asked the Secretary of State for Energy what is his assessment of the extra employment which could be derived from combined heat and power schemes in British cities; and if he will make a statement.

Energy Paper No. 53 gave estimates of the total labour input required for the installation of combined heat and power district heating in nine selected cities. From these it may be calculated that about 3,000 jobs might be created for a 12 to 15-year period by the installation of CHP-DH in all nine cities.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether the Sellafield plutonium storage ponds contaning United Kingdom origin plutonium from British magnox reactors are physically inspected by International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors in connection with safeguards applied under the United Kingdom, International Atomic Energy Agency/European Atomic Energy Authority tripartite safeguards treaty.

No. The position on the designation of civil nuclear facilities for inspection by the International Atomic Energy Agency remains as stated in my reply of 3 December 1984 to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what assumptions have been made in relation to capital expenditure, current losses and reduction in capacity in arriving at the reduction of £1 billion in the external financing limits of the National Coal Board for 1985–86 given in Cmnd. 9428.

The figure for the NCB's external financing limit in 1985–86 given in Cmnd. 9428 will be reviewed after the strike. It cannot be compared directly with the forecast outturn for 1984–85 given in Cmnd. 9428.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will announce the allocation of funds for derelict land reclamation in 1985–86; and if he will make a statement.

The expenditure provided for derelict land reclamation in 1985–86 is £76·4 million compared with £74 million this year and only £12 million in 1974–75.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the main policy objectives of his Department in the field of environmental protection in 1985.

Our major objectives will be to maintain and improve environmental quality in the United Kingdom and, through active involvement in the relevant international bodies, to contribute to its maintenance and improvement in Europe and worldwide; and to seek scientifically based and cost-effective solutions to environmental problems. More particularly:

• —to work towards further improvements in the control of atmospheric pollution, including the reduction of acidifying emissions;
• —to secure a sustained improvement in river quality;
• —to establish and implement a long-term improvement programme for estuarial and costal waters (including bathing waters);
• —to ensure that the arrangements made for the storage and/or disposal of wastes, in particular radioactive and hazardous wastes, are satisfactory from a safety and environmental standpoint;
• —to promote economy and efficiency in handling of wastes by local authorities, and to encourage recycling of wastes where appropriate;
• —to ensure that progress is maintained in reducing levels of lead in the environment;
• —to ensure that the practical management of the environment is supported by vigorous and relevant programme of research; and
• —to promote greater provision, accessibility and understanding of data and other information about environmental protection matters.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will advise the Housing Corporation in determining grants for 1985–86 to charitable housing associations that the corporation should make an allocation of funds without taking into account the possibility of private finance for part of a project.

The allocation of funds to individual housing associations within the Housing Corporation's approved development programme is a matter for the corporation. The basis of the allocation is principally an assessment of housing need.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the policy and practice for the Housing Corporation on granting a second mortgage to secure its advances for the construction or conversion of new housing association buildings for the elderly leaving a first mortgage for the providers of private sector finance.

The Housing Corporation normally obtains a first charge for its loans to housing associations in order to ensure the security of these public funds, but it will consider exceptions to this rule in appropriate circumstances where private finance is being offered.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what discussions he has had recently with building societies about funding capital schemes in partnership with the Housing Corporation for private housing associations which are developing projects to care for the elderly.

None of this particular subject, but proposals for the use of building society finance for housing association schemes, including projects for the elderly, have been put forward by the housing Corporation's private finance working party and are being considered by my Department.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about the effect on the preparation of the arrangements for the transfer of services and contracts following the abolition of the Greater London council of the instructions which have been given to the Greater London council staff not to assist in the process of abolition; and if he will make a statement.

I am aware of the concern among successor bodies that the reported instructions to GLC staff will hamper their ability to effect a smooth handover. I hope that the council will review its present stance and recognise its responsibilities to its staff and its ratepayers.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his reply of 11 December 1984, Official Report, column 443, stating his decision not to extend the scope of the Housing (Means of Escape from Fire in Houses in Multiple Occupation) Order (S.I., 1981, No. 1576), if he will (a) list the organisations which made representations to him in the course of his review of the extension of the order, (b) place copies of the responses of all organisations which submitted representations to his review of the order in the Library, (c) state how many of the organisations making representations to his review supported increased statutory protection for households from fire risks and how many opposed this step and (d) give full details of the consultations he held with tenants and occupiers of houses in multiple occupation in the course of his review.

Ten organisations outside central Government were consulted:

• The Association of County Councils
• The London Boroughs Association
• The Association of District Councils
• The Association of Metropolitan Authorities
• The Greater London Council
• The Institute of Housing
• The Housing Corporation
• The National Federation of Housing Associations
• The Institute of Environmental Health Officers

and

The Campaign for Single Homeless People

(on behalf of the Houses in Multiple Occupation Group)

Seven organisations supported an extension to SI 1981 No. 1576, though several attached conditions to their support; none was opposed to an extension.The hon. Member may wish to ask those organisations about consultations which they had with tenants and occupiers, and whether they wish to supply him with copies of their replies to my Department's inquiries. I am aware of residents' views through correspondence, and from visits which I have made.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) when he expects to receive final comments from the local authority associations on the proposed amendment to regulation 3(4) of the Local Government Superannuation Regulations 1974, as amended, which was circulated for consultation in May 1983;(2) when he expects to make, the regulations referred to in the letter to the hon. Member for South Hams, of 26 April 1984, from the Minister of State for Local Government regarding regulation 3(4) of the Local Government Superannuation Regulations 1974 with regard to disqualification from war service reckoning.

The final comments from the local authority associations have now been received, and the regulations are expected to come into operation in April.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the total of block grants to be received by each local authority in England in 1985–86 if it spends at the total of its grant-related expenditure assessment after the effects of holdback, in a manner consistent with his reply in the Official Report, 9 February 1984, column 764.

I have arranged for this information to be placed in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has had from the president of the Manchester chamber of commerce and industry about the scale of likely water price increases in the north-west; what reply he is sending; if he will publish the president's letter in the Official Report, together with his reply; and if he will make a statement.

The president's letter of 28 January expresses concern that the charges will rise faster that inflation under "new" financial arrangements, that they amount to covert taxation and that they affect the competitive position of industry. The arrangements have not changed: financial targets and external financing limits have been set for previous years. The increase in the North-West water authority's financial target to a modest

Station

Plymouth

Hurn

Manston

Rhoose

Aborporth

Hemsby

Binbrook

Blackpool

Carlisle

Tynemouth

Abbotsinch

Leuchars

Dyce

Total reporting frozen ground

Height ASL

88

33

144

213

435

43

353

33

85

95

16

33

215

Date

2 January

O

X

X

O

O

X

X

O

O

X

O

O

X

7

3 January

O

O

X

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

O

X

10

4 January

O

X

X

O

O

X

O

O

O

X

O

O

X

8

5 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

X

O

X

X

9

6 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

X

O

X

X

9

7 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

12

8 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

12

9 January

O

O

O

X

X

O

O

O

X

X

O

O

X

8

10 January

X

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

O

X

10

11 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

O

X

11

12 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

13

13 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

12

14 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

13

15 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

O

O

12

Ban imposed

16 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

X

X

O

10

17 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

X

X

10

18 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

O

X

O

X

X

10

19 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

X

O

X

X

10

20 January

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

13

21 January

X

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

O

12

22 January

X

X

X

O

X

X

O

X

O

X

X

X

X

3

23 January

X

X

O

O

X

O

O

X

O

O

O

O

O

9

X = Frost Free

O = Frozen

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will announce his decision on the application for consent to move the Temple Bar from Theobalds Park in Hertfordshire to St. Paul's Churchyard; and if he will make a statement.

This application was the subject of a public inquiry held between October 1983 and January 1984 and a resumed hearing in December 1984 to examine fresh evidence submitted by the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission. My right hon. Friend has accepted the advice of the inquiry inspector, who recommended in favour of granting consent. In reaching this decision my right hon. Friend paid particular attention to the possibility of damage to the monument and to the 1·43 per cent. return on net assets cannot fairly be described as taxation. Increases in price are always unwelcome, but reasonable charges for water services ought to provide for a reasonable rate of return on assets.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the meteorological stations concerned, their height above sea level in feet and their daily temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit for the 14 days before the cold weather shooting ban was put into force in January and for the seven subsequent days.

This information is not readily available, and is not directly relevant to the decision to impose a shooting ban. The agreed criterion is based on the state of the ground and requires that a ban should be imposed if more than half of the 13 meteorological stations monitored record 13 continuous days of frost. The ban then comes into effect on the fifteenth day.The following table shows the stations and indicates where ground was reported as frozen between 2 and 23 January.setting of St. Paul's Churchyard, but concluded that these factors were outweighed by the advantages of returning this important monument to the City where it could be seen and enjoyed by many more people than if retained at Theobalds park. The consent is subject to stringent conditions to ensure that the dismantling, repair and re-erection of the monument is carried out with every contractual and architectural care and to the satisfaction of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what change he proposes to make to the Property Services Agency's cash limits for 1984–85.

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimate, the cash limit on Class XIV, Vote 2 will be increased by £10 million, from £351,630,000 to £361,630,000. The increase is required to pay for consultants' fees to meet the requirements of the defence works programme. It will be financed by a corresponding reduction in the Ministry of Defence cash limit (Class 1, Vote 5), so will not increase public expenditure.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what public funds are paid to the Scottish Health Education Group in the current financial year and for each year since 1979;(2) what proportion of the budget of the Scottish Health Education Group is spent on campaigns to restrict smoking;(3) what role the Scottish Health Education Group will be playing in the National No Smoking Day campaign 1985; and whether funds paid to the Group will be spent on this campaign.

Expenditure by the Scottish Health Group since 1979–80 is shown in the following table:

Financial year	SHEG Expenditure £000
1979–80	1,252
1980–81	1,540
1981–82	1,889
1982–83	2,136
1983–84	2,386
1984–85	*2,802
* Estimate.

In the current financial year approximately £302,000 — or 10·7 per cent. will be spent by the group on publicity campaigns to restrict smoking. Out of that sum the group has, in its capacity as a sponsoring body, made an initial payment of £1,500 to the National No Smoking Day Campaign 1985 and plans to spend a further £20,000 to promote the campaign in Scotland. The focus of the

January
	Height above sea level
	Dyce 215ft	Leuchars 33ft	Abbotsinch 16ft	Inverness 13ft	Carlisle 86ft	Prestwick 53ft
5			X			X
6			X		X	X
7		X	X		X	X
8		X	X		X	X
9		X	X			X
10		X	X		X	X
11		X	X		X	X
12		X	X	X	X	X
13		X	X	X	X	X
14	X	X	X	X	X	X
15	X	X	X	X	X	X
16	X			X	X	X
17			X		X	X
18			X	X	X	X
19			X	X	X	X
20	X	X	X	X	X	X
21	X	X	X	X	X	X

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the meteorological stations concerned, their height above sea level in feet and their daily temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit for the 14 days before the cold weather shooting ban was put into force in January and for the seven subsequent days.

The criteria and arrangements for the imposition of shooting bans in severe weather are based on recommendations made by the Nature Conservancy Council's working group on wildfowling bans in severe weather which reported in 1982. This group included representatives from the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, British Trust for Ornithology, British Field Sports Society, Game Conservancy Council and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.The Government accepted the working group's recommendation that a ban should be imposed where more than half the 13 agreed meteorological stations had recorded frosty weather for more than 13 consecutive days disregarding short spells of milder weather during that period. Frosty weather is defined in this context and for this purpose as

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list in the Official Report the capital and current expenditure of each local authority in Scotland on tourism and tourist-related projects for the latest year for which figures are available in cash and per capita terms.

Expenditure on Tourism (including Pubicity and Development) and Caravan Sites
Local authority	Gross capital expenditure		Gross current expenditure
	Cash £000	per head† £	Cash £000	per head† £
Regional Councils
Borders	23	0·23	119	1·18
Central	—	—	87	0·32
Dumfries and Galloway	—	—	25	0·17
Fife	—	—	77	0·23
Grampian	23	0·05	220	0·45
Highland	—	—	16	0·08
Lothian	—	—	11	0·01
Strathclyde	—	—	448	0·19
Tayside	—	—	—	—
Islands Councils
Orkney	—	—	50	2·61
Shetland	—	—	—	—
Western Isles	—	—	—	—
District Councils
Aberdeen	—	—	56	0·26
Angus	—	—	148	1·59
Annandale and Eskdale	—	—	27	0·76
Argyll and Bute	—	—	90	1·39
Badenoch and Strathspey	—	—	22	2·21
Banff and Buchan	66	0·79	90	1·08
Bearsden and Milngavie	—	—	—	—
Berwickshire	—	—	7	0·38
Caithness	10	0·36	23	0·83
Clackmannan	—	—	—	—
Clydebank	—	—	—	—
Clydesdale	—	—	—	—
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth	—	—	—	—
Cumnock and Doon Valley	—	—	27	0·61
Cunninghame	—	—	69	0·50
Dumbarton	—	—	4	0·05
Dundee	—	—	102	0·56
Dunfermline	—	—	—	—
East Kilbride	—	—	—	—
East Lothian	44	0·54	196	2·42
Eastwood	—	—	—	—
Edinburgh	—	—	597	1·34
Ettrick and Lauderdale	—	—	23	0·69
Falkirk	—	—	—	—
Glasgow	—	—	220	0·29
Gordon	—	—	—	—
Hamilton	—	—	—	—
Inverclyde	—	—	—	—
Inverness	—	—	—	—
Kilmarnock and Loudoun	—	—	—	—
Kincardine and Deeside	—	—	49	1·13
Kirkcaldy	74	0·50	134	0·90
Kyle and Carrick	—	—	261	2·31
Lochaber	—	—	6	0·31
Midlothian	—	—	—	—
Monklands	—	—	—	—

[pursuant to his reply, 30 January 1985, c. 205]: The latest available information is for 1982–83 and is provided in the table.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what is the number of community programme places currently sponsored by voluntary sector agencies;(2) which voluntary sector agencies sponsor 200 or more community programme places;(3) which local authorities sponsor 200 or more community programme places.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list in the Official Report those local authorities that sponsor 100 or more community programme places and give the number or places in each case.

I shall write to the hon. Members as soon as possible setting out the information that is available and will place a copy of my letters in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the number of community programme places allocated within the borough of Sunderland; and how many of these are sponsored by (a) voluntary sector agencies, (b) the local authority and (c) other sponsors.

The information is not available in the form requested. The borough of Sunderland is in the South Tyne and Wear area of the employment division of the Manpower Services Commission. On 14 December —the latest date for which figures are available—of the 3,428 filled places in the area, 1,115 were on projects sponsored by or through local authorities, and 2,313 were sponsored by other bodies.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the current target figures for placements under the community programme; and how many have been approved by the Manpower Services Commission and how many filled for each Manpower Services Commission area at the latest date for which figures are available.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Penrith and The Border (Mr. Maclean) on 26 March at column 29, which set out plans for the allocation of places on the community programme up to October 1986. On 14 December, the latest date for which information is available, 130,027 places were filled by employees. Approvals were current in respect of 152,304 places, but this total includes projects yet to start up or in the process of running down, and also takes account of temporary vacancies because of labour turnover. Information is collated centrally and made available about the number of filled places in each region.

Region	Filled places at 14 December
London	9,376
South East	11,536
South West	8,205
Midlands	24,350
Wales	9,133
North West	21,531
Scotland	17,537
Northern	13,529
Yorks and Humberside	14,830
Great Britain	130,027

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the explosion at Abbeystead.

The report by the Health and Safety Executive to the Health and Safety Commission on the explosion at the Abbeystead water transfer station on 23 May 1984 is published today. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library.The report sets out in detail how the explosion followed an accumulation of methane gas in the water transfer station.The report draws attention to the fact that methane is soluble in water and that it can be given off by ground water entering workings. It makes recommendations to designers, constructors and operators of tunnelled raw water transfer systems to help improve safety standards. The findings are being widely publicised throughout the civil engineering profession and incorporated in professional training. The number of similar water transfer schemes in this country is extremely small.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish in the Official Report, for the most recent available date, for each local authority area in Scotland, the number of notifiable installations constituting a major hazard.

[pursuant to his reply, 5 February 1985, c. 493]: By the end of December 1984 the numbers of installations notified to the Health and Safety Executive under the Notification and Installations Handling Hazardous Substances Regulations 1982 for each local authority area in Scotland—on a regional or island basis—were as follows:

Regions
Borders Regional	2
Central	22
Dumfries and Galloway	4
Fife	12
Grampian	22
Highland Regional	15
Lothian	11
Orkney Islands	2
Shetlands Islands	2
Strathclyde	52
Tayside	9
Western Isles	1

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the number of installations in each county notified to the Health and Safety Executive under the Notification of Installations Handling Hazardous Substance Regulations 1982.

[pursuant to his reply, 5 February 1985, c. 493]: The number of installations notified to the Health and Safety Executive under the Notification of Installations Handling Hazardous Substances Regulations 1982 for each county in England are as follows. The numbers for counties in Wales have been given in my replies to the hon. Member for Gower (Mr. Wardell) on 17 January at column 214 and on 29 January at column 89; and for local authority areas in Scotland in my reply to the hon. Member for Monklands, West (Mr. Clarke) today.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if the Transport and Road Research Laboratory will assess the safety of motocross bicycles; if he has received any representations on this subject; and if he will make a statement.

All new bicycles normally used on the roads, including BMX cycles, are required to meet British Standard BS 6102. The Transport and Road Research Laboratory was involved in the preparation of the standard and has no present plans for further assessment.Some representations have been received about irresponsible behaviour on public roads and pavements by BMX riders; current publicity leaflets issued by my Department encourage safe riding of these cycles.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport when notice of the making of the experimental order to prohibit all vehicles except buses and pedal cycles from turning right from the A6 trunk road into Wilstead road, Elstow, is to be given; and when it will come into operation.

My right hon. Friend hopes to give notice shortly of the making of the experimental order, which will come into operation before the end of this month.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will introduce legislation to require airlines granted air services licences to commence services within a specific time of the grant of the licence and thereafter to maintain it; and if he will make a statement.

A decision on whether or not to operate a route for which it has been granted a licence is a matter for an airline's commercial judgment. However, under arrangements introduced last year, the Civil Aviation Authority intends to review licences regularly and sector rights which are not being used and whose retention cannot be justified will be liable to revocation. I do not think that there is a need for legislation.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will make a statement on the outcome of the recent discussions between his Department, the Scottish Development Agency and the Civil Aviation Authority about the future of aerodromes in the Highlands and Islands in Scotland currently in the ownership of the Civil Aviation Authority.

In evaluating the offers both the Government and the authority were concerned that the aerodromes should continue to be operated on a basis which meets the essential social needs of the communities concerned. The extent to which offers would have resulted in a significant reduction in the subsidy requirement was also taken into consideration. We have concluded that none of the offers received was satisfactory.The aerodromes will continue to be owned and operated by the CAA for the time being but we are considering in the context of airports policy generally if alternative arrangements might be appropriate in the longer term.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what action he is proposing to take arising from the reference in the annual report of the traffic commissioner for the south east traffic area to the shortage of examiners having hindered an acceptable level of enforcement;(2) whether he is proposing to take any action from the reference in the annual reports of the traffic commissioners for the eastern, south Wales and west midland traffic areas concerning the lack of recruitment of examiners;(3) whether he is proposing to take any action arising from the reference in the annual report of the traffic commissioner for the Scottish traffic area to recruitment of examiners not having kept pace with the work or having dealt with backlogs;

Recruitment of vehicle examiners was temporarily suspended while the Government considered the scope for greater efficiency of the heavy goods and public service vehicle testing. This led to a shortage of vehicle examiners in some traffic areas during 1983–84. When the decision not to proceed with the transfer to the private sector was announced in July 1983, a recruitment campaign was immediately organised. Thirty seven new vehicle examiners were recruited and trained, but were only beginning to take up posts at the end of 1983–84, the period to which the traffic commissioners' reports relate. Further recruitment is now in progress to fill another 40 posts, which will bring the vehicle examiner strength well up to complement by mid-1985.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he still expects the Anglo-French study group on the Channel tunnel to report by the end of February.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what consultations have taken place between his Department and European Ferries following its decision to lay up the ship Dragon;(2) what consultations have taken place between his Department and the French Government over the decision by European Ferries to lay up the British ship Dragon and retain in service the French ship Leopard.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in ensuring that in future taxis in London are suitable for carrying disabled people, including those in wheelchairs.

I am delighted to be able to tell the House that since I last reported progress on this matter on 22 December 1983, extensive consultation has taken place with the cab trade and other interested bodies and the assistant commissioner for the Metropolitan police, who is the licensing authority for all London taxis, has amended the conditions of fitness to require all cabs offered for type approval on or after 1 January 1985 to be capable of accommodating a disabled person in a wheelchair and to facilitate the carriage of disabled people generally.I believe that this will be a major step in ensuring that the transport needs of disabled people in London and other major cities are more effectively met in the future.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will (a) list the responsibilities and functions of the officials from his Department involved in Wintex-Cimex 85 and (b) state the date and purposes of the meetings they will attend in the course of these duties.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the local authorities in Wales which have indicated to his Department that they intend participating in Wintex-Cimex 85.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply he received from my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces on 30 November 1984 at columns 597–98.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will ensure that the Welsh joint education committee will publish materials produced for Welsh-speaking fourth and fifth-form pupils by University College, Aberystwyth, as part of its project for his Department; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend will give careful consideration to the possibility of the WJEC undertaking publication. His prime concern will be to ensure that the materials reach the classrooms as rapidly as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales whether his Department has concluded its review of congenital malformations in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

My Department's review has been completed and I am today publishing the results in full as a report entitled "The incidence of congenital malformations in Wales, with particular reference to the district of Torfaen, Gwent." I have placed a copy in the Library.I initiated this review as part of a response to public concern in Pontypool at the operation there of Re-Chem International Ltd's industrial waste disposal plant following the establishment by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland of an independent review under Professor J.M.A. Lenihan of unusual features of morbidity in the Denny-Bonnybridge area. At the outset I asked my Department to review statistics for Pontypool similar to those published by the Scottish Office immediately prior to the setting up of the Lenihan inquiry. These included the incidence of cancers and of babies born with congenital abnormalities. While the figures published on the incidence of cancers in Torfaen revealed no cause for concern, the data produced on congenital malforma-tions were insufficiently detailed to provide a confident basis upon which to reach conclusive judgments. As a consequence I commissioned a more detailed and extensive study covering a longer period.The review has compared from routinely available statistical data the incidence over the period 1974 to 1983 of all babies with certain congenital malformations in each of the district council areas of Wales. The malformations chosen include those about which particular public concern has recently been expressed, notably specific abnormalities of the eye. For each condition, the rate for Torfaen has been compared with that for the county of Gwent and for Wales as a whole.The results indicate that for all babies with congenital abnormalities and for most of the specific conditions reviewed, Torfaen had over the 10-year period incidence rates less than those for Wales and less or not significantly higher than those for Gwent. In the case of only two conditions, anencephalus and polydactyly, was the rate significantly higher than that for Wales; in the case of the latter it was also significantly higher than the rate for Gwent. A higher than average incidence of anencephalus in the south Wales valleys during the past 30 years has been reported in medical journals since 1967. My Department has recently conveyed to Professor Michael Laurence of the university of Wales college of medicine, its support in principle to his request for funding of a continuation of some of his previous work on congenital abnormalities of the central nervous system. He has new been asked to include in this work the latest findings on anencephalus and, because of his special interest in congenital abnormalities, the previously undocumented elevated rate for polydactyly.A special effort has been made to review the incidence of two particular abnormalities of the eye, anophthalmos and microphthalmos, about which there has been public concern. No cases of either of these two conditions is recorded as having been notified in the Torfaen area. The incidence rate for Gwent is below that for Wales.My Department also examined statistics on the level of spontaneous abortions in individual districts of Gwent and throughout Wales and the ratios of girls to boys at birth in all districts in Wales as well as studying the ratios among cohorts of 5-year-old children registered at New Inn primary school, Pontypool. The results of this work are also published, as appendices to the report. Over the 10-year period the rate of recorded spontaneous abortions in Gwent was significantly higher than that for Wales as a whole. However, the rate for Torfaen was not significantly higher than the rate for Gwent. There is no evidence that the female to male sex ratios at birth in Torfaen differ significantly from the all Wales average over the 10-year period.The review of conditions covered in this report—apart for anencephalus and polydactyly — does not indicate that the experience of Torfaen residents is in any way exceptional. The Lenihan report may indicate the need nonetheless to consider further action.In the meantime, I have asked my Department to consider what may need to be done in Wales to improve the present arrangements for the notification of congenital malformations and of any other national data bases used for epidemiological studies.Residents of the Pontpool area should be reassured by this report. In addition, I am sure that the authorities with a more local responsibility for public health would he ready, together with my Department, to consider any evidence of further concern.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how much it costs to store a body of beef weighing 300 kg in the intervention cold store for six months; and if he will make a statement.

Intervention beef is held in commercial stores and information about unit costs is not given on grounds of commercial confidentiality. The overall cost of storing and handling intervention beef in the United Kingdom in 1983–84 was £5·2 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on his most recent round of discussions with the Northern Ireland party leaders.

The party leaders have all said publicly that they are willing to discuss whether there is any common ground from which new arrangements for administering Northern Ireland could be developed. I am encouraging them to start practical discussions. The best way forward is for them to proceed quietly and in confidence.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to improve the procedures involved when applying for the extradition to Northern Ireland of suspects from the Republic of Ireland.

I am satisfied that existing procedures for the forwarding of warrants to the Garda Siochana under the unique reciprocal arrangements for the backing of warrants, are adequate.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions in the last 12 months the security forces have intervened to control incidents at funerals in Northern Ireland.

During 1984 the Royal Ulster Constabulary intervened at five funerals to prevent paramilitary displays from taking place.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many young people have had supplementary benefit reduced for either (a) refusing to go on a youth training programme scheme or (b) prematurely leaving a youth training programme scheme, to the latest available date.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what representations he has received from trades unions in Short Brothers on the Tucano project.

The trades unions in Shorts have written to my right hon. Friend expressing their strong support for the company's bid for the new Royal Air Force basic trainer contract. Their letter points out the merit of the Shorts Tucano for this contract and highlights the employment which would result both in Northern Ireland and elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will report progress on the eradication of terrorism in the Province.

There has been a steady decrease in the level of violence in Northern Ireland and a gradual return to normality over recent years. This is encouraging but gives no grounds for complacency. The Government will continue fully to support the security forces in their efforts to eradicate terrorism.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if any meetings have taken place between civil servants in his Department and Sinn Fein representatives since he took office.

Since I became Secretary of State for Northern Ireland there have been no meetings between officials in the Northern Ireland Office and representatives of Sinn Fein. As the House knows, officials at local level in the Northern Ireland departments occasionally meet Sinn Fein representatives, when this is necessary to ensure that constituency matters are dealt with in a fair and proper manner.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement about the financial implications of the Government's involvement in the Lear Fan project.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Mr. Bruinvels) on 19 December 1984, at column 216.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will reconsider his attitude to the report of the New Ireland Forum.

The Government's consistent and realistic attitude to the report of the New Ireland Forum has been to recognise and welcome what is in it of positive value, but to point out that the three specific options set out in the report cannot be accepted since they would not receive the consent of a majority of people in Northern Ireland. The importance of this consent was recognised by the Forum report. I see no grounds for changing this assessment.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he plans to introduce legislation to place owners of Orlit houses in Northern Ireland in the same position as owners in Great Britain.

The necessary legislation has proved more complex than expected, but proposals will be brought forward as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the need for fuller hospital facilities in Bangor; if he will institute a public inquiry to examine the case for a new acute hospital in Bangor; and if he will make a statement.

None. Any such assessment would be a matter in the first instance for the Eastern Health and

Statistics on security—Part I (yearly figures)
	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984
Shooting incidents║	1,756	10,628	5,018	3,206	1,803	1,908	1,081	755	728	642	815 (327)	382(165	290(134)	230(100)
Explosions	1,022	1,382	978	685	399	766	366	455	422	280	398	319	266	193
Bombs neutralised	493	471	542	428	236	426	169	178	142	120	131	113	101	55
Weight of explosives in lbs.*
Explosions	10,972	47,462	47,472	46,435	13,753	17,596	2,839	5,343	11,181	9,059	9,621	11,199	6,923	8,545
Neutralised	3,001	19,978	32,450	27,094	11,159	16,252	2,188	5,8605	4,430	6,405	9,168	7,300	7,503	6,114
Armed robberies	437	1,931	1,215	1,231	1,201	813	591	442	434	412	587	580	622	627
Amount stolen	303,787	790,687	612,015	572,951	572,105	545,497	446,988	232,650	568,359	496,825	854,929	1,392,202	830,258	701,903
Malicious fires†‡	—	—	587	636	248	453	432	269	315	275	536	499	528	840
Deaths
Civilian	115	322	171	166	216	245	69	50	51	50	57	57	44	36
Army/UDR	48	129	66	35	20	29	29	21	48	16	23	28	15	19
RUC/RUC'R'	11	17	13	15	11	23	14	10	14	9	21	12	18	9
Injuries
Civilian	1,838	3,813	1,812	1,680	2,044	2,162	1,027	548	557	530	878	328	280	513
Army/UDR	390	578	548	483	167	264	188	135	153	77	140	98	88	86
RUC/RUC'R'	315	485	291	235	263	303	183	302	165	194	332	99	142	267
*Estimated weight only.
† Consolidated figures not available for earlier years.
‡ No figure for April to June 1981.
║ Figures in ( ) refer to shots heard only and not included in the total

Statistics on security—Part II (yearly figures)
	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984
Houses searched*	17,262	36,617	74,556	71,914	30,092	34,939	20,724	15,462	6,452	4,106	4,104	4,045	1,497	1,282
Finds
Firearms	717	1,264	1,595	1,260	825	837	590	400	301	203	409	317	200	197
Ammunition (rounds)	157,944	183,410	187,399	147,202	73,604	70,306	52,091	43,512	46,280	28,078	47,127	41,452	32,451	27,211
Explosives	2,748	41,488	38,418	26,120	11,565	21,714	3,809	2,108	1,996	1,810	7,536	5,066	3,762	8,534
* Includes occupied and unoccupied houses searched.

Persons charged with terrorist type offences*
	†1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984
Murder	13	71	77	138	120	131	60	45	63	48	50	75	41
Attempted murder	16	85	76	88	121	135	79	39	59	72	96	60	68
Firearms offences	242	631	545	460	353	301	225	177	112	155	173	150	155
Explosives offences	86	236	161	100	215	146	79	40	39	39	41	48	21
Theft act	111	186	239	314	188	203	151	159	128	158	130	119	94
Other	63	205	276	97	279	392	249	210	149	446	196	161	149
Total	531	1,414	1,374	1,197	1,276	1,308	843	670	550	918	686	613	528
*These figures are not available in consolidated form for earlier years.
†31 July to 31 December.

Convictions—for scheduled offences—July-December 1984
Offence	Number convicted	Non-custodial sentence	Young offenders centre training schools	Less than 5 years	5 years and less than 7 years	7 years and less than 10 years	10 years and less than 15 years	15 years and less than 20 years	20 years and over	Life
Murder	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	4
Attempted murder	6	2	0	0	2	0	2	0	0	0
Conspiracy to murder	4	1	0	0	0	0	1	2	0	0
Causing grievous bodily harm	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Causing explosion	2	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0
Possessing explosives with intent	15	5	1	1	0	3	5	0	0	0
Possessing a firearm with intent	4	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what are the statistics for terrorist activity and security forces' activity in Northern Ireland for the year ended 31 December 1984.

The statistics on security for each year since 1971, including those for the year ended 31 December 1984, together with the conviction statistics for the last six months of 1984, are as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the recreation or sports centres operated by each of the 26 district councils.

The information is as follows:COUNCIL AND CENTRE

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the number of cases in which persons were convicted of scheduled offences in Northern Ireland in 1984 on the basis of evidence given by accomplices on behalf of the Crown in which evidence, other than of the accomplice, either forensic, from other non-supergrass witnesses or by an admission of guilt from the accused, was used to obtain the conviction.

[pursuant to his reply, 28 January 1985, c. 71]: Courts make their decisions having regard to all of the admissible evidence which is placed before them. It is not possible to identify cases in which the eventual decision depended only on accomplice evidence.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received concerning the introduction of a requirement to present passports at the border between the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom.

None recently.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contact his Department has in supporting the international detection organisation Interpol in its work; what improvements in its efficiency are likely to be achieved; and if he will make a statement.

The Home Office deals with the United Kingdom's annual subscription to Interpol and financial provision for the national central bureau of Interpol, which is located in London. Home Office officials also attend Interpol conferences and maintain regular contact with senior officers of the national central bureau. The Association of Chief Police Officers has established a working party to review the working methods of the United Kingdom national central bureau with the aim of evaluating the bureau's existing resources and its future pattern of work.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what regulations and requirements he has issued to laboratory animal breeders; and if he has any further plans for regulation and control of their activities.

My right hon. and learned Friend has at present no power to issue any such regulations or requirements. His plans for controlling the breeding of laboratory animals were set out in the White Paper "Scientific Procedures on Living Animals" (Cmnd. 8883). Legislation to enact the White Paper proposals will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time permits.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list, by police force area, the number of arrests recorded on an annual basis by special constables.

The information requested is not collected centrally.