asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what was the amount spent per secondary pupil in England in each year since 1974–75; and if he will express each figure in 1982–83 prices;(2) what was the amount spent per primary pupil in England in each year since 1974–75; and if he will express each figure at 1982–83 prices.

Net institutional recurrent expenditure per pupil by LEAs (at 1982–83 prices) is estimated to have been as follows:

	Primary £	Secondary £
England and Wales*
1974–75	550	897
1975–76	572	902
1976–77	586	903
1977–78	597	900
1978–79	620	910
England
1979–80	643	915
1980–81	651	919
1981–82	660	926
1982–83	680	944
* Figures on an England only basis are not readily available for the period 1974–75 to 1978–79.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how much his Department is spending on publicity to advertise the consequences for ratepayers of the proposed abolition of the Inner London education authority.

It is the practice not to use the paid media to publicise a Government proposal which depends on legislation until that legislation has been given parliamentary approval, and then of course only in so far as it is judged necessary. In the meantime, Ministers are taking steps to see that the Government's case for replacing the ILEA with a new education authority for inner London is properly and factually presented within the means conventionally available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he is satisfied with the provisions for religious instruction for all children in Bradford schools; and if will make a statement.

It is primarily for the local education authority and the schools themselves, in Bradford as elsewhere, to ensure that the statutory requirements on religious instruction are met. A new agreed syllabus for religious instruction was published by the Bradford local education authority in September 1983. The Department has received no recent representations about religious instruction in schools in Bradford.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science which schools have discontinued a daily act of worship in the Bradford area; and if he will make a statement.

Section 25 of the Education Act 1944 requires that the school day in county and voluntary schools shall begin with collective worship on the part of all pupils, except those withdrawn by their parents. It is primarily for the local education authority and the schools themselves to ensure that this requirement is met. The Department has received no recent representations about the act of worship in schools in the Bradford area.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish figures showing the changes in the number of teaching and non-teaching staff employed by local education authorities compared with pupils and student numbers for each year since 1954; and if he will make a statement.

Readily available figures about the numbers of teaching and non-teaching staff employed by local education authorities, together with indices of pupil and student numbers, are set out in the table. They show that from 1953 to 1960 full-time teaching staff increased by 25 per cent. and full-time non-teaching staff increased by 24 per cent.; part-time teaching and non-teaching employees increased by 46 and 55 per cent., respectively. Over the same period the number of pupils in England increased by 12 per cent. and the number of full-time equivalent students enrolled on courses of advanced and non-advanced further education increased by 45 per cent. From 1961 to 1975 the number of full-time teachers and lecturers in England rose by 75 per cent., with the number of part-time employees increasing by 118 per cent.; the number of full-time non-teaching staff increased by 84 per cent. and part-timers increased by more than 150 per cent. Over this period pupil numbers rose by 29 per cent. while student enrolments nearly doubled.Three of the Government's major objectives since taking office in 1979 have been to restrain public expenditure in the interests of reducing inflation and revitalising the economy; to improve efficiency in the public sector so that resources may be freed for the wealth-creating sectors of the economy; and to improve the quality of education.Between June 1979 and June 1983 total full-time equivalent numbers employed in education fell by some 67,500 or over 7 per cent. Non-teaching staff numbers have fallen far more quickly than teaching staff, by 11 per cent. compared to 4 per cent, with the effect that the full-time equivalent ratio of teaching to non-teaching staff has improved from 1·33: 1 in 1979 to 1·42: 1 in 1983. At the same time the school age population has been falling steadily, with the result that the pupil-teacher ratio has improved each year and now stands at its best ever level, while numbers of students in further and higher education have continued to rise.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science why, and by what statutory authority, Her Majesty's Government had prepared a memorandum to the European Commission on ethnic minority language teaching.

Article 5 of EC directive 77/486 on the education of the children of migrant workers required member states to forward to the Commission within five years, and subsequently at regular intervals at the request of the Commission, all relevant information to enable the Commission to report to the Council on the application of the directive. Article 3 of the directive includes a requirement that member states should promote teaching of the mother tongue.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many video films are available from his Department to schools to further advice on the effects of alcohol and sensible drinking.

None, but the Health Education Council, in collaboration with the Teachers Advisory Council for of the education system, not least among employers, have necessarily required growth in the number of teachers, lecturers and support staff employed. There is a balance to be struck between the need to restrain public expenditure and the Government's objectives for education, a balance which helps achieve a better educated nation, sustained economic growth, a more efficient public sector and a well-trained and motivated people.alcohol and drug education, has just published a package of alcohol education material for schools which includes a number of films.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has any proposals to extend the assisted places schemes to specialist schools like those specialising in dyslexic children.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is to be the financial allocation to the Housing Corporation for its activities in Wales during the financial year 1984–85.

£39 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is his latest estimate of the number of (a) households owning their home with a building society mortgage, (b) households owning their home with a mortgage from another source, (c) households owning their home outright and (d) all households in Wales.

Of 1,021,000 households in Wales enumerated by the 1981 census, I estimate that 211,000 owned their home with a building society mortgage, 75,000 owned their home with a mortgage from another source and 347,000 owned their home outright.

	Exchequer housing subsidies to local authorities (per dwelling) £ cash	Rate fund contributions to local authority housing revenue accounts (per dwelling) £ cash	Total number of local authority dwellings (average for the year)
1978–79	169·44	20·40	282,631
1979–80	200·88	36·33	285,025
1980–81	227·91	46·13	286,735
1981–82	115·86	39·46	283,108
1982–83	36·62	40·85	271,863
1983–84*	35·85	35·06	261,428
1984–85†	27·77	19·84	252,000
* Provisional.
† Estimated.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how much money was spent on the improvement, maintenance and repair of unclassified roads in Wales in each of the financial years 1980–81, 1981–82 and 1982–83; and how much is planned to be spent in the year 1984–85.

County councils, as local highway authorities, are responsible for unclassified roads, and information about their expenditure on such roads is not held centrally.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if it is the policy of Her Majesty's Government to confine, or to limit severely, United Kingdom aid to countries which are democracies; and if he will make a statement.

The nature of the system of government in the recipient country is one of the factors taken into account when considering the distribution of bilateral aid. We, of course, regard genuine democracy as a positive factor, but other factors are also relevant, and neither the present nor previous Administrations have confined aid to countries with a fully democratic Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many of the countries receiving United Kingdom aid are democracies; and if he will specify the criteria used to define an aid recipient as democratic.

There are many variations in the democratic system and any classification would be to some

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list separately the value of Exchequer subsidies and rate fund contributions per local authority dwelling for the years 1978–79 to 1983–84, and estimated for 1984–85, together with the number of local authority dwellings on which these figures are based.

Based on local authority returns made to the Welsh Office, the information is estimated to be as follows:degree arbitrary. For this reason it is not possible to give a precise figure for the number of aid recipients which are democracies.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what number of requests his Department has received from relatives, currently in China, of Vietnamese refugees now settled in the United Kingdom, to be able to come to the United Kingdom; and how many he has approved to enter.

Between 1 January 1982 and 29 February 1984 consideration was given to applications made on behalf of 2,038 relatives in China wishing to join Vietnamese refugees settled in the United Kingdom. Applications in respect of 205 of those relatives have been granted. Information for earlier periods is not readily available.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what have been the dates and places since 29 April 1982 where major joint immigration police operations were carried out in the whole of the United Kingdom; how many police officers and immigration officers, and of what rank, were involved for each operation; how many people and of what nationalities were (a) interviewed and (b) detained in each operation, for how long and where; and with regard to what breaches of immigration law these people were interviewed or charged;(2) how many people, as a result of each major joint operation between the immigration service and the police since 29 April 1982, were removed as illegal entrants or deported under the terms of section 3(5) of the Immigration Act 1971; how many prosecutions were carried out as a result of each operation; and whether the guidelines as outlined in his Department's circular No. 131/1980 to the chief officers of police were carried out in each operation.

Information relating to major joint immigration-police operations carried out since 30 June 1982 was given in my reply to a question from the hon.

Date	Place	Nationality of those interviewed	Illegal Entrants	Dealt with as: Overstayers	Working in breach of conditions
22 March 1984	Granada Bingo Hall Clapham	7 Ghanaians
		3 Nigerians	3	3	3

Of the 10 people interviewed, nine were identified as offenders. Two illegal entrants are in detention under the Immigration Act, the third having been granted temporary release. Of the six charged with other offences, two have been remanded in custody. We are satisfied that the guidelines oulined in Home Office circular No. 131/1980 were carefully followed in this operation.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests in the past year the Metropolitan police have made outside South Africa house, Trafalgar square, while anti-apartheid protests have been taking place.

The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis tells me that in the 12 months up to 26 March 1984 his officers made 14 arrests during protests outside South Africa house.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the Boundary Commission to commence and to complete the next review of parliamentary constituency boundaries.

The Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England is required to review the parliamentary constituencies in its area and submit a report not less than 10 or more than 15 years from the date of submission of its last report. As the commission's third periodical report was submitted on 11 February 1983, it will have to complete its next general review of parliamentary constituencies between 1993 and 1998. This means that the review is unlikely to begin before 1990 at the earliest.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will institute a survey of sanitary facilities in Her Majesty's prisons, so as to ascertain how many prisoners are required to slop out as part of their prison routine.

The exact number of those having to slop out varies from day to day in accordance with fluctuations in the prison population, but is of the order of 26,000. Member on 11 May 1983. For information regarding operations before that date, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a question from the hon. Member for Barking of 28 July 1982 at c. 528. Since 28 April 1983 —the date of the last operation for which details were provided—there has been only one major joint operation in respect of which the information readily available is as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he has any proposals for the licensing of small-scale community radio schemes; and if he will make a statement.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to a question from the hon. Member for Woolwich (Mr. Cartwright) 13 March at column 80.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why he has delayed the implementation of his new policy on Lion Intoximeters until 16 April.

After consultation we concluded that 16 April is the earliest date on which the extended blood-urine option can be implemented because of the need for the police to prepare to operate the new system uniformly and for the magistrates courts to be fully informed of the procedures which the police will adopt.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases he estimates will come before the courts before 16 April which involve evidence from the Lion Intoximeter.

I estimate that some 2,500 to 3,000 cases involving evidence from the Lion Intoximeter may come before the courts in England and Wales between 30 March 1984 and 15 April 1984.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will publish the correspondence he has had with the chairman of the board of visitors to Holloway prison over reappointments to the board;(2) if he will set out his reasons for not reappointing Nigel Seed to the board of visitors to Holloway prison.

No. Mr. Seed's appointment expired on 31 December 1983. There is no entitlement to a further appointment and it is not the practice to give reasons either for making an appointment or not making one.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the names and details of those members who have been appointed to the board of visitors to Holloway prison.

My noble Friend will write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there are any plans for the replacement of the police national computer; and if he will make a statement.

Work is in hand to decide when and how best to replace the present PNC mainframe hardware which by 1988 will have completed 10 years of continuous operation.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the carry over of losses and allowances in the current financial year for the purposes of corporation tax; by how much these are likely to be reduced in the current year; and how much he expects to be extinguished against profit in each of the next four years over and above the new system of allowances.

The estimates of cumulative tax losses carried forward have been updated and revised; the total is now put at about £25 billion, excluding the public sector. This estimate remains extremely tentative.I regret that it is not possible to estimate with sufficient reliability the extent of changes to this total in any one year. The measures proposed by my right hon. Friend should contribute significantly towards reducing the overhang of losses. The precise extent of this reduction will depend on a number of factors, including the levels of profits and investment over the next four years.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the incidence of corporation tax on a typical large company in (i) manufacturing, (ii) chain store retailing and (iii) financial services other than leasing assuming that investment and profits remain at their present level and that allowances carried forward from the current year are typical of the sector in question.

I regret that it is not possible to provide estimates for a typical company. The corporate sector is so diverse that, even within particular sectors, there is a great variation in factors affecting the incidence of corporation tax, including not only the level of profits and investment but also factors such as the type and size of assets and stocks, the rate of return on these assets, the way assets are financed, sources of income, the extent to which profits are distributed or retained, and company group relationships. All these, for both the current and previous years, contribute, in addition, to great diversity in the level of unused allowances.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what entitlement to writing down allowances there will be under his Budget proposals for expenditure incurred in 1985–86 on machinery or plant.

As my right hon. Friend announced in his Budget statement, he will be proposing that writing down allowances for machinery or plant should start to run from the time when expenditure is incurred instead of, as now, when the asset concerned is brought into use. This change will take effect for expenditure incurred on or after 1 April 1985. However, most expenditure incurred on machinery of plant in 1985–86 will qualify for first year allowances at the rate of 50 per cent. and writing down allowances are not also available for any chargeable period for which a first year allowance is, or could be, claimed. Accordingly, in those cases writing down allowances will not be due in that year and the change in the timing of the allowances will not have any practical effect until the following year. The change may, however, affect the timing of writing down allowances in 1985–86 for expenditure on machinery or plant which does not qualify for first year allowances.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he makes of the number of jobs likely to be created or lost as a result of each of the relevant measures in his budget.

[pursuant to his reply, 26 March 1984, c. 55]: Precise estimates of the effects of individual Budget measures on employment would be highly uncertain and subject to large margins of error.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer in what circumstances the Inland Revenue allows employers to transform retirement benefits into tax-free cash sums before retirement age while the employees remain in employment; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 29 March 1984]: There are no cirumstances in which the Inland Revenue permits employers to transform such benefits and to pay them over as tax-free lump sums to employees continuing in their employment.

asked the Prime Minister if she will make a statement about the ministerial responsibilities for taxis and private hire cars in England and Wales.

I have decided that Ministerial responsibility for taxis and private hire cars in England and Wales should be transferred with effect from 1 April 1984 from the Home Secretary to the Secretary of State for Transport.As regards taxis in london, the functions transferred to the Secretary of State for Transport will include licensing, approving the level of taxi vehicle and driver licence fees, and setting the level of fares. The Home secretary, as police authority, will, however, retain an interest in the role of the Metropolitan police in relation to taxis in London.

asked the Prime Minister whether the proposal made to the European Economic Community Council for an increase in the value-added tax contribution to 1·4 per cent. was linked to a restoration of the veto on farm price increases.

No. There is no link between the question of a possible increase in the VAT ceiling to 1·4 per cent. and the procedures by which agricultural prices are determined in the Council. But we have always said that we are only prepared to consider an increase in the VAT ceiling if agricultural and other expenditure is brought under effective control.

asked the Prime Minister whether she took into account at the recent summit meeting of the European Economic Community Council of Ministers the effect of an increase in the value added tax own resources contribution on the medium term financial strategy; and if she will publish in the Official Report a table showing what the effect of the French proposals would be on the public sector borrowing requirement in each of the next five years.

I made clear at the European Council that we would not agree to any increase in the Community's own resources unless there were agreement also on budgetary discipline and a corrective mechanism for budgetary imbalances. A satisfactory agreement on these two points should adequately protect the PSBR and public expenditure from the effect of any increase in own resources.

asked the Prime Minister if she will outline the differences between the rules concerning conflict of interest as they apply to (a) civil servants and (b) Ministers.

In both cases the basic principle is the same, that no conflict should arise between their private interests and their public duties.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if Her Majesty's Government will invite the building societies to look at shared purchase schemes for first-time house purchasers.

First-time house purchasers buying on shared ownership terms are already able to borrow from the building societies.In its recent proposals for new building society legislation, the Building Societies Association suggested that shared ownership schemes would be greatly encouraged if the societies were permitted to own the freehold of homes being purchased under a shared ownership scheme. The Government are considering carefully this and its other recommendations. As we said in our manifesto, we shall conduct early public consultations on proposals which would enable building societies to play a fuller part in supporting the provision of new housing and would bring up to date the laws which govern them.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the inter-departmental committee, established to review present practices and procedures of house transfer with a view to making recommendations to speed and make them more efficient, is prepared to receive evidence and the views of bodies and persons outside his Department as far as they affect his departmental responsibilities.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry gave him on 28 March 1984 at columns 277–78.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his latest estimate of the number of (a) households owning their home with a building society mortgage, (b) households owning their home with a mortgage from other source, (c) households owning their home outright and (d) all households in England.

The most recent figures available for England are from the 1982 general household survey which showed 26 per cent. of households buying their home with a loan from a building society, 7 per cent. buying with a loan from another source and 24 per cent. of households owning their home outright. There were an estimated 17·4 million households in England in mid-1982.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will detail in (a) cash terms and (b) constant prices the total expenditure of each metropolitan district since 1978–79.

The table shows total expenditure for block grant purposes in cash terms for 1981–82 to 1983–84. Data on a consistent basis for earlier years are not readily available. The figures may be converted to constant prices by using the GDP deflator (1982–83=100):

Year
1981–82	93·8
1982–83	100·0
1983–84	105·5

Metropolitan districts—total expenditure* (cash)—£ million
	1981–82†	1982–83†	1983–84‡
Greater Manchester
Bolton	78·49	87·14	88·85
Bury	51·38	58·44	58·28
Manchester	233·69	237·48	243·47
Oldham	72·06	78·00	80·77
Rochdale	74·60	83·63	84·24
Salford	87·69	88·68	94·91
Stockport	79·66	84·47	88·26
Tameside	69·12	80·65	78·97
Traford	65·24	71·08	70·48
Wigan	99·84	115·17	106·41
Merseyside
Knowsley	62·42	65·35	69·56
Liverpool	203·48	213·07	218·61
St. Helens	60·76	70·24	69·68
Sefton	80·38	86·63	89·04
Wirral	100·65	106·75	112·78
South Yorkshire
Barnsley	70·04	77·58	77·17
Doncaster	94·67	110·53	104·90
Rotherham	81·05	81·89	84·74

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the proportion of Government grants gained to total expenditure in (a) cash terms and (b) constant prices by each of the metropolitan districts for each year since 1978–79.

The table gives RSG as a percentage of total expenditure for block grant purposes for the years 1981–82 to 1983–84. Expenditure data on a consistent basis for earlier years are not readily available. The percentages would remain the same if the data were expressed in constant prices.

Metropolitan districts—RSG* as percentage of total expenditure†
	1981–82	1982–83	1983–84
Greater Manchester
Bolton	67·72	63·16	64·19
Bury	61·43	53·89	57·64
Manchester	49·18	44·32	41·78
Oldham	72·33	66·49	66·83
Rochdale	64·97	59·52	61·41
Salford	67·74	63·56	60·69
Stockport	55·83	52·52	49·78
Tameside	67·42	57·99	61·46
Trafford	43·61	38·63	36·69
Wigan	63·09	54·55	61·61
Merseyside
Knowsley	66·45	60·47	58·28
Liverpool	59·24	55·40	56·73
St. Helens	58·04	50·96	53·30
Sefton	63·45	57·95	55·73
Wirral	59·68	56·72	55·32
South Yorkshire
Barnsley	70·78	62·36	65·04
Doncaster	63·68	52·69	57·31
Rotherham	68·40	66·38	65·66
Sheffield	49·59	41·18	40·07
Tyne and Wear
Gateshead	66·13	62·61	57·82
Newcastle-upon-Tyne	43·55	32·51	32·36

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will rank in terms of percentage change in (a) cash expenditure and (b) expenditure in constant prices, each of the metropolitan districts for each year since 1978–79.

The tables give the information for 1981–82 to 1983–84. Expenditure data on a consistent basis for earlier years are not readily available. The figures may be converted to constant price growth by using changes in the GDP deflator of 6·6 per cent. between 1981–82 and 1982–83 and of 5·5 per cent. between 1982–83 and 1983–84.

Metropolitan Districts	Metropolitan Districts— *Total Expenditure (Cash) †Per cent. Growth 1981–82 to 1982–83
North Tyneside	19·18
Doncaster	16·75
Tameside	16·67
Sheffield	15·77
St. Helens	15·60
Bradford	15·39
Wigan	15·35
Bury	13·75
Sunderland	13·08
Rochdale	12·10
Kirklees	12·07
Bolton	11·01
Barnsley	10·76
Calderdale	10·46
Solihull	10·21
Trafford	8·95
Walsall	8·94
Newcastle-upon-Tyne	8·75

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received on the White Paper, Cmnd. 9063, "Streamlining the Cities," from voluntary organisations; if any of these comment on the ways in which the White Paper might affect the services to disabled people; and if he will make a statement.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Newham, North-West (Mr. Banks) on 15 March 1984 at column 253.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, if the 95 per cent. repurchase scheme of defective prefabricated housing purchased from a local authority will apply to the current owner when the current owner is not the original purchaser.

Yes. It is intended that the scheme of assistance for eligible private owners of defective dwellings originating in the public sector, which my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Construction, announced on 10 November 1983, at column 422, should apply to second and subsequent purchasers of such dwellings.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the Greater London council's (a) gross revenue expenditure and (b) gross capital expenditure for the latest year for which information is available.

Gross revenue expenditure reported by the Greater London council (including ILEA) for 1982–83 was £2,180 million and gross capital expenditure was £451 million. Gross revenue expenditure is gross expenditure on rate fund, trading and housing revenue accounts less net contributions by the rate fund to trading and housing revenue accounts. Gross capital expenditure is all expenditure charged to capital accounts plus expenditure on capital charged direct to revenue or other funds.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the encouragement referred to in his replies to the hon. Member for Newham, North-West on 20 February, Official Report, column 422, will include financial assistance to help local authorities on recycling schemes when the commodities recycled may attract insufficient income to cover costs in the short term.

Although financial assistance has been given to the development of two experimental plants for deriving fuel from waste, Government grant is not generally available for recycling schemes. It is, however, our policy to encourage these whenever economically viable.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give details of the encouragement referred to in his replies to the hon. Member for Newham, North-West on 20 February, Official Report, column 422, which is at present given to local authority recycling schemes by his Department.

We have given substantial financial and technical assistance to local authorities in the development of the large-scale experimental plants at Newcastle and Doncaster for deriving fuel from waste; we will be publishing detailed reports on these later this year. Publication of a general guide to the use of waste as a fuel is expected within a matter of weeks. In October I shall be opening a seminar on waste processing and resources recovery which my Department has organised with the Institute of Wastes Management and the Warren Spring laboratory. In addition we continually provide advice on recycling through our waste management advisory publications, participation in seminars, regular meetings with the officers from the waste disposal authorities and our informal contacts with these authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment which London borough councils make a direct charge for the collection of trade waste; and if he will make a statement.

Information on which London boroughs make a direct charge for the collection of trade refuse is published annually in the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy's waste collection statistics.Current legislation requires that local authorities make reasonable charges for collecting trade refuse. The Government's view is that such charges should reflect the full economic cost of collection, including an element for the cost of disposal; this is to prevent the service from becoming a burden on the rate fund and to avoid unfair competition with the private sector.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total of local authority (a) gross revenue expenditure and (b) gross capital expenditure in London for the latest year for which information is available.

I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave him on 26 and 27 March 1984, at columns 80 and 130, respectively, which provide gross revenue and gross capital expenditure by GLC and London Boroughs (including ILEA) for 1982–83.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will establish a surface pedestrian crossing or a green man crossing at the Argyle bridge over the A40 at Medway parade; and if he will make a statement.

I have reviewed the crossing arrangements on the eastern side of the Argyle road bridge. It should be possible to provide a pedestrian crossing facility over the A40 slip road, and a two-stage facility over the new road between Medway parade and Horsenden lane, south, integrated with the existing signal phasing. This work will be put in hand as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received from British and overseas users of business aircraft about the constraints on business aviation at Heathrow and Gatwick airports; and if he will make a statement.

The Air Transport Operators Association and the Business Aviation Users Association have both expressed concern to me about the difficulties their members are experiencing in operating at Heathrow and Gatwick during the periods of the day when the capacity of runways and terminals is fully used by airline operations and their passengers. The business aviation working group, set up by my Department, is currently considering how adequate alternative facilities can be provided for business aviation in the south-east.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what decisions he has reached regarding the continuation of the procedure of section 9 of the Harbours Act 1964.

I shall answer this question shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will introduce legislation to prohibit advertising on parking meters.

I have no plans to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements will govern the relationship between the Government and British Airways plc between vesting and privatisation.

As I announced to the House on 12 December, the business of the British Airways Board will vest in British Airways plc on 1 April. Pending the flotation of the company, which I am planning for early next year, all shares in British Airways plc will be retained by the Government and British Airways will remain in the public sector. During this period my powers over British Airways plc will be those of a sole shareholder over his company.The present members of the British Airways Board will continue as the directors of British Airways plc, with Lord King of Wartnaby as chairman.After consultation with the hoard, I have drawn up new articles of association for the company that will come into force on vesting day, 1 April. I have also concluded a memorandum of understanding with the directors dealing with certain aspects of our relationship not covered in the articles of association.I have placed copies of both documents in the Library of the House. The principle underlying these arrangements is broadly to preserve over British Airways plc, while it remains in the public sector, controls similar to those that I have hitherto exercised over British Airways as a statutory corporation.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has yet been able to reach a decision on the application of the Great Yarmouth port and haven commissioners for a harbour revision order under the Harbour Act 1964 to reconstitute the commission.

Yes. After considering the report of the inspector who conducted the recent inquiry, my right hon. Friend and I have decided to make the order very much in the form that he recommended, that is, as applied for by the commissioners, with one additional member being appointed with special regard to the Broads. This will reduce the number of the commissioners from 20 to 14.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will list the native Caledonian pine woodlands in Scotland which are owned privately and where the Forestry Commission has agreed plans of operation under a dedication agreement.

Plans of operations have been approved by the Forestry Commission under the basis II and III dedication schemes in respect of Caledonian pine woodland on the following properties:

Name of Property	Region
Amat	Highland
Coulin	"
Rothiemurchus (2 plans)	"
Cromdale and Mondhuie	"
Seafield	"
Abernethy Forest Lodge	"
Straanrui	"
Glenfeshie	"
North Abernethy	"
Glentanar	Grampian
Mar Lodge	"
Ballochbuie	"
Meggernie	Tayside
Lochs	"
Blackmount Estate	Strathclyde

In addition, the commission has also approved plans of operations under the forestry grant scheme in respect of Caledonian pine woodland at:

Name of Property	Region
Coulin	Highland
Rothiemurchus	"
Conaglen	"

asked the Secretary of state for Scotland whether the Forestry Commission has compiled a list of woodlands which are sites of special scientific interest.

The Forestry Commission is informed by the Nature Conservancy Council of all areas of land designated as sites of special scientific interest and maintains records of these in its local offices.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what consultations took place between the Forestry Commission and the Nature Conservancy Council before the Forestry Commission authorised the owner of Abernehy forest to fell trees on a site of special scientific interest.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) on 26 March 1984 at column 38.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is now in a position to give a decision in principle on the redevelopment of the Royal Cornhill hospital as planned by Grampian health board.

As indicated in my letter of 28 March to the hon. Member, the Grampian health board has been asked to provide further information in support of its application for approval in principle. It is therefore not possible to give a final decision at this stage, though I am hopeful that further progress can be made soon.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much of the expenditure provision on behalf of the British Council in Class II Vote 4 and Class II Vote 8 in 1983–84 is for the purpose of promoting the English language.

The British Council assesses that about £15 million of the total provision is devoted to promoting the English language.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Soviet authorities about their refusal to allow Sasha Lein, of Leningrad, to emigrate to Israel.

We have raised the subject of human rights on many occasions with the Soviet Government, most recently during the visit of Mr. Kornienko on 29 March. We have expressed our regret at their continuing refusal of exit visas to many Soviet citizens waiting to emigrate in order to be reunited with their families, in contradiction of Soviet commitments under the Helsinki final act and Madrid concluding document. However, the timing and manner of our representations over individual cases must remain a matter for consideration and decision as opportunity arises.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he plans to take to safeguard the interests of Gibraltar when Spain achieves membership of the European Economic Community.

We have remained closely in touch with the Government of Gibraltar throughout the negotiations on Spanish accession to the European communities, and take full account of Gibraltar's interests. Specifically:

(a) the Community has sought from Spain, in the relevant chapters of the negotiations, undertakings on the removal of those measures which conflict with the obligations of Community membership;

(b) in this context, Spain and the Community have agreed that application of Community obligations in respect of external trade means, from accession, the elimination of all obstacles to trade between Spain and Gibraltar except as permitted by exceptions and derogations in accordance with Community law;

(c) the Community is insisting on a seven-year transitional period before the free movement of workers is implemented between Spain and the rest of the Community — a point of particular importance to Gibraltar;

(d) the Community has also made it clear that there will need to be a joint declaration on the free movement of labour annexed to Spain's accession treaty, as in past enlargements, providing for appropriate decisions to be taken in the event of difficulties arising after the end of the transitional period.

We have also taken up in the Community a number of other points of concern to Gibraltar, at the request of the Gibraltar Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has any proposals for improving the availability within Great Britain of BBC world service programmes.

No. As my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh, Pentlands (Mr. Rifkind) said in the House on 22 December 1982, at column 601, the BBC world service in English is part of the BBC external services, which, under the licence and agreement approved by this House, are intended for reception overseas. It is a fortuitous bonus that the world service is audible in parts of the United Kingdom.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his estimate of the proportion of output in each case accounted for by (a) holdings of 50 hectares and over of cereals and (b) holdings of 60 dairy cows and over.

It is estimated that 78 per cent of the output of cereals in England and Wales in 1982 was priduced on holdings with 50 or more hectares of cereals. Similar information in respect of the 1983 harvest in not readily available.It is estimated that approximately 75 per cent of milk sold through Milk Marketing Board schemes in England and Wales is produced on holdings with 60 dairy cows and over.Corresponding information for Scotland and Northern Ireland is not readily available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what stocks are available on world markets, excluding the European Economic Community, for purchase by the United Kingdom of food commodities in which the United Kingdom is not self-sufficient; and what is his estimate of the United Kingdom demand for these commodities.

The United Kingdom imports a wide range of food commodities, details of which are contained in the United Kingdom Overseas Trade Statistics. Information about the main commodities produced domestically, including broad estimates of self sufficiency, is summarised in the Annual Review of Agriculture 1984 (Cmnd 9137) Tables 8 to 18. Stocks of the various food commodities are held throughout the world by both public and commercial bodies but complete information about these and the amounts that would be available for the United Kingdom to purchase, is not readily available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what are the stocks in European Economic Community intervention stores, in days' supply, of each of; wheat, barley, beef, butter, skimmed milk powder and wine.

According to the latest figures available the information requested is as follows:

	Number of days supply
Wheat	45
Barley	6
Beef	20
Butter	188
Skimmed milk powder	219
Wine	0

There are of course additional stocks, with EEC support, in private stores in a number of these commedities (for example, 91 days supply of wine in private stores).

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what has been the increase each year between 1973 and 1983 of (a) agricultural support prices resulting from the European Economic Community annual price review and (b) average inflation rates in the European Economic Community.

The information requested is given in the following tables:

	Increase in average common support prices: * including green rate changes †	Average inflation ‡
1973	7·0	8·3
1974	21·0	12·5
1975	11·6	14·8
1976	8·4	10·5
1977	8·5	9·7
1978	8·1	8·5
1979	5·9	9·4
1980	9·4	10·8
1981	10·6	9·1
1982	12·0	9·1
1983	7·0	6·3
* Increase in intervention (or equivalent) prices for each commodity weighted together by the shares in final agricultural production. Figures relate to the change between marketing years e.g. 1973 represents the increase in 1973–74 over 1972–73. The figures include Greece for 1981.
† Includes the effects of green rate changes agreed since the previous price fixing.
‡ Price deflator of GDP at market prices ÷ EC 10.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list in the Official Report the average net farm income from 1970 to 1983 broken down by main types of farming as defined in table 26 of Cmnd. 9137; and if he will publish that same income adjusted for inflation.

Index numbers of average net farm income per farm in the United Kingdom by main types of farming A. Current Prices
Years ending February
	Dairy	Cattle and Sheep	Cereals	Other Cropping	Pigs and Poultry
Old Series
1970–71	27	27	21	45	32
1971–72	42	41	26	58	43
1972–73	55	61	35	78	55
1973–74	54	63	80	134	85
1974–75	46	54	83	141	70
1975–76	79	83	73	215	137
1976–77	85	100	96	230	108
1977–78	100	100	100	100	100
New Series
1977–78	100	100	100	100	100
1978–79	115	117	137	203	145
1979–80	82	61	114	225	116
1980–81	95	84	141	159	123
1981–82	132	139	151	256	156
1982–83	163	125	256	289	117
1983–84 (forecast)	120	118	295	420	45

B. Real Terms
	Dairy	Cattle and Sheep	Cereals	Other Cropping	Pigs and Poultry
Old Series
1970–71	68	68	53	113	80
1971–72	96	94	59	132	98
1972–73	117	130	74	166	117
1973–74	105	122	155	260	165
1974–75	76	89	137	233	116
1975–76	105	110	97	285	181
1976–77	97	115	110	264	124
1977–78	100	100	100	100	100
New Series
1977–78	100	100	100	100	100
1978–79	106	108	126	188	134
1979–80	66	49	92	181	94
1980–81	65	58	97	109	84
1981–82	81	86	93	157	96
1982–83	93	71	147	165	67
1983–84 (forecast)	65	64	160	230	25

Source: Farm Management Surveys.