asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on any action taken by the Metropolitan Police to protect Mr. Gerry Gable of Searchlight magazine in the light of threats to intimidate, kidnap or murder him.

These allegations relate to an incident which occurred in 1984. No direct threats were made against Mr. Gable and in the light of police investigations it was not considered necessary to provide him with personal protection.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people attempting to enter the United Kingdom who were refused entry and detained were subsequently given admission, temporary or otherwise, on production of cash security by themselves or a sponsor in each of the past five years.

On production of cash security, none.The hon. Member may, however, have in mind the power of an adjudicator to grant bail, on entering into a recognizance, or in Scotland a bail bond, to a person who has been detained pending examination. Statistics of the number of such cases are not maintained.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officers' houses there are in Culcheth and Risley area; where they are located; how many are empty and where they are located; how long they have been empty; and what action is being taken in relation to them.

The total stock of prison officers' quarters held by Risley remand centre at the present time numbers 184. These are located at Woolston (five miles from the establishment), Culcheth (two miles), Croft (three miles) and Leigh (seven miles). Forty-nine of these quarters, all located at Culcheth, are currently empty and the bulk of these have been empty for four to five years. Negotiations are in hand to dispose of between 34 and 40 properties to a private developer and the remainder are to be refurbished for use by prison officers posted to Risley. The quarters have not been placed on the market earlier than this for a variety of reasons. Firstly, the prison department had to determine whether any of the properties would be required for staff appointed to the new prison at Thorn Cross. Secondly, it was necessary to await the outcome of negotiations with the Prison Officers' Association on the question of "discount sales" to their members and finally there were problems to overcome concerning the sewage pumping station and the adoption of certain roads on the estate. Now that all these problems appear to have been resolved, the sale of these properties can go ahead.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the reply of 27 March, Official Report, column 543, what additives are currently under consideration for use in the two prototype water cannon currently being assessed by the Metropolitan police.

There are no current plans to use water cannon operationally with or without additives. But as part of the assessment coloured markers are to be added to show water distribution patterns.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 20 March, Official Report, column 270, if he will detail the nature of each successful complaint against the Metropolitan Police involving civil action by the complainant.

I shall reply as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will make a statement on the manner in which court appearances of Mr. Joseph Bennett are timed and arranged;(2) if he will make it his policy that future appearances in court of Mr. Joseph Bennett are announced in the normal way and arranged for days when the court normally sits; and if he will make a statement.

Arrangements for court hearings, including arrangements for public notice of such hearings, are the responsibility of the courts, and it would not be right for my right hon. Friend to intervene in matters of kind.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what consultations took place between his Department and the National Advisory Body for Higher Education prior to the guidance issued by the latter to polytechnics and colleges to give courses in social work training low priority status.

Pending ministerial decisions on the level of funding for public sector higher education (due later this year) my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State invited NAB to plan on the basis of a range of assumptions about the level of resources likely to be available. The NAB declined to do this, proceeding instead on the basis of a single assumption—initially that the total would be 1 per cent. higher than in 1986–87 and then, in response to a suggestion from my right hon. Friend, that the total might rise by some 3·5 per cent., in line with the forecast GDP deflator.Using this figure of a 3½ per cent. increase in funding, NAB has argued that intakes should be reduced on average by 7 per cent. in 1987–88 and has instructed its secretariat to discuss possible student target numbers with institutions on that basis. Within the overall reduction of 7 per cent, some programmes have been identified for a relatively greater and other for a relatively smaller reduction than the average. The programme area that includes social work training is among those that would reduce by more than the average.The assumptions adopted by NAB for its planning exercise, including the categorisation of programmes, have been the subject of discussion by the NAB board, on which officials of the Department and members of Her Majesty's Inspectorate are represented, and by the NAB committee, which I chair as the Department's sole representative. They have not, however, been submitted to my right hon. Friend for his approval. Formal recommendations on the disposition of academic provision in 1987–88 will be formulated by NAB later this year in the light of the resources actually available (to be announced in the autumn) and should be submitted to my right hon. Friend for decision in December 1986.It will be for institutions, within the target numbers eventually allocated to them for individual programmes, to decide what priority to give to particular courses, including social work training courses.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what initiatives Her Majesty's Government have taken since 1979 to improve the government and management of schools in England and Wales.

The Education Act 1980 introduced elected parent and teacher governors and provided for school governing bodies generally to be more effective by bringing an end to the previously widespread practice of grouping many schools together under a single governing body. Building on this base, the Education Bill currently before Parliament aims fully to re-establish governing bodies as the force for good in the life of individual schools always intended under the 1944 Act. It proposes to remove the present scope for local education authorities to dominate governing bodies by appointing a majority of the members. Instead there will be a more balanced membership, with a stronger voice for parents. At the same time, the Bill provides a clear framework of functions to enable the governing body to play its full part in the running of its school.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what initiatives Her Majesty's Government have taken since 1979 to improve the examination system in schools.

Since 1979, the Government have taken the following initiatives designed to improve the examinations system in schools:

— in 1983 they established the Secondary Examinations Council as a source of independent and authoritative advice on school examinations which is charged inter alia with the tasks of approving syllabuses and monitoring examination standards;

— in March 1983 they announced the introduction from September 1985 of the certificate of pre-vocational education as an additional option in the range of courses preparing young people for the world of work. CPVE is available in both schools and colleges.

— in April 1984 they announced their objective to introduce records of achievement for all school leavers by the end of the decade. To that end, they are currently financing nine pilot schemes under the oversight of a national steering committee;

— in June 1984 they announced the introduction of the general certificate of secondary education from September 1986 to replace GCE O-level, CSE and joint 16-plus examinations. The new examination system is designed to support the Government's overall objective of raising all pupils' standards of attainment. All syllabuses and examination procedures will comply with nationally agreed criteria which build upon best practice in present examining;

— in March 1985 they announced the introduction of advanced supplementary levels designed to broaden the education of students taking A-levels. The first courses will begin in September 1987;

— in April 1985 they established the working party on criteria for pre-vocational courses pre-16 under the chairmanship of Mr. R. S. Johnson, director of education. Leeds. It is intended that the resulting criteria will enable SEC to approve and monitor all prevocational and vocationally oriented courses offered to pupils in the compulsory years of secondary education;

— in April 1985 they announced that the certificate of extended education and alternative ordinary levels should be replaced by specifically designed GCSE mature syllabuses or, in a few instances, by AS levels where that form of provision is more appropriate;

— in March of this year they announced the reform of A-level grading, based upon recommendations from the SEC, designed to resolve the long-standing problems arising from the narrow range of marks spanning grade C. The new system will be used for the first time in summer 1987 and will be fairer than the existing one.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what initiatives Her Majesty's Government have taken since 1979 to promote a core curriculum throughout all secondary schools.

The Government's policies for the primary and secondary curriculum are set out in the White Paper "Better Schools" (Cmnd. 9469), which also describes the actions taken in pursuit of those policies since 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps Her Majesty's Government have taken since 1979 to ensure that science teaching will have potential applications to industry.

"The School Curriculum", published in March 1981, announced the Government's objective of securing more effective science teaching in primary schools, and of making the main areas of science a component of the education of all pupils through the first five years of secondary education. The White Paper "Better Schools" (Cmnd. 9469) and the policy statement "Science 5–16", published in March 1985 set out the Government's policies for achieving that objective; these emphasise the need for the science curriculum to be relevant, so that what is included is of value to pupils in their adult life.Science is an aspect of the curriculum in which there is particularly close co-operation between industry and education. The Department of Trade and Industry's Industry education unit seeks to encourage more of the country's young people, including the more able, to develop an interest in manufacturing careers and in the subjects and further and higher education courses that can lead to them; and it grant-aids the Standing Conference on Schools Science and Technology which promotes developments in schools to enhance young people's understanding of science, engineering, industry and technology. The standing conference also sponsors the science and technology regional organisations (SATROS) which promote closer links between schools and the outside world at a local level; the Department of Education and Science funds the post of SATRO national co-ordinator.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what steps he is taking, and what advice he has given to local authorities, to seek to counteract and to minimise violence against teaching staff in maintained schools;(2) whether he will initiate discussions with the National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers to seek to identify measures to minimise violence and disorder in maintained schools in England and Wales;(3) if he will collect statistics of violent incidents resulting in injuries to teachers arising from violence and disorder in state schools;(4) if he will make a statement on his policy towards the maintenance of discipline in schools, in the light of the report of the National Association of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers entitled, "Pupil Violence and Serious Disorder in Schools," a copy of which has been sent to him.

It is essential that good order is maintained in schools. The Government's White Paper "Better Schools" drew attention to the poor standards of behaviour found in a small minority of schools and urged local education authorities and schools to tackle this problem urgently. My right hon. Friend has frequent meetings with the teachers' associations but, since effective action can only be taken by those responsible at local level, has no plans to convene a meeting with the National Association of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers on this matter, nor to collect national statistics on injuries to teachers. Swift and firm action at local level is preferable to a statistical exercise by central Government.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his policy towards the decision by the Cleveland county council to resubmit proposals for the closure of Huntcliff school; and if he will make a statement.

I understand that the Cleveland local education authority has not yet decided whether to publish proposals for the closure of Huntcliff school. If such proposals are published and subsequently come before my right hon. Friend, he will consider them on their merits in accordance with his powers under section 12 of the Education Act 1980.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) how much of the current student grant is scheduled for purchases of books by students:(2) what percentage increase is being made in the share of student grants for book purposes in 1986–87.

In the current academic year there is a notional sum of £181 within the student grant for books and equipment. The equivalent figure for 1986–87 has not yet been decided. A notional sum for books is not identified separately.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what effects on the profession of town planning he expects to result from the cuts in town planning education.

In 1985 the University Grants Committee, the National Advisory Body for Public Sector Higher Education and the Scottish Education Department set up a transbinary town and country planning working group to review the incidence, nature and scale of degree and postgraduate courses in town and country planning in the United Kingdom. The working group's final report has recently been published. It will be considered by the UGC and the NAB, which will in due course advise the Secretary of State for Education and Science on the allocation of resources and student numbers in the universities and the public sector of higher education.Intakes for 1986 were determined at a level consistent with the maintenance of levels of provision in 1985. No decisions have been taken in relation to provision for town planning education from 1987.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what visits have been made (a) by Ministers and (b) by officials in his Department to Hungary to see conductive education projects in the last five years; what was the outcome in each case; and if he will make a statement.

No such visits have been made.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what discussions he has had with the Spastics Society about conductive education; what financial support it has (a) asked for and (b) been given for work in this area; and if he will make a statement;(2) what steps he is taking to evaluate the Hungarian experience of conductive education for mentally arid physically handicapped children; and if he will make a statement.

A proposal has been put forward by the Spastics Society for a study of current provision of conductive education in England and Wales and an evaluation of the educational and other implications which would result if the system were to be developed in this country. A meeting to discuss possible central Government funding of this research project is expected to be held in the near future between representatives of the society and officials of the DES and DHSS.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children currently receive conductive education in the United Kingdom; what assessment he makes of the total numbers who might be expected to benefit: and if he will make a statement.

Information about children currently in receipt of conductive education is not collected centrally. There is thus no basis on which my right hon. Friend could make a reliable estimate of the total numbers who might be expected to benefit from this method.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science why he has not hitherto taken steps to introduce further conductive education projects; and if he will make a statement.

It is not the responsibility of my right hon. Friend to initiate developments in particular forms of educational provision. These are essentially matters for decision by local education authorities and individual schools.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will instruct officials in his Department to seek to visit Hungary to study progress being made on conductive education for mentally and physically handicapped children; and if he will make a statement.

The need for further information on this method will be taken into account in the course of the consideration currently being given to the Spastics Society's proposed study.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he will respond to the report of the Education, Science and Arts Committee on the science budget published in July 1985.

My right hon. Friend hopes to respond to the report around the end of May.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will place in the Library copies of the relevant British Nuclear Fuels Ltd., operating instructions for certifying the transfer or diversion of radioactive liquors relating to the discharge made from Sellafield on 23 January.

I am informed by BNFL that the material discharged on 23 January followed a malfunction in the uranium finishing plant which includes equipment to monitor the amount of uranium in the effluent. I have asked BNFL to provide the hon. Member with an extract of the relevant operating instructions.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will place in the Library copies of the accountancy records for the reprocessing batch from which the liquor discharged from Sellafield on 23 January originated.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what was the value to British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. of the uranium contained in the discharge made from Sellafield to the Irish Sea on 23 January.

I am advised by BNFL that the material discharged to sea on 23 January had an intrisic uranium value of about £5,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he has received any application for public funds from Action on Alcohol Abuse; what has been his response; and if he will make a statement.

The Welsh Office has not received an application for funding from Action on Alcohol Abuse but we do have under consideration an application for grant aid from Alcohol Concern Wales. In addition I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, Central (Mr. Grist) on 24 March, at column 600–1.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the effect on the stability of beef prices if currently discussed changes in the beef premium scheme are undertaken.

It is not possible to quantify the effect on the stability of beef prices if EC proposals to end the beef premium scheme are implemented.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of the number of farmers in Wales who will be affected by the proposed changes in the beef premium scheme.

All beefl producers in Wales would be affected to some extent by the proposed discontinuation of the beef premium scheme. The June 1985 annual census recorded 11,093 main holdings in Wales with beef cows of which 2,320 were predominantly involved in a beef production enterprise. The Government fully recognise the importance of the beef variable premium scheme to both producers and consumers and will press in the common agricultural policy price negotiations for continuation of the scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what are the average budgets of community health councils in Wales; and if he will estimate the change in the value of these budget allocations, in real terms, over the last five years.

The overall allocation for 1986–87 is £550,000 which represents an average budget of £25,000 per community health council in Wales. This provides growth of 7·9 per cent. over the last five years after adjustment for inflation.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Great Grimsby on 8 April what accelerated rate of reduction of import duties is available under the provisions of article 75(4) of the treaty of Spanish accession; how quickly the procedure could reduce duties on frozen vegetables to their previous level if it is invoked; what reply he has received to his representations for activating the clause; and whether he considered requesting that duties be restored to their previous level.

Article 75(4) of the treaty of accession allows, inter alia, for Spanish import duties on certain products including frozen vegetables from the Ten to be abolished or reduced by management committee procedure, but only if Spain agrees. In principle, action could be taken very quickly, but so far, while the Commission has been sympathetic, Spain has not accepted the case for action. The principal objective must be to place United Kingdom exporters on at least as favourable terms as those in other countries.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Great Grimsby of 8 April, when the British Government first made representations to the Spanish Government to reduce the duty on frozen vegetables from Britain into Spain to its pre-accession level of 4·1 per cent.; whether the need for urgency to protect jobs was impressed on the Spanish Government; and what reply has been received.

Representations for a reduction in the Spanish import duty on frozen peas imported from the Ten were made to Spanish officials in Madrid on 3 April. All relevant economic considerations were stressed. No definite explicit reply was received.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food further to his reply to the hon. Member for Great Grimsby of 8 April why duty on frozen foods from Britain to Spain was increased by the Spanish treaty of accession; what representations were made to Spain and the Commission by Her Majesty's Government to resist that increase before it was accepted; and what other items covered by that Treaty were also increased in duty.

For certain products for which Spain had previously applied import restrictions in addition to tariffs, including frozen vegetables, the Common Customs Tariff was adopted as the starting point for tariff dismantlement rather than the rate actually in force before accession. As I previously informed the hon. Member a United Kingdom objection was registered to tariff increases during the accession negoltiations. however, this was not successful. The full list of food items subject to the system described above is set out in Annex VIII to the 1985 treaty of Spanish accession.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the United Kingdom can export frozen peas to Spain under the European Free Trade Association tariff of 4·5 per cent. instead of under the tariff of 15·7 per cent. which applies to fellow European Economic Community members.

The United Kingdom is not a member of the European Free Trade Association so this possibility does not arise.

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what has been the level of British exports of frozen peas, quantity and value, to Spain in each of the last three available years.

The figures requested are as follows:

Year	Quantity Thousand tones	Value £ Thousand
1983	6,604	2,428
1984	5,094	2,237
1985	5,782	2,564

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what records will be kept by the Inland Revenue when personal data are disclosed to it via the non-disclosure provisions of the Data Protection Act; and what written statement will be sent to the data user by the Inland Revenue to show that the disclosure of personal data was by that route.

Disclosure to the Inland Revenue may take place if either that Department is shown in the registration entry of a data user as an organisation to which data might be disclosed or the data are exempt from the non-disclosure provisions. It is not intended to retain statistical records of receipts of such data. The data user will be aware of the circumstances under which a disclosure is made.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the policy of the Central Computer Telecommunications Agency regarding the purchase or the receipt of tenders for computers and software from companies which seek to impose extraterritorial controls on the movement and re-sale of their products; and if he will make a statement.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to his similar question on 8 April at column 95.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the cost of raising personal tax allowances by 10 per cent., 20 per cent. and 30 per cent. respectively; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 25 March 1986, c. 428]: The direct revenue costs in a full year at 1986–87 income levels would be about £2,150 million, £4,200 million and £6,200 million, respectively.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the payments received from the United Kingdom for each of the structural funds from 1975 for each year for (a) the United Kingdom and (b) Scotland.

Receipts from the Community budget
£ million
	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985
United Kingdom Receipts
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Funds (Guidance)	5	16	26	22	32	62	55	32	83	65	69
Social Fund	19	11	49	65	84	99	137	168	108	296	269
Regional Development Fund	8	37	49	40	107	136	143	119	176	214	286
Scotland
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (Guidance)	1	6	10	8	11	21	21	11	20	17	19
Social Fund	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Regional Development Fund	2	6	16	10	21	27	40	27	41	69	80

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the most up-to-date figures for the United Kingdom contribution to the EEC budget in each year from 1975 (a) at current prices and (b) at 1985 prices.

[pursuant to his reply, 27 March 1986, c. 605]: The information requested is set out in the table. The figure of £1,871 million for 1985 compares with the estimate of £1,212 million given in my reply to the hon. Member on 11 December 1985 at column 653. The figure of £1,871 million is an outturn figure. The main reason why it is higher than the earlier estimate is that most (£493 million) of the 1,000 mecu (£605 million) abatement payable in respect of our excessive net contribution to the 1984 Community budget was received in the first few days of 1986 rather than in December 1985, as assumed in the earlier answer. Further information on the 1985 outturn is contained in my answer of 3 March 1986 at columns 31–2 to the hon. Member for Dulwich (Mr. Bowden).

Net contribution to the EEC Budget
	Current prices	1985 prices
1975	-56	-155
1976	167	402
1977	369	780
1978	822	1,561
1979	947	1,571
1980	706	977
1981	397	491
1982	606	698
1983	647	709
1984	656	689
1985	1,871	1,871

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what is his latest estimate of the loss to the Exchequer

[pursuant to his reply, 27 March 1986, c. 605]: The information requested is as follows. Scotland benefits considerably from the European social fund, but the bulk of receipts are in respect of national employment and training schemes and information on them cannot be readily provided on a regional basis.in each financial year since 1978–79 arising from value added tax evasion; and what has been the size of the staff employed on control duties in each of these years;(2) if he will estimate the cost of collecting value added tax in each financial year since 1978–79; and if he will express the cost as a percentage of value added tax revenue raised in each of these years.

[pursuant to his replies, 10 April 1986]: By the very nature of tax evasion, it is not possible to give a reliable estimate of the tax lost. Customs and Excise has, however, indicated that undetected underdeclarations of value added tax may total between £300 million and £500 million a year. Given this imprecision, a statistical series of the kind requested would not be meaningful. Details of the staff employed on the collection and control of VAT and of the cost of collection are contained in the table on page 13 of the report of the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Customs and Excise for the year ended 31 March 1985. There is a copy in the Library of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many candidates from the private sector applied for the post of chief planning adviser in his Department.

Eleven.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the job specification of the newly-appointed chief planning adviser in his Department.

The Civil Service Commission's recruitment regulations for this post described the job as follows:

The principal function will be assist in the formulation of planning policies and in the review of the planning system, and to bring to those tasks practical experience of land use planning and the operation of the planning system by local planning authorities.

The person appointed will he designated "Chief Planning Adviser" and would have administrative charge of two headquarter divisions (dealing with planning research and information and minerals planning respectively), and of the departmental cartographic services.

Key Departmental tasks in the next two years, where the availability of advice from the Chief Planning Adviser will be of great benefit, will he in the implementation of the new arrangements for planning in Greater London and the metropolitan county areas following the abolition of the Greater London council/metropolitan county councils; and the carrying forward of the Government's further consideration of the planning aspects of the White Paper on deregulation. The Chief Planning Adviser's advice will also be relevant to the implementation of Departmental policies on inner cities, urban renewal and derelict land reclamation.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, what is the job specification of his Department's chief planning inspector.

The chief planning inspector's duties comprise:

—responsibility for the efficient and effective processing of planning appeals made under sections 36 and 37 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 and listed building consent appeals under section 56 of the same Act, including the administration procedures, the arrangements for hearings and site visits, the issue of decision letters where appeals are decided by Inspectors or the submission of reports where jurisdiction rests with the Secretary of State, and work arising from post-decision challenges to planning appeal decisions;

—arrangements for and conduct of public inquiries and site visits for all other casework undertaken by Inspectors and the subsequent submission and content of reports and decision letters. This includes casework under the planning acts (eg enforcement appeals, Section 35 'call-in cases' local plans) housing acts (slum clearance orders), Wildlife and Countryside Act (eg rights of way orders, nature conservation orders), highway acts (eg trunk and classified road schemes);

—setting and maintaining standards of professional conduct for Inspectors, their training and career development;

—contributing to the development and implementation of improved procedures and practice in connection with planning appeals and other casework;

—management of the Inspectorate with a total staff of 373, approximately 50 per cent. of whom are Inspectors and 50 per cent. administrative staff. 10 salaried Inspectors working for the Welsh Office also come under the control of the Chief Planning Inspector. In addition to salaried Inspectors, there are about 200 part time fee-paid Inspectors.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance is given to the planning inspectorate about the need to expedite planning appeals: and what steps are being taken to monitor the performance of individual inspectors in this regard.

The planning inspectorate's first objective is to ensure that planning appeals are dealt with fairly and thoroughly, but as quickly and efficiently as possible. Inspectors are issued with all Governmemt Circulars which stress the need for promptness in dealing with planning applications and appeals. They are fully aware of the need to impose times for handling appeals. However, we continue to seek a significant improvement in overall performance, and in May 1985 set up an efficiency scrutiny to examine ways of accelerating handling times. An action plan will soon be published, in which an objective will be set of reducing median times for handling appeals dealt with by written representations. This median time has already been reduced from 22 weeks in the last quarter of 1984 to 19 weeks in the same period in 1985. By administrative and legislative action, and the introduction of modern technology, the aim is to reduce the median time to 11 weeks by 1988. A complementary study of the handling of appeals dealt with by local inquiries is expected to result in similar improvements in performance.Individual inspectors' performance is monitored by the scrutiny of weekly returns submitted by every inspector. A computer-based management information system is currently being established which, among other things, will facilitate regular checks on the attainment of pre-set targets by individual inspectors.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what is the estimated value of the services that will be provided to the London Residuary Body from April 1986 until April 1987 for which his Department receives no money:(2) what is estimated 10 be the total cost to the Exchequer of providing goods and services to the London Residuary Body from April 1986 to April 1987.

The Department has provided office furniture on free loan until the end of April 1986. The cost of this loan cannot be quantified. The Property Services Agency provides office accommodation at St. Vincent house, for which the LRB will pay a net rental of £85,000 in 1986–87.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how much has been allowed in the budget of the London Residuary Body for consultants' fees associated with the disposal of county hall;(2) how much has been spent on consultants' fees by the London Residuary Body since its creation; and how many consultants were involved;(3) what proposals are currently being considered by the London Residuary Body for the removal of Greater London council insignia from buildings, vehicles and publications;(4) how many staff have given notice of their intention to terminate employment with the London Residuary Body since 1 April;(5) what arrangements are being made by the London Residuary Body to keep entrances and car parks at county hall free from rubbish and fly-tipping;(6) how much has been spent by the London Residuary Body in removing the insignia of the Greater London council from county hall; what has been removed; and where the items removed are now located.

These are matters for the London Residuary Body.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment by what means members of the public may gain information regarding decisions of the London Residuary Body.

Subject to statutory requirements, including those governing public access to their annual reports and accounts, it is a matter for residuary bodies to decide the information they make available to members of the public.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what instruction or advice he has issued to the chairman of the London Residuary Body regarding statements by the chairman of a party political nature.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment by what means decisions of the London Residuary Body are conveyed to his Department.

The Department is in regular contact with the London Residuary Body about the discharge of its functions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what directions he has given to the London Residuary Body since 1 April.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has given any instructions to the London Residuary Body regarding the future of county hall; and if he will make a statement.

No such instructions have been given.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will instruct the London Residuary Body that no proposals for the disposal of county hall will be accepted if demolition of part or whole of the building is involved.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to appoint further members to the London Residuary Body.

My right hon. Friend has no plans at present to make any further appointments to the London Residuary Body.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment who is responsible for auditing the accounts of the London Residuary Body; and if the accounts will be laid before Parliament.

By virtue of section 79 of the Local Government Act 1985 the accounts of each residuary body are required to be audited in accordance with part III of the Local Government Finance Act 1982, that is, by auditors appointed by the Audit Commission. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is required to lay the statement of accounts and any auditor's report before Parliament.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment by what means he intends Parliament to be in a position to scrutinise the affairs of the London Residuary Body.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will lay before Parliament the annual report and statement of accounts of each residuary body.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if minutes of the London Residuary Body will be made available to Members in the Library.

The availability of its minutes is a matter for the London Residuary Body to decide.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the exact amount of the rate support grant for Gloucestershire county council in (a) 1985–86 and (b) 1986–87, showing for 1986–87 what it was (i) before and (ii) after the grant recycling.

I shall answer this question shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will receive a delegation from the new national organisation Britain Against Nuclar Dumping; and if he will delay the proposed special development order until it has had the opportunity to put the case against any such order.

I or one of my hon. Friends, will be happy to receive on behalf of my right hon. Friend, a delegation led by the hon. Member, if possible before the SDO is laid before the House.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the effect of a special development order allowing exploration for nuclear waste dumps on the development and industrial prospects of the areas concerned; and if he will make a statement.

I would not expect geological explorations to have adverse effects on the areas concerned. These works do not commit NIREX or the Government to the development of a disposal facility. I also refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 8 April at column 29.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is yet in a position to say when he proposes to reply to the report of the Environment Committee on nuclear waste; and if he will make a statement.

The Government's response to the Environment Committee's Report will be made as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has as to the annual running costs and the debt charges of the Spectrum Centre, Birchwood, Warrington, owned by Warrington and Runcorn Development Corporation.

The Spectrum Centre, Birchwood, Warrington is owned leasehold by the Birchwood Project (Warrington) Ltd. The Warrington and Runcorn Development Corporation retains the freehold. My Department has received the published accounts of the company to December 1984 and will shortly receive those to December 1985. We have also received the management accounts for 1985 and budget for 1986. These documents contain details of the annual running costs and debt charges of the Birchwood Project (Warrington) Ltd.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will extend the period allowed to councils to comment on the special development order on nuclear waste dumps; and if he will make a statement.

I have extended the consultation period by one week, until 18 April.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the names of members of each of the residuary bodies following the abolition of the Greater London council and the metropolitan county councils.

The information is as follows:

asked the Attorney-General if he will now prosecute those involved in the alleged plan to intimidate, kidnap or murder Mr. Gerry Gable of Searchlight magazine.

I understand that the editor of Searchlight magazine was interviewed by police officers in 1984 in response to an approach from him. However, the facts alleged by the editor did not disclose the commission of any criminal offence. If the hon. Member has evidence tending to show the commission of an offence such as is mentioned in the question or any other offence, the proper course is for him to make that evidence available to the police.

asked the Attorney-General whether, in the light of the case of Mr. Joseph Bennett, he has any plans to review the supergrass system in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

The practice of the Director of Public prosecutions in relation to the evidence of accomplices in criminal trials and the granting of an immunity to accomplices was set out fully in my answer to a question from my hon. and learned Friend, the Member for Leicester, South (Mr. Spencer) on 24 October 1983. I see no reason to review the criteria applied, and the practice followed, by the Director of Public Prosecutions described in my answer.

asked the Paymaster General how many new jobs have been created in the Cheltenham travel-to-work area during the last five years.

I regret that the information is not available. Net changes in the numbers of jobs may be calculated by comparing employment figures at different dates, but these are not available for areas smaller than regions except for dates when censuses of employmemt are taken. The latest available figures are from the September 1981 census. More up-to-date employment estimates for travel-to-work areas will become available following publication of the 1984 census of employment results later this year.

asked the Paymaster General what percentage of those long-term unemployed so far approached under the Manpower Services Commission's counselling initiative have responded to the approach; and what percentage have been placed in one of the various openings available to them under the scheme.

Eighty-seven per cent. of those so far approached have responded positively by attending for interview. Of those:

• 18 per cent. have been submitted to a job;
• 21 per cent. to a community programme place;
• 1 per cent. to a voluntary project programme opportunity;
• 5 per cent. for entry into a Jobclub;
• 14 per cent. to an opportunity for further training;
• 14 per cent. to a place upon a restart course;
• 5 per cent. to an information session about starting their own business under the enterprise allowance scheme;
• 9 per cent. have been referred to other agencies or to specialist Manpower Services Commission services.

asked the Paymaster General if he plans to seek to amend or repeal the Baking Industry (Hours of Work) Act 1954; and if he will make a statement.

The Sex Discrimination Bill currently under discussion in the other place contains proposals for the repeal of the Baking Industry (Hours of Work) Act 1954.

asked the Paymaster General if he was invited to participate in the European employment conference taking place in Leeds from 14 to 17 April; and if he will make a statement.

No.

asked the Paymaster General if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on the draft recommendation of the Commission of the European Communities on the employment of disabled people in the European Community.

The Government welcome the Commission's initiative in this area and believe a recommendation is an appropriate instrument. It supports the idea of a code of practice—an important feature of the Commission's proposals. Many of the proposed measures mirror current United Kingdom provision and practice, and the Government are hopeful that within the next few months agreement on the precise terms of the instrument can be reached between the EC member states.

asked the Paymaster General what facilities his Department is making available to assist in finding employment for those losing their jobs following the rundown of British Leyland, Bathgate.

The employment manager responsible for the Lothian and Borders area has contacted the company and made available the full range of services provided by the Manpower Services Commission.A vacancy and information display has already been set up within the factory and the placing of a staff member in the plant for one half day each week is currently being considered.

asked the Paymaster General if he will make a statement on the results of his consultations on the use classes order.

I have been asked to reply.We are carefully considering the large number of responses received following publication of the Property Advisory Group sub-group's report on the order. My right hon. Friend is not yet ready to make a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in teaching deaf and dumb children on St. Helena; and if he will make a statement.

A specialist visited St. Helena in June and July 1985 under ODA auspices to identify the needs of such children; to draw up a programme for their education over a one year period in consultation with parents, schools and the hospital, and to provide guidance and training for teachers and parents.The specialist is visiting the island again at present to review and extend for a further year the programme which has been making encouraging progress.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in improving the water supply on St. Helena; and if he will make a statement.

Early in 1985 a project was approved to provide for the installation of storage reservoirs and distribution facilities at key points on St. Helena both for domestic supplies and irrigation. The project is for completion over a period of four years at an estimated cost of £920,000. Two new reservoirs have already been completed and brought into use, and a third is under construction.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the expected overall net increase in expenditure on income support for families with children as a result of his social security reform proposals (a) including and (b) excluding the November 1985 cut in the real value of child benefit.

On the assumptions made in the technical annex, including 20 per cent. contribution towards rates, but not taking account of any proposals for rate reforms, the income support rates illustrated would imply a net increase of some £100 million in weekly expenditure on all families with children compared to present rates of supplementary benefit and weekly additions. Since the actual child benefit in payment is deducted from the supplementary benefit income support scale rates for children, the amount of child benefit makes no difference to such families.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has any plans to adjust general practitioners' consultation fees so as to give greater payment for patients over the age of 65 years.

There are no firm plans to increase standard capitation fees for patients over the age of 65 but the relative levels of such fees are under consideration.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list for each district health authority in Great Britain the number of weeks in each of the last five years that each district health authority has issued red alerts within its hospitals.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the right hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, South (Mr. Ashley) on 11 December 1985 at columns 686–87 and to the further replies from my right hon. Friend the Minister for Health on 3 February at columns 86–87.Information for health authorities in Scotland and in Wales is the responsibility of my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for those countries.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when was the last date by which local health authorities were required to submit consultation responses on the future of nursing education to the National Health Service management board; how many replies have now been received; and if he will make a statement.

Health authorities were asked to respond by 15 November 1985 to the National Health Service management board's consultation on the cost and manpower implications of proposals for changes to nurse education and training put forward by the English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting. All 14 Regional Health Authorities have responded with their own views and the collated views of their Districts, and, in addition a number of district health authorities who had been invited to take part in a more detailed costing exercise responded direct.In its consideration of the responses the management board will have to bear in mind that the proposals will have to be taken within the content of Project 2000, which was set up by the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting and which I understand is expected to publish its report shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in the Official Report the terms of reference and objectives of his Departmental inquiry into night nursing; and if he will make a statement.

The terms of reference of the review of night nursing are:

"To obtain detailed and comprehensive information about the range of night nursing responsibilities/tasks from a sample of general ward-based nursing staff and nurse managers in District General Hospitals, taking into account the night support available from professional and hotel services staff and where appropriate the input of administrative staff.

To submit a report that will provide the first stage of guidance to enable nurse managers to measure the adequacy of resources and the effectiveness of the organisation of those resources.

To identify areas which may require further research."

The Department has for some time been concerned about the lack of objective information about night nursing services. The purpose of the review is to develop a profile of ward-based nursing services at night which could be used as the basis for more substantive research to be directed at the quality of care hospitalised patients receive at night; and to suggest ways in which night nursing services could be improved in terms of the organisation and use of resources in relation to work loads.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services why hospital pharmacists do not receive a payment for being on call; if he will now introduce such payments; and if he will make a statement.

This is a matter for the pharmaceutical Whitley council. I understand that the management side made a revised pay offer to the Staff Side on 10 April which would encompass on-call duties.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many patients in each of the last three years were exempted from paying for National Health Service prescriptions.

I regret that the information is not available in the form requested.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the average budgets of community health councils in each of the English health regions; and if he will estimate the change in the value of these budget allocations, in real terms, over the last five years.

The available information on community health council expenditure is set out in the following table. It is not possible to provide comparable data for the years prior to 1982–83 because of the changes in health authority and community health council boundaries in 1982.

Community Health Council Expenditure
Regional Health Authority	1982–83		1983–84		1984–85
	Cash*£	Constant prices† £	Cash*£	Constant prices† £	Cash £
1. Northern	27,985	30,439	29,739	30,967	30,832
2. Yorkshire	25,554	27,795	26,454	27,547	28,149
3. Trent	34,528	37,556	36,205	37,700	36,998
4. East Anglian	26,811	29,162	30,056	31,297	32,114
5. North West Thames	40,725	44,297	41,560	43,276	40,997
6. North East Thames	33,527	36,467	32,825	34,181	33,208
7. South East Thames	28,136	30,604	28,220	29,385	30,563
8. South West Thames	30,054	32,690	31,776	33,088	33,884
9. Wessex	24,882	27,064	26,514	27,609	27,453
10. Oxford	32,139	34,958	33,018	34,382	35,573
11. South Western	28,833	31,362	33,835	35,232	34,399
12. West Midlands	28,499	30,998	30,314	31,566	31,837
13. Mersey	28,865	31,396	29,048	30,248	31,013
14. North Western	27,969	30,422	31,519	32,821	32,446

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will ensure the funding of the family and child department of the Tavistock Institute, London NW6; and if he will make a statement about his policy towards its future.

Hampstead health authority is responsible for funding the Tavistock clinic and for the allocation of resources between its various departments. Following expressions of concern from the District about the present funding arrangement, we commissioned an independent report on the role of the clinic as a whole to form the basis of any decisions on changes to the future level or source of funding. The report is currently the subject of consultation with relevant bodies and we shall be considering the results shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he intends to authorise the management side of the Administrative and Clerical Whitley Council to make an offer on pay operative from 1 April.

Negotiations are a matter for the Whitley council and it is for the management side to determine when it is in a position to make offers.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has taken any action to inform Easter school leavers of their possible changed entitlement to benefit in the current year; and if he will mount a publicity campaign to this effect.

The question of a school leaver's entitlement to supplementary benefit remains to be decided by the independent adjudicating authorities on the facts of the individual case. A social security commissioners' decision in March 1985 indicated that in some circumstances a school leaver with exams to take might be entitled to benefit. Leaflet FB20 gives advice to school leavers on how to claim benefit, and young people under 18 are required to register with the careers service, whose officers are aware of the benefit position and will refer them to DHSS local offices for advice. We believe that adequate information is available by these means.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will indicate in each case the occuption and political allegiance where known of the new district health authority chairmen, a list of whom he has placed in the Library.

Chairmen of health authorities are appointed for their personal qualities, not because of any position they may hold nor by virtue of political considerations. Political affiliations may be known in some cases but that information is not specifically sought. Similarly, no attempt is made to refine or update any occupational details provided. I regret therefore that the information sought by the hon. Member could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will now collect information on the numbers of girls in the care of local authorities being prescribed Medroxyprogesterone acetate.

I have no plans to collect such information.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether any work is being or has been undertaken for his Department by Dr. K. Featherstone of Stirling university.

To the best of our knowledge, no.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he has any plans to train the Territorial Army to operate flex-wing microlight aircraft in support of the roles for which it was responsible in Exercise Brave Defender;(2) if he has any plans to replace helicopters with flex-wing micro light aircraft in visual reconnaissance on border patrols in Northern Ireland and perimeter patrols at cruise missile bases in England;(3) if he has any plans to assess the potential contribution of flex-wing microlight aircraft flown by infantrymen to essential reconnaissance in support of rear area security in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation's central region;(4) whether he has any plans to assess over the past two years the role of flex-wing microlight aircraft in the deployment of man-portable anti-tank guided weapons in manoeuvre warfare;(5) whether he has any plans to use flex-wing microlight aircraft as a replacement for light helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft in the armed services.

I shall write to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) whether the fire on board HMS Illustrious will restrict the Royal Navy's participation in the US Navy's RIMPAC exercise; and whether the British contingent will now take part in the bombing and shelling of Kaho'olawe;(2) whether, in view of the request by the Hawaiian State Government to the United States Government to cease all bombing and shelling of Kaho'olawe, he will ensure that the British contingent does not take part in this element of the RIMPAC exercise.

Following the fire on board, HMS Illustrious has been withdrawn from exercise RIMPAC 86. However, Her Majesty's Ships Beaver, Manchester and Amazon and the RFA's Olmeda, Bayleaf and Fort Grange will, on present plans, continue to take part. The Royal Navy will not be taking part in the shelling of land targets during RIMPAC 86.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the role of Royal Fleet Auxiliary Fort Grange in the US Navy's RIMPAC exercise.

RFA Fort Grange is one the ships taking part in the Royal Navy task group deployment GLOBAL 86, all of which will, on present plans, be taking part in exercise RIMPAC 86 also.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether, in view of the decisions by Australia and New Zealand in 1982 and 1984, and Japan in 1984, not to take part in the bombing and shelling of Kaho'olawe during the US Navy's RIMPAC exercise, he is satisfied that British participation will have no adverse consequences for relationships with these countries and co-operation with them.

Yes.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence on which previous occasions the Royal Navy has participated in the United States Navy's RIMPAC exercise in the Pacific ocean.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Defence what effect the deployment of her Majesty's ships taking part in GLOBAL '86 to the Pacific will have on the United Kingdom's commitment to the north Atlantic; and whether North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies have made any representations on this matter.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley (Mr. Foulkes) on 21 February at column 378. I am not aware of any such representations.

asked the Minister for the Arts how much is being spent by the South Bank board on the South Bank celebrations to commemorate 35 years of music at the Royal Festival hall.

The figure is £46,000 offset by income.

asked the Minister for the Arts, what proposals the South Bank board has for Bookspace.

The South Bank board will be looking at the possible relocation of Bookspace in its plans for increasing the presence of literature on the South Bank.

asked the Minister for the Arts what proposals the South Bank board has for the bust of Nelson Mandela outside the Royal Festival hall.

The proposal is for the bust to remain in its present location.

asked the Minister for the Arts if he intends to appoint any further members to the South Bank board; and if he will make a statement.

The composition of the South Bank board remains open for consideration.

asked the Minister for the Arts to which Arts Council body the South Bank board reports; how this is done; and whether the board's decisions are subject to any sanctions.

The chairman of the South Bank board is a member of the Arts Council and reports to his colleagues. In addition, the minutes of the South Bank board are circulated to the council, which has delegated authority to the board in respect of the day-to-day running of the South Bank.

asked the Minister for the Arts what dates during the next 12 months are designated for meetings of the South Bank board.

A forward schedule of meetings for the next 12 months is currently being prepared.

asked the Minister for the Arts if minutes of the South Bank board will be made available to the public; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. Under existing arrangements such material would normally be released after three years.

asked the Minister for the Arts if the meetings of the South Bank board will be open to the press and the public.

Meetings of committees of the Arts Council are not normally open to the public.

asked the Minister for the Arts if it is the intention of the South Bank board to continue the productions of South Bank Sounds for the visually handicapped.

I understand that the South Bank board will continue productions for the visually handicapped.

asked the Minister for the Arts what was the cost of removing the insignia of the Greater London council from the South Bank concert halls; what was removed; and where the items removed are now located.