Patents	1	—	—	—	10	1
Standing Advisory Committee on Trade Marks	1	—	—	—	9	2
Advisory Council on Calibration and Measurement	1	—	—	—	11	—
Advisory Committee on Stockpiling	—	—	—	—	7	—
China Clay Council	1		—	—	1	—
Focus Committee on Information Technology Standards	—	—	—	—	8	—
Industrial Development Advisory Board	1	—	—	—	10	—
Joint Optoelectronics Research Scheme Assessment Committee	1	—	—	—	9	—
Laboratory of the Government Chemist Requirements Committee	1	—	—	—	9	—
Technology Transfer Services Committee	1	—	—	—	11	—
Production Statistics Advisory Committee	—	—	—	—	12	—
Regional Industrial Development Boards	4	—	—	—	33	—
Electronics and Avionics Requirements Board	1	—	—	—	10[6^*]	—
Materials and Chemical and Vehicles Requirements Board	1	—	—	—	7	—
Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Requirements Board	1	—	—	—	9	—
Metrology and Standards Requirements Board	1	—	—	—	7[6^*]	—
Textiles and Other Manufacturers Requirements Board	1	—	—	—	6	—
Space Consultative Committee	—	—	—	—	15	—
^*Figures in square brackets refer to appointments made other than by Ministers or officials on their behalf.

Steel Industry

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what Government funding will be involved in the establishment of a new private sector company resulting from the Phoenix II negotiations.

We have not received proposals from BSC and GKN concerning Phoenix II. I therefore cannot say what form of Government funding might be involved.

British Telecom (Equipment Approvals)

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry why, following a statement by his Department that British teletex equipment would be approved for sale in the United Kingdom on 1 October, the only approval granted by British Telecom has been for foreign equipment; and if he will make a statement.

The teletex promotion scheme provides a grant towards the cost to subscribers of purchasing certified teletex equipment from five British companies between October 1983 and June 1984. The scheme does not prevent other suppliers from selling certified equipment. It is the responsibility of suppliers to arrange

for the certification by BT of the equipment for attachment to British Telecom's teletex service. Equipment to be supplied under the teletex scheme is now expected to be submitted for testing later this month. Delays in the supply of teletex equipment are due in large part to technical problems in implementing the teletex standard. Certain foreign suppliers have an advantage in this respect due to the earlier introduction of teletex services in Sweden and Germany. Equipment supplied by Ericsson Information Systems has obtained certification.

Monopolies And Mergers

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is his policy towards monopolies and mergers.

Policy towards monopolies and mergers is governed by a balance between the reliance on the market as arbiter of company size and structure, the need for competition to promote the direct interest of the consumer and other matters affecting the public interest.

2,4,5-T (Imports)

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Carmarthen on 8 November, Official Report, c. 112, to what factors he attributes the 'variations in the tonnage of 2,4,5-T imported; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 277]: The quantities of any product imported will depend on the commercial requirements of importers.

Solicitor-General For Scotland

Advisory Committees

asked the Solicitor-General for Scotland if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by the Lord Advocate; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information asked for is:

Name of body and appointments as at 1 July 1983

Scottish Law Commission — One Chairman (male); four Commissioners (male) (two of whom are part-time. The statutory qualification for appointment are: the holding of judicial office or experience as a solicitor or advocate or as a teacher of law in a university.

Scottish Committee of the Council on Tribunals—One Chairman (male); seven Members (6 male, 1 female). The Chairman and two of the members of the Committee are also members of the Council itself (which is appoirted jointly by the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Advocate).

Homeless households accepted following notification by other authorities
	1981		1982
	1st half	2nd half	1st half	2nd half
England	520	530	370	410
London	170	150	140	130
Other metropolitan authorities	80	100	60	70
Non-metropolitan authorities	270	280	170	210

Information for individual local authorities or for earlier periods can be prepared only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, from the returns received by his Department from local authorities for households about whom inquiries were completed under the Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977, how many households accepted as homeless and resident in temporary accommodation at the end of the relevant half-yearly

Households accepted as homeless and in women's refuges or short-life dwellings at the end of the period
	1981		1982
	1st half	2nd half	1st half	2nd half
Women's refuges
England	330	370	470	350
London	60	80	170	90
Other metropolitan authorities	140	120	100	110
Non-metropolitan authorities	130	170	200	150
Short-life dwellings
England	4300	4600	4400	4200

Environment

Local Government (Redundancies)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time employees of local authorities lost their jobs from March 1982 to March 1983.

No information is available centrally on how many employees of local authorities lost their jobs. Figures taken from the Joint Manpower Watch manpower survey show, however, that between March 1982 and March 1983 the number of full-time employees in local authorities in England fell by 3,893 (—0·3 per cent.) while the number of part-time employees increased by 9,309 (+1·1 per cent.).

Homeless Persons

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, from the returns received by his Department from local authorities for households about whom inquiries were completed under the Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977 how many households dealt with under section 5 of the Act were accepted following notifications from other authorities under section 5; and if he will give this information for England as a whole, for Greater London, for the metropolitan authorities excluding Greater London, for the non-metropolitan authorities, and for each English local authority area, for each of the years this information has been collected.

The information is as follows.periods for which homelessness statistics have been published were

(a) in women's refuges and (b) in "short-life" dwellings under licence; and if he will give this information for England as a whole, for Greater London, for the metropolitan authorities excluding Greater London, for the non-metropolitan authorities, and for each English local authority area, for each of the years this information has been collected.

Young: The information is as follows:

	1981		1982
	1st half	2nd half	1st half	2nd half
London	2400	2700	2200	2900
Other metropolitan authorities	200	100	100	—
Non-metropolitan authorities	1700	1800	2100	1300

Note—indicates less than 50

Numbers of households in women's refuges are normally included with the numbers in hostels in the Department's publications.

Numbers in short-life dwellings include all in temporary accommodation other than bed and breakfast, hostels and women's refuges.

Information for individual local authorities or for earlier periods can be prepared only at disproportionate cost.

Housing Investment

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what research is currently being undertaken to assess and project housing needs and requirements and consequent levels of capital investment in housing.

The Government's view, as stated in their reply to the Environment Committee's first report Cmnd. 8105, and confirmed in their reply to the third report, Cmnd. 8435, is that research into these issues is unlikely to be useful.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what gross provision has been made for local authorities for housing investment in 1984–85; and what is the amount assumed for local receipts.

My right hon. Friend will make an announcement about resources for housing investment by local authorities in 1984–85, including forecasts of housing capital receipts, as soon as possible.

Council House Sales

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what were the gross receipts from the sale of (a) flats and (b) houses by each of the London boroughs in each of the years 1979–80, 1980–82 and 1982–83.

Available information is on local authorities' initial receipts from all sales of dwellings, not separating house and flats. Figures reported by the London boroughs are as follows:

Initial receipts from the sale of dwellings London boroughs
London borough	1979–80	1980–81	1981–82	^1982–83*
	£000	£000	£000	£000
Barking and Dagenham	0	0	3,009	10,190
Barnet	362	947	1,998	4,580

Sale of Local Authority Dwellings—London Boroughs: 1979–80 to 1982–83
Local Authority	1979–80			1980–81		1981–82		1982–83
	Built^ for sale*	Other houses	Other flats	Houses	Flats	Houses	Flats	Houses	Flats
Barking and Dagenham	0	0	0	0	0	678	0	2,558	0
Barnet	34	137	3	218	34	322	32	486	14
Bexley	0	226	0	401	0	390	21	265	22
Brent	0	0	0	2	0	187	4	337	50
Bromley	0	259	0	443	0	562	0	494	151
Camden	0	0	0	1	0	11	5	81	120
Croydon	0	430	6	308	0	678	65	803	0
Ealing	0	525	0	692	0	681	98	656	116
Enfield	16	240	0	248	25	379	2	467	66
Greenwich	0	0	0	0	0	205	0	1,020	6
Hackney	0	1	0	^**	^**	24	0	104†	^**
Hammersmith and Fulham	0	36	35	131	2	186	68	195	119
Haringey	0	0	0	0	0	390	6	445	73
Harrow	0	115	0	113	0	238	0	319	82

London borough	1979–80	1980–81	1981–82	^1982–83*
	£000	£000	£000	£000
Bexley	448	976	1,954	1,836
Brent	0	0	2,381	5,130
Bromley	785	1,625	2,063	8,758
Camden	0	10	260	2,546
Croydon	1,601	1,052	3,262	5,284
Ealing	1,040	2,029	3,418	4,560
Enfield	717	1,213	1,550	4,461
Greenwich	0	0	2,515	11,818
Hackney	12	0	261	1,344
Hammersmith and Fulham	1,002	1,003	4,607	4,405
Haringey	0	0	3,656	6,932
Harrow	740	704	2,297	n/a
Havering	1,596	1,322	1,243	1,917
Hillingdon	4,194	4,171	n/a	n/a
Hounslow	0	0	1,352	6,535
Islington	0	n/a	1,779	4,599
Kensington and Chelsea	312	717	1,188	2,927
Kingston upon Thames	382	1,116	1,007	2,099
Lambeth	65	n/a	373	n/a
Lewisham	0	0	1,584	6,940
Merton	349	1,865	1,721	2,369
Newham	144	1,007	3,390	15,755
Redbridge	951	437	956	1,423
Richmond upon Thames	576	381	735	2,269
Southwark	197	n/a	1,476	4,800
Sutton	363	682	1,564	2,450
Tower Hamlets	0	0	160	1,654
Waltham Forest	0	0	3,752	6,115
Wandsworth	2,475	3,898	13,313	10,004
Westminster	1,721	1,450	723	3,547
* Provisional.
n/a=Not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the environment how many (a) houses and (b) flats have been sold by each of the London boroughs in each of the years 1979–80, 1980–811981–82 and 1982–83

Figures reported by the London boruoghs are as follows:

Local Authority	1979–80			1980–81		1981–82		1982–83
	Built^ forsale*	Other houses	Otherflats	Houses	Flats	Houses	Flats	Houses	Flats
Havering	0	1,633	0	925	0	336	58	399	81
Hillingdon	^**	^**	^**	^**	^**	641	203	671†	^**
Hounslow	0	0	0	7	0	280	0	858	8
Islington	0	0	0	2	0	64	9	102†	96†
Kensington and Chelsea	0	1	51	46	4	78	74	58	83
Kingston upon Thames	0	56	0	217	0	145	0	225	158
Lambeth	0	13	0	2	0	29	1	231	36
Lewisham	0	0	0	0	0	180	0	947	25
Merton	0	95	0	547	19	407	27	284	41
Newham	47	49	0	78^*		266	0	l,328†	0†
Redbridge	0	387	6	248	0	331	12	308	114
Richmond upon Thames	0	163	0	105	2	81	5	189	95
Southwark	32	0	0	4	0	166	0	357	129
Sutton	0	99	0	167	0	217	20	233	65
Tower Hamlets	0	0	0	0	0	20	0	178†	30†
Waltham Forest	0	0	0	0	0	532	0	605	64
Wandsworth	0	434	90	667	0	564	790	452	806
Westminster	0	34	181	35	132	19	62	62	192
^* Separate figures for houses and flats not available. Figures for 1980–81, 1981–82 and 1982–83 include built for sale.
† Incomplete total of reported figures.
^** Indicates information not available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the level of sale of council homes in Welwyn Hatfield district under the right-to-buy legislation since its introduction; and what percentage rate of sale there has been nationally.

For sales under the right to buy to 30 June 1983 by Welwyn Hatfield district council and for its stock of dwellings at 1 April 1982, I refer my hon. Friend to the table placed in the Library following the reply my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Construction gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Wirral, South (Mr. Porter) on 3 November. [Vol. 47, c. 421.] Right-to-buy sales by local authorities and new towns in Great Britain up to June 1983 were 5·8 per cent. of their estimated dwelling stock at December 1982.

London borough	Dwellings owned in own area at		GLC transfers (1980–83)
	1 April 1979	1April 1983
Barking and Dagenham	25,652	34,663	12,451
Barnet	17,265	19,333	2,590
Bexley	12,530	11,906	422
Brent	20,500	21,635	306
Bromley	14,594	18,597	5,497
Camden	28,031	33,800	2,452
Croydon	21,800	21,045	815
Ealing	20,339	21,378	2,278
Enfield	20,995	21,064	681
Greenwich	26,479	37,420	9,792
Hackney	27,300	46,350	17,814
Hammersmith and Fulham	15,624	19,400	4,243
Haringey	21,540	24,192	2,324
Harrow	8,285	8,851	1,176
Havering	16,100	17,702	4,835
Hillingdon	24,622	21,322	73
Hounslow	20,548	20,060	288
Islington	31,649	41,058	7,946
Kensington and Chelsea	7,261	8,892	1,935
Kingston upon Thames	7,737	7,178	236
Lambeth	31,620	48,760	15,301
Lewisham	30,000	42,900	13,415
Merton	12,644	14,077	2,908
Newham	30,121	31,110	1,038
Redbridge	10,860	12,190	2,809
Richmond upon Thames	9,376	9,434	555
Sutton	8,745	12,917	4,612

Housing Stock (London Boroughs)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the stock of dwellings owned by each of the London boroughs at the latest available date; and what were the comparable figures for 31 March 1979.

The latest information about the number of dwellings owned by each London borough is contained in the authorities' housing investment programme returns. The figures, confined to dwellings situated in each authority's own area and relating to 1 April 1983, and corresponding figures for 1 April 1979 are as follows:

London borough	Dwellings owned in own area at		GLC transfers (1980–83)
	1 April 1979	1 April 1983
Southwark	36,716	62,555	23,631
Tower Hamlets	18,194	19,241	0
Waltham Forest	19,558	20,963	1,531
Wandsworth	28,863	37,952	11,281
Westminster	18,430	23,693	4,795
Total	643,951	836,168	160,030

The changes in the numbers between the two dates reflect the effects of new building, demolitions, council house sales and the transfer of some 160,000 GLC dwellings to the boroughs.

Underwater Heritage

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is satisfied that current legislation sufficiently protects the underwater heritage; and if he will make a statement.

I am satisfied that adequate provision for this is made in current legislation. Sections 36 and 37 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 provide a framework for the establishment of marine nature reserves and their protection by appropriate byelaws. The Nature Conservancy Council has currently under consideration plans for the establishment of a number of such reserves.

Rate Support Grant (Newham)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the level of rate support grant paid to the London borough of Newham in the current year; and how this compares in real terms with each preceding year back to 1979.

The figures are as follows:

	£ million
1978–79	66·091
1979–80	62·756
1980–81	60·685
1981–82	60·259
1982–83	70·118
1983–84	68·851

The rate support grant arrangements changed in 1981–82, and the figures for earlier years are not comparable with those for 1981–82 onwards. The figures for 1978–79, 1979–80 and 1980–81 include needs, and resources elements, and receipts under the London rate equalisation scheme and are revalued to 1981–82 settlement prices. The 1978–79 and 1979–80 figures are final entitlements and that for 1980–81 covers payments made to date. The figures for 1981–82 onwards represent block grant after holdback and are in cash terms. The 1981–82 figure includes grant paid in respect of the GLC and Metropolitan police; the new grant system had the effect of increasing the amount of grant remaining in boroughs that had qualified for resources element, but this was offset by an increase in the size of the precepts. The 1982–83 figure includes grant paid in respect of the Metropolitan police; grant was paid direct to the GLC in that year.

Housing (Leicester)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what resources were allocated to the city of Leicester by the Government for housing purposes during each of the past 10 years; and how much the Government propose to allocate during the coming year.

HIP allocations were introduced only from 1977–78. Allocations for each year since then are:

	£ million
1977–78	19·923
1978–79	22·774
1979–80	20·524
1980–81	17·378
1981–82	17·038
1982–83	18·496
1983–84	17·075

HIP allocations for 1984–85 will be announced as soon as possible. Allocations before and after 1981–82 are not directly comparable because since 1981 local authorities have been able to increase allocations to take account of capital receipts.

Captive Balloon Advertising

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will allow captive balloon advertising to be subject to a deemed consent for balloons which are being flown for periods of up to 14 days.

My right hon. Friend recently announced his intention to amend the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations so as to bring captive balloon advertisements within control by local planning authorities, who would then be able to grant "express consent" for this type of advertisement. It is hoped to lay amending regulations before Parliament shortly.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The advisory committees whose members are appointed by me are listed in Her Majesty's Stationery Office publication "Public Bodies" published by the Management and Personnel Office. A copy of the most recent edition called "Public Bodies 1982", is held by the Library. A new edition, to be called "Public Bodies 1983", is being prepared; this will show the number and gender of appointees as at 1 July 1983. The following list shows those advisory committees to which I make appointments, together with the required details of membership as they will appear in the Department of the Environment section of "Public Bodies 1983".

Appointments as at 1 July 1983
Name of Body	Chairman	Deputy etc.	Members
Ancient Monuments Board for England	1 male	—	14 male, 3 female
Building Regulations Advisory Committee	1 male	—	18 male
Building Research Establishment Advisory Committee	1 male	—	10 male
Commission on Energy and the Environment^*	—	—	—
Historic Buildings Council for England	1 female	—	20 male, 1 female
Local Government Boundary Commission for England	1 male	1 male	3 male, 1 female
London Housing Staff Commission	1 male	—	2 male
New Town Staff Commission	1 male	—	1 male, 1 female
Property Advisory Group	1 male	—	12 male, 1 female
Property Services Agency Advisory Board	1 male	—	12 male
Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee	1 male	—	14 male, 1 female
Regional Councils for Sport and Recreation	9 male	18 male	49 male, 8 female [952 male, 134 female]†
Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution	1 male	—	11 male, 2 female
^* The Commission is in abeyance.
† I do not appoint those members whose details appear in square brackets.

Nuclear Waste

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will take steps to ensure that, at any public inquiry held into the nuclear industry radioactive waste executive's proposals for intermediate level nuclear waste disposal, objectors will be assisted from public funds.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend gave to the hon. Member for St. Helens, North (Mr. Evans) following his statement on 25 October 1983.—[Vol. 47, c. 163–64.]

Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what consultations he has had recently with the radioactive waste management advisory committee.

My Department has regular and useful consultations with the radioactive waste management advisory committee, which continues to be the major source of independent and objective advice to the Government in this controversial and important field. The Under-Secretary of State will attend part of tomorrow's meeting of the committee.My colleagues and I are grateful to Sir Denys Wilkinson FRS, vice-chancellor of the University of Sussex, for his distinguished and widely appreciated contribution as chairman of the committee since it was set up in 1978. It was with regret that I accepted Sir Denys's wish to give up the chairmanship at a suitable opportunity, in order to devote more time to his other commitments.I am today appointing Professor Paul T. Matthews CBE, FRS, who has expressed to my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and Wales and myself his willingness to serve, as chairman of the committee for a term of three and a half years beginning in January. Professor Matthews is a distinguished physicist who recently retired as vice-chancellor of the University of Bath and is currently working in the department of applied mathematics and theoretical physics at Cambridge

Office Development

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what were the amounts of unused office space in the six metropolitan counties in England, and in Greater London, at the most recent convenient date; and what attitude he will take to future applications which come before him for large scale office developments in these areas.

Vacant office floor space statistics are not maintained by my Department. Applications for office development which come before me will be decided on their merits.

Green Belt

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what will be the planning mechanism for defining green belt boundaries in and around the metropolitan county conurbations when the metropolitan county councils are abolished; and if he will make a statement.

Green belt boundaries are defined in local plans. The powers of borough and district councils to prepare these plans will not be affected by the abolition of the Greater London council and the metropolitan county councils. Details of my proposals for the reallocation of planning functions in the metropolitan areas are set out in the consultation paper circulated on 10 October and it would not be appropriate to make a statement at the present time.

Paint (Lead Levels)

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if there are any European Community regulations which would prevent the United Kingdom reducing lead levels in household paint.

I have been asked to reply. I am advised that it would be contrary to EC directive 77/728/EEC to ban the supply of household paint containing more than a prescribed amount of lead. The directive provides for the packaging and labelling of paint on safety grounds and forbids member states from prohibiting the supply of paints that satisfy these requirements.

Agriculture, Fisheries And Food

Milk

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will estimate the effects upon the British dairy industry of allowing European sterilised and frozen pasteurised milk into the United Kingdom in unrestricted amounts.

I recognise that there is concern about the possible effect of imports of milk, which are necessary as a result of the judgment of the European Court in case 124/81. In the last resort, this will depend upon the British consumer: I know that the dairy industry as a whole is well aware of this and of the resulting need to keep itself as competitive as possible. I welcome the steps it is taking to persuade consumers of the benefits of having fresh pasteurised British milk delivered to the doorstep. I should point out that the regulations do not provide for imports of frozen pasteurised milk.

Cornwall (European Community Support)

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the total amount of European Community and Her Majesty's Government support for (a) agriculture and (b) fishing in Cornwall in each year since 1972, distinguishing each different type of intervention payment and other aid.

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

Pesticides

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the advisory committee on pesticides has identified all those pesticides products which were safety approved by Industrial Bio Test Laboratories Inc. in the United States of America prior to the most recent proceedings on falsification of data; and what new studies have been undertaken in the United Kingdom on these products.

Reviews undertaken in 1978, and earlier this year, identified those products cleared under the pesticides safety precautions scheme for use in the United Kingdom whose notification was supported by IBT studies. In the few cases where invalid studies from that source formed a significant part of the total data package submitted over a number of years at various stages of product development and safety clearance, replacement studies have either been obtained and revalidated by the advisory committee, or are being obtained.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what studies have been carried out by the advisory committee on pesticides on the herbicide Dichlobenil.

The committee studied a package of medical and scientific data before Dichlobenil was first cleared for commercial use under the pesticides safety precautions scheme in the mid-1960s, and has monitored its safety in use since then.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) whether he intends to ban the use of Chlorbromuron;(2) what studies the advisory committee on pesticides has carried out on Chlorbromuron in the United Kingdom;(3) whether he will review the use of Chlorbromuron as a weedkiller on crops of carrots, parsnips and potatoes;(4) whether he will list those countries which have banned the use of Chlorbromuron.

The committee studied a package of medical and scientific data before Chlorbromuron was first cleared for commercial use under the pesticides safety precautions scheme in 1969. Subsequent monitoring has not established any grounds to warrant withdrawal of clearance, but as a further precaution, one toxicity study is currently being revalidated. Details of the clearance status of this herbicide in other countries are not readily available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) whether he will list those countries who have banned the use of Propachlor;(2) whether he will review the use of Propachlor as a weedkiller on crops of onions, leeks and cabbages in the United Kingdom;(3) whether he intends to ban the use of Propachlor in the United Kingdom;(4) what studies the advisory committee on pesticides has carried out on Propachlor in the United Kingdom.

The committee studied a package of medical and scientific data before Propachlor was first cleared for commercial use under the pesticides safety precautions scheme in 1967, and subsequent monitoring has established no evidence to warrant withdrawal of clearance. Details of the clearance status of the herbicide in other countries are not readily available.

European Community (Intervention Costs)

the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will seek to ensure that returns from European Community intervention agencies in future will include information about expenditure by country of destination.

No. International statistics already provide information on trade between the Community and third countries.

Advisory Committees

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The following are details of appointments to the advisory non-departmental public bodies for which this Department is responsible.

Name of Body	Appointments as at 1st July 1983
	Chairman— members Department
	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Committee on Pesticides	1	—	14	—
Agricultural Chemicals Approval Scheme Scientific Advisory Committee	1	—	13	—
Agricultural Economics Technical Committee	—	—	10	—
Agricultural Statistics Consultative Committe	—	—	7	—
Banana Trade Advisory Committee	—	—	5	—
Committee on Agricultural Valuation	—	—	12	—
Committee on the Artificial Insemination of Cattle	1	—	16	—
Committee of Investigation for England and Wales under Agricultural Marketing Acts	1	—	5	—
Committee of Investigation for Great Britain under Agricultural Marketing Acts	1	—	6	—
Consultative Panel on Badgers and Tuberculosis	—	—	13	1
Consumers' Committee for England and Wales under Agricultural Marketing Acts	—	1	5	2
Consumers' Committee for Great Britain under Agricultural Marketing Acts	—	1	5	3
Experimental Centres Advisory Committees in England and Wales (20)	20	—	175	—
Farm Animal Welfare Council	1	—	17	4
Fisheries Research and Development Board	1	—	13	—
Food Advisory Committee^*	1	—	12	2
Hill Fanning Advisory Committee for England, Wales and Northern Ireland	1	—	13	—
Joint Consultative Organisation for Research and Development in Agriculture and Food	1	—	8	—
Kew Scientific Advisory Panel	1	—	7	—
National Food Survey Committee	—	—	4	1
Reading Cattle Breeding Centre Advisory Committee	1	—	14	—
Regional Panels (5)	5	—	67	—
Steering Group on Food Surveillance	—	—	4	—
Sugar Beet Research and Education Committee	1	—	8	—
Veterinary Products Committee	1	—	19	—
Wakehurst Place Consultative Panel	—	—	2	—
^* Formerly the Food Additives and Contaminants and the Food Standards Committees which were merged with effect from 1 November 1983. The appointments listed are as at that date.

Herring Fishery

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the present closure of the herring fishery in the northern and central North sea must continue.

Following the exhaustion of the provisional quotas established by the Council for herring in the northern and central North sea in May, fishing by Community vessels in these areas was prohibited. Fishing in the south North sea however opened on 1 October on the basis of the quotas rolled over from the 1982 regulation agreed in January. The United Kingdom quota is 21,000 tonnes out of a Community total of 68,000 tonnes.I am glad now to be able to confirm that a proposal is expected to be adopted very shortly under which member states, including the United Kingdom, will be allowed up until 15 December, the day after the next Council meeting, to take a specified part of their "rollover" quota in the northern and central North sea instead of in the southern North sea. As an exceptional measure, reflecting the fact that Belgium did not benefit from the provisional quota allocations in May, she will be allowed to take an additional quantity of 1,000 tonnes up to the same date only. This decision will ensure a more rational pattern of herring fishing in the North sea as a whole this year and will be welcome to the pelagic sector of the United Kingdom fishing industry.The position after 15 December will depend on any decisions taken by the Council at its next meeting.

Wales

Council House Sales

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many council houses in Wales have been sold to their tenants since May 1979; and if he will make a statement.

Between May 1979 and July 1983, 27,666 council dwellings were sold to sitting tenants under the right-to-buy provisions of the Housing Act 1980 and a further 3,866 sales took place on a voluntary basis. A further 1,515 dwellings were sold by the Cwmbran development corporation, Mid-Wales development and housing associations. I am concerned to note indications of a declining trend in the rate at which local authorities are processing sales. I shall continue to monitor the situation closely.

Jobcentres

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what will be the change of numbers of staff employed in jobcentres in Wales between 1982–83 and 1983–84.

The Manpower Services Commission informs me that the number of jobcentre and employment office permanent staff in post in Wales was as follows:

	Number
1 April 1982	509·5
31 March 1983	487·5
1 November 1983	458·5

The figures for March and November 1983 include community programme staff out-stationed at jobcentres. The planned staff profile for 31 March 1984 is 437 excluding community programme staff.

Gipsies

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what progress is being achieved by each of the local

County	District	Site
Dyfed	Llanelli	Morfa
	Preseli	Under the Hills, Haverfordwest
	Preseli	Withybush, Haverfordwest
	South Pembrokeshire	Catshole Quarry, Pembroke
	South Pembrokeshire	Kingsmoor Common, Kilgetty
Gwent	Blaenau Gwent	Cwmerachen, Nantyglo
	Torfaen	Shepherds Hill, Upper Race, Pontypool
Gwynedd	Arfon	Llandegai, Bangor
Mid Glamorgan	Merthyr Tydfil	Glyn Mil
Powys	Montgomery	Withybeds, Welshpool

Dyfed county council is currently constructing a new site at Waterloo, Pembroke, and South Glamorgan county council is presently bringing the Rover Way site at Cardiff up to an acceptable standard. In addition Clwyd, Dyfed and Gwent county councils are seeking to identify locations for new sites in their areas while West Glamorgan county council has recently produced, for further detailed consideration, a short list of possible locations in the Swansea area.

Patients (Referrals)

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish in the Official Report the names of those district health authorities in Wales in which general practitioner's have first to refer patients to a consultant before the consultant refers those patients to a hospital clinic for treatment, and also the names of those district health authorities in which general practitioners can refer patients direct to a hospital clinic.

Practice varies between and within hospitals and is a matter for local determination. The information requested is not available centrally.

Waste Disposal

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if, in the light of the widespread difficulties that local authorities in Wales are having in the siting of conventional waste disposal sites, he will consider providing financial support for those authorities which are seeking to provide facilities for waste disposal in co-operation with other authorities.

Financial support for loan charges arising from authorities capital expenditure is already provided through the rate support grant. Claims for capital allocations for particular schemes are carefully considered but only schemes of demonstrable national or regional importance receive earmarked capital allocations. Spending decisions on all other capital schemes are determined by authorities themselves who are free to

authorities in Wales in providing adequate gipsy sites which are acceptable to the basic needs, including health requirements of the migrant population, and to the communities amongst whom the migrant population will be expected to settle.

Local authorities in Wales have provided gipsy sites to acceptable standards at the following locations:determine their own priorities within the resources available to them. Nothing precludes authorities from combining their resources to develop joint schemes.

Health Authorities (Manpower)

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what manpower reductions he expects to be carried out by each of the health authorities in Wales as a result of the £6·5 million reduction in health provision in Wales for the current financial year.

There has been a net growth of £8·1 million in the resources available to health authorities in Wales in 1983–84 compared with 1982–83. My right hon. Friend has not imposed any specific manpower reductions on authorities as a consequence of the July cash limit reductions.

Cardiothoracic Services

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he has reached a final decision as to the specifications and the number of locations of proposed cardio-investigatory and cardio-surgical provision in the Principality; and if he will make a statement.

No. I have seen a report appraising options for improving cardiothoracic services in Wales, but since then a further proposal has been received and this must be compared with the best of those already appraised. This will be done as quickly as possible.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information, which will be included in "Public Bodies 1983" due to be published shortly, is as follows:

Name of body	Appointments as at 1 July 1983
	Chairman/Deputy	Members
		Male	Female
Agricultural Dwelling House Advisory Committees	12 Ch(M)	—	—
Agriculture Advisory Panel for Wales	1 Ch(M)	9	—
Ancient Monuments Board for Wales	1 Ch(M)	6	—
Committee for the Welsh Scheme for the Development of Health and Social	1 Ch(M) plus 1	15	1
Research	Dep(M)
Committee on Opportunities for Volunteering	1 Ch(M)	4	—
Historic Buildings Council for Wales	1 Ch(M)	6	—
Housing Management Advisory Panel for Wales	—	2	1
Library and Information Services Council (Wales)	1 Ch(M)	11	3
Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales	1 Ch(F) plus 1 Dep(M)	2	—
Place Names Advisory Committee	1 Ch(M)	1	—
Review Group on Mental Illness Services in Dyfed	lCh(F)	4	1
Wales Advisory Body for Local Authority Higher Education	1 Ch(M)	24	—
Welsh Committee for Postgraduate Pharmaceutical Education	[1 Ch(M) plus 1 Dep(M)]^*	3[3]^*	[1]^*
Welsh Industrial Development Advisory Board	1 Ch(M)	7	—
Welsh Scientific Advisory Committee	1 Ch(M)	[12]^*	—
^* Information concerning non-ministerial appointees is shown in square brackets.

Welsh Water Authority

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give additional financial assistance to the Welsh water authority in order to assist it in its attempts to improve the rivers and coastal waters within Wales; and if he will make a statement.

The Welsh water authority finances its capital expenditure through charges, grants, and borrowing within an external financing limit. The authority's annual corporate plan forms the basis for my right hon. Friend's review of its external financing requirement. It is for the authority to allocate resources to improve river and coastal waters in the light of its priorities.

Name of Body	Chairmen		Members
	M	F	M	F
Advisory Committee on Homeworking	—	—	9	3
Advisory Committee on Women's Employment	—	—	5	21
Careers Service Advisory Council for England	—	—	17	2
Civil Service Arbitration Tribunal	1	—	10	—
Race Relations Employment Advisory Group	—	—	11	3
Retail Prices Index Advisory Committee	—	—	15	3
Tripartite Steering Group on Job Satisfaction	—	—	6	—
Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens^*	1	—	13	2
Committees for the Employment of Disabled People	81	6	[965]	[43]
National Advisory Council on Employment of Disabled People	—	1	20	4
^* Appointments to the advisory committee on dangerous pathogens are made jointly by the Secretary of State for Social Services and the Health and Safety Commission.

School Leavers

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons who left school at the end of each of the summer terms in 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983 in Coventry, the west midlands and nationally

Employment

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The advisory non-departmental public bodies to which I or my Ministers make appointments are as follows. Appointments are shown as at 1 July 1983, and the sex of appointees is indicated by the letters M (Male) and F (female). Where no chairman is shown, the body is chaired by a Minister or an official. Information concerning non-ministerial appointments to these bodies is shown in square brackets.Full details of all non-departmental public bodies, including those to which I and my Ministers do not make appointments, will appear in "Public Bodies 1983', to be published in December or January.are now

(a) in full-time permanent employment, (b) in full-time education, (c) on various youth training or temporary employment schemes and (d) unemployed; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 9 November 1983, c. 162]: Of those 1983 summer school leavers whose whereabouts were known to the Coventry careers service in mid-October, 720 have entered employment, 1,328 were in full-time education, 610 were unemployed and 1,870 were on the youth training scheme. In the wider area covered by the Coventry area office of the MSC's training division 2,278 school leavers, including Easter leavers, had entered the youth training scheme by 30 September. The remaining information requested is not readily available.The Government remain concerned about the level of youth unemployment; but it is encouraging that at 7 October there were more unfilled vacancies at careers offices than at the corresponding date in 1982; and that between May and September 1983 the careers service placed more school leavers into employment than in the same period in 1982.

Country	Number	Manufacturer	Span	f o b cost	By tender
Bolivia	1	Thos Storey (Engineers) Ltd.	300 ft (DSR)	£99,651	2 quotations obtained
Peru	2	Mabey & Johnson Ltd.	200 ft, 130 ft (DDR)	£118,880	No

DSR=double,single reinforced.DDR=double,double reinforced.

Crown Agents

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many staff are employed by the Crown Agents; what is the total cost of such employees; and how many were suspended at 31 December 1982 and at the latest convenient date.

I am informed by the Crown Agents that the number of permanent and pensionable staff employed on 31 October 1983 was 1,190, of whom 43 were part-time staff. Their total pay amounts to £10·5 million per annum, plus £4·5 million in respect of pension and national insurance contributions.No staff were under suspension at 31 December 1982, although two members of staff who had been declared redundant were working out their notice at home on full pay.Fifty-two staff were sent home on full pay during September following the reorganisation of the investment and treasury department as a result of the decision by the Government of Brunei to remove the investment management of their funds from Crown Agents. Many of these staff have been recalled to the office to carry out temporary work and, at the present time, 31 are at home.

Education And Science

Dyslexic Children

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what provision is made for the teaching of dyslexic children;(2) what is the amount spent per year by Her Majesty's Government on dyslexic children; and whether there are any plans to increase this.

The provision of education for children with specific reading difficulties is the responsibility of the local education authority of the area in which they live. As recommended by the Tizard committee, such provision is

Overseas Development

Prefabricated Steel Bridges

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out in the Official Report a table showing how many prefabricated steel bridges have been supplied under the provision of the disaster fund; to which countries they have been supplied; who were the United Kingdom manufacturers; what was the span of each and free-on-board cost of each, indicating whether each was dealt with by single tender action or by competitive tender for each of the years 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1982–83 and for the current financial year to date.

No prefabricated bridging was provided from disaster funds during the period 1979–80 to 1982–83. Bridging provided this financial year is as follows:normally made by means of skilled remedial teaching in ordinary schools. No separate allocation of funds is made by the Government for the teaching of these children, whose education is provided by local education authorities out of rate moneys and rate support grant.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children are registered as or taught as dyslexic.

The Department does not collect these statistics. Dyslexia was not one of the categories of handicap prescribed under the Handicapped Pupils and Special Schools Regulations 1959. Since the implementation of the Education Act 1981 on 1 April 1983, the requirement to prescribe separate categories of handicap has been abolished in accordance with the recommendations of Warnock committee on special educational needs.

Civil Servants (Travel Costs)

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the estimated annual cost of travel undertaken by civil servants employed by his Department (a) within the United Kingdom and (b) overseas.

The estimated annual cost in 1983–84 is (a) £1·2 million for travel within the United Kingdom and (b) £80,000 for travel overseas.

Open Enrolment

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what evidence he has of the benefits of open enrolment; and if he will make a statement.

In the interests of raising educational standards, my right hon. Friend hopes to find ways in which parental choice and influence could be taken beyond the point reached by the 1980 Act. Subject to resource constraints, open enrolment offers one possibility for making progress.

Hereford And Worcester

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he has taken any action further to the report of Her Majesty's Inspectors on education in Hereford and Worcester.

Her Majesty's Inspectors have not prepared a report covering the whole of the education service in Hereford and Worcester. In February I published Her Majesty's Inspectorate's report on full-time provision for 16 to 19-year-olds in Redditch; that is being followed up by the Department in the usual way. Additionally, certain aspects of educational provision in Hereford and Worcester have been covered by various

Appointments as at 1.7.83
	Chairman		Members
	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Board for the Research Councils	1		21
Advisory Committee for the Micro-electronics Education Programme	1		4	1
Advisory Committee on the Supply and	1		5	2
Education of Teachers			[24]	[3]
Assessment of Performance Unit	1		7	5
(Consultative Committee)			[17]	[1]
Burnham Further Education Committee	1		[30]	[4]
Burnham Primary and Secondary Committee			[48]	[11]
Committee of Inquiry into the Education of	1		17	5
Children from Ethnic Minority Groups			[6]	[3]
Computer Board for Universities and Research Councils	1		7	2
National Advisory Body for Local Authority Higher Education	1		20	2
University Grants Committee	1		18	2

The figures in square brackets show the corresponding information for non-ministerial appointees to these bodies.

School Curriculum Development Committee

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he is able to announce the membership of the school curriculum development committee.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I are glad to announce that the following individuals have accepted our invitation to serve as members of the school curriculum development committee, under the chairmanship of Professor Roger Blin-Stoyle, FRS:

Mr. A. Ainsworth, Personnel Manager, John Player and Son.

Dr. P. Andrews, Headmaster, Henry Fanshawe School, Derbyshire.

Professor P. Black, Professor of Science Education, Chelsea College.

Mr. G. Bostock, Chief Training and Development Manager, British Gas.

Mr. E. A. Bradley, Principal, Westminster Further Education College.

Mr. H. Evans, Headmaster, Aberconwy Comprehensive School, Gwynedd.

Miss F. M. Kirby, Headmistress, Rutherford School, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Mrs. S. A. Laver, Headmistress, Enmore Primary School, near Bridgwater.

Mr. K. V. Noble, Headmaster, Tulse Hill School, London.

Mr. R. D. Peverett, Headmaster, Dulwich College Preparatory School.

On the nomination of the Association of County councils:

national surveys by Her Majesty's Inspectorate, including its annual report on the effects of local education authorities' expenditure policies; such surveys are not the subject of specific follow-up with individual authorities.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information requested is as follows:Mr. D. Fisher, Chief Education Officer, Hertfordshire.Mr. J. B. Killick, Senior Advisory Officer (Pre-School/ Primary/Middle), Hampshire.Dr. B. Marsh, Chairman, Shropshire Education Committee.Lady Popplewell, Chairman, Buckinghamshire Education Committee.Mr. F. Riddell, Chairman, Nottinghamshire Education Committee.On the nomination of the Association of Metropolitan Authorities:

Mr. R. Aitken, Director of Education, Coventry.

Mrs. E. B. Beaumont, Principal Advisory Officer, Bradford.

Mrs. N. Harrison, Chairman, AMA Education Committee.

Mr. P. Horton, Member, AMA Education Committee.

Mrs. K. Wood, Member, AMA Eduation Committee.

On the nomination of the Welsh Joint Education Committee:

Mr. John Brace, Secretary WJEC.

Total membership will be 23 — including the chairman—and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I will shortly announce the appointment of one further individual.

National Finance

Exchange Rates

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why the European Community Council in October agreed that the yen should better reflect the strength of the Japanese economy; and if this decision reflects change in Her Majesty' Government's view that exchange rates are matters for the market.

The Foreign Affairs Council on 17 October noted the continuing deterioration in trade trends between the Community and Japan; and observed that this problem would be eased if, among other things, the value of the yen better reflected the strength of the Japanese economy. Japan, like the United Kingdom, has a floating exchange rate, and the value of the yen is broadly determined by market forces. Market judgments will be influenced not only by the underlying competitive strength of the Japanese economy but by a complex of other factors including the state of regulation and development of yen financial markets, and the relative balance of fiscal policy in Japan and elsewhere, as was recognised in the agreement between the Japanese and United States Governments announced on 10 November. There has been no change in Her Majesty's Government's exchange rate policy.

Double Taxation Convention

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether article 9(4) (unitary tax prohibition) deleted from the double taxation convention with the United States of America 1978, will be included in the fourth protocol of the double taxation convention with the United States of America.

I shall bear that possibility in mind.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer when it is expected that the fourth protocol to the double taxation convention with the United States of America 1978 will be published.

No agreement has yet been reached on a fourth protocol to the double taxation convention between the United Kingdom and the United States.

Value Added Tax

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the percentage of present value added tax receipts which would be lost to the Exchequer if all value added tax registered businesses with a turnover of less than £100,000 per annum were exempted from the payment of value added tax.

Raising the registration and deregistration limits for VAT to £100,000 taxable turnover a year would cause such a change in the nature of the tax that it is not possible to make a realistic estimate of the revenue loss. My hon. Friend might like to know that in 1982–83 about 8 per cent. of the tax paid — 12½ per cent. of net receipts—by registered traders who normally pay tax to Customs and Excise was by traders with taxable turnover not exceeding £100,000 in the year.

Advisory Committees

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information requested is given in the following table:

	Appointments as at 1 July 1983
	Chairman		Members
	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Panel on Treasure Trove in Scotland	1	—	2	—
Chancellor's Advisory Panel on Section 482, ICTA 1970	1	—	3	—
Review Board for Government Contracts	1	—	4	—
Armed Forces Pay Review Board	1	—	5	1
Doctors and Dentists Pay Review Board	1	—	6	—
Top Salaries Review Body	1	—	6	1
Royal Mint Advisory Committee	1	—	12	—
Treasure Trove Reviewing Committee	1	—	3	—

This information will shortly be published in "Public Bodies 1983".

Gibraltar (Double Taxation Relief)

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether there exists a double taxation relief arrangement relating to taxes on income between the United Kingdom and Gibraltar; and if he will make a statement.

There is no arrangement of this kind. However, the domestic tax laws of both the United Kingdom and Gibraltar contain provisions for unilateral relief in respect of tax paid in the other country on income arising there and flowing to their residents.

Cuba (Agreement)

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total of new liabilities to other persons or institutions incurred, or expected to be incurred, by Her Majesty's Government in connection with the agreement with the Government of the Republic of Cuba in Cmnd. 9056.

I have been asked to reply.No new liabilities will be incurred by Her Majesty's Government as a result of this agreement.

Unitary Tax

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if, following the recent meeting of the European Community Finance Ministers in Luxembourg, he will ask the European Community Commission to present evidence to the United States' President's commission considering unitary tax against the United States practice of individual states applying unitary tax on a worldwide reporting basis.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 307]: This is one of the issues on unitary tax already being considered by the Commission and our colleagues in the EEC.

Greenham Common Air Base

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether there is any part of the Greenham common air base on which the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, or any other Customs and Excise legislation, does not apply.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 307]: No.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether Customs and Excise officers enjoy the same rights of access to and inspection of all personnel, aircraft and equipment arriving at the Greenham common air base as they enjoy at all other similar establishments in Britain.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 307]: Yes.

Defence

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence sponsors 13 advisory non-departmental public bodies to which appointments are made. On 1 July 1983 the membership of these bodies was as follows:

	Appointments
Name of body	Chairman/ Deputy	Members
Advisory Committee on	1 Ch M	4 M
Conscientious Objectors	1 Dp M
Advisory Council for the UDR	(1 Ch M)^*	6M
Advisory Panel on Departmental Records		2 M
Anglo-American and Scottish-American	4Ch F	(12 F)^*
Community Relations Committees	8 Ch M	(48 M)^*
Dartmoor Steering Group	1 Ch M	(1 F)^*
		(12 M)^*
Defence Scientific Advisory Council and Sub-Committees	22 Ch M	200 M
Independent Board of Visitors for MCTC	2 Ch M	1 F
Colchester and RNDQs Portsmouth		13 M
Meteorological Committee	1 Ch M	6 M
Nuclear Powered Warships Safety Committee	1 Ch M	7 M
Nuclear Weapons Safety Committee	1 Ch M	10 M
RCDS Advisory Board		7 M
RMCS Advisory Council	1 Ch M	5 M
United Kingdom Polar Medals		4M
Assessment Committee
^* Information concerning non-ministerial appointees is shown in brackets.

Greenham Common

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether there are any circumstances in which the United Kingdom commanding officer at Greenham common is under the direction of the United States air force commanding officer at the base in matters relating to its security; which commander has overall responsibility for defending the outermost perimeter wire and which has overall responsibility for the security of the silos.

Under the 1951 agreement regarding the status of forces of parties to the north At [antic treaty the United States commander at Greenham common is fully empowered to protect the entire base area within the outer perimeter fence. At a time when security within the base has been supplemented by MOD and service personnel these personnel are under the immediate operational command of the senior RAF officer at Greenham common.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence why a letter from the hon. Member for Houghton and Washington to the commander United States air force at Greenham common asking whether or not the United States air force commander would be prepared to give an instruction to his troops to fire on peace demonstrators is to be replied to by his Department.

Greenham common is an RAF station, for which, as for other RAF stations, Defence Ministers are answerable to Parliament.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy that only Ministry of Defence personnel are deployed in ensuring the security of the outer perimeter fence at the Greenham common missiles base; and if he will make a statement.

No. United States personnel also have security responsibilities to discharge.

United States Air Forces Bases

asked the Secretary of State for Defence under what conditions the United States air force bases in the United Kingdom are held.

United States air force bases in the United Kingdom are held under the general provisions of the north Atlantic treaty, the agreement regarding the status of forces of parties to the north Atlantic treaty, 1951, and the Visiting Forces Act 1952. There are also a number of supplementary undertakings and arrangements which either amplify these main documents or relate to individual bases or facilities.More specifically, the use of United States air force bases in the United Kingdom in an emergency is governed by the understanding reached between Mr. Attlee and President Truman in October 1951 and reaffirmed by Mr. Churchill and President Truman in a joint communiqué of January 1952.

Visiting Forces Act 1952

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the United States Government about the application of the Visiting Forces Act 1952 to United States personnel based in the United Kingdom.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions since 1952 the Visiting Forces Act has been invoked by the United States authorities in the United Kingdom; how many of these have involved motoring offences outside United States bases in the United Kingdom; and if he will list the occasions on which these events have occurred.

[pursuant to his answer, 11 November 1983, c. 271]: The Visiting Forces Act 1952 does not require a visiting force to notify the Government when it is intended to exercise the rights conferred by the Act and the information is not therefore available.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the operation of the Visiting Forces Act 1952; and if he is satisfied with its operation and use.

[pursuant to his answer, 11 November 1983, c. 271]: The arrangements governing the stationing of members of the armed forces of a NATO member state in the territory of another are set out in the agreement regarding the status of forces of parties to the north Atlantic treaty signed in London by all the members of NATO on 19 June 1951. This agreement applies to the forces of other NATO countries stationed in the United Kingdom and to United Kingdom forces in another NATO country. The terms of the agreement were set out in Cmnd. 9363.The Visiting Forces Act 1952 includes the provisions to implement the terms of the NATO status of forces agreement to the extent necessary under United Kingdom law.The Visiting Forces Act 1952 has operated satisfactorily for 30 years and has not been amended by any subsequent Government.

Scotland

Wild Birds (Control)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many licences have been issued to permit the control

Name of Advisory Body	Chairman/Deputy Chairman		Members
	Male	Female	Male	Female
Advisory Committee on Dental Establishments	—	—	6	—
Advisory Committee on Medical Establishments	—	—	9	2
Advisory Committee on Scotland's Travelling People	1 (Ch)	—	8	1
Advisory Committee on Statistical Information	—	—	11	—
Ancient Monuments Board for Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	7	2
Boundary Commission for Scotland	[1 (Dep/Ch)]	—	2	—
Building Standards Advisory Committee	1 (Ch)	—	13	1
Careers Service Advisory Council for Scotland	—	—	11	4
Central Advisory Committee on Justices of the Peace (Scotland)	1 (Ch)	—	15	1
Children's Panels Advisory Committees (12)	7 (Ch)	5 (Ch)	15	10
			[11]	[15]
Committee of Inquiry into the Functions and Powers of the Islands Councils in Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	8	—
Committee of Investigation for Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	3	—
Consultative Committee on the Curriculum	1 (Ch)	—	16	5
Consultative Committee on Freshwater Fisheries in Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	8
Consumers' Committee for Scotland	—	1 (Ch)		^*
Council for Tertiary Education in Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	19	3
Dumping at Sea Act Representation Panel	1 (Ch)	—	12	—
	1 (Dep/Ch)
Extra Parliamentary Panel	—	—	15	5†
Highlands and Islands Development Consultative Council	1 (Ch)	—	26	3
Hill Farming Advisory Committee for Scotland	—	—	13	—
Historic Buildings Council for Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	10	1
Justices of the Peace Advisory Committees (56)	16 (Dep/Ch)	—	188	45
	[35 (Ch)]
Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	2	1
	1 (Dep/Ch)
Local Review Committee for HM Prisons, Scotland (10)	9 (Ch)	1 (Ch)	46	12
National Committee for the In-Service Training of Teachers	1 (Ch)	—	13	4
			[8]
National Panel of Specialists	—	—	17	—
			[148]
Organisation and Training Committee of the Scottish Fire Service Training School	—	—	10	—
Parole Board for Scotland	1 (Dep/Ch)	1 (Ch)	10	3
Police Advisory Board for Scotland	—	—	4	1
			[20]
Royal Fine Art Commission for Scotland	1 (Ch)	—	8	2

of grey geese (anser) outside the permitted seasons; whether the Nature Conservancy Council was consulted in each case before the issuing of such licences; and if it is a condition of the licence that non-lethal scaring methods must be employed just before killing of geese is permitted.

A total of 49 licences have been issued to permit the control of grey geese (anser) outside the permitted seasons. The Nature Conservancy Council was consulted in each case before the issuing of such licences. It is not a condition of the licence that non-lethal scaring methods must be used just before the killing of geese is permitted, but a recommendation to use such scaring methods is contained in the advice sent to each licensee.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information giving the position at 1 July 1983, is set out in the table. The figures given include—in square brackets— non-ministerial appointments to the same bodies. Ministers and Civil Servants who are ex-officio members of a body are not shown.

Name of Advisory Body	Chairman/Deputy Chairman		Members
	Male	Female	Male	Female
Scottish Advisory Committee to the Central Council for Education and Training in Social Work	1 (Ch)	—	7	4
Scottish Advisory Committee on Top Grade Scientific Posts	—	—	7	1
Scottish Agricultural Consultative Panel	—	—	27	—
Scottish Agricultural Development Council	1 (Ch)	—	13	—
	1 (Dep/ch)
Scottish Agricultural Statistics Consultative Committee	—	—	5	1
Scottish Central Fire Brigades Advisory Council	—	—	16	1
Scottish Council for Post Graduate Medical Education	1 (Ch)	—	6
			[21]	[1]
Scottish Economic Council	—	—	24	2
Scottish Health Education Co-ordinating Committee	1(Ch)	—	[11]	[5]
Scottish Health Service Planning Council	1 (Ch)	—	2
			[17]	[2]
Scottish Industrial Development Advisory Board	1 (Ch)	—	11	—
Scottish Police College Board of Governors	—	—	2	—
			[10]
Scottish Records Advisory Council	—	—	10	1
Scottish Standing Committee for the Calculation of Residual Values of Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs	1 (Ch)	—	4	—
Scottish Studentship Selection Committee	1 (Ch)	—	8	—
Scottish Valuation Advisory Council	1 (Ch)	—	11	2
	1 (Dep/Ch)
Secretary of State's Advisory Panel of Economic Consultants	—	—	9	—
Secretary of State's (Electricity) Fisheries Committee	1 (Ch)	—	4	—
	1 (Dep/Ch)
Visiting Committees to Borstals and Young Offenders Institutions (Scotland) (7)	5 (Ch)	2 (Ch)	35	33
Working Party on Management Training for Leisure and Recreation	1 (Ch)	—	9	—
^* Membership under reconstitution.
† Appointments made jointly by Secretary of State for Scotland, the Chairman of Ways and Means and the Lord Chairman of Committees.

Blackburn-Orlit Houses

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will make a statement on the Blackburn-Orlit houses in different parts of Scotland.

The Blackburn-Orlit house was designed in 1949 to help overcome a shortage of bricklayers in certain parts of Scotland. It combines a simplified Orlit prefabricated reinforced concrete frame and cladding, with a Blackburn aluminium pitched roof and prefabricated inner lining and partitions. A prototype block of four Blackburn-Orlit houses was built in Clydebank in 1949 and further 214 were built at Saughton Mains, Edinburgh, in 1949–50. I know of no other houses of this particular design. My hon. Friend, the Minister for Housing and Construction, made a statement to the House on 10 November concerning private owners who had purchased defective prefabricated reinforced concrete houses from public authorities. Consideration is being given to whether Blackburn-Orlit houses should fall within the scope of the proposed scheme.

Rate Support Grant (Dundee)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the level of rate support grant paid to Dundee district council in each year since 1980; and what are the figures also expressed at constant prices.

The rate support grant paid to Dundee district council from 1979–80 to 1982–83 and in course of payment for 1983–84 is as follows:

Year	£ million
1979–80	4·160
1980–81	5·524

Year	£ million
1981–82	5·491
1982–83	5·276
1983–84	5·781

Grant is not expressed at constant prices as relevant expenditure includes loan charges, a variable item, and as provision for local authority expenditure and grant has since 1982–83 been expressed in cash terms.

Teachers (Tayside)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the number of secondary teachers employed by Tayside region in each year since 1979; and if he will provide a breakdown by subject.

The information requested is contained in the following table:

Teachers in education authority secondary schools in Tayside region—By main teaching subject Numbers (full-time equivalent)
Subject	1979	1980	1981	1982
English	260	260	255	254
History	112	112	113	112
Geography	115	114	110	106
Modern studies	32	32	30	29
Economic history	1	1	1	1
Economics	9	8	8	7
French	126	119	123	125
German	30	30	31	24
Spanish	5	5	4	5
Russian	1	1	1	1
Gaelic	2	2	2	2
Other modern languages	1	1	1	1
Latin	34	32	31	29
Greek	—	—	—	—
Mathematics	215	217	225	230
General science	15	14	14	14

Subject	1979	1980	1981	1982
Biology	92	91	94	93
Chemistry	113	114	113	116
Physics	84	82	81	85
Other science	3	3	2	3
Art	155	150	146	145
Business studies	79	81	86	86
Home economics/ Domestic science	138	130	131	128
Physical education	146	145	143	139
Engineering subjects	8	8	8	8
Technical subjects	177	175	175	166
Music	70	72	70	69
Speech and Drama	3	1	3	4
Agriculture/Horticulture/ Rural science	4	4	4	4
Nautical subjects	3	3	3	2
Remedial education	66	60	58	57
Religious education	14	12	14	15
All subjects	2,113	2,079	2,080	2,060

Nhs (Expenditure)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is his latest estimate of the annual average percentage growth in National Health Service expenditure to take account of (a) changes in population structure and (b) developments in medical technology.

About 0·7 per cent. and 0·5 per cent. respectively.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many beds in the National Health Service are unused due to lack of funds to health boards; and if he will provide a breakdown per health board.

There were 294 beds out of use in Health Service hospitals in Scotland at the beginning of November where health boards saw a lack of funds as the prime reason for the beds being unused. The figures for individual health boards were:

Health Board	No. of beds
Argyll and Clyde	98
Borders	10
Greater Glasgow	47
Highland	62
Lanarkshire	77
Total	294

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the budget allocated to Tayside health board in each of the past three years; and if he will express the figures also at constant prices.

The allocations to Tayside health board for its net revenue and locally managed capital expenditure on hospital and community health services in the past three years are set out in the table. Major building projects are financed directly by the Scottish Home and Health Department; funds for these projects do not form part of allocations to health boards.

	£'000
1980–81	99,134
1981–82	108,124
1982–83	114,017

The allocations, which are on a cash basis, are not available in terms of constant prices.

Nhs (Vacancies)

asked the secretary of state for Scotland if he will publish the list of National Health Service vacancies by specialty within Tayside health board.

There are no long-term vacancies for hospital medical staff in the Tayside health board area. The following 10 posts are currently being advertised or are in process of being filled.

Specialty	Grade
Geriatrics	2 Consultants
Haematology	1 Consultant
Oral Surgery/Oral Medicine	1 Senior Registrar
General Medicine	1 Senior Registrar
Psychiatry	1 Senior Registrar (Part-time)
Pathology	1 Senior House Officer
Bacteriology	1 Senior House Officer
Biochemical Medicine	1 Senior House Officer
Plastic Surgery	1 Senior House Officer

Nurses (Hours)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will consider a reduction in the number of hours worked by nurses to allow the employment of more nurses.

No. The basic working week was reduced from 40 to 37½ hours during 1980.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the average number of hours worked weekly by National Health Service nurses in each year since 1978.

Information about the hours worked by full-time and part-time nurses in excess of their standard hours could be collected only at disproportionate cost.

Hospital Waiting Lists (Dundee)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the figures for waiting lists for treatment at Dundee hospitals; and what have been the corresponding figures for each of the past three years.

The information is as follows:

31 March	Numbers
1980	2,960
1981	3,452
1982	3,658
1983^*	5,010
^* Provisional.

Education Expenditure

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the expenditure per pupil in primary education in each Scottish education authority area and in Scotland overall in each of the past two years.

The information is shown in the following table:

Net Expenditure Per Pupil in Primary Schools (at Out-Turn Prices)
Regional/Islands Council	1981–82	1982–83
	£	£
Borders	816	885
Central	688	779
Dumfries and Galloway	690	781
Fife	759	795
Grampian	740	822
Highland	700	796
Lothian	774	780
Strathclyde	757	844
Tayside	702	771
Orkney	980	N/A
Shetland	951	1,110
Western Isles	851	N/A
Scotland^*	750	819

Health Board	1980–81	1981–82	1982–83
	£	£	£
Ayrshire and Arran	—	64	447
Dumfries and Galloway	205	—	—
Fife	421	—	—
Grampian	473	1,920	273
Greater Glasgow	1,053	3,471	2,748
Lanarkshire	—	—	266
Lothian	955	—	—
Tayside	94	727	1,173
	3,201	6,182	4,907

Labour Statistics

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the number and percentage of the total of men unemployed in Dundee and Scotland who have been out of work for (a) one year, (b) two years, (c) three years and (d) more than three years.

The information is not available in the precise form requested. The table shows the number and percentage of unemployed male claimants by duration of unemployment in Dundee and Scotland at 14 July 1983, the latest date for which information is available in this detail.

Male Unemployment at 14 July 1983
	Dundee		Scotland
Weeks Unemployed	Number	Percentage (rounded)	Number	Percentage (rounded)
Less than 52 weeks	5,968	57·5	131,131	58·1
52–103 weeks	1,921	18·5	44,230	19·6
104–155 weeks	1,133	10·9	24,285	10·8
156 weeks or more	1,355	13·1	26,133	11·6

Local Authority	Site	Total cost approved for grant
Permanent Sites
Grampian Regional Council	Clinterty, Aberdeen	298,929
Cunninghame District Council	Merkland Wood, Arran	146,991
Dumbarton District Council	Dennystown, Dumbarton	263,650
Lothian Regional Council	Duddingston, Edinburgh	413,387
Argyll and Bute District Council	Dunchologin, Lochgilphead	^*90,335
Angus District Council	Tayock, Montrose	^*117,693
Strathclyde Regional Council	Mossend, Bellshill	254,639
Perth and Kinross District Council	Double Dykes, Perth	286,153

^* The 1982–83 figures for Orkey and Western Isles are not yet available (N/A).

Health Boards (Bad Debts)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the sum written off by health boards in each year since 1980 as a result of bad debts arising from non-payment for treatment by private patients.

The information is as follows:

Travelling People

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the local authorities that have (a) established a permanent site or sites for travelling people or (b) established a temporary site or sites for travelling people; and if he will detail the grants paid to each to cover the cost of site construction and the estimated costs falling on the rates from the operation of each site.

A list of the existing local authority sites for travellers is as follows with details of grant-aid. Grant details relate to the scheme of 100 per cent. capital grants unless otherwise stated.

Local Authority	Site	Total cost approved for grant
Temporary Sites
Glasgow District Council	Millerston, Glasgow	37,496
Kirkcaldy District Council	Pathhead Muir, Kirkcaldy	41,893
Monklands District Council	Heatheryknowe, Coatbridge	†figures not available
Renfrew District Council	Burnbrae, Linwood	38,550
^* Grant paid under section 67 of the Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967 prior to introduction of the 100 per cent, scheme.
† Grant paid under the Urban Programme prior to introduction of the 100 per cent, scheme. No information is held centrally on management and maintenance costs which are the responsibility of the local authorities concerned.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the representations he has received regarding the operation of the non-harassment policy towards travelling people.

Over the past few years the Secretary of State has received representations about the policy of toleration and non-harassment from a number of local authorities, including particularly Berwickshire, Cunninghame, City of Glasgow, Falkirk, Hamilton, Kirkcaldy, Motherwell, Inverness, Renfrew, Strathkelvin and Perth and Kinross district councils. The subject has also been raised less directly by other correspondents whose principal concern was with a specific unauthorised encampment.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what information he has as to the number of incidents reported to the police in each police authority, where travelling people in unauthorised sites have been subject to attack in any form.

Information of this kind is not collected centrally, but the following details, relating to alleged incidents in the year ended 30 September 1983, have been obtained from individual forces:

Force	Number of incidents
Central Scotland Police	3
Lothian and Borders Police	1
Strathclyde Police	7

These figures include allegations of physical and verbal attack as well as damage to property. In two cases only was there sufficient evidence for charges to be brought. No such incidents were reported in other force areas.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) if he will list for each district and island council the number of travelling people recorded as present on the nearest convenient date;(2) if he will estimate the proportion of travelling people in Scotland who also own or rent a permanent home.

This information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will detail the total costs of the advisory committee on travelling people in each year since its creation, indicating separately the sub-totals for travel, subsistence and payments to members.

The chairman and members of the committee are unpaid. Since the beginning of the committee's third term of office the annual cost of travel and subsistence payments has been as follows:

	£
1979–80	1,770
1980–81	4,297
1981–82	4,645
1982–83	3,658

Separate subtotals for travel and subsistence and figures going back to the first appointment of the committee in 1971 are not readily available.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish in a comparative table the estimated amounts for providing (a) a pitch on a travelling people's site and (b) a council house in the current year of (i) capital cost of provision, including ancillary facilities, (ii) annual debt charges at current interest rates, (iii) management and maintenance costs and (iv) other related expenditure incurred annually.

So far as available, the information is as follows:

	Traveller Site	Council house
	£	£
Capital Cost	13,000–20,000 (according to site conditions)	25,000 (on average)
Annual debt charges†	—	^*474
Management and Maintenance costs‡	—	^*276
Other related expenditure‡	—	^*17

Notes:

^* Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy Rating Review 1983.

† No debt charges fall to the local authority as approved costs are met by 100 per cent. grant.

‡ Information on these costs is not collected by my Department.

Generating Capacity

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what ratio of maximum demand to maximum potential output he regards as desirable in deciding whether or not to approve investment in new generating capacity by the North of Scotland Hydro-electric Board and the South of Scotland Electricity Board.

In developing capital investment proposals the objective of the Scottish electricity boards is the supply of electricity at the lowest possible cost consistent with maintaining adequate standards and with the required rate of return on new investment. Thus, even at a time of substantial over-capacity, investment in new capacity which would lead to cost savings may be justified.

Scottish Development Agency

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the assets and liabilities of the Scottish Development Agency, the grants it has received from the Government since its formation, and details of any loan written off, and any payments it may have made to the Government.

This information is contained in the agency's annual accounts, copies of which are in the Library of the House.

Highlands And Islands Development Board

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the assets and liabilities of the Highlands and Islands Development Board, the grants it has received from the Government since its formation, and details of any loans written off and any payments it may have made to the Government.

This information is contained in the board's annual accounts, copies of which are in the Library of the House.

Electricity

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is his estimate of the maximum peak demand for electricity and the maximum potential output for the North of Scotland Hydro-Electricity Board and the South of Scotland Electricity Board for each of the next 10 years.

The forecasting of electricity demand and supply is the responsibility in the first instance of the Scottish electricity boards. I am asking the chairman to write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the estimated cost per unit of electricity to be generated by the proposed hydro-electric schemes on the rivers Grudie and Talladale near Loch Maree, taking into account capital and interest charges.

This is a matter for the North of Scotland Hydro-Electricity Board, and I am asking the chairman to write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the maximum demand recorded for electricity as a percentage of maximum potential output for the North of Scotland Hydro-Electricity Board and for the South of Scotland Electricity Board for each of the last five years.

The information is as follows:

	SSEB per cent.	NSHEB per cent.
1978–79	60·6	84·2
1979–80	52·4	84·6
1980–81	52·5	81·8
1981–82	74·9	72·1
1982–83	63·1	48·0

The figures for NSHEB include the isolated systems (not part of the national grid).

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the estimated average cost, taking into account both capital and interest charges, of a unit of electricity generated in Scotland by (a) hydro-electric power, (b) coal-fired power stations, (c) gas-fired power stations, (d) oil-fired power stations and (e) nuclear powered stations.

This is a matter for the Scottish electricity boards and I am asking the chairmen to write to my hon. Friend.

Nhs (Griffiths Report)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects to make a statement about extending the principles set out in the Griffiths report on National Health Service management to the National Health Service in Scotland.

As indicated in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Fife, North-East on 26 October 1983— [Vol. 46, c. 141]—I am in general agreement with the principles on which the report is based. I shall make a further statement when I have been able to consider how these principles can be applied in Scotland and I have consulted the various interested parties.

Parents' Charter

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what entitlement parents of children attending school have to be given information on standards of education being imparted to children under the parents' charter.

Informtion relevant to standards of education is included in the categories of information prescribed in the schedules to the Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Regulations 1982. Authorities also have a duty to make available information about matters other than those prescribed if they think this necessary or expedient. In addition, reports of full inspections of schools carried out by HM inspectors of schools since the start of the current school session are to be published.

Education (Staff Statistics)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many staff at the level of director of education there are in each Scottish region.

Details of the number of local authority staff at levels equivalent to director of education are not available centrally.

Nhs (Efficiency)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will take steps to make more efficient and quicker the processes of decision-taking in the National Health Service.

The decision announced in my right hon. Friend's reply to the hon. Member for Renfrew, West and Inverclyde (Mrs. McCurley) on 10 November 1983—[Vol. 47, c. 234]—to abolish the district level of management in Scottish Health Boards is intended to contribute to that objective.

Closures (Consultation)

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will set out in the Official Report the areas about which education authorities are expected to consult under the Education (Publication and Consultation, etc.) (Scotland) Regulations 1981, S.I., 1981, No. 159; and whether these include the financial, educational and social implications of the proposed closure.

Annex 2 to Scottish Education Department circular No. 1074, a copy of which is in the Library of the House, recommends to authorities the areas to be covered in the consultation process under the Education (Publication and Consultation etc.) (Scotland) Regulations 1981. The factors which it is recommended should be made available on request include the financial, educational and social implications of a closure proposal.

Northern Ireland

Fair Wages

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many objections have been lodged in Northern Ireland in each of the past 10 years under the fair wages resolution.

I assume that the hon. Gentleman is referring to the fair wages resolution of the former Northern Ireland House of Commons of 11 February 1947.The numbers of claims received by the Department of Economic Development, formerly the Department of Manpower Services, are as follows:

Year	Claims Received
1973	—
1974	—
1975	—
1976	1
1977	1
1978	6
1979	2
1980	—
1981	1
1982	—
1983	2

asked the secretary of state for Northern Ireland how many objections lodged under the fair wages resolution in Norhtern Ireland in each of the past 10 years have gone to arbitration; and in how many cases the objections have been upheld.

I assume the hon. Member is referring to the fair wages resolution of the former Northern Ireland House of Commons of 11 February 1947. The numbers of claims received by the Department of Economic Development, formerly the department of Manpower Services, and upheld by the Industrial Court (Northern Ireland) are as follows:

Year	Claims Received	Claims Upheld
^*1977	1	2
1978	6	—

Year	Claims Received	Claims Upheld
1979	2	—
1980	—	—
1981	1	—
1982	—	—
1983	2	—
^* One of the claims upheld in 1977 was in respect of a claim received by the Department of Manpower Services in 1976.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many workers have been affected by arbitration decisions in Northern Ireland relating to fair wages resolution objections in each of the past 10 years.

I assume that the hon. Gentleman is referring to the fair wages resolution of the former Northern Ireland House of Commons of 11 February 1947.The numbers of workers affected by decisions of the Industrial Court (Northern Ireland) are as follows:

Year	Number of Workers
1973	—
1974	—
1975	—
1976	—
1977	20
1978	—
1979	—
1980	—
1981	—
1982	—
^*1983	—
^* To date.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the average wage settlement arrived at after arbitration in objections under the fair wages resolution.

I assume that the hon. Gentleman is referring to the fair wages resolution of the former Northern Ireland House of Commons of 11 February 1947. In one of the two claims upheld by the Industrial Court (Northern Ireland) in 1977, it is estimated that the average basic gross weekly wage for 12 machine operatives was increased from £59·37 to £67·97 and for four shift supervisors from £69·01 to £75·42. In the other case, only the basic pay for one individual was specified. This involved his basic salary being increased from £60 per week to £80 per week, together with improved terms and conditions of employment.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

My right hon. Friend is responsible for the following appointments:

Name of Northern Ireland Department	Body	Chairman		Deputy Chairman		Members
		Male	Female	Male	Female	Male	Female
Agriculture	Drainage Council for Northern Ireland	1	—	1	—	16	—
Economic Development	Disablement Advisory Committees (7)	6	1	—	—	81	11
	Manpower Council	—	—	—	—	11	1
	Northern Ireland Consumer Council	—	1	—	—	5	9
	Industrial Development Board for Northern Ireland	1	—	—	—	11	—
Education	Advisory Board for Postgraduate Awards	1	—	—	—	[11^*]	—
	Advisory Committee on Teacher Education	1	—	—	1	16	6
	Council for Continuing Education	1	—	—	—	27	5
	Northern Ireland business Education Liaison
	Committee and Technical Education Council	—	—	—	—	43	3
	Teachers Negotiating Machinery for Salaries	1	—	—	—	[54^*]	[7^*]
	UNESCO Committee	1	—	[1^*]	—	13	10
	Youth Committee for Northern Ireland	1	—	—	—	18	4
Environment	Historic Buildings Council	1	—	—	—	11	2
	Historic Monuments Council	1	—	—	—	12	2
	Nature Reserves Committee	1	—	—	—	8	3
	Northern Ireland Building Regulations
	Advisory Committee	1	—	—	—	14	—
	Northern Ireland Construction Industry
	Advisory Council	1	—	—	—	9	—
	Northern Ireland Housing Council	1	—	1	—	24	—
	Northern Ireland Water Council	1	—	—	—	13	1
	Ulster Countryside Committee	1	—	—	—	9	2
	Wild Birds Advisory Committee	1	—	—	—	10	2
Health and Social Services	Distinction and Meritorious Service Awards
	Committee	1	—	—	—	6	—
	Northern Ireland Health and Social Services
	Council (and 5 Central Advisory Committees)	6	—	—	—	74	19
	Poisons Board	1	—	—	—	7	2
	Therapeutic Paramedical Advisory Committee	1	—	—	—	—	12
	Northern Ireland Medical Manpower Advisory
	Committee	1	—	—	—	22	—
Finance and Personnel	Charities Advisory Committee	1	—	—	—	4	—
	Northern Ireland Economic Council	1	—	—	—	13	1
	Statute Law Committee for Northern Ireland	1	—	—	—	14	—
	Lay Observer	—'	—	—	—	1	—
	Land Law Working Group	—	—	—	—	5	—
Northern Ireland Office	Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland	[1^*]	—	[1^*]	—	2	—
	Standing Advisory Commission on Human Rights	1	—	—	—	10	1
^*Appointments for which the Secretary of State is not responsible.

Parades

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many parades were held in Northern Ireland in 1982 by (a) the Orange Order, (b) the Apprentice Boys of Derry and (c) the Royal Black Preceptory Institution; what was the number of overtime hours worked by (i) the Royal Ulster Constabulary and (ii) the Ulster Defence Regiment to facilitate these parades; and what was the cost of such overtime;(2) how many parades were held in Northern Ireland in July by

(a) the Orange Order, (b) the Apprentice Boys of Derry and (c) the Royal Black Preceptory Institution; what was the number of overtime hours worked by (i) the Royal Ulster Constabulary and (ii) the Ulster Defence Regiment to facilitate these parades; and what was the cost of such overtime.

[pursuant to his reply, 4 November 1983, c. 479–80.]: Information about the number of parades and the resultant overtime worked by the RUC, is not readily available and could be obtained only al: disproportionate cost. Members of the UDR do not receive overtime payment for assisting the RUC at parades or marches or any other of their duties, since the permanent cadre receives a set wage and part-timers are paid for the number of duties they perform.

Annual Report (Departmental Work)

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish an annual report of his Department's work.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1.983, c. 341.]: My right hon. Friend has no plans to do so.

Social Services

Drugs Bill

14.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what measures he is contemplating to seek further savings in the National Health Service drugs bill.

21.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what discussions he has had with the pharmaceutical industry with the aim of reducing drug prices in the National Health Service.

In July I reached agreement with the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry that the prices of medicines supplied to the NHS should be reduced by an average of 2·5 per cent., and that prices should be frozen until 1 April 1984, providing a saving of £25 million in the current financial year. I am currently discussing with the association the scope for further savings. I shall make an announcement in due course.My Department encourages doctors to prescribe effectively and economically by giving them a variety of information about relative costs of drugs and those efforts will also continue.

Inner Cities (Primary Care)

16.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give more details of his plans to improve primary care in the inner cities

The main elements of the package announced on 27 October by my right hon. Friend —[Vol. 47, c. 458]—were a new higher improvement grant scheme for poor quality GP premises, additional funds to assist health authorities in training health visitors and district nurses, and an allocation of £1 million for this year to health authorities for projects to improve primary health care in inner cities. In addition we will be introducing further incentives to GPs to combine into group practices.

Pacemakers

17.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has conveniently available figures to show how many patients who need a heart pacemaker are unable to receive one from the National Health Service.

This information is not held centrally, but we have no evidence that patients who need a pacemaker to preserve life are unable to receive one.

National Association For Limbless Disabled

18.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has received a request from the National Association for Limbless Disabled for a financial grant; and what has been the result.

We have decided to make a grant of £5,000 for the year ending 31 March 1984.

Death Grant

19.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what representations he has received on the future level of the death grant.

Over the past year we have received about 320 letters from hon. and right hon. Members and members of the public about the level of the death grant.

23.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services by how much the value of death grants has declined in constant purchasing power since the present monetary level was fixed.

The grant has declined by about 82 per cent. since 1967.

49.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is now ready to report on the future of death grants.

Not yet, the future of the death grant is still under consideration. An announcement will be made in due course.

Occupational Pensions

20.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has any plans to seek powers to enforce disclosure of information about the scheme to members of occupational pension schemes.

We have already accepted in principle the need for legislation on the disclosure of information to scheme members, and hope to be able to announce our proposals soon.

25.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the one-day seminar he held in September on occupational pensions.

52.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he proposes to take following the conference he called on early pension scheme leavers held on 14 September.

I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friends the Members for Gosport (Mr. Viggers) and for Torridge and Devon, West (Sir P. Mills) earlier today.

Rawp Formula

22.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied with the operation of the resources allocation working party system for determining the amount of finance to regional health authorities.

Yes. The RAWP system has gained widespread acceptance as an effective method for determining financial allocations. The Government remain committed to using it as one of the means of securing a fair distribution of resources to regional health authorities.

Family Doctors (Inner Cities)

24.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he is taking to improve the facilities of family doctors in the inner cities.

My right hon. Friend announced on 27 October a £9 million programme to improve primary health care. — [Vol. 47, c. 458.] Included in this programme is a scheme for a higher level improvement grant to enable family doctors in selected areas of England, including inner cities, to up-grade poor quality surgery premises or improve practice organisation. The scheme will run for three years and the total additional amount being made available is £2·5 million. At the discretion of family practitioner committees and subject to certain conditions being fulfilled improvement grants of 60 per cent. of the approved cost may be met by the Committee compared with 33⅓ per cent. under the existing country-wide scheme.In addition we propose to ask all family practitioner committees in England and Wales to adopt a more active role in advising doctors on premises, to monitor standards through regular visiting and to promote improvements. New minimum standards will be set and committees will be empowered to withhold, after due consideration and notice, some or all of the reimbursement of rent and rates which they make to doctors, where the minimum standards are not achieved.

New guidance is also being prepared on the design of primary health care premises, including doctors' surgery premises, with a particular emphasis on adapting and improving existing buildings.

Disabled Persons (Chair Lifts)

26.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if it is his policy when a disabled person moves home automatically to scrap a chair lift and install a new one.

The Department does not provide stairlifts and vertical homelifts. They are supplied by local authorities, which decide their own policies in such matters.

Health Districts (Resources)

27.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will now take steps to ensure that resources are more fairly allocated between health districts.

This is already an important objective of our policies. It is the responsibility of regional health authorities to ensure that their allocations to district health authorities match planned developments progressively to meet that objective. This is an important aspect of an RHA's performance on which they are annually held to account by Ministers.

Benefit Claims

28.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he is taking to simplify the process of claiming benefit at his Department's offices.

The process of claiming supplementary benefit has been simplified during the past 12 months by the introduction of a postal claim form for the unemployed. This change has greatly reduced the number of people needing to visit the Department's local offices to make their claim. Consideration is now being given to extending postal claims to all supplementary benefit claimants and a pilot exercise will stall early next year. There has also been a reduction in the number of persons needing to claim benefit in that with the introduction of statutory sick pay, most people off sick for short periods no longer need to claim national insurance benefit at all. In addition, we have created a forms unit to promote and help with improving our forms and so simplify the process of claiming benefit: the Departmental forms improvement drive started in April 1983.

Tinnitus

29.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will estimate the number of people who suffer from tinnitus.

I refer the right hon. Member to my reply to the right hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Ashley) on 25 July 1983.—[Vol. 46, c. 349.]

Mid-Sussex (District General Hospital)

30.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he will announce firm dates for the commencement and completion of the construction of the new district general hospital in Mid-Sussex.

The South-West Thames regional health authority plans to begin work on the Mid- Sussex district general hospital in 1984–85. I have had discussions about this project with the chairman of the regional health authority, Mr. Tony Driver, and the chairman of the district health authority, Mr. Martyn Long, and we have agreed in principle on improved management arrangements for this scheme which should shorten the planning design and construction periods compared with the general past experience of NHS hospital building. However the time scale for the development depends not only on building considerations but also on the relative priorities of other major schemes within the South-West Thames regional health authority's capital programme. We are therefore still discussing the proposed time scale with the regional health authority.

National Health Service (Waiting Lists)

31.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he is taking to reduce waiting lists in the National Health Service.

We have consistently sought to encourage the National Health Service in making the most effective use of all its resources so that levels of patient care can be improved and long waiting lists and other deficiencies tackled. The report of the National Health Service management inquiry, which my right hon. Friend welcomed in his statement on 25 October—[Vol. 47, c. 166–167.]—has underlined the part to be played by a stronger management process in exploiting cost improvement opportunities throughout the service.The number of people on inpatient waiting lists in England is estimated at 726,000 on 31 March 1983, compared with 752,000 in March 1979. In September 1981, before the start of the industrial action in the health service, the figure had fallen to 619,000.

Ex-Patients (Accommodation)

32.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will review the present regulations covering private homes and small hoarding houses used by health authorities and social service departments for accomodating ex-patients of mental or similar institutions.

For the position on the regulations governing residential homes registered with local authorities, I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley (Mr. Foulkes) on 28 October—[Vol. 47, c. 242]. The corresponding Nursing Homes and Mental Nursing Home Regulations 1981 are similarly being amended to reflect changes made by the Health and Social Services and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983.

Community First Aid Posts (Emergencies)

33.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what drugs and medical equipment and supplies will be made available for issue to community first aid posts in a war or other national emergency.

Health Service civil defence planning guidance is currently under review and both the British Medical Association and the Royal College of Nursing have agreed to contribute to the revised guidance. The present advice relating to first aid posts, which in the main would be manned by first aiders, is that they would be supplied with equipment with which staff are familiar and have been trained to use.

Leicestershire Health Authority

34.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will make a statement on the allocation of funds to the Leicestershire health authority in the forthcoming financial year.

This will be a matter for the Trent regional health authority to decide in due course.

Families (Young Children)

35.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to ensure greater partnership between the voluntary and public sectors in providing help for families with young children.

This Government attach great importance to co-operation between the voluntary and public sectors in all fields. There is close liaison between the Department and the major voluntary organisations working with children under five and their families and we are continually seeking new ways to promote this partnership.

Family Support

36.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to extend support for families with children under five years of age.

We have just launched an initiative to increase provision for disadvantaged families with children under five by stimulating and supporting voluntary sector activity in this area. Expenditure under the initiative will rise to £2 million per year in 1984–85 and 1985–86. The initiative is designed to help voluntary bodies working with children under five in families which may have particular problems, such as one-parent families, low-income families where both parents need to work; isolated parents at home who need help in coping with very young children; and ethnic minority mothers and children. The major voluntary bodies in this field were invited to submit proposals for a wide variety of schemes involving full day care, such as day nurseries and childminding; part day care, such as playgroups, playbuses and creches; and family support, such as mother and toddler clubs, home visiting and toy libraries. We have now selected some 80 specific projects for funding which is available immediately. Further funding for small projects proposed by smaller local self-help groups is available through the National Council for Voluntary Child Care Organisations, which is acting as agent to administer these funds on our behalf.

Pay Beds

37.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied with the number of National Health Service hospital pay beds being used for private patients.

Yes.

Generic Prescribing

38.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a further statement on generic prescribing.

It is long-standing Government policy to encourage doctors to use the generic or approved names of drugs when prescribing.We are still considering the implications of the Greenfield report's recommendation on generic substitution by pharmacists when dispensing.

Christmas Bonus

39.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services at what level the retirement pensioner's Christmas bonus would now stand if it had been uprated in line with inflation since its introduction.

About £38.

National Health Service (Privatisation)

40.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on current proposals for privatisation within the National Health Service.

There are no plans for privatisation as such within the NHS if the word is used to mean the transfer of a whole field of activity to the private sector. However, we have asked health authorities to test the cost-effectiveness of their support services and in particular their cleaning, catering and laundry services by putting them to competitive tenders, including in-house tenders. By these means we expect money to be saved, which can then be used to improve patient care.

Private Hospitals (Inspection)

41.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will introduce an extensive system of inspection of private hospitals by Government inspectors.

Under the Nursing Homes Act 1975, private hospitals are already subject to a minimum of two inspections each year by district health authorities.

Chemotherapy (Cancer Treatment)

42.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will now add treatment by chemotherapy for post-surgical cases of cancer to the list of eight conditions which are at present exempted from prescription charges.

I have considerable sympathy for people in this group, just as I do for all those suffering from conditions which are not included in the list of medical conditions which confer exemption from prescription charges. However, similar arguments are frequently advanced for the inclusion of a large number of serious conditions. In fairness we cannot take any one in isolation and to include them all would cost the National Health Service a great deal of money. I cannot therefore agree to extend the list.Exemption from charges is not restricted to sufferers from listed medical conditions. Such groups as the elderly and those on low incomes are also exempt. Overall some 70 per cent. of prescription items are dispensed without charge.

Sufferers who are not exempt from charges but require frequent prescriptions should of course be advised to pay on the so-called season ticket basis the sum of £7·50 for four months' unlimited supply.

South London Hospital For Women

43.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to make a decision on the future of the South London hospital for women.

We have now given approval to the proposal by the Wandsworth health authority to close the South London hospital for women from 1 April 1984 and to provide the services which it offers in other hospitals within the District. Closure of the South London hospital will save about £5 million a year and the health authority plans to use part of these savings over the next few years to improve services for mentally ill people at Springfield hospital. In the long term, the resources released by closing the South London hospital will help to meet the running cost of the new phase IIA ward block at St. George's hospital, due to open in 1989–90. The proposal is therefore part of a policy which will produce a substantial impovement in local acute hospital facilities and a significant improvement in services for the mentally ill.We have examined the Wandsworth health authority's plans for providing the services and facilities currently available at the South London hospital at St. James' and St. George's hospitals which are close by. We are quite satisfied that the additional work load call be absorbed by making better use of all available beds al these hospitals. We accept that there are many women who, for religious, cultural or other reasons, prefer to be seen by women doctors. The Wandsworth health authority has given an assurance that whenever possible it will continue to provide patients in the specialties of obstetrics, gynaecology, general medicine and general surgery with a choice of being seen and treated by male or female doctors in other hospitals within the district. In reaching this decision, we have also had to take account of the alternative options available to the Wandsworth health authority if it is to be able to open phase IIA of St. George's hospital, to improve services for the mentally ill and to remain within its statutory cash limits. We believe the alternative measures which would need to be taken, involving the closure of more acute beds in the district would not be in the best interests of Wandsworth residents. A larger allocation of cash to Wandsworth could only be at the expense of other parts of the region and the country, which could not possibly be justified. We do not hold back a central reserve of cash so that Government can finance schemes which district health authorities do not give high local priority to. We could only raise central finance of that kind by taking it back from other authorities, and we do not believe that we would be justified in doing that.We believe that the Wandsworth health authority's proposals for closing the South London hospital are right in the light of all the circumstances and that they will enable other much needed developments to proceed which will benefit not only women but the local community as a whole.

Peterlee Community Hospital

44.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will now give approval to the establishment of a community hospital at Peterlee; and if he will make a statement.

The decision as to which hospital developments should be included in the regional capital programme is a matter for the Northern regional health authority in the light of their service priorities and the resources available.

Regional Health Authorities (Capital Expenditure)

45.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to inform regional health authorities of their allocations for capital expenditure for 1984–85.

Capital allocations will be issued to regional health authorities as soon as possible after the completion of this year's review of public expenditure.

Family Income

46.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the latest figures from his Department on the number of families living on very low incomes.

I presume the hon. Member has in mind the estimates contained in tables under the general heading "Low Income Families—1981". For details I refer him to those tables, which are lodged in the Library of the House, and to my reply to the hon. Member for Dundee, West (Mr. Ross) on 24 October.—[Vol. 47, c. 51]The estimates show an increase over 1979, with the notable exception of pensioner households where there are fewer low income families. The increase is mainly due to the increase in the number of unemployed.

Alternative Medicines

47.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will hold an inquiry Into alternative medicines.

No.

Association Of Directors Of Social Services

48.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he last met the president or secretary of the Association of Directors of Social Services; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend last met them both on 28 March 1983 and has accepted an invitation to address later this week the association's European seminar, which is at present in progress.

Drugs Prescribing

50.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if Her Majesty's Government will publish guidelines to govern the quantity of drugs prescribed by general practitioners.

We have no plans to do so at present. A National Health Service doctor may prescribe any drug or medicine in whatever quantity he considers necessary for the treatment of a patient. We do, however, have the support of the British Medical Association in encouraging doctors to restrict the amount they prescribe on any one occasion in the interests of both economy and safety.

National Health Service (Beds)

51.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many National Health Service beds have been taken out of use since 9 June as a result of restrictions on expenditure since the commencement of the 1983–84 financial year.

The information requested is not available centrally.

Northumberland And Newcastle Health Authorities

53.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what manpower reductions he expects to be carried out by the Northumberland health authority and Newcastle (teaching) health authority.

We have settled March 1984 manpower targets for each of the 14 regional health authorities to reflect expectations of service developments and greater efficiency in the use of manpower. Northern RHA has been set a target which on balance shows a reduction of 186 from the March 1983 baseline. It is the responsibility of Northern RHA to determine the extent to which each district health authority should contribute towards the reduction and any redistribution of posts to match service developments. I understand that they have set targets involving net reductions of 33 posts by the Northumberland district health authority and 71 posts by the Newcastle district health authority.

National Health Service (Consultants)

54.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many additional consultants he expects to be employed in the National Health Service in the current financial year.

Regional health authorities have been given authority to advertise for an additional 390 consultant posts in the current financial year. Past experience indicates fewer than this will be appointed. Information on staff in post is collected at 30 September each year, not for financial years; the figures for September 1983 will not be available until early next year.

Health Service Resources

55.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take action to improve the efficiency of the use of Health Service resources.

Yes. This is an important aim of Government policy. The Government are pressing forward with a wide range of initiatives to improve the efficiency of the NHS and in particular, as my right hon. Friend informed the House on 25 October—[Vol. 47, c. 168–69]—with the further improvements that will stem from the report of the management inquiry which was published on that day.

Family Practitioner Services (Expenditure Report)

56.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to receive the report from Binder, Hamlyn Fry & Co. relating to expenditure of the family practitioner services.

We have now received this report and are studying it.

Disabled People

57.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to introduce a comprehensive income and costs allowance scheme for disabled people.

We have no present plans to do so.

Benefits (Increases)

58.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will introduce a measure to increase pensions and other benefits at half-yearly intervals; and if he will make a statement.

No.

Tobacco Products (Advertising)

59.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will introduce legislation to prohibit the advertising of tobacco products.

No. There is as yet no clear evidence that banning advertising would have any direct effect on overall cigarette consumption and hence on the nation's health.

Patient Treatment

60.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he is taking to monitor the effects of the recent cuts in National Health Service hospital funding on the treatment of patients.

We will, as in previous years, be monitoring the performance of health authorities through activity and cost returns as part of the process of accountability. Spending on hospital and community health services is in real terms as high as last year and higher than ever before. Health authorities are fully aware of the importance we attach to improving the efficiency of services for the benefit of patients. We therefore see no reason why our recent policies should have any adverse effects on the treatment of patients.

State Pension

61.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to implement the view of the Equal Opportunities Commission that the age for receiving the basic state retirement pension should be equalised between men and women.

The Government made it clear in the White Paper "Growing Older" that a scheme which combined a common pension age with effective and worthwhile provision for flexible retirement had attractions and would be kept in view as a long-term objective. The report of the Social Services Committee on pension age, to which we hope to publish a reply shortly, made a similar recommendation.

Supplementary Benefit (Pensioners)

62.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will estimate the total amount of supplementary benefit which remains unclaimed by retirement pensioners each year.

I regret that I cannot yet add to my reply to my hon. Friend on 26 July 1983.—[Vol. 46, c. 421.] The 1981 figures should, however, be available shortly.

Poor Persons

63.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services to what factors he attributes the increase in the numbers of poor during the period of 1979 to 1981.

There is no general accepted income level below which people can be regarded as poor on which to base an answer. Undoubtedly, as a result of the recession, the number of unemployed and those with low incomes increased during the period to which the hon. Gentleman's question refers. But throughout this period the real value of supplementary benefit was maintained and, in some cases, improved; and many low-income families were helped by real increases in family income supplement.

Benefits (Office Mergers)

64.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he proposes to merge the benefit work of integrated local offices with that of unemployment benefit offices.

While we constantly seek ways to improve the co-ordination between local offices of our Department and the Department of Employment, and hence the service they provide, there are no proposals to merge their work.

Single-Handed Fishermen (National Insurance Contributions)

65.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied with the Dresent system of national insurance contributions and benefits for single-handed fishermen.

Yes. Single-handed fishermen pay the same contributions and can get the same benefits as other self-employed people, and it would not be appropriate to extend to them the special arrangements applying to share-fishermen.

Kidney Patients

66.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will consider separate funding on a national basis for the treatment of kidney ailments within the National Health Service.

As stated in my reply to the hon. Member for Eccles (Mr. Carter-Jones) on 14 November 1983—[Vol. 48, c. 333–4]—we are considering ways of improving this service. It is not clear that separate national funding would necessarily be the most effective method.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) how many patients with renal failure are deselected for treatment each year;

(2) which categories of patients with kidney failure are refused treatment;

(3) if he is satisfied with the variety of ways in which regional health authorities decide whether to make treatment available to patients with chronic kidney failure;

(4) what steps he is taking to ensure that continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis is made available to more patients who have renal failure.

As stated in my reply to the hon. Member on 8 November — [Vol. 48, c. 76] — the decision about the treatment to be offered to any patient is one for the clinical judgment of the doctors concerned. We do not seek to influence the choice between different methods of treatment although we help where we can in disseminating relevant information.

asked the Secretary of Stare for Social Services if he will set up a public inquiry into the resources available for the treatment of chronic kidney failure and the ways in which they are deployed.

The Department already has access to a wide range of expert advice.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) whether his decision to make central funding available for the treatment of children with kidney disease has brought about an increase in the number of lives saved;(2) pursuant to his answer of 26 July,

Official Report,. c 1040, how the revised lower cash limits on centrally financed services will affect the provision of treatment for children suffering from kidney failure.

We have not reduced allocations for renal services for children. The number of children under 15 starting treatment for end stage renal failure in the United Kingdom has increased from 41 in 1977 to 65 in 1981. We are not aware of any children failing to receive treatment for this condition through lack of the necessary finance. The effect of funding this as a supra-regional service is that the cost of further development will be spread among all regions instead of having to be met entirely by those in which paediatric renal services are located.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list in the Official Report the amounts of public funds that have been given to the National Federation of Kidney Patients Associations in each of the past three years.

The National Federation of Kidney Patients Associations received grants from the Department of £2,632 in 1981–82 and £3,000 in 1982–83. The level of grant for 1983–84 has yet to be decided.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services why not all patients with renal failure may obtain treatment by central funding; and if he will make a statement.

The great majority of the finance allocated for hospital and community health services is distributed to health authorities who have to assess priorities in the light of local needs and the Department's guidance. Separate arrangements have been made for financing certain supra-regional services including renal services for children for which a single centre may serve a number of regions. From next year these services will have allocations separately identified by the Department instead of being financed from the normal budgets of the health authorities concerned. Renal services for adults do not meet the criteria for supra-regional funding because they need to be, and are, provided in all regions.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will estimate the number of people who died in the last year as a result of not receiving treatment for renal failure.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Davyhulme (Mr. Churchill) on 9 November.—[Vol. 48, c. 184–85.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many patients with chronic kidney failure are treated by dialysis machine, kidney transplant and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, respectively.

Figures from the European Dialysis and Transplant Association show that on 31 December 1981, the latest date for which information is available, 3,569 patients in the United Kingdom were being treated by dialysis machine—including haemodialysis, both in hospital and at home, and intermittent peritoneal dialysis —3,538 patients had a functioning transplanted kidney, and 779 patients were being treated by continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he expects that the revised lower cash limits for hospital and community health services will result in a reduction in facilities available to treat kidney failure patients by dialysis.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 14 November 1983.—[Vol. 48, c. 333–4.]

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish the latest available figures for kidney dialysis machines per 1,000 population and the number of patients receiving treatment by dialysis in the United Kingdom and each other country of the European Community; and if he will make a statement.

Information on the number of kidney dialysis machines per 1,000 population is not available. According to data from the European Dialysis and Transplant Association, the numbers of patients being treated for end stage renal failure by all forms of dialysis in each member state, on 31 December 1981, were:

	Numbers
Belgium	1,670
Denmark	580
Federal Republic of Germany	11,752
France	10,560
Greece	777
Ireland	198
Italy	10,494
Luxembourg	63
Netherlands	1,718
United Kingdom	4,348

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if, in the light of his reply to the hon. Member for Davyhulme of 9 November, Official Report, c. 184–5, he will now take steps to establish how many individuals are dying each year of potentially treatable end stage renal failure due to the non-availability of necessary treatment through the National Health Service.

It is doubtful whether a precise figure could be established since it would depend on the clinical judgment formed in each individual case of whether the condition was potentially treatable.

Southend Health Authority

67.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what representations he has received from the Southend health authority about its expenditure allocation.

I met a deputation in March led by my hon. Friend the Member for Castle Point (Sir B. Braine). It included the chairman of the Southend health authority. I have also received a letter from the chairman dated 25 October 1983, a copy of which, I understand, was sent to my hon. Friend the Member for Southend, East. I shall see that my hon. Friend receives a copy of the reply to the chairman.

Social Workers (Misconduct)

68.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will review the arrangements for ensuring that social workers who are guilty of sexual misconduct towards youngsters in their charge are never permitted to practise their profession again.

The ultimate responsibility for satisfying themselves about the suitability of staff appointed to work with children rests on employing authorities, although we are able to help. From information known to the Department about relevant convictions, and that supplied by child care employers when members of staff resign or are dismissed in circumstances indicating they might endanger children's welfare if engaged to work with children in future, potential employers can be directed to previous employers for a reference or be informed about relevant convictions. Account is taken only of convictions and offences which suggest that children might be put at risk. Persons who apply for employment involving duties with children are not exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 from revealing any previous convictions, and are required to do so.

Specialist Claims Control Units

69.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will announce his plans for the future of specialist claims control units in local Department of Health and Social Security offices.

All anti-fraud measures are kept under review; there are no plans at present to change specialist claims control procedures.

Advisory Committees

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list all the advisory committees whose members are appointed by him; and, in respect of each such committee, how many of the members are women and how many are men.

The information is as follows:

Appointments as at 1 July 1983
Name of Body	Chairman	Deputy etc	Members
Administration of Radioactive Substances Advisory Committee	M1	—	M17
Advisory Committee for the National Pituitary Collection	M1	—	M6 F1
Advisory Committee of Assessment of Laboratory Standards	M1	—	M10 F1
Advisory Committee on Audiological Equipment	M1	—	M6
Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances	F1	—	M4 F2
Advisory Committee on Distinction Awards	M1	M1	M18
Advisory Committee on Irradiated and Novel Foods	M1	—	M12
Advisory Committee on Vocational Training Allowances	M1	—	M2 F1
Advisory Group on Cardiothoracic Equipment	M1	—	M4 F1
Advisory Group on Hepatitis	M1	—	M7 F2
Advisory Group on Orthopaedic Implants	M1	—	M11
Advisory Panel on Anaesthetic Equipment	F1	—	M5 F1
Advisory Panel on Dialysis Equipment	—	—	M4
Advisory Panel on the importation of Sexually Explicit Films for Health Purposes	M1	—	M6 F1
British Pharmacopoeia Commission	M1	—	M12
Central Advisory Committee on Rural Practice Payments	—	—	M5
Central Advisory Committee on War Pensions	M1	—	M25 F1
Committee on Dental and Surgical Materials	M1	—	M16 F1
Committee on Gynaecological Cytology	M1	—	M7 F3
Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy	M1	—	M10 F1
Committee on Radiation from Radioactive Medicinal Products	M1	—	M6
Committee on the Review of Medicines	M1	—	M18 F1
Committee on the Safety of Medicines	M1	—	M18 F1
Computer Based Accident and Emergency Records Project Steering Committee	—	—	M5
Co-ordinating Committee on Medical Aspects of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment	—	—	M5 F1
Dental Rates Study Group	M1	—	—
Development Team for the Mentally Handicapped	M1	M1 F1	—
Health Services Human Growth Hormone Committee	M1	—	M9 F2
Independent Scientific Committee on Smoking and Health	M1	—	M12
Industrial Injuries Advisory Council	M1	—	M15 F2
Informal Working Group on Effective Prescribing	—	—	M8
Inquiry into Human Fertilisation	F1	—	M9 F6
Joint Committee on the Medical Aspects of Water Quality	F1	—	M12 F1
Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation	M1	—	M21 F1
Joint Group on Performance Indicators	—	—	M5
Laser Safety Working Party	—	—	M5

Name of Body	Chairman	Deputy etc.	Members
Maternity Services Advisory Committee	F1	—	M7 F6
Medicines Commission	F1	—	M16 F1
Micros for GPs Project Coordination Committee	—	—	M8
NHS National Property Advisory Group	—	—	M2
Pacemaker Advisory Group	M1	—	M5 F1
Postgraduate Training Allowance Advisory Committee	M1	—	M4
Radiological Advisory Committee	M1	—	M9
Social Security Advisory Committee	M1	—	M8 F4
Standing Dental Advisory Committee	M1	—	M14 F1
Standing Medical Advisory Committee	M1	—	M28 F3
Standing Nursing and Midwifery Advisory Committee	F1	—	M4 F19
Standing Pharmaceutical Advisory Committee	M1	—	M10 F2
Steering Group on Health Services Information	F1	—	M2
United Kingdom Transplant Management Committee	F1	—	M7 F1
War Pensions Committee (81)	M76 F5	—	M1,362
			F428
Working Group on Asian Health Care	—	—	M13 F9
Working Group on Trials of Early Detection of Breast Cancer	M1	—	M2F5

District Nurses

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in the Official Report the number of district nurses and the ratio to population served in the areas covered by the district health authorities of Brent and South Bedfordshire.

The latest information available centrally is that on 30 September 1982 there were 88 whole time equivalent district nurses in South Bedfordshire and 56 whole time equivalent in Brent. This represents one whole time equivalent district nurses per 3,094 population in South Bedfordshire and one per 4,457 in Brent

Invalidity Pension

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give instructions to his Department's staff to improve its procedures regarding the awarding of non-contributory invalidity pension to severely handicapped children over school-leaving age but who still attend school; if he will clarify the position in the Official Report; and if he will make a statement.

Non-contributory invalidity pension is a benefit for people of working age who have been incapable of work for a continuous period of 28 weeks or more but who have not paid enough national insurance contributions to qualify for the contributory invalidity benefit. It would be inappropriate to pay non-contributory invalidity penions to young people in full-time education, as this can be considered to be closely akin to a working situation. However, young people under 19 are only excluded from non-contributory invalidity pension where education is obtained from a normal curriculum occupying approximately the normal number of hours in a recognised school, college, university or comparable establishment. The decisive factor is the nature and amount of the education received. Before a decision is given, existing procedural instructions require the Department's staff to enquire into the details of the schooling of each individual claimant. These procedures are kept constantly under review. I shall shortly be writing in more detail to the hon. Member in reply to his recent letter on the subject.

Health Authorities (Manpower)

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list the health regions in rank order according to the percentage amount by which each is above or below the resources allocation working party formula level; if he will give the manpower cuts, in terms of numbers and percentages, that he has agreed with each region; and if he will give the total number of present and planned jobs to be lost in each region by including cuts in new jobs planned for future developments.

The following tables give the information requested on RAWP targets and the manpower targets which have been settled with regions. Information on possible job losses in each region is not readily available centrally and, in any event, the only

Regional Health Authority Manpower Baselines and Targets
Region	Staff in Post 31 March 1983	Target for 31 March 1984	Change between 1983 and 1984
			Whole time Equivalent	Percentage
Northern	54,100	53,914	-186	-0·34
Yorkshire	61,855	61,591	-264	-0·43
Trent	74,009	74,529	+520	-0·70
East Anglian	29,861	30,235	+374	+1·25
North West Thames	59,626	58,626	-1,000	-1·68
North East Thames	73,749	72,549	-1,200	-1·63
South East Thames	66,364	65,283	-1,081	-1·63
South West Thames	50,139	49,409	-730	-1·46
Wessex	43,875	43,915	+40	+0·09
Oxford	34,047	34,276	+229	+0·67
South Western	53,047	52,923	-124	-0·23
West Midlands	84,050	83,910	-140	-0·17
Mersey	44,844	44,338	-506	-1·13
North Western	76,160	75,598	-562	-0·74
Special Health Authorities/Boards of Governors	11,907	11,700	-207	-1·74
Total	817,633	812,796	-4,837	-0·59

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services, if he will list the health districts in the West Midlands region according to the percentage amount each is below the resources allocation working party formula level; if he will give the manpower cuts, in terms of numbers and percentages, that have so far been requested for each district by the region; and if he will differentiate between cuts in existing jobs and those in planned ones.

Resource allocation to districts and the setting of manpower targets within the region is the responsibility of the West Midlands regional health authority and the right hon. Member may like to seek this information from that authority.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services in how many health regions and districts the imposition of manpower cuts will lead to the region or district spending more money than it otherwise would have done.

None.

planned posts that will not be filled in new developments will be those that have been identified as unnecessary in an efficient unit.

RHAs Distance from RAWP Target
Region	Distance from^ RAWP Target 1983–84 per cent.*
North West Thames	+10·7
North East Thames	+8·7
South West Thames	+6·4
South East Thames	+6·0
Oxford	0·0
Mersey	-1·5
Northern	-3·7
West Midlands	-3·8
North Western	-4·0
Yorkshire	-4·3
South Western	-4·3
Wessex	-4·9
Trent	-5·0
East Anglia	-6·4
^* Post — allocation distance from target as a percentage of allocation excluding the service increment for teaching.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many health districts are expected to be in surplus at the end of the financial year; and in how many cases this is because they are unable to spend surplus money as they wished because of recently announced manpower cuts.

The Department sets cash limits for regional health authorities and they in turn set cash limits for health districts. It is for regional health authorities to monitor the cash limit performance of health districts. The Department does not as a matter of course have details of health districts' spending.If a district health authority seems likely to underspend it can carry forward up to 1 per cent. of that underspend to future years or notify the regional health authority who can switch it to an authority able to spend it. I hope that no authority would wish to hire additional staff just to avoid underspend.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many districts have reported to him that services to patients will be affected as a consequence of the manpower cuts; and if he will request all districts to report the effects of the cuts on patient services.

A large volume of correspondence has been received about the recent manpower targets making a wide range of points. All are being carefully noted but it would be impracticable to make a detailed analysis of all the points made. The targets were settled by the Government in the light of the regions' development programmes and bearing in mind the reasonable possibilities of achieving more efficient use of manpower. In my opinion, there is no reason why those targets should have any adverse effects on patient services anywhere.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what complaints he has received from regions, districts, trade unions, organisations or individuals that the imposition of manpower cuts will lead to a district health authority spending more money than it otherwise would; and what reasons have been put forward for this happening.

A large volume of correspondence has been received on NHS manpower targets, covering a wide range of points. Analysis of particular items raised in the correspondence could only be undertaken at a disproportionate cost. In my opinion, there is no reason why those targets should involve any district health authority in spending more money than it otherwise would.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what criteria were used in deciding the manpower cuts that should be imposed on each health region.

Regions' targets took account of the resource position of each region, of additional staff required for planned and funded new developments, and of reasonable expectations of greater efficiency that could be achieved in the use of manpower.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what steps he is taking to monitor the distribution of manpower cuts imposed by regional health authorities on district health authorities.

None. Each region has been set a target and it is for regional health authorities to decide how to allocate this target within their region. However, manpower will be a major item on the agenda of the 1984 regional reviews, as it was in 1983, and for this purpose regions will need to satisfy Ministers about the effectiveness of their policy on manpower targets and explain its effects.

Osmosin

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what was the date of the withdrawal of the drug Osmosin in the United Kingdom;(2) if he will make a statement on the adverse reports of the drug Osmosin;(3) when the Committee on Safety of Medicines will consider the future of the drug Osmosin;(4) how many Osmosin-related deaths have been reported;

(5) how many adverse reports were received on the drug Osmosin (a) to the end of June 1983 and (b) to the end of August 1983.

Osmosin is a sustained release formulation of indomethacin, an established analgesic available on prescription for the treatment of arthritis. The product was first marketed in this country in December 1982. In August of this year the Committee on Safety of Medicines drew doctors' attention to the relatively large number of adverse reaction reports in respect of Osmosin. On 1 September the manufacturer concerned ceased marketing Osmosin in all countries, including the United Kingdom. This followed similar action in Germany earlier the same day at the request of the German drug regulatory authority, pending an inquiry there into the drug's safety. I understand that all stocks of Osmosin have now been withdrawn from pharmacies in the United Kingdom. The safety of Osmosin is currently under consideration by the CSM.The total number of all reports of adverse reactions associated with Osmosin received by the CSM at the end of June 1983 was 312 and at the end of August 519. The total of reports where the administration of Osmosin was considered to have led to the death of the patient was 7 at the end of June, 13 at the end of August and 24 at the latest available date. It should be stressed that these reports do not necessarily indicate a causal relationship in all cases.

Benefits

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what has been the percentage increase in benefits to chronically sick and disabled persons since May 1979;(2) if he will list in the

Official Report in tabular form details of the improvements in various benefits to chronically sick and disabled persons since May 1979.

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

Social Security Advisory Committee

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has decided on the future membership of the social security advisory committee.

The appointments of nine members of the social security advisory committee expire on 23 November 1983. I am very pleased to announce that I have decided to re-appoint eight of these members for a further three-year term. My colleagues and I have great respect for the hard work undertaken by the committee, which has perhaps the most extensive remit of any independent advisory body. These re-appointments, together with the re-appointment of the chairman, Sir Arthur Armitage, which I announced earlier this year, will enable the SSAC to build upon the solid foundations it has already laid down.I have also decided to appoint two new members to the committee, to replace a retiring member and to fill an existing vacancy. Their terms of appointment will also run for three years from 24 November 1983 and I am glad to welcome them to the committee.The names of those appointed or re-appointed to the committee are:

New members

Mrs. Juliet Cheetham
Dr. Dipak Ray

Existing members to be re-appointed

Mrs. J. Browning
Dr. R. J. Donaldson OBE, C St J
Reverend H. Good MBE
Mr. H. Hodge
Mr. P. Jacques
Mrs. J. Lysaght CBE
Mr. T. S. McLeod
Dr. A. Stokes OBE

Elderly Mentally Ill Persons

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he is yet in a position to announce which local projects have been selected to benefit from the Government's initiative to help elderly, mentally ill people.

We launched the initiative earlier this year because we were anxious to see more help given to the growing numbers of mentally disturbed elderly people in our society. We offered the money—£6 million over the next three years—as a stimulus to the development of comprehensive services, in which health and social service authorities plan together, in every NHS region. I have been very impressed by the response. Obviously many people are anxious to ensure that we achieve the standards of care for the elderly mentally ill that a civilised society ought to achieve.Each regional health authority made its own selection from many excellent schemes which were put forward as a result of our initiative. They selected districts where there was a real need for development, and where thorough joint planning has gone on. Our list shows the main element which will attract central funding — usually meeting the most urgent need of the next three years. But each development scheme is of course a complete scheme linking these elements with wider developments, carefully planned with the matching local authority to achieve a balanced service.So far there are 27 schemes. Roughly similar sums of money have been made available in each region, but regions have been able to choose whether to apply the whole sum to a single district, or to divide it. The following 27 schemes are already approved for a share of the special funding; in one or two regions an additional scheme may still be under way.1.

Northern

South Tees HA—creation of Family Support Unit.

2. Yorkshire

East Yorkshire HA—travelling day hospital.

Bradford HA—community support team.

3. Trent

North Derbyshire HA — community psychogeriatric nursing service and other community support staff.

Rotherham HA—extension of night sitting service and day centre.

4. East Anglian

Norwich HA—multidisciplinary community support.

5. North West Thames

Paddington and North Kensington HA — appointment of community team.

6. North East Thames

Mid Essex HA—assessment and support for patients at home.

7. South East Thames

South East Kent HA—community support unit.

Medway HA—additional clinical assistant sessions.

8. South West Thames

Worthing & Chichester HAs —community support services including day care.

9. Wessex

Southampton HA—additional community psychiatric nurses and day places.

Portsmouth HA—additional staff to build up existing services.

East Dorset HA—extension of "Hospital at Home" scheme.

10. Oxford

Kettering HA—development of community care centre.

11 South Western

Southmead HA—day centres.

Gloucester HA—capital contribution to cost of building day centre.

12. West Midlands

Shropshire HA — co-ordinated health and social service community support.

South Birmingham HA—community psychiatric nurses and ward upgrading.

Coventry HA — more staff for multidisciplinary community team.

13. Mersey

Southport and Formby HA — additional staff to develop integrated network of care.

Halton HA — social work assistant and night sitting/nursing scheme.

Crewe HA—building extension to day-room.

Macclesfield HA—day facilities.

14. North Western

Central Manchester HA—develop teaching laboratory.

Stockport HA—short-stay day care and night sitting service.

Salford HA—dental care research.

Volume 48: debated on Tuesday 15 November 1983

Written Answers To Questions

Prime Minister

Engagements

Minister For Fisheries

Hong Kong

Foreign And Commonwealth Office (Ethnic Minority Staff)

Darlington

Nhs Hospitals

Supplementary Benefit

Heroin

Health Expenditure

World Population

Attorney-General

Village Hall, Stanton

Road Injuries (Compensation)

Advisory Committees

Custodial Remand

Transport

British Rail

Goole And Gilderdyke Bridge

East London River Crossing

Civil Servants (Travel Costs)

Advisory Committees

Vehicle Excise Duty

Coaches (Motorways)

Serpell Report

Energy

Isles Of Scilly

Advisory Committees

The Arts

Advisory Committees

Office Of Arts And Libraries (Annual Report)

Greater London Council

Civil Service

Advisory Committees

Foreign And Commonwealth Affairs

Overseas Travel

Embassies, High Commissions And Consulates

Overseas Personnel

Grenada

Home Department

Community Service Orders

Supervision Orders

Advisory Committees

Firearms

Slough (Public Disorder)

Overseas Personnel

Remembrance Day

Cable Services

Metropolitan Police

Advisory Committees

Prison Population

Neighbourhood Watch

Trade And Industry

"A Plan For Action"

Electrical Equipment

Civil Servants (Travel Costs)

Overseas Personnel

Duty-Free Imports

Advisory Committees

Steel Industry

British Telecom (Equipment Approvals)

Monopolies And Mergers

2,4,5-T (Imports)

Solicitor-General For Scotland

Advisory Committees

Environment

Local Government (Redundancies)

Homeless Persons

Housing Investment

Council House Sales

Housing Stock (London Boroughs)

Underwater Heritage

Rate Support Grant (Newham)

Housing (Leicester)

Captive Balloon Advertising

Advisory Committees

Nuclear Waste