asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will estimate the aggregate profit in 1985 for arable farms employing labour.

I regret that this information is not available.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to his answer to the right hon. Member for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale (Mr. Steel) of 29 October, Official Report, columns 416–7, if he will now state what essential services are to be retained in Scotland, following closure of the department of the central veterinary laboratory at Lasswade.

It is intended that mammalian histopathological services, avian diagnostic and consultancy services and various animal health blood tests and import-export tests will be undertaken by a unit of 17 ADAS officers based at the East of Scotland college of agriculture, Edinburgh following the closure of the department at Lasswade.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if female workers in part-time employment in agriculture are paid at the same hourly rate as their full-time counterparts; and if he will make a statement.

The current statutory minimum rate for all workers, male or female, regularly working 30 hours per week or less set by the independent Agricultural Wages Board for England and Wales is £2.19 per hour. That for full-time workers and other workers regularly working more than 30 hours per week is £2.24 per hour.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether Touche Ross has completed its study of Dairy Crest; and if he will make a statement.

Last year my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I commissioned the management consultants Touche Ross to report to us on Dairy Crest, the Milk Marketing Board's commercial arm. We have received the consultants' report and copies are being placed in the Library of the House. We shall be discussing the consultants' findings with interested parties.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether, following his talks with the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr. Shimon Peres, he will end the Foreign Office authentication of signatures on trade documents.

On 29 January the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will cease authentication of signatures on documents related to the Arab boycott of Israel.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether there has been any improvement in Anglo-Israeli relations following the visit of Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Shimon Peres, to London.

Mr. Peres' useful visit demonstrated the importance we attach to maintaining close and friendly relations with Israel.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what further proposals he has for seeking to eliminate state-sponsored terrorism following the attacks at Rome and Vienna airports in December.

We have taken, and will continue to take, whatever steps we can to deter and if possible eliminate state-sponsored terrorism. European Community Foreign Ministers and their representatives issued a statement yesterday of their determination to strengthen co-operation to deal with all forms of terrorism. They established a new group, within political cooperation, to ensure effective follow-up in the areas covered by the statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the Government's reaction to the illegal action taken against British shipping in the Gulf war in recent weeks.

The United Kingdom upholds the general principle of freedom of navigation on the high seas. However, under article 51 of the United Nations charter a state such as Iran, actively engaged in an armed conflict, is entitled in exercise of its inherent right of self-defence, to stop and search a foreign merchant ship on the high seas if there is reasonable ground for suspecting that the ship is taking arms to the other side for use in the conflict. This is an exceptional right: if the suspicions prove to be unfounded and if the ship has not committed acts calculated to give rise to suspicion, then the ship's owners have a good claim for compensation for loss caused by the delay.Our representatives in Tehran are in touch with the Iranian authorities as to why the British registered vessel Barber Perseus was stopped for a check of the ship's manifest on 12 January.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's attitude to United Nations mandatory economic sanctions.

Our views are well known. We do not believe that mandatory economic sanctions are an effective means of encouraging peaceful change.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what further proposals he has and what action he has taken to help towards the ending of the Iran-Iraq war.

We shall continue to support all realistic efforts aimed at bringing an end to the tragic and wasteful conflict between Iran and Iraq, especially through the good offices of the United Nations Secretary-General and his special representative Mr. Olof Palme. We are keeping in close touch with all interested parties.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what developments towards a settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict he foresees following his recent discussions with King Hussein in London.

We expeect King Hussein to continue his efforts, which have our full support, to make progress towards a negotiated settlement.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if any members of Iraq's armed forces are currently training in the United Kingdom.

I have been asked to reply.Yes.

Great Britain (000s)
	Age at 31 August 1983
	16	17	18	19 to 20	21 to 24	25 and over	Total
Schools*	282·6	174·5	22·4	3·0	—	—	482·5
Further education establishments
Non-advanced†	361·0	312·7	233·7	255·5	450·4	1,752·6	3,366·0
Advanced‡	0·8	4·8	48·6	146·0	121·4	136·2	457·8
Universities	0·4	4·6	44·0	118·5	78·1	123·3	368·8
All students	644·9	496·6	348·6	522·9	649·9	2,012·2	4,675·1
* Includes sixth-form colleges.
† Includes 1,680 thousand students aged 16 and over in adult education centres, for which some of the age detail has been estimated. Excludes 467 thousand students on other courses run by responsible bodies.
‡ Includes polytechnics and central institutions.
Includes 76 thousand students in the United Kingdom enrolled with the Open University.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what research he is aware of into (a) the

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the extra duties that teachers are now required to undertake compared with five years ago; and if he will make a statement.

There is no agreed list of duties that teachers are required to undertake as part of their contractual obligation. Nor did such a list exist five years ago. The Government's willingness to see an additional £1,250 million over four years spent on teachers' pay is conditional on the negotiation of just such a list.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations he has received from parents regarding the teachers' current pay dispute; and if he will make a statement.

Very many parents have conveyed their views to me in the form of letters and petitions. I have also met and addressed organisations which represent parent interests.I welcome the measure of agreement reflected in the outcome of the discussions held between the two sides under the auspices of ACAS. I regret that the NUT was not party to this agreement and intends to continue with some forms of disruptive action. This is bound to cause further damage to childrens' education.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, at the latest available date, how many people in Great Britain aged 16 years or over, were in (a) schools, (b) sixth-form colleges, (c) further education colleges, (d) polytechnics, (e) universities and (f) other educational establishments, separating them by age into single years from 16 to 20 years and in bands aged 21 to 24 years, 25 to 29 years and 30 years and over.

The readily available information for home students in Great Britain in 1983–84 including all modes of attendance is as follows:effects of deaf-blindness on a child's ability to learn and develop and

My right hon. Friend is not aware of any specific research which has been undertaken into these matters. Any research would have to take into account the fact that children described as "deaf-blind" suffer varying degrees of visual and hearing impairment and often also have mental and physical handicaps.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what research has been carried out by his Department or other institutions into the forms of communication used by deaf-blind children; and what proportion of deaf-blind children of all ages are without any form of communication.

The Department has carried out no research into the forms of communication used by deaf-blind children and is not aware of any which has been carried out by other institutions. The Department does not collect information on the proportion of deaf-blind children of all ages who are without any form of communication.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportion of the teachers of deaf-blind children in (a) deaf-blind units, (b) ESN(S) schools and (c) hospital schools have received special training in teaching children with the dual handicap; and what form the training took.

The Department does not collect this information. Teachers of deaf-blind children are subject to regulation 18 of the Education (Teachers) Regulations 1982 which requires that a teacher of a class of deaf-blind children should have an additional specialist qualification to teach either the deaf or the blind. I am sending the hon. Member a copy of the relevant extract from the regulations.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what courses there are for training teachers of deaf-blind children; and what progress is being made in extending the provision.

There are currently no training courses specifically for teachers of deaf-blind children. The future training needs of these teachers are currently under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportion of deaf-blind children have access to a specialist in teaching those with the dual handicap; and if he will detail the nature of the access.

The Department does not collect this information.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportion of deaf-blind children are being taught by a full-time teacher who has had special training in teaching a child with the dual handicap.

This information is not available.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportion of deaf-blind children are in schools where the child is (a) the only deaf-blind pupil, (b) one of two, (c) one of three and (d) one of more than three.

The Department does not collect this information.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many deaf-blind children are being educated in (a) deaf-blind units, (b) ESN(S) schools, (c) hospital schools and (d) other schools.

The Department does not collect this information.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what specific educational provision is made for deaf-blind children.

There are no special schools solely for deaf-blind children but a number of special schools principally for the visually handicapped and hearing impaired make specific educational provision for the needs of these children. Some who additionally have other handicaps such as severe learning difficulties are educated in special classes and units appropriate to those handicaps.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children of school age and below are known to be deaf-blind; and on what criteria they are identified.

The Department does not collect information on the numbers of deaf-blind children of school age and below. The criteria on which such children are identified are set out in the Education Act 1981; the responsibility for identifying, assessing and meeting special educational needs rests with individual local education authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will institute a national programme to (a) survey the numbers and educational needs of deaf-blind children, (b) provide additional staff and buildings and (c) make appropriate arrangements for their future further education.

My right hon. Friend is concerned about a wide range of pupils with profound and multiple learning difficulties, including those who have additional hearing and visual handicaps. There is, however, no intention to institute a national programme to survey the numbers and educational needs of deaf-blind children, provide additional staff and buildings or make appropriate arrangements for their future further education. These are all matters for individual local education authorities to determine in the first instance.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the average staff-child ratio for the teaching of deaf-blind children.

The Department does not collect this information.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he has taken to assess the proportion of peripatetic services required in the education of deaf-blind children; and if he will make a statement.

This is a matter for individual local education authorities to consider through their procedures for assessing the special educational needs of pupils and determining whether or not to maintain statements of needs under section 7 of the Education Act 1981. They also have a duty under section 2(4) of the Act to keep their arrangements for special educational provision under review. The level of such services required is likely to vary considerably both from year to year and from area to area.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he has taken to identify and assess the educational needs of deaf-blind children; and if he will make a statement.

Under the Education Act 1981 it is the responsibility of individual local education authorities to assess the requirements of children in their area who appear to have special educational needs and to decide what provision would be appropriate for them. I am sending the hon. Member a copy of the Department's circular 1/83, which gives detailed guidance to LEAs on how this should be done.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he has taken to make suitable educational provision for pre-school, primary and secondary aged deaf children; and if he will make a statement.

The Education Act 1981 requires local education authorities to secure provision in ordinary schools for children for whom they maintain a statement of special educational needs, provided that account has been taken of the views of the child's parents, and that the placement is compatible with the special educational provision required by the individual child; the provision of efficient education for the children with whom he will be educated; and the efficient use of resources.The Department is currently reviewing the provision of special schools for hearing-impaired children, in order to match the provision of places to the likely demand, in the light of falling rolls and the increasing move towards integrated education. Some schools for hearing-impaired children will have to close as a result of the effect of declining numbers; my right hon. Friend recognises that there will be a continuing need for special schools for some children, and it is his intention that those schools should be capable of providing a suitable and efficient education. Discussions are continuing with the local education authorities and schools involved.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he has taken any steps to advise teachers of the deaf on how to make full use of any residual vision of deaf-blind children; and if he will make a statement;(2) if he has taken any steps to advise teachers of the visually impaired on how to make full use of any residual hearing of deaf-blind children; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has given no specific advice on these subjects.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will initiate discussions with his counterparts in those European countries which provide for the teaching of deaf-blind children on a national basis on the record of this form of educational provision for children who are small in number but are very severely handicapped; and if he will make a statement.

EC Education Ministers agreed at their meeting in June 1984 to set up a working group of experts to consider the educational needs of handicapped children. The group will shortly submit proposals for a programme of future work which, if agreed, will include a study of children with sensory handicaps. It would be inappropriate to consider other discussions at this time.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the universities which have major building projects in progress or starting soon; and if he will make a statement.

The universities with major building projects in progress or starting soon are as follows:

• Aston
• Bath
• East Anglia
• Liverpool
• London
• Manchester
• University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology
• Newcastle
• Reading
• Salford
• Sheffield
• Southampton
• Aberdeen
• Dundee
• Glasgow
• Heriot-Watt

Provision for grant to universities to cover major capital building work (that is, mainly those projects expected to cost £1 million or more) was £25·8 million in the financial year 1985–86, including a small amount carried forward from the 1984–85 financial year. Subject to parliamentary approval, provision in the financial year 1986–87 will be £26·4 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science why, pursuant to the answer of 20 January, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Walden) did not give the figures requested by the hon. Member for Cambridge in his answer of 20 January relating to sums allocated in 1984–85 for civil and military research and development; whether he will now give this information; and if he will make a statement.

The established policy of the Department in dealing with requests for statistical information is to refer Members to sources where the data can readily be obtained. In addition, my hon. Friend's Question called for information in areas which are not the responsibility of my right hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when his annual review of policies for the support of science will be made available to the House.

Details of the Government's expenditure plans for education and science in 1986–87 were announced in the House on 12 November 1985. In reaching its decisions on the science budget, the Government took into account advice received during the year from the Advisory Board for the Research Councils. Copies of the Board's advice have been placed in the library of the House. It is likely that a similar pattern will be followed in the current year.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he has evidence of a growth in the use by local education authorities of fixed term nonpermanent contracts for the employment of teachers.

The Department does not collect information about the incidence of fixed-term contracts among those who return to teaching employment after a period of absence, and it has only recently begun to collect such data for newly qualified teachers. We estimate that about 12 per cent. of the newly qualified teachers taking up positions in schools in England and Wales in 1984 were appointed on a temporary basis, but we are not yet in a position to identify any trend in such appointments.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he is taking to ensure that both initial and in-service training enables teachers both to recognise cases of child abuse among their pupils and to take the action necessary to protect children at risk.

The criteria which now govern all courses of initial teacher training require, inter alia, that the courses should prepare students for their pastoral responsibilities as teachers. Local education authorities are responsible for ensuring that their schools have adequate arrangements to identify children at risk and that their teachers are aware of these arrangements. A range of training acitivities to promote awareness of how to identify and deal with child abuse is promoted by local authorities and is available to school staff. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services is currently reviewing his procedural guidance on child abuse and will be issuing a consultation paper shortly which will include recommendations on training.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what estimate he has made of the additional finance, manpower and other resources required for the introduction of the general certificate of secondary education.

The general criteria for the GCSE provide that syllabuses and methods of assessment should not make unreasonable demands on human or financial resources. The Government's expenditure plans should allow authorities to make appropriate provision for the GCSE provided that they take advantage of the scope for efficiency saving and contain their costs.In initiating the special programme of in-service training for the introduction of the GCSE, the Government has recognised the resource implications for examining groups, LEAs and schools and has arranged to make a substantial contribution towards these costs: it is supporting £8 million expenditure on supplying cover for teachers attending training seminars; and is giving £1·5 million to the Secondary Examinations Council and the examining groups towards the cost of providing that training.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he last paid an official visit to Leeds university.

My right hon. Friend's last official visit to Leeds university was on 6 November 1984.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science by what proportion in real terms the science budget has changed between 1981–82 and 1985–86.

There has been a 6 per cent. increase. This figure has been derived by adjusting the cash outturn for 1981–82, and the cash provision for 1985–86, to a base of average 1984–85 prices using the deflator for gross domestic product at market prices.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what estimates he has for the number of (a) free lunches and (b) lunches paid for by pupils served by each local education authority to children; and what were the figures in each of the past five years.

The information requested is shown in the Department's annual school meals census; copies of which are available in the Library. The latest available information is for autumn 1984.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he intends to bring schools, colleges and other educational establishments within the provisions of the Fire Precautions Act 1971.

I have been asked to reply.We have no plans to designate educational establishments as requiring a fire certificate under the Fire Precautions Act 1971. My right hon. Friend and I are at present satisfied that existing legislative provisions, including the parts of the 1971 Act which already apply, are adequate.

asked the Prime Minister what recent discussions she has had with President Mitterrand about the Channel fixed link; and if she will make a statement.

On 20 January, President Mitterrand and I met in Lille and announced the joint decision of the two Governments to facilitate the construction of a Channel fixed link. I refer my hon. Friend to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport on that day, at columns 19–20.

asked the Prime Minister if she will make a statement on Government policy towards the provision of education for the under-fives.

It is for local education authorities to determine the scale and nature of the provision in their area for those below compulsory school age, in the light of local needs and priorities and the availability of resources. Chapter 4 of "Better Schools" sets out the Government's policy on the education of the under-fives, including resources. Current participation rates and actual numbers of under fives in school are the highest ever. Overall, some 80 per cent. of children are in school before they are five; excluding "rising fives", 22 per cent. of 3 and 4-year-olds now attend maintained nursery classes or nursery schools and 21 per cent. attend primary reception classes; and a significant contribution to pre-school experience is also made by playgroups, which are attended by some 40 per cent. of 3 and 4-year olds.

asked the Prime Minister if she will raise at the next meeting of the European Council the effect on the economies of Third world countries of the Communities' policy of providing export rebates for the disposal of surplus agricultural products.

I will bear my hon. Friend's suggestion in mind in deciding, nearer the time, what it might be appropriate to raise at the next meeting of the European Council.

asked the Prime Minister what action Her Majesty's Government have taken specifically to implement each of the conclusions in chapter IV of the special report of the Court of Auditors on the system for the payment of refunds on agricultural exports (85/C215/01); and if she will make a statement.

The report is not addressed to individual Governments and it is for the European Commission in the first instance to decide what further action needs to be taken in the light of the court's findings.However, the Government would consider positively any proposals for cost-effective measures which would improve financial control over the use of Community funds.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 28 January.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 28 January.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 28 January.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 28 January.

asked the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Tuesday 28 January.

This morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

asked the Prime Minister how many representations she has received (a) before and (b) after the publication of the Shops Bill [Lords]; if she will break them down (i) for and (ii) against giving the names of the major retail stores concerned and the nature of their representations; and if she will make a statement.

I have been asked to reply.Since the report of the Auld committee was debated in this House the Government have received 29,029 representations; 10,002 were received prior to, and 19,027 subsequent to, the publication of the Shops Bill

asked the Attorney-General if, when the interdepartmental committee reviewing family courts completes its work, a final report will be published; and if he will make a statement.

asked the Attorney-General when the interdepartmental review on family courts is expected to report.

I refer the hon. Gentlemen to my hon. and learned Friend's answer to the hon. Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Short) on 13 January, at column 446.

asked the Lord Privy Seal what arrangements have been made for determining the pay of hon. Members after 1987.

The Resolution of the House of 26 July 1983 provides that, for service on and after 1 January 1988 the salary of hon. Members shall be at a yearly rate equal to 89 per cent. of the maximum point of the senior principal (grade 6) pay scale in the non-industrial Civil Service.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether, in the light of medical evidence from the United States of America, he has any intention of postponing the installation of the proposed extremely low frequency test facility in Glengarry forest; whether he has commissioned any research into the links between extremely low frequency transmissions and the levels of cancer and leukaemia in local populations; and if he will make a statement.

The proposed extremely low frequency test facility in Glengarry is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence. I understand that the Ministry will be consulting the planning authority for the Glengarry forest in accordance with the guidelines for Government Departments laid down in the Scottish Development Department's circular No. 21/1984. Only if the Ministry of Defence and the planning authority fail to agree would the Secretary of State for Scotland become involved, and it would therefore be inappropriate for me to comment at this stage on the merits of the proposed development. I have not commissioned any research into the links between extremely low frequency transmissions and the levels of cancer and leukaemia in local populations, but I understand that studies undertaken in the United States of America have established no such links.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans Her Majesty's Government have to stimulate the growth of Glasgow airport; and if he will make a statement.

The development of Glasgow airport is a matter for its owners, the British Airports Authority.

£ million*	1980–81	1981–82	1982–83	1983–84	1984–85	1985–86†
National Coal Board	21	24	22	24	22	25
Electricity (England and Wales)	10	17	21	23	27	37
North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board	—	1	1	1	5	1
South of Scotland Electricity Board	1	1	1	1	2	2
British Gas Corporation	7	7	7	13	95	‡

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what allocation has been made by his Department to Inverclyde district council for housing expenditure each year since 1979; and if he will make a statement.

The information is given in the following table. The substantial increases in the provisional capital allocations for 1986–87 over the allocations issued last March for 1985–86 reflect Government recognition of the continuing housing needs in Inverclyde.

Year	Housing Revenue Account £million	Non-housing Revenue Account £million
1979–80	3·790	1·730
1980–81	3·870	1·987
1981–82	3·639	2·292
1982–83	4·658	2·639
1983–84	4·928	1·705
1984–85	2·960	2·445
*1985–86	4·250	1·800
†1986–87	5·050	2·300
* Gross allocations issued on 29 March 1985.
† Provisional gross allocations issued on 18 December 1985.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what security consideration determined boot and bonnet searches of the cars of hon. Members attending the Scottish Grand Committee in Edinburgh on 20 January.

[pursuant to his reply, 27 January 1986, c. 371]: No special security considerations applied that day. When the Scottish Grand Committee meets in Edinburgh, cars using the car park are normally searched as they are also at Westminster.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report, on a basis consistent with table 5.1 of Cmnd. 9702, the actual or planned proceeds for the years 1979–80 to 1988–89 from asset sales retained in nationalised businesses in a form consistent with the then Chief Secretary's reply on 26 July 1985, Official Report, columns 861–2.

Actual and forecast receipts from asset sales for the years 1980–81 to 1985–86 included in the total internal resources figures shown in table 5.1 of Cmnd. 9702 are as follows.In accordance with usual practice, it is not appropriate to publish future figures for individual industries because of commercial confidentiality and other factors.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report,on a basis consistent with table 2.2 of Cmnd. 9702–II, a table showing, by programme for the years 1979–80 to 1987–88, the proceeds of asset sales which are outside central privatisation proceeds and which are netted off against programme totals.

The table below shows sales of land and buildings by department for the years 1979–80 to

Sales of Land and Existing Buildings in Real Terms by Department, 1979–80 to 1987–88
£ million (base year 1984–85)
Department	1979–80	1980–81	1981–82	1982–83	1983–84	1984–85	1985–86	1986–87	*1987–88
Defence	69	85	63	44	34	28	41	33	30
Foreign and Commonwealth Office†	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
European Community	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food‡	13	27	15	13	11	9	15	13	10
Trade and Industry	5	4	2	7	11	16	12	—	—
Energy	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Employment	—	—	—	1	1	1	—	—	—
Transport	19	57	57	41	42	48	35	28	30
DOE—Housing	832	1,019	1,627	2,146	1,594	1,332	1,309	1,116	980
DOE—Other Environmental Services	184	247	251	314	328	423	425	457	430
Home Office¶	34	33	31	43	56	51	35	28	20
Education and Science	31	32	55	50	48	86	63	56	60
Arts and Libraries	—	11	3	4	3	2	—	—	—
DHSS—Health and Personal Social Services	23	28	30	29	47	64	79	67	60
DHSS—Social Security	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Scotland	65	104	156	209	241	246	188	172	160
Wales	29	35	120	150	94	85	87	86	80
Northern Ireland	1	—	58	48	47	45	43	32	30
Chancellor's Department	—	—	5	—	—	—	—	—	—
Other Departments	8	11	8	18	9	8	15	20	20
Total	1,312	1,694	2,480	3,116	2,566	2,443	2,345	2,108	1,910
* Rounded to the nearest £10 million following the convention in the PEWP.
† Including Overseas Development Administration.
‡ Including Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce and Forestry Commission.
Including Export Credits Guarantee Department.
¶ Including Lord Chancellor's Department.
Including Property Services Agency and Civil Superannuation.

It is not possible to identify fully the sales of assets, other than those from central privatisation proceeds and sales of

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report the actual or forecast proceeds of the gas levy, for each of the years 1980–81 to 1988–89.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 12 November, at column 128.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report references in support of the statement that proceeds from privatisation are, in line with international conventions, netted off against the public spending figures, Cmnd. 9702–1, paragraph 57, and place the relevant documentation in the Library.

The United Kingdom treatment of privatisation proceeds is in accordance with the advice in "A Manual on Government Finance Statistics" drafted in 1974 by the IMF, and in general use since. Section IV C of the manual makes it clear that transactions in company securities should be treated, like net lending, as part of net Government expenditure rather than as a financing item. The net treatment is also supported, for example, by the "European System of Integrated Economic Accounts" published by the Statistical Office of the European Communities. I am placing copies of relevant extracts of the documents referred to above in the Library.

Public expenditure expressed as a percentage of GDP
	1978–79 outturn	1979–80 outturn	1980–81 outturn	1981–82 outturn	1982–83 outturn
Cmnd 9428 definition	40½	40	42½	43½	43
Cmnd 9702 definition	43	43½	46	46½	46½

	1983–84 outturn	1984–85 outturn	1985–86 estimated outturn	1986–87 plans	1987–88 plans	1988–89 plans
Cmnd 9428 definition	42½	43	41	40	39	38½
Cmnd 9702 definition	46	45½	44½	43	41½	41

An explanation of the above two definitions was given in an article entitled "Measuring Public Expenditure" published in the August 1985 edition of

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has on the turnover of business in the freeports which are already operational.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing for the years 1979–80 to 1988–89 for each organisation treated as a nationalised industry in at least one year the actual or planned figures, as appropriate, for capital requirements and financing in a form identical to table 5.1 of Cmnd. 9428–ii.

I have placed tables covering the years 1980–81 to 1986–87 in the Library. In accordance with normal practice, figures for 1987–88 and 1988–89 are excluded.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report (i) the public expenditure gross domestic product ratio for the years 1970–71 to 1989–90 on the definitions used in the 1985 public expenditure White Paper, Cmnd. 9428 and (ii) the ratio for the same years using the definitions used in the 1986 public expenditure White Paper, Cmnd. 9702 and place a detailed reconciliation in the Library.

Public expenditure figures expressed as a percentage of gross domestic product using the definitions used in the 1985 Public Expenditure White Paper (Cmnd. 9428) and the 1986 Public Expenditure White Paper (Cmnd. 9702) were illustrated in chart 2.20 of Cmnd. 9702. The underlying figures are as follows:

The freeport operators have made public some information on their operations. They have provided information to Her Majesty's Treasury and Her Majesty's customs and excise on the basis that it will remain confidential.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish in the Official Report the actual and forecast proceeds of North sea oil and gas revenues for the years 1973–74 to 1988–89.

I refer the hon. Member to table 1.3 of "Inland Revenue Statistics 1985" for the figures for Government revenues from United Kingdom oil and gas production from 1973–74 to 1984–85. The 1985 autumn statement contained a forecast of £11·5 billion for revenues in 1985–86. A forecast for subsequent years will be provided in the 1986–87 Financial Statement and Budget Report.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many building societies there were in 1982, 1983 and 1984.

The following table shows the number of registered building societies at 31 December 1982, 1983 and 1984, and of these, the numbers which were authorised to accept shares and deposits under the Building Societies (Authorisation) Regulations 1981.

	End 1982	End 1983	End 1984
Number of building societies:
Registered	227	206	190
Authorised to accept shares and deposits	211	192	170

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what share of the building societies deposits were represented by the largest three, largest six and largest 10 societies in 1982, 1983 and 1984.

The following table shows for the years 1982, 1983 and 1984 the total shares, deposits and loans of building societies held by the largest three, largest six and largest 10 societies.

	1982 per cent.	1983 per cent.	1984 per cent.
Largest three societies	45	45	45
Largest six societies	61	61	61
Largest 10 societies	73	74	74

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what share of clearing banking was represented by the top four clearing banks in 1965, 1975 and 1985, respectively.

I regret that this information is not readily available in the form requested and cannot be provided without a disproportionate expenditure of time and resources.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his reply of 22 January, Official Report, columns 197–8, if he will list the items of non-obligatory expenditure in the 1986 European Community budget which are disputed by the United Kingdom, detailing the total value in each case; when he expects the European Court to hear the actions brought by the Council and individual member states; if he will seek authority from Parliament for supplementary payments on a monthly basis in the absence of an agreement over the budget; and if he will make a statement.

The 1986 budget as adopted by the European Parliament contains some 230 disputed items of non-obligatory expenditure totalling 563 million ecu (£361 million), as follows:

Million
	Payment appropriations
	ECU	£
The European Regional Development Fund	160	103
The European Social Fund	260	167
Food Aid	40	26
Co-operation with Latin American and Asian developing countries	20	13
Other	83	52
TOTAL	563	361

The European Court's timetable is uncertain, but my advice is that the substantive cases brought by the Council and individual member states are unlikely to be decided much before the end of 1986. The United Kingdom's application for an interim order suspending implementation of the disputed elements of the budget pending substantive judgment should be heard much more quickly.The Special Supplementary Estimate presented to Parliament on 22 January is intended to enable the Government to contribute to the disputed elements in the budget during February and March. The Government hope that the European Court will grant an interim order making further contributions to the disputed elements unnecessary. Failing such an order, the Government will seek any necessary parliamentary authority for further contributions in a 1986–87 Estimate.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish figures showing the ratios of the highest to the lowest deciles of gross and of net incomes (a) for people of working age, (b) for the retired population and (c) for the population as a whole.

Information based on the 1984 family expenditure survey is shown below:

	Ratio of highest to lowest decile points
	*Gross house-hold income	†Net house-hold income
(a) Non-retired households	4·8	4·0
(b) Retired households	3·5	3·1
(c) All households	6·8	5·3
* Income from employment, self employment, investment, occupational pensions and State benefits.
† Gross income after income tax and employees National Insurance contributions.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many Army personnel have been discharged or are being discharged as a result of the inquiry into breaches of security at 9 Signals Regiment.

Four have been discharged.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many Royal Air Force personnel have been discharged or are being discharged as a result of the inquiry into breaches of security at 9 Signals Regiment.

No final decisions have yet been taken.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the service personnel who have been interviewed by Lt. Col Dobson in connection with breaches of security at 9 Signals Regiment have subsequently been discharged or await discharge and under which form of discharge.

Two service personnel have been discharged on completion of their engagements and two were discharged in accordance with Queen's regulations for the Army, paragraph 9.414. One is shortly to leave the service on completion of his engagement.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the 83 service men prematurely discharged from 9 Signals Regiment have been subjected to interrogation since 3 January 1984.

[pursuant to his answer, 13 January 1986, c. 525]: Nine of those prematurely discharged from 9 Signals Regiment provided statements of evidence as part of the investigation into the alleged breaches of security at 9 Signals Regiment. Others may have been interviewed but not required to provide such statements, and it would not now be possible to establish this figure precisely without disproportionate cost and effort.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what are the numbers of (a) Ministry of Defence police, (b) Royal Air Force Regiment, (c) Royal Air Force Police and (d) other British subjects who work in operational liaison with 501st Security Police Group (USAF).

The only Ministry of Defence personnel that are integrated operationally with the USAF's 501st Security Police Group are certain RAF Regiment and RAF police personnel at RAF Greenham Common. As my right hon. Friend the then Secretary of State for Defence said in reply to the hon. Member for Houghton and Washington (Mr. Boyes) on 7 November 1983 we ae not prepared to discuss the numbers of personnel involved with security.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will seek from the United States Air Force authorities guarding Greenham common, in order to place it in the Library, a copy of the year-end report of the United States Air Force 501st Security Police Group dated 5 December.

No. I understand the report is an internal document of the US Air Force.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether there are any plans in the next 12 months for officers from El Salvador to train in the United Kingdom with British armed forces.

I have nothing to add to the reply which my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces gave to the hon. Member for Islington, North (Mr. Corbyn) on 13 January 1986, at column 525.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give details of the manpower strength of the Ulster Defence Regiment, and its Reserve, as between full-time, part-time, male and female, operatives on 1 January.

I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 24 January 1986.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he is planning any change in the air-sea rescue helicopter service which is operated from HMS Daedalus at Lee-on-Solent.

I will write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he is satisfied that the British Standards Institute register of approved stockists for his Department's purposes can ensure that products supplied against Ministry of Defence requirements have direct traceability to, and have been supplied by, his Department's approved sources of manufacture.

I will answer shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what sums have been provided to date from public funds for the Nimrod project; and if he will make a statement.

I will answer shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will institute inquiries in order to procure an estimate of the number of naval ratings on the decks of ships near the SS John Harvey on 2 December 1943 exposed to the mustard gas leak.

I will write to the hon. Lady.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he intends to place orders for further multi-launch rocket systems.

I will answer shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made on the tripartite agreement to develop and manufacture the SP-70 shell; and if he will make a statement.

I will answer shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if, pursuant to the answer of 16 January, Official Report, column 642, he will make a statement on his Department's operational requirements to Scott Lithgow.

The answer given in the Official Report Of 16 January contains a typographical error and has been subsequently amended. The relevant passage should have read

"…This timing reflects our operational requirements. Scott Lithgow will continue to be invited to tender for all MOD new construction and refit work which it is capable of undertaking, but it must be competitive if it is to win future orders."

I can advise the hon. Member that, as far as we are able, the MOD's requirements are made known to industry generally on a regular basis, eg for the Navy, at the Controller of the Navy's annual SEAFACTS presentation.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if, pursuant to the answer of 16 January, Official Report, column 642, he will specify the wider and more relevant factors which persuaded the Government to place an order for a range mooring vessel with Scott Lithgow; and if he will make a statement.

I have nothing to add to the answer given on 16 January 1986 at column 642.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if, pursuant to the answer of 16 January, Official Report, column 642, he will indicate the nature of the terms and conditions which he expects Scott Lithgow to fulfil in connection with the orders for a range mooring vessel and two lighters; and if he will make a statement.

The main factors to be addressed will be price, delivery and compliance with the tender documentation, particularly the technical specifications.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will describe, without reference to details of individual tenders, the rules governing the competition for the recent orders for three Upholder class patrol submarines, including the deadlines for tenders and any opportunities for the submission of revised tenders; and if he will make a statement.

Four rounds of tendering were involved. Initial tenders were sought on 30 November 1984 (closing date for responses 19 March 1985), revised tenders were sought on 24 May 1985 (due back by 17 June 1985) and "best and final" bids were sought on 13 August 1985 (due back by 17 September 1985). Finally, on 25 November 1985, all tenderers were invited to revise or confirm their bids. The rules of this competition were those normally followed by my Department for follow-on vessels. The VSEL/CL bid offered substantially the best value for money to the defence budget.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence to what extent, in reaching defence procurement decisions, he takes account of the implications of the phasing and distribution of orders for the ability of individual yards to maintain the integrity of their design and production teams at a level conducive to the making of competitive bids for future orders; and if he will make a statement.

It is not our policy to place orders in advance of the requirement or to advance orders to match shipyard capacity. Our policy is to place orders wherever practicable by competitive tendering, although we might need to take account of wider and relevant factors. In the specific case of conventional submarines we believe that there will be satisfactory competitions in the future.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will specify the non-commercial factors which are used to decide between rival tenders for procurement orders which are otherwise broadly competitive with each other; and if he will make a statement.

The Government's prime consideration is seeking the best value for money for the defence budget. Other considerations are described in defence open government document 83/01.