asked the Attorney-General if the Director of Public Prosecutions is considering prosecution of the junior official at the Office of Fair Trading referred to in the answer of 21 January, Official Report, column 583, by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in connection with insider dealing.

No formal report has been submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions; but the Head of Legal Services has made himself available to give advice to those responsible for the conduct of the investigation to which the hon. Member refers.

asked the Attorney-General whether the Lord Chancellor has completed his review on the use of juries in personal injury actions in Northern Ireland.

The review announced in November 1985 has been completed. The Lord Chancellor has carefully considered the further views of interested parties in Northern Ireland and has concluded that there is no compelling reason why Northern Ireland should differ from England and Wales in the use of juries in personal injury actions. He intends to bring forward legislation in the near future to effect the change.

asked the Attorney-General when he first learned of the existence of (a) the series of programmes on "The Secret Society" and (b) the programme on the Zircon satellite system.

I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's answer to him of today.

asked the Attorney-General (1) whether he will prosecute British Aerospace under section 2 of the Official Secrets Act for publishing information as to the location orbits of the Zircon satellite system;(2) whether he will prosecute Sir Ronald Mason, former defence chief scientific adviser, under the Official Secrets Act, for disclosing information to Duncan Campbell for use in the media on the existence of the Zircon satellite system;(3) whether he will prosecute Sir Frank Cooper, former permanent secretary at the Ministry of Defence, under the Official Secrets Act for disclosing information on the existence of the Zircon satellite system to Duncan Campbell.

The Director of Public Prosecutions will consider whether any criminal proceedings are appropriate and, if so, against whom in the light of the result of the investigation currently being conducted by the Metropolitan police.

asked the Attorney-General on what date he decided to seek an injunction against Duncan Campbell on the question of publishing information in relation to the Zircon satellite system.

The Government decided to seek an injunction against Duncan Campbell on 20 January.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he is satisfied that the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 is operating as intended so far as licenced private hire vehicles are concerned; and if he will make a statement.

I believe that, on the whole, this Act is achieving its intended purpose.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many representations he has received from individuals and organisations about the workings of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 as it relates to private hire vehicles.

The Department has received a number of representations on these points over the years. Most of them have been requests from district councils for advice on the interpretation of the Act.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will introduce legislation to amend the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 to impose upon persons applying for a licence to operate a private hire vehicle (a) a test of local knowledge, (b) standards of road worthiness and (c) a requirement to display a certificate of current fully comprehensive insurance and the local authority licence number in a prominent position inside the vehicle; and if he will make a statement.

It is already open to district councils to impose these requirements under the Act.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received regarding the condition of public transport in Merseyside; and if he will make a statement.

I have received a number of representations, from the passenger transport authority and others. It is the responsibility of the passenger transport executive to secure public transport services to meet local needs in accordance with the policies formulated by the authority.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what was the number of road accidents on the A1 road in Cambridgeshire in each of the last three years and the number of deaths and serious injuries resulting; what steps he proposes to make this road safer; and if he will make a statement.

The number of accidents on the A1 trunk road in Cambridgeshire are as follows:

	Fatal	Serious	Slight	Total
1984	9	42	93	144
1985	4	43	101	148
1986	12	48	114	174

The 1986 figures are provisional. The numbers of deaths and serious injuries are as follows:

	Deaths	Seriously Injured
1984	12	56
1985	4	55

The figures for 1986 are not yet available.Accident rates (injury accidents per million vehicle kilometers) over three-year bands from 1982, are as follows:—

	per mvk
1982 to 1984	0·29
1983 to 1985	0·29
1984 to 1986	0·30

The Department has been considering what can be done to improve safety standards. Traffic management and improvements are being undertaken where justified and where resources are available. I shall take the needs of this road into account at the forthcoming programme review.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Keighley (Mr. Waller) at column 137 on 13 January regarding the 1987–88 transport supplementary grant, what proportion of the £55 million grant for minor works has been set aside for schemes arising from accident investigation and prevention work both on trunk roads and on local roads eligible for transport supplementary grant.

We are still finalising details of the Department's programme for 1987–88. I expect a substantial proportion of the £35 million for schemes costing less than £1 million on trunk roads in 1986–87 to be spent on low cost-high return safety engineering schemes. The local authorities will be involved as agents in working up detailed proposals. To help them, we have already mounted a seminar in London and plan one in the west midlands. Others will follow.Benefits to road safety are important considerations in the distribution of transport supplementary grant. The £360 million of expenditure my right hon. Friend announced that we intend to accept for 1987–88 will attract grant at 50 per cent. This will help local authorities improve their more important roads. Not all local authorities have a systematic accident investigation and prevention programme.I have written to all local highway authority chairmen drawing their attention to the Department's new manual on accident investigation and prevention. I hope that over the coming years all local highway authorities will begin to use this proven method of reducing casualties much more extensively. It is for local authorities to decide their priorities and to take advantage of the increase in accepted expenditure towards their programme of minor works.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many vessels were prosecuted for illegally discharging oil in United Kingdom territorial waters in 1983–84, 1984–85 and 1985–86; and what was the average fine levied in each year.

The last three years for which figures are available detailing vessels prosecuted for illegally discharging in United Kingdom territorial waters are:

Year	Number of prosecutions undertaken	Convictions	Average fine levied £
1983	19	19	2,488
1984	13	13	1,709
1985	11	10	2,150

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how much was spent in 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85 and 1985–86, on (a) capital investment in and (b) operating costs of Her Majesty's Government's marine pollution control unit.

The marine pollution control unit was set up in 1979. The costs incurred by the unit since then have been:

£ thousand
	(a) Capital expenditure	(b) Current expenditure1
1979–80	920	319
1980–81	592	126
1981–82	922	183
1982–83	480	1,222
1983–84	271	1,284
1984–85	323	1,459
1985–86	312	1,528
1 Operating costs.

The large increase in current expenditure from 1982–83 reflects the introduction of a dedicated aerial spraying and surveillance capability in 1982.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement about the prospects for the completion of the M40, the M42 and the M6 midlands link relief route.

Given favourable weather the southern turn between the M42 and M5 will open to traffic within the next couple of months.Programmed completion dates for the other new links in the motorway network are M40— 1990, M42-M5 northern turn— 1990, northern relief route— 1993. Achievement of these dates is dependent upon statutory procedures.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has yet received the report of the independent study on his Department's administrative role in road scheme preparation up to the construction stage; and when he expects to be able to announce his conclusions thereon.

I have not yet received the report, which I expect shortly. I hope to announce conclusions in the spring.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he has any plans to prevent drivers of buses and taxis, driving instructors and drivers of vehicles regularly carrying dangerous goods to consume any alcoholic drink during their working hours and during the six hours before they start work.

No. We see no case for any requirements beyond those in the existing legislation on drinking and driving. I believe that professional drivers are, in general, particularly aware of the risks associated with drinking and driving and set high standards of conduct in this respect. Drivers with vocational licences are aware that, should they he convicted of a drinking and driving offence, the vocational licence will not automatically be restored at the end of a period of disqualification ordered by the court.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what information his Department holds on the provisions for requiring the fitting of an obligatory red back reflector on a bicycle in (a) Austria, (b) Belgium, (c) Denmark, (d) Finland, (e) France, (f) Germany, (g) Ireland, (h) Italy, (i) Netherlands, (l) Norway, (m) Portugal, (n) Spain, (o) Sweden, (p) Switzerland and (q) the United Kingdom;(2) if he has any plans to prohibit the sale of bicycles in the United Kingdom that fail to meet minimum technical safety standards;(3) if he has plans to make it compulsory to fit a standard set of reflecting devices on bicycles including red to the rear, white to the front and yellow on pedals.

The Pedal Bicycles (Safety) Regulations 1984 already prohibit the sale of new bicycles which do not comply with the British Standard for cycles, BS 6102. This standard specifies side facing reflectors, a red rear reflector, amber pedal reflectors and, if sold without a front lamp, a white lamp reflector. Any pedal cycle being used on the road at night must have a red rear reflector.I have no information regarding obligatory requirements for red rear reflectors on bicycles in other countries. There is an International Standard, ISO 4210, covering safety requirements for bicycles which includes a specification for red rear reflectors. The standard is not mandatory but has been approved by, inter alia, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what information his Department holds on the provisions for requiring the fitting of a mandatory audible warning device on bicycles in (i) Austria, (ii) Belgium, (iii) Denmark, (iv) Finland, (v) France, (vi) Germany, (vii) Ireland, (viii) Italy, (ix) Netherlands, (x) Norway, (xi) Portugal, (xii) Spain, (xiii) Sweden, (xiv) Switzerland and (xv) the United Kingdom.

We hold no information for the foreign countries listed. Audible warning devices have never been compulsory for bicycles in this country.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if his Department is currently funding any research into the relationship between the safety of cyclists and alcohol consumption by the cyclist.

As part of the regular monitoring of blood alcohol levels in road traffic accident fatalities, the distribution of alcohol levels in adult pedal cyclists killed (that is those aged 16 years or over) is recorded. The latest figures available (for 1984) are:

Blood alcohol concentration Bac—mg/100ml	Percentage of pedal cyclists exceeded BAC level
9	17
50	12
80	8
100	6
150	4
200	1

Total number of adult cyclists killed in 1984 was 220.No specific study of the relationship between the safety of cyclists and their alcohol consumption is planned.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish in the Official Report for Great Britain in 1985 the number of children aged 16 or under who were (i) killed and (ii) injured while riding pedal cycles.

The information is as follows:

Children aged 16 or less, killed or injured whilst riding a pedal cycle: Great Britain: 1985
	Number
Killed	86
Injured	10,980

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish in the Official Report for Great Britain in 1985 the total number of cyclists (i) killed and (ii) injured in road accidents.

The information is as follows:

Pedal cyclist casualties: Great Britain 1985
	Number
Killed	286
Injured	26,712

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what use his Department makes of British made recycled paper for letterhead stationery and notepads.

Most types of paper in use in my Department contain varying amounts of British recycled paper, though not letterheads.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list in the Official Report, the studies that his Department is funding into the deregulation of bus services, including details of which geographical areas are being considered.

We are sponsoring an extensive programme of research into the deregulation of bus services. This includes a series of studies of particular areas: Nottingham; the Medway Towns; Blackburn; West Wiltshire; and also (jointly with the Welsh Office) West Glamorgan, and parts of Powys and Clwyd. These studies are all being conducted by consultants on behalf of the Transport and Road Research Laboratory. In addition, the laboratory is conducting studies with the passenger transport executives in Tyne and Wear, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Merseyside, West Midlands and Strathclyde. Similar studies are being financed by the Scottish Office, with a contribution from my Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) under what authority he has instructed the London borough of Lambeth to close the space in the centre island of Westminster Bridge road opposite Belvedere road;(2) under what authority he has instructed the traffic control systems unit to remove the cycle signals on Westminster Bridge road at is junction with Belvedere road;(3) under what authority he has called in the pedestrian crossing on Westminster Bridge road opposite Belvedere road for special approval;(4) under what authority the facility for cyclists to switch on lights at the cycle facility on Westminster Bridge road was disconnected.

My right hon. Friend has given no such instructions. The Secretary of State's approval for non-standard crossings is a national requirement under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. While discussions have been going on about a safe cycle facility at this crossing, we have provided advice about measures to avoid the incomplete facility causing a road safety hazard. The cycle facility has never been connected. I understand that the form of the facility has now been agreed.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what information is held by his Department on fatalities and injuries in which there was contact with unlit or badly lit skips on the highway.

The presence of skips is not identified in road accident reports.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if, in the sale of National Bus Company subsidiaries, he has attached any conditions on the sale of property or on the use of property for development, other than for transport use.

Properties surplus to operational requirements are being removed from the subsidiaries and sold separately. Where an operational property has a potentially high alternative use value which could be realised in later years by redevelopment, or relocation of the subsidiary's activity, the National Bus Company is imposing a mortgage charge which secures for the taxpayer a substantial share of any future development gain.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if any joint action is proposed with all international airlines to obtain an agreed and firm policy on banning drunks from flying; and if he will make a statement.

In the case of all aircraft in the United Kingdom, whether United Kingdom or foreign registered, it is already an offence under the Air Navigation Order 1985 for any person to act recklessly or negligently in a manner likely to endanger an aircraft or any person therein; to enter any aircraft when drunk; or to be drunk while on board.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance is issued by the Civil Aviation Authority regarding the authority of the captain of an aircraft to make the final decision on the fitness of a passenger to fly without endangering other passengers and the aircraft and on his right to allocate seats in the interests of safety; and if he will make a statement.

Guidance is unnecessary. The duties and powers of the commander of any United Kingdom-registered aircraft are governed by the Air Navigation Order 1985. The commander may give any lawful command to secure the safety of his aircraft or the passengers and property carried. The order requires that any person in a United Kingdom-registered aircraft must obey all such commands. In addition, section 94 of the Civil Aviation Act 1982 gives effect to the Tokyo convention on offences and certain other acts committed on board aircraft. Under the Act the commander of an aircraft in flight may take reasonable measures in respect of a person, including restraint, to protect the safety of the aircraft, persons or property on board, to maintain good order and discipline, and to enable the disembarkation of that person.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish in the Official Report in rank order (a) the motor cycle casualties per million of the population and (b) the number of motor cycle casualties per 1,000 vehicles for Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

[pursuant to his reply, 19 January 1987, col. 385]: Because of the differences in definition of road casualties, the only meaningful comparison is of road deaths. The figures are for 1984 and are given separately for motor cycles and mopeds. For clarity, table (b) shows death per 10,000 vehicles licensed.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the dualling of the A419 Blunsdon to Cricklade, to be commenced.

Work on dualling the A419 between Blunsdon and Cricklade started earlier this month and is expected to take 18 months.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give details of his Department's national initiative to improve the appearance of roads in England.

We announced a national initiative to improve the roadside environment on 15 December 1986, at column 402. The Department also wrote to local authorities in England encouraging them to promote suitable projects under this initiative. I am sending the hon. Member a copy of the letter. The scheme is intended to improve the appearance of roads by landscaping, tree planting, and litter clearance and provide better amenities for motorists. This will be achieved through the use of the community programme and will be over and above the normal programmes of the Department and local authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will be arranging for departmental publicity aimed at users of remould tyres manufactured by Messrs. Arvoland of Cambridge;

I am satisfied with the operation of the code of practice in this case. The receivers are cooperating with the Department in prohibiting the further sale of these tyres. The Department will shortly issue a press statement in accordance with the code of practice on tyre recalls.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport on what occasions since June 1979 his Department had to (a) introduce amending legislation to legislation introduced since June 1979 because of doubts about legality or because such legislation had been successfully challenged in the courts and (b) amend or withdraw orders introduced since June 1979, because of doubts about legality or because such orders had been successfully challenged in the courts.

There can be no doubt about the legality of an Act of Parliament, nor can an Act be challenged in the courts. I assume that the hon. Member intends to ask about occasions when there has been some doubt about, or there have been challenges in the courts to, ministerial action in pursuance of legislation introduced since June 1979.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will instruct the General Lighthouse Authorities to contain their costs in the coming year within the levels which could be financed by an increase in light dues not exceeding the rise in the retail prices index.

I am considering this matter carefully, and I will make a statement shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the latest figure for the total number of people employed as teachers of the deaf; if he will analyse what proportion of these admitted into training courses for teaching the deaf come from (a) certified teachers with experience in teaching, (b) qualified teachers direct from college or university, (c) non-certified graduates, (d) undergraduates and (e) other; what effect he estimates the implementation of the White Paper, "Better Schools", would have on the numbers of teachers of the deaf being trained; and if he will make a statement.

I shall reply as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what use his Department makes of British made recycled paper for letterhead stationery and notepads.

None at present. I understand that British-made recycled paper suitable for these purposes is available from Her Majesty's Stationery Office but that supplies are limited and prices uncompetitive compared with a suitable general purpose woodfree printing and writing quality paper. I understand further that Her Majesty's Stationery Office will continue to encourage the greater use of recycled fibre in the paper it purchases.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science who organised the meeting on city technology colleges attended by Mr. Hedger from his Department in York on 12 December; what was the cost to Government funds of this meeting; what other meetings of a similar type have been attended by his officials; and if he will list the organisers, locations and cost to Her Majesty's Government in each case.

The meeting was organised by my hon. Friend the Member for York (Mr. Gregory). It was chaired by a member of the York chamber of trade and commerce and its purpose was to give parents and members of the local business community the opportunity to hear further details of my proposals for city technology colleges. The marginal cost to the Department's Vote was £138·15 for travel and other expenses. Three meetings with a similar purpose have been attended by officials of the Department in Birmingham, Norwich and Coventry. Each of them was organised by a local chamber of commerce. The marginal costs to the Department were £49·65, £49·05 and £41·25 respectively. These figures do not include the cost of official time, since the visits formed part of the normal work of the Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what recent discussions he has had concerning potential locations of the city technology college originally proposed for Moss Side, Manchester; what alternative locations were discussed; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has considered a number of issues relating to the proposed city technology college in Manchester, including its location. It would be inappropriate to reveal the details of these discussions; or to make a statement until further progress has been made.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he proposes to discuss the location of the city technology college in the Manchester area with Trafford district council.

Neither I nor my right hon. Friend have at present plans to do so, but I am very willing to consider any suggestions which the district council may wish to make.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will republish the figures in Statistical Bulletin 16/86 on international statistical comparison of the participation in education and care of three to six-year-olds, using the definitions normally used in the United Kingdom for pre-school education and care.

The figures in "Statistical Bulletin 16/86", for three to four-year-olds, also given in my answer of 12 January to the hon. Member for Lewes (Mr. Rathbone), at column 30, are on the basis usually used for pre-school education in the United Kingdom except that a very small number of two-year-olds (usually included) have been excluded for consistency with other countries. If included they would add one percentage point to the 43 per cent. quoted in the statistical bulletin.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report a table on the same basis as table 2.10 of the public expenditure White Paper, Cmnd. 9143–11, with all figures converted to 1986–87 prices.

£ million at 1986–87 prices
	1978–79	1979–80	1980–81	1981–82	1982–83	1983–84	1984–85	1985–86	1986–87
Department of Education and Science Education
10.1 Schools
Under fives
Capital	25	17	13	13	14	15	13	10	10
Current	284	294	311	307	326	347	342	330	330
Primary, Secondary & other Capital	536	520	527	367	339	315	247	237	240
Primary Current	2,926	2,836	2,924	2,880	2,794	2,804	2,634	2,585	2,590
Secondary Current	3,997	3,914	4,137	4,215	4,216	4,307	4,114	3,976	3,890
Special schools Current	416	414	433	443	458	454	420	412	410
Other (supporting services, & fees at non-maintained schools)
Current	231	216	210	212	211	215	199	206	200
Transport	227	226	224	222	218	224	218	216	210
Meals	731	680	548	498	481	471	281	278	270
Milk	23	20	8	8	8	7	7	10	10
10.2 Higher and further education (including teacher training)
Universities Capital	157	170	158	152	143	138	135	134	130
Non-universities Capital	119	130	153	112	117	104	80	82	80
Universities Current	1,261	1,305	1,420	1,331	1,497	1,486	1,461	1,421	1,410
Voluntary and direct grant Current	99	101	111	105	107	107	107	103	110
Maintained sector advanced Current	626	615	622	621	713	683	639	618	620
Student awards	1,041	1,036	1,069	1,126	947	923	891	845	840
Maintained sector non-advanced (except adult education)
Current	962	966	999	1,055	1,072	1,112	1,050	1,009	1,000
Adult	103	105	97	98	98	104	80	82	80
10.4 Miscellaneous educational services, research and administration
Youth service
Capital	12	13	11	9	8	9	8	10	10
Current	103	108	109	112	119	120	100	103	100
Research and other services
Capital	10	12	20	18	6	6	4
Current	66	68	66	70	71	77	66	62	60
Administration
Capital						1	2
Current	538	534	554	556	550	589	555	546	550
Total Education
Capital	859	861	882	671	629	587	489	474	480
Current	13,634	13,440	13,841	13,859	13,884	14,030	13,161	12,782	12,680
Total Education	14,491	14,302	14,721	14,530	14,514	14,618	13,650	13,266	13,160
Science
10.5 Research Councils, etc
Capital	97	106	101	92	89	84	94	93	90
Current	478	459	451	485	484	506	508	494	500
Total Science	575	565	551	575	573	589	601	587	590
Total Education and Science
Capital	954	968	981	763	719	672	582	567	570
Current	14,112	13,899	14,291	14,342	14,369	14,535	13,669	13,287	13,180
Total Programme	15,066	14,867	15,274	15,105	15,087	15,206	14,251	13,854	13,750

The information is set out in the table. The figures are those set out in Cmnd. 9143, revalued using the GDP (market prices) deflator and rounded to the nearest £1 million.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science on what occasions since June 1979 his Department had to introduce amending legislation to (a) legislation introduced since June 1979 because of doubts about legality or because such legislation had been successfully challenged in the courts and (b) amend or withdraw orders introduced since June 1979, because of doubts about legality or because such orders had been successfully challenged in the courts.

The Education (Fees and Awards) Act 1983 was introduced to make provision with respect to the fees to be charged by universities and other institutions to students not having the requisite connection with the United Kingdom and for the exclusion of such students from eligibility for certain discretionary awards, following the decision of the House of Lords in R v. Barnet London Borough Council Ex parte Nilish Shah [1983] 2AC 309 that the phrase "ordinarily resident", in section 1 of the Education Act 1962 had a meaning other than that which it had previously been held to have. Regulations made under sections 1 and 3 of that Act were also changed in consequence of that decision.The Block Grant (Education Adjustments) (England) Regulations 1985 (S.I. 1985/2030) included a new formula for calculating the contributions of local authorities in relation to expenditure on advanced further education, following the decision of the Divisional Court in R

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what information is available to his Department on the date of construction of each unremodelled primary school constructed before 1903 and still in use;(2) if he will publish a list showing for each local education authority in England

The Department does not have reliable up-to-date information on (a), (b) or (c). On (d) LEAs do not receive capital allocations for individual projects: a single block allocation is made to each LEA in respect of all its schools prescribed capital expenditure.

asked the Secretary of State for Eucation and Science if he will publish in the Official Report the estimated unit cost in 1985–86 for (a) maintained primary schools and (b) maintained secondary schools.

On the basis of an apportionment of local education authorities' budgeted expenditure on education and attributing to 1985–86 back pay owed for that year, I estimate that the net recurrent expenditures per pupil in England were £810 in maintained primary schools and £1,200 in secondary schools. I would hope to have firm figures before Easter, but a few local education authorities have not yet reported their actual expenditure in 1985–86.I take this opportunity to correct an error in table 3.12.6 of the Government's expenditure plans (Cmnd. 56). The percentage increase in real terms expenditure per pupil over the 1979–80 level is 18 per cent. for 1984–85, and is estimated at 22 per cent. for 1985–86, rather than the figures of 20 per cent. for the former year, and 24 per cent. for the latter, given in the table.

asked the Prime Minister whether she will bring up to date the figures given in her written answer to the hon. Member for Great Grimsby (Mr. Mitchell) dated 19 July 1985, Official Report, columns 286–87, comparing the increase in European Economic Community spending with other increases; whether she is satisfied with the outcome for 1986 and the forecast for 1987; and if she will make a statement.

The information requested is set as follows:

(i) Percentage increase in European Community spending between 1980 and 1985: 75·7 per cent.

(ii) Percentage increase in the United Kingdom's gross contribution between 1980 and 1985: 100·3 per cent. (before taking account of the United Kingdom's 1000 mecu abatement in the 1985 budget) or 68·8 per cent. (after taking it into account).

(iii) Percentage increase in United Kingdom general Government expenditure for the financial years 1980–81 to 1985–86: 46·3 per cent.

The rapid increase in Community expenditure in 1986, though regrettable, was due in large part to enlargement and the exceptional circumstance of the rapid and substantial fall in the value of the dollar. In the Government's view, the budget for 1987 must respect budget discipline. No budget has yet been agreed.

asked the Prime Minister whether the outturn for the EEC budget for 1985 was consistent with the agreements reached at Fontainebleau; whether the same is expected to apply of 1986 and 1987; and if she will make a statement.

Yes. The United Kingdom received an abatement of 1000 mecu (£605 million) from the 1985 budget in respect of 1984 and 1900 mecu (£1,250 million) from the 1986 budget in respect of 1985. The Community has not yet adopted a budget for 1987.

asked the Prime Minister what use her office makes of British made recycled paper for letterhead stationery and notepads.

This stationery is obtained from Her Majesty's Stationery Office. The contracts under which Her Majesty's Stationery Office purchases paper encourage the use of recycled paper in manufacture. The items used by my office are all British made, but none is wholly from recycled material.

asked the Prime Minister how many of the ministerial telephone numbers given in the October 1986 edition of "List of Ministerial Responsibilities" have changed since it was published.

The telephone numbers of 18 London-based Ministers have changed, together with the London numbers of Scottish and Welsh Office Ministers. These changes reflect the replacement of the 233 exchange by the new 270 exchange; the new number is given to those who call the old 233 exchange.

asked the Prime Minister when a new edition of the Cabinet Office publication called "List of Ministerial Responsibilities", giving up-to-date ministerial telephone numbers altered since the October 1986 edition, will be available.

The "List of Ministerial Responsibilities" is published annually at the end of the summer recess, with further editions during the year if there are substantial changes in ministerial appointments. A new edition is not called for at present. However, further to his reply of 20 January, column 467, my right hon. Friend the Lord Privy Seal has now arranged for sections of the Palace of Westminster directory to be updated, including the new numbers, and these will be available in approximately two weeks' time.

asked the Prime Minister whether Her Majesty's Government will provide additional funds for the appointment of experts to advise Ministers in Departments other than the Department of Health and Social Security on AIDS.

The current arrangements ensure that all Ministers get any scientific advice which they need on AIDS from their chief medical officer. The Northern Ireland, Scottish and Welsh Offices have their own chief medical officers. All other departments look to the chief medical officer of the Department of Health and Social Security. I am satisfied that these arrangements are fully effective in providing expert advice for Ministers in all Departments.

asked the Prime Minister if she will publish a table showing forecast spending at 1986 prices on regional selective assistance in England, Scotland and Wales and for each region of England for each year until 1989–90.

The provision for regional selective assistance expenditure in England, Scotland and Wales in the current year, and in future years as incorporated in the public expenditure White Paper, adjusted to 1986 prices¹, is as follows:

£ million
	1986–87	1987–88	1988–89	1989–90
England	88	118	133	113
Scotland	43	50	50	39
Wales	34	43	42	42
TOTAL	165	211	225	194

asked the Prime Minister, when she first learned of the existence of (a) the series of British Broadcasting Corporation's programmes "The Secret Society" and (b) the programme on the Zircon satellite system.

The Government became aware, in a general sense, of the BBC's plan for one or more programmes in the summer of 1986; and of the intention to include specific material on a secret defence project in October 1986. Discussions then took place between the Government and the BBC, which subsequently decided on grounds of national security not to show the material on the project.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has any plans to provide further assistance to UNICEF for mother and child care projects.

Yes. I have just agreed to give UNICEF an extra £5 million for immediate use in mother and child care programmes. This brings our contribution to UNICEF to £13·07 million since the beginning of 1986.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on measures to reform the European Community food aid programme agreed in Brussels in December.

The new regulation governing the policy and management of European Community food aid was adopted by the Council on 22 December after agreement was reached with the European Parliament. I expect it to have the following main effects:

(a) The legal basis for food aid will cease to be article 43 of the Treaty of Rome (which established the common agricultural policy).

(b) Food aid now will need to be justified on the grounds that it meets the needs of recipient countries rather than as a means of surplus disposal.

(c) It is to be better integrated with other forms of Community development assistance.

(d) Procedures will be streamlined, particularly for emergencies.

(e) There will be new arrangements for purchasing food aid from other developing countries.

This is fully in line with the motion agreed by the House on 9 December, column 294.The new regulation will apply for one year ony in the first instance.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has for the Overseas Development Administration's scientific units; and if he will make a statement.

I have decided to integrate the Tropical Development and Research Institute (TDRI) and the Land Resource Development Centre (LRDC) with effect from 1 September 1987; and to assign to the director professional responsibility for members of the corps of specialists in certain natural resources disciplines. The combined organisation will be known as the Overseas Development Natural Resources Institute (ODNRI) and will have the following mandate:

To promote the sustainable development of the natural resources sector in developing countries through:

• —assessment of land and water resources;
• —pilot-scale development projects;
• —applied research in the fields of pest control andof crop and animal processing, storage and marketing;
• —assessment of the environmental consequences of development projects.

Efficiency savings achieved by rationalising the support services for the new organisation will provide scope for further resources to be allocated to scientific and operational programmes.The relocation of the ODA's scientific staff to a single site, due to take place in 1988, will bring significant professional benefits. The changes I am announcing today are intended to build on this, and to strengthen the important contribution which the staff make to our aid effort in the natural resources sector.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy towards animal experimentation in the light of the recommendations and conclusions reached in the pamphlet, "The use of Non-Human Primates as Laboratory Animals in Great Britain", published jointly by the Fund for Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments and the Committee for the Reform of Animal Experimentation, a copy of which has been sent to him; and if he will make a statement.

The welfare of animals used for experimental or other scientific purposes is safeguarded by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, the main provisions of which came into force on 1 January this year. We shall give full and careful consideration to the proposals in the recent pamphlet on the use of non-human primates in research and in due course notify both the Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments and Committee for the Reform of Animal Experiments of our conclusions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what use his Department makes of British made recycled paper for letterhead stationery and notepads.

None. The price of the British-made recycled paper available from Her Majesty's Stationery Office, from which the Home Office obtains its supplies of stationery, is uncompetitive when compared with a general purpose woodfree paper of suitable quality.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to introduce automatic cameras to monitor observance of traffic lights by motorists, together with the appropriate procedures for the notification and charging of offenders.

The scope for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of road traffic law enforcement through the further use of technology, and any necessary legislative changes, is being considered by the Road Traffic Law Review. The review's report is expected later this year.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will estimate the annual cost to public funds of court time and other resources wasted by the failure of defendants to answer to their bail in courts in Greater London.

Information on which an estimate could be based is not centrally available and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases occur daily on average within the Metropolitan police area in which recognisances have been estreated for failure to answer to bail; and what is the average penalty thus imposed.

The information requested is not collected centrally.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many defendants in cases before courts in the Metropolitan police area are reported to the police as having failed to answer to their bail on average every day on which courts are sitting.

The information recorded centrally indicates that in the Metropolitan police area in 1985 about 13,000 persons failed to appear at magistrates' courts having been bailed either by the police or by the court.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for reports from the chief constables concerned about (a) the total cost of Myra Hindley's visit to Saddleworth Moor, (b) the breakdown of the number of officers from each force involved in the operation, namely Greater Manchester police, Lancashire constabulary, West Yorkshire police, Kent constabulary, and the Metropolitan police, (c) the cost of the overtime worked, (d) the cost of the helicopter that was used during the operation, (e) the cost of providing security for Myra Hindley and (f) the transport costs for the individual police forces involved.

I would refer the hon. Member to my previous answers on this matter on 12 January 1987, at column 64, and on 19 January 1987, at column 358. Police forces regularly assist each other in the conduct of criminal investigations and the total cost of such operations cannot readily be distinguished from the costs of other normal police work.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people seeking admission to the United Kingdom are currently being detained; and if he will list their nationalities and the establishments where they are being held.

On the night of 22–23 January 1987 the numbers were as follows:

Location and Nationality	Number detained
Harmondsworth
Sri Lanka	22
Iran	20
Ethiopia	4
Pakistan	3
Somalia	3
Ghana	2
India	2
Morocco	2
Singapore	2
Turkey	2
Algeria	1
Bangladesh	1
Chile	1
Gambia	1
Libya	1
Sierra Leone	1
Sudan	1
Uganda	1
Nationality Doubtful	3
Total	73
Heathrow, Queen's Building
Iran	4
Nigeria	3
Somalia	1
Pakistan	1
Tunisia	1
Total	10
Erlestoke YCC
Sri Lanka	41
Iran	11
Turkey	2
Chile	1
Colombia	1
India	1
Afghanistan	1
Total	58
Latchmere House Remand Centre
Sri Lanka	9
Pakistan	4
India	3
Turkey	2
Iran	1
Libya	1
Morocco	1
Total	21
Gatwick Detention Unit
Iran	3
Nigeria	3
Gambia	2
USA	2
South Africa	1
Total	11
Overall Total	173

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now reply to the letter sent to him on 17 November 1986 by the hon. Member for Gower regarding a constituent serving a two and a half year prison sentence.

My noble Friend the Earl of Caithness replied to the hon. Member's letter on 15 January.

Hughes asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what terms and conditions a list of overseas voters is available to political parties; and if any political party has been supplied with such a list.

There is no centrally maintained list of overseas electors.The electoral registration officer of each constituency is required to supply, on request and free of charge, four copies of the list of overseas electors for the constituency to a prospective candidate or to a person acting on his behalf, such copies may be requested at any time, but may not be supplied more than once. Information about the number of candidates so supplied is not recorded centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Holland asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will call for a report from the Metropolitan Police Commissioner as to how much alcohol Inspector Lovelock had been drinking within the time limits proscribed by Metropolitan police regulations before the search operation which led to the shooting of Mrs. Cherry Groce;(2) if he will call for a report from the Metropolitan Police Commissioner as to what hours had been worked by Inspector Lovelock on the day before the shooting of Mrs. Cherry Groce; and how many hours this constituted over and above a normal working day;(3) if he will call for a report from the Metropolitan Police Commissioner as to whether a shotgun recovered by police prior to the search operation which led to the shooting of Mrs. Cherry Groce was

The Police Complaints Authority has approved the proposal of the chief constable of Hertfordshire that nine Hertfordshire officers who were involved in the investigation of which the raid on Mrs. Groce's home formed part should be charged with disciplinary offences. Following Inspector Lovelock's trial, the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis will shortly submit proposals to the Police Complaints Authority on whether disciplinary charges should be brought against any of his officers. It would be wrong for me to intervene at this stage on matters which could be at issue in disciplinary proceedings.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on progress made towards obtaining a Europewide agreement on the confiscation of the assets of convicted drug traffickers.

Within the Council of Europe Pompidou Group proposals have been drawn up for a range of measures relating to the tracing, freezing and confiscation of the proceeds of drug trafficking which might be included in a multilateral agreement among European states. Ministers of the group of their meeting on 20–21 January decided that, while the group should continue to examine such problems as the enforcement in one country of court orders made in another, they would press for action within the United Nations towards a worldwide convention which would include provisions in this field.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will make a statement on progress made towards obtaining a Europewide agreement to stop and search ships suspected of carrying drugs;(2) if he will make a statement on progress made towards obtaining a Europewide agreement that any one country may stop and search ships suspected of carrying drugs without the consent of the flag state.

Substantial progress has been made within the Council of Europe's Pompidou Group on the preparation of a convention setting out the principles of legal co-operation in this area. Some work has also been done on the technical and operational measures which might be considered by future contracting parties for inclusion in bilateral agreements.The United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs will be examining next month a draft worldwide convention on drug trafficking which contains provisions aimed at the suppression of illicit traffic by sea.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on progress made towards controlling the supply of chemical substances, where it is believed amphetamines may be produced from them.

Within the United Kingdom good progress is being made through the collaborative efforts of the enforcement agencies to attack illicit manufacture and supply. At the international level, proposals have been included in the draft of a new United Nations convention on drug trafficking, which will be discussed at next month's session of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what occasions since June 1979 his Department had to (a) introduce amending legislation to legislation introduced since June 1979 because of doubts about legality or because such legislation had been successfully challenged in the courts and (b) amend or withdraw orders introduced since June 1979, because of doubts about legality or because such orders had been successfully challenged in the courts.

On the basis of the readily available information, I am not aware of any such primary legislation, but in 1985, following a decision of the European court of Human Rights, my right hon. and learned Friend, the then Home Secretary, introduced amending immigration rules to remove provisions which discriminated on grounds of sex. There have been several occasions in the period where primary or subordinate legislation has been amended because it had been found to contain a mistake or to produce an unitended result, but these were not occasions where there were doubts about legality or there had been a successful challenge in the courts.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his discussions on 22 January with the chief constable of Greater Manchester.

Mr. Anderton and representatives of the Greater Manchester police authority separately met senior officials of the Department and her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary on the afternoon of 21 January. A joint meeting will take place on 27 January.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the progress of the inquiry by the Avon and Somerset police concerning the complaint against Greater Manchester police following the visit of his predecessor as the Home Secretary, the right hon. and learned Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Brittan), to Manchester university.

I understand that the report of the inquiry is under consideration by the Director of Public Prosecutions, who has asked that certain further questions be asked of a small number of witnesses. A supplementary report will be forwarded to the Director shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans there are to extend the use of computers in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board particularly for the calculation of loss of earnings and other benefits.

A feasibility study has established the scope for automation of some routine aspects of the board's work. The Home Office is now carrying out a full study to identify the systems required. The calculation of loss of earnings and benefits is complex, and the board is examining whether any simplification of this function is possible before considering whether it can be automated.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will state for the next three financial years, at constant prices for England and Wales (a) the estimated amount to be paid to victims of violence under the criminal injuries compensation scheme, (b) the amount allocated to administration of the scheme and (c) the amount allocated to local victims support schemes giving in each case the estimated increase over 1986–87.

The table shows planned provision by the Home Office, adjusted to 1986–87 prices by the Treasury cash factor.

Planned Provision for Criminal Injuries Compensation and Victim Support, 1987–88 to 1989–90
£000s at 1986–87 prices
	1987–88	1988–89	1989–90
Criminal Injuries
(a) Compensation provision	60,700	61,800	66,600
Increase over 1986–871	24,900	26,000	30,800
(b) Administration provision	5,300	6,400	6,700
Increase over 1986–871	1,100	2,200	2,500
Victims support
(c) Local victims support schemes provision	2,000	2,900	3,800
Increase over 1986–871	1,900	2,800	3,700
1 Comparison with Budget estimate provision

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if, pursuant to the answer of 18 December, Official Report, column 645, he will specify the operators and the relevant authorities responsible for emergency arrangements in relation to the accident to a military convoy in Wiltshire on 10 January.

Emergency arrangements in relation to the accident on 10 January were the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the applications he has received for funding of posts under section I 1 of the Local Government Act 1966 since he issued draft revised administrative guidelines for section 11 grants on 26 March 1986; and if he will state, against each application, his reasons for not granting section 11 funding.

I shall reply as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there have been any recent successful prosecutions (a) in London and (b) elsewhere of drivers obstructing the flow of traffic on yellow cross-hatched box junctions.

The information requested is not available.Any such offences would not be recorded separately from other offences of neglect of traffic directions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to the severe financial restrictions the Greater Manchester fire and civil defence authority is facing on both revenue and capital accounts; what representations he has received on the matter; if he will now increase the authority's expenditure limit and capital allocation for 1987–88; and if he will make a statement.

[pursuant to his reply, 16 December 1986, c. 486]: As the right hon. Member is aware, for 1987–88 it is the Government's intention that the precept maxima for the joint fire and civil defence authorities including Greater Manchester should be determined on the basis of the formula in paragraph 2(a) of schedule 2 to the Local Government Finance Bill at present before the House. In the case of the Greater Manchester authority its precept maximum derived from the formula is 9·75p in the pound. The authority was informed of this on 13 January.The authority was informed of its 1987–88 capital allocation of £2.172 million by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment on 18 December 1986.We have received written representations from and have had meetings with the Greater Manchester fire and civil defence authority about these matters; and my hon. Friend the Minister of State. the Earl of Caithness, met a number of hon. Members on 12 January.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what European legislation regulates citizens band radio in the United Kingdom; what information he has as to frequencies used in the European Community for this purpose; when Her Majesty's Government intend to comply with such legislation; when he intends to authorise the use of AM single side-band; what representations he has received on this matter from (a) citizens band users in the United Kingdom, and (b) other European countries; and if he will make a statement.

I have been asked to reply.No European legislation regulates CB in the United Kingdom: the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 and its regulations are the appropriate United Kingdom legislation. There is, however, a European initiative to harmonise CB and the Conference of European Posts and Telecommunications has produced a recommendation T/R 20–02 which provides for a common frequency band at 26·965— 27·405 MHz. The Government hope to adopt this recommendation later this year.My Department has had no representations from other European countries, but does meet regularly with representatives of United Kingdom CB radio users and is aware of the desire of a few to use AM. My Department has no intention of authorising AM as it is more likely to cause interference to other users of radio than is the case with FM (frequency modulation) sets. The harmonised CEPT recommendation provides for FM only.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consider making representation to the Transport International Routier to change the rules that allow Russian and European lorries to cross the mainland European borders without Her Majesty's Customs and Excise inspection; and if he will make a statement.

I have been asked to reply.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise have no jurisdiction outside the United Kingdom.

asked the Paymaster General if he will give details of how an Inner London health authority is participating in the community programme; and if he will name the authority concerned.

The Tower Hamlets health authority, Wandsworth health authority and Newham district health authority all participate in the community programme.In Tower Hamlets, the health authority runs a small community programme agency which is based on Bethnal Green hospital. It operates four projects involving the design of posters and leaflets dealing with health topics, crafts for the disabled, and the landscaping of gardens. In Wandsworth, the health authority acts as an independent sponsor of a small gardening project, which is based at the Gardiner Hill unit of Springfield hospital. In Newham, the district health authority does not operate any projects itself but has decided it will refer potential projects to Interface, a voluntary agency which will operate projects on behalf of the health authority.

asked the Paymaster General what percentage of the places in the community programme are on schemes managed by local authorities.

On 12 December 1986, the latest date for which statistics are available, there were 247,607 community programme filled places on which 40·6 per cent. were managed by local authorities.

asked the Paymaster General what use his Department makes of British made recycled paper for letterhead stationery and notepads.

Supplies of letterhead stationery and notepads procured by the Department do not contain any British recycled paper. Recycled paper is substantially more expensive than general purpose paper.

asked the Paymaster General if he has any plans to introduce a statutory minimum number of 24 days annual work leave entitlement per year.

No. Conditions of employment including holidays entitlement are a matter for the parties concerned. Moreover, any statutory minimum holiday entitlement would place additional costs and burdens on employers and would he harmful to jobs.

asked the Paymaster General (1) what was the target date for completion of (a) Bolton jobcentre and (b) jobcentres in the north-west region; what stage computerisation has now reached in (i) Bolton and (ii) the north-west region; what are the new target dates for completion; and if he will make a statement;(2) how many jobs are likely to be saved by the introduction of computerisation at

I shall reply to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.

asked the Paymaster General how many women, with children under the age of one year, are in receipt of unemployment benefit.

The information is not available in the precise form requested. Analysis of the labour force survey for the spring of 1985 suggests that in Great Britain there were of the order of 100,000 women with children aged under one year who were claiming unemployment benefit, or supplementary allowances or national insurance credits as an unemployed person at an unemployment benefit office.

asked the Paymaster General if he will publish in the Official Report a table giving for the Norwich, North constituency (a) the population and (b) the number of unemployed as at (i) 1 January and (ii) 1 July for each year from 1974 to date.

Following is the available information, which is also in the library. The only source of information on the population in parliamentary constituencies is the decennial census of population. The 1981 census of population identified a population of 82,144 present on census night in Norwich, North.The following table shows the numbers of unemployed claimants in the parliamentary constituency of Norwich, North on count dates closest to 1 January and 1 July. The comparison is affected by the change in the compilation of the unemployment statistics in March 1986. Statistics of unemployment for parliamentary constituencies are derived from the ward-based system and are available only from June 1983.

	Number
14 July 1983	3,412
12 January 1984	3,565
12 July 1984	3,483
10 January 1985	3,833
11 July 1985	3,810
9 January 1986	4,210
10 July 1986	3,964