asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his answer of 17 March, Official Report, column 471, about computer usage in schools, what steps are taken by his Department to monitor the results of spending on computers in schools; how he measures the performance of different schools; and what recent representations he has received from Her Majesty's inspectors on this subject.

The Department undertook a survey in 1985 on the use of computers in schools and related expenditure, copies of which are in the Library. A further survey is planned for this autumn, and thereafter at biennial intervals. Whilst the Department has riot undertaken systematic performance measurements of individual schools in the field of information technology, reports by Her Majesty's inspectorate often include observations on this.

£000
Science Budget Grant-in-Aid	1983–84	1984–85	1985–86	1986–87
General (net of receipts)	1,357	1,373	1,471	1,440
Pensions (net of receipts)	154	85	104	177
Transfer of Centre for Cullure of Algae and Protozoa (CCAP) (net of receipts)	—	—	—	338
Total Grant-in-Aid	1,511	1,458	1,575	1,955

The grant-in-aid from the science budget for 1987–88 has yet to be finally decided but it is expected to be about £1,508,000 made up as follows:

£000
	Science Budget Grant-in-Aid
	General (net of receipts)	1,310
	Pensions (net of receipts)	123
	Transfer of CCAP (net of receipts)	75
	Total Grant-in-Aid	1,508

The FBA council has recently made proposals to the NERC as to how the reduction in total income, arising largely from lower expected commissioned receipts, may be met. Representatives of the NERC and the FBA are to meet shortly to discuss these proposals.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement about the nature and scale of research related to multiple sclerosis supported by public funds.

The Medical Research Council is the main Government agency for the support of biomedical research. I understand that the council is supporting a number of research projects on multiple sclerosis, including both basic work on the nature of the disease and clinical studies of its treatment. In the financial year 1985–86, the last year for which figures are available, the council spent £403,000 on research into multiple sclerosis. The council is always willing to consider soundly based research grant applications in competition with other applicants.I understand that research into multiple sclerosis is also carried out in universities and medical schools using funds for teaching and research allocated on advice from the University Grants Committee. The Government are not in a position to influence directly the scale and nature of this research activity.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what changes have been made in the funds granted to the Freshwater Fisheries Biological Association through the Natural Environment Research Council; and if he will make a statement.

The funds granted to the FBA through the NERC for the last four years have been as follows:

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if there are any plans for a programme of research into the treatment and cure of hay fever; and if he will make a statement.

The Medical Research Council is the main Government agency for the support of biomedical research. In the financial year 1985–86, the last year for which figures are available, the Council spent approximately £616,000 on research projects directly and indirectly related to hay fever. The council is always willing to consider soundly based research grant applications in competition with other applicants.Research into hay fever may also be carried out in universities and medical schools using funds for teaching and research allocated on advice from the University Grants Committee. The Government are not in a position to influence directly the scale and nature of this research activity.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he has received any recent representations from teachers, parents or pupils in Hertfordshire regarding the current dispute; and if he will make a statement.

My Department has received letters expressing a variety of views about teachers' pay and conditions of employment from teachers, parents and pupils in a range of local education authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the appropriate cost of educating a secondary school pupil in inner and outer London; and what is the approximate grant provided by Government to cover those costs.

The net recurrent expenditure per secondary school pupil in ILEA and the average for the outer London boroughs in 1984–85 were £1,940 and £1,250 respectively. Most Government support for local authority education is provided through the block grant element of rate support grant, which is an unhypothecated grant in support of all services. It is not possible to identify a particular element as being in support of secondary education.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will break down the pupil-teacher ratio given in table 3.12.4 of the public expenditure White Paper between primary and secondary schools.

Pupil-teacher ratios within maintained primary and secondary schools in England each year from 1982 to 1986 are given in the table. These figures differ from the overall pupil-teacher ratios given in table 3.12.4 of the public expenditure White Paper as they include qualified teachers only and exclude teachers employed by LEAs who were not in schools on the census day. Projections for future years are not available. The Government's expenditure plans assume a continuing improvement in the overall pupil-teacher ratio up to 1990 in order to give effect to their policies for the schools. The plans do not consider how this improvement might be reflected in pupil-teacher ratios within the primary and secondary sectors. The Government look to local authorities and schools to take advantage of the improved overall pupil-teacher ratio by employing teaching staff to the greatest benefit of the pupils.

January each year	Pupil/teacher ratios within schools
	Primary	Secondary
1982	22·5	16·6
1983	22·3	16·5
1984	22·1	16·2
1985	22·2	16·1
1986	22·1	15·9

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what complaints he has received under section 46 of the Education (No.2) Act 1986 about the booklet concerning homosexuality entitled "Outlaws in the Classroom" which is being circulated by some teachers in schools in the Leicester area; what action he proposes to take; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has today received correspondence from my hon. Friend concerning this booklet. He is giving careful consideration to the points raised and will write to him in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will reconsider the criteria for closure of secondary schools in rural areas with a view to varying the guidelines on minimum size.

The advice in the draft circular "Providing for Quality" on the desirable minimum sizes of different types of school is not intended to be interpreted as narrowly prescriptive. It makes it clear that, for geographical and other reasons, it might not always be possible to bring all schools up to the recommended sizes. My right hon. Friend is currently considering the draft circular in the light of various comments made on it.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what specific areas of the Central Electricity Generating Board safety case for Sizewell B have yet to be fully accepted for licensing purposes by the Nuclear Installions Inspectorate.

My right hon. Friend informed the House in his statement of 12 March, at columns 475–7, that the NII judges that there are no safety obstacles of substance to the issue of the licence. The NII are now finalising the drafting of the pre-construction safety report with the Central Electricity Generating Board.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy; further to his statement on 12 March, Official Report, columns 475–77, if he intends to publish in full the final pre-construction safety report and the final safety review as soon as they are available, as recommended by Sir Frank Layfield in the Sizewell B inquiry report.

My right hon. Friend accepted this recommendation in principle in his letter of 12 March 1987 to the chairman of the CEGB giving his consent to the station. He urged the CEGB to publish these reports insofar as it can do so within the constraints of commercial sensitivity, as soon as possible after it has submitted them to the NII. My right hon. Friend has placed a copy of his letter in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy (1) if he will list by year and location the urban and non-urban power station sites owned by the Central Electricity Generating Board which were sold between 1979 and 1985;(2) if he will list by location the urban and non-urban power station sites owned by the Central Electricity Generating Board which were sold in 1986;

The sale of power station sites in England and Wales is the responsibility of the Central Electricity Generating Board. I have asked the chairman to write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what the annual expenditure by his Department for renewable sources of energy has been for the period 1979 to 1986.

Expenditure on my Department's programme for research, development and demonstration into renewable sources of energy during the period 1979 to 1986 including external contributions is set out in the table:

	£ million
1979–80	8·9
1980–81	12·3
1981–82	19·2
1982–83	17·9
1983–84	13·7
1984–85	18·2
1985–86	15·3

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the estimated advertising and promotional expenditure for energy efficiency and renewable sources of energy by his Department for 1987.

Estimated expenditure for the current financial year is £7,580,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the annual advertising and promotional expenditure for energy efficiency by his Department, British Gas, the Central Electricity Generating Board, the Electricity Council and British Coal for the period 1979 to 1986.

Expenditure by the Department of Energy is as follows:

	£
1979–80	73,000
1980–81	40,000
1981–82	74,000
1982–83	511,000
1983–84	1,827,000
1984–85	7,961,000
1985–86	12,132,000

Advertising and promotional expenditure on energy efficiency by the industries referred to is decided by the boards of those industries. I have therefore asked the chairmen of the industries concerned to write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the annual advertising and promotional expenditure for nuclear power by his Department, the Central Electricity Generating Board, the Electricity Council, British Nuclear Fuels Ltd., the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and the South of Scotland Electricity Board for the period 1979 to 1986.

Advertising and promotion by the CEGB, the Electricity Council, BNFL and the SSEB fall within the commercial responsibilities of these organisations, and I have asked the chairmen to write to the hon. Member.The Government fund a public information programme about civil nuclear power carried out by the UKAEA. Expenditure in the current year is expected to be about £2·5 million. I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for Meirionnyd Nant Conwy (Mr. Thomas) on 26 June 1986 at column 270, in which I gave details of expenditure in previous years.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what are the current estimated costs in 1986 prices for a commercial demonstration fast breeder reactor.

No commercial demonstration fast reactor has been built in the United Kingdom. The capital cost of such a station would depend upon the design, the time of the order, and other factors.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy what information he has as to how many claims have been made against British Gas for compensation for personal injury or damage to property in the event of gas explosions; and how many were settled in the claimants' favour.

I have asked the chairman of British Gas to write to the hon. Member.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what official visitors from Paraguay have been received, by the Government since 1979.

The following Paraguayan Ministers have visited the United Kingdom between 1979 and April 1987 in an official capacity:

• Dr. Ugarte Centurion, Minister for Industry and Commerce, May 1980 and April 1983;
• Dr. Nogues, Foreign Minister, June 1981;
• Dr. Saldivar, Foreign Minister, March 1986.

A number of other Paraguayans, including officials, parliamentarians, businessmen, lawyers and journalists, have visited the United Kingdom under the FCO sponsored visits scheme.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish up-to-date figures indicating in numerical order, the number of unpaid parking fines incurred by each diplomatic mission in the last quarter for which figures are available; if he will publish, in alphabetical order by country, the number of unpaid parking fines incurred by each diplomatic mission in the last two years; and if he will make a statement.

The information requested by my hon. Friend is given in the tables. the tables also include those international organisations which have incurred unpaid fines. The figures may be reduced by late payments.The annual total for 1986 (23,237) is only 21 per cent. of the total for 1984 (108,932). We welcome this very significant reduction, and expect it to continue in the future. We shall continue to take firm action against the worst offenders, and will also be writing to those few missions which showed a significant increase in the number of unpaid fines in 1986 over 1985.

Fixed penalty notices cancelled on grounds of diplomatic immunity (Metropolitan Police District)
Organisation/Country	1985	1986
Afghanistan	20	14
Algeria	939	254
Antigua and Barbuda	0	0
Australia	0	0
Austria	46	30
Bahamas	13	6
Bahrain	621	20
Bangladesh	242	200
Barbados	203	264
Belgium	51	55
Bolivia	19	5
Botswana	15	17
Brazil	1,558	184
Brunei	163	147
Bulgaria	1,932	253
Burma	306	93
Cameroon	952	586
Canada	232	153
Chile	301	118
China	763	815
Colombia	197	29
Costa Rica	376	40
Cote d'Ivoire	393	199
Cuba	1,018	59
Cyprus	782	90
Czechoslovakia	138	56
Denmark	1	3
Dominica	0	3
Eastern Caribbean	19	15
Ecuador	144	60
Egypt	3,618	810
E1 Salvador	11	28
Ethiopia	184	79
Fiji	59	35
Finland	327	201
France	1,390	1,039
Gabon	195	139
Gambia	274	152
German Democratic Republic	329	242
German Federal Republic	132	139
Ghana	1,216	370
Greece	973	323
Grenada	2	0
Guyana	137	42
Holy See	0	0
Honduras	298	21
Hungary	955	100
Iceland	91	48

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report a statement on the outcome of the Foreign Affairs Council held on 26–27 April.

I attended the Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg on 26 and 27 April.The Council held a first discussion of the Commission's proposals for the future financing of the Community. I stressed that the root of the Community's financial difficulties lay in failure to control agricultural production, and that addressing that problem and improving the control of Community expenditure must therefore be the key elements in the lasting solution which we all want. Further discussion will take place at the May ECOFIN and Foreign Affairs Councils.The Council agreed on a mandate for the Commission to open negotiations with Hungary on a possible agreement on trade and economic cooperation. Negotiations are expected to begin in the near future.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what were the numbers of out-patient attendances in National Health Service hospitals in Wales (a) in the years 1970 to 1975, (b) in the years 1975 to 1980 and (c) in the years 1980 to 1985.

The required information is given in the following table:—

Period1	Total Number of New Outpatient Attendances	Total Number of All Outpatient Attendances
1970–75	2,596,547	10,127,072
1975–80	2,574,214	10,579,694
1980–85	2,788,833	12,204,851
1 (six years inclusive).

asked the Secretary of State for Wales, what were the numbers of inpatients treated in National Health Service hospitals in Wales in (a) the years 1970 to 1975, (b) the years 1975 to 1980 and (c) the years 1980 to 1985.

The required information is given in the following table:—

Period1	Total Number of In-Patient Discharges and Deaths
1970–75	1,937,204
1975–80	2,067,101
1980–85	2,343,250
1 (six years inclusive)

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what were the numbers of available beds in National Health hospitals in Wales in (a) the years 1970 to 1975, (b) the years 1975 to 1980 and (c) the years 1980 to 1985.

The required information is given in the following table:—

Period1	Average Daily Number of Available Beds
1970–75	25,268
1975–80	23,779
1980–85	22,583
1(six years inclusive)

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what was the total expenditure on the National Health Service in Wales in the years (a) 1970 to 1975, (b) 1975 to 1980 and (c) 1980 to 1985, expressed in actual and in real terms.

The following table sets out the information requested for each year since 1974–75.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what was the recurring revenue allocation to the National Health Service in Wales (a) in the years 1970 to 1975, (b) in the years 1975 to 1980 and (c) in the years 1980 to 1985, expressed in actual and in real terms.

The information available is set out in the following table:

Net Revenue Expenditure on ihe National Health Service
£ million
	Actual Expenditure	2 Real Terms
11974–75	187·3	634·7
1975–76	250·7	676·0
1976–77	289·0	688·4
1977–78	326·0	681·8
1978–79	374·8	708·3
1979–80	441·6	714·1
1980–81	567·7	773·9
1981–82	642·1	797·0
1982–83	705·3	816·3
1983–84	747·9	828·7
1984–85	809·8	860·3
1985–86	865·9	865·9
1 The information requested is not available prior to 1974–75.
2 Expenditure figures revalued to 1985–86 prices using the GDP deflator.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what was the total cost of providing the renal dialysis unit at Bangor, Gwynedd;(2) how much was his Department's contribution to the renal dialysis unit at Bangor.

The capital cost of providing this unit was met by the company providing the service and the information requested is not held by the Department. The Department pays the charge levied by the company in respect of each dialysis session.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what was the total cost of providing the renal dialysis unit at Carmarthen, Dyfed;(2) how much was his Department's contribution to the renal dialysis unit at Carmarthen.

The capital cost of providing this unit was met by the company providing the service and the information requested is not held by the Department. The Department pays the charge levied by the company in respect of each dialysis session.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what was the total cost of providing the renal dialysis unit at Swansea, West Glamorgan;(2) how much was his Department's contribution to the renal dialysis unit at Swansea.

The total capital cost of providing the renal dialysis unit at Morriston hospital, Swansea was £561,000, all of which was provided by the Department.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what was the total cost of providing the medical genetics centre at Cardiff;(2) what was his Department's contribution to the medical genetics centre at Cardiff.

The total capital cost of providing the medical genetics centre at Cardiff is £1,168,000, of which the Welsh Office contribution is £868,000.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales when he proposes to lay the Rate Limitation (Designation of Authorities) (Exemption) (Wales) Order relating to the totals of relevant expenditure included in the Welsh rate support grant reports for 1986–87 and 1987–88.

The passage of the Local Government Finance Act 1987 has clarified the definition of total and relevant expenditure and enables me to make these orders. I propose to lay the first order shortly. The second order will be laid as soon as practicable thereafter. No local authority in Wales is subject to rate limitation in either 1986–87 or 1987–88.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will receive a deputation from the Lucas factory at Ystradgynlais in South Wales to discuss the proposed redundancies at the plant; and if he will make a statement;(2) what measures he proposes to take to stimulate new employment in the Ystradgynlais area in the light of the redundancies proposed at the Lucas plant; and if he will make a statement.

No redundancies have been announced at the Lucas Electrical factory at Ystradgynlais. All involved are working actively on possibilities to maintain employment. A meeting would not be appropriate. Mid Wales Development and my own Department are continually working to stimulate new employment in the area. I was particularly pleased to see the recent announcement by Clifford Williams and Son Ltd. of plans to double their work force at Ystradgynlais to 200 by the end of next year.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will provide a breakdown of expenditure to date relating to the costs in Wales of the Chernobyl accident in the following categories (i) farmers' compensation schemes, (ii) additional equipment purchased for monitoring purposes, (iii) additional staff time spent on radiation monitoring and administering the compensation scheme for farmers and (iv) additional staff time spent on informing the public on the Chernobyl accident and its effects.

The available information, at 28 April 1987, is as follows:

i. £2·64million.

ii. Approximately £75,500 for the purchase of live monitoring equipment and for paint used in connection with the mark and release scheme. In addition approximately £240,000 has been spent on purchasing sheep for sampling purposes and in meeting the costs of the laboratory analysis to establish their levels of radiocaesium.

iii and iv. The information is not available in the form required.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many companies in Wales received the Queen's award (a) between 1975 and 1980 and (b) between 1980 and the latest available date; and if he will make a statement.

Welsh Office records show that the numbers of companies with factories in Wales which received the Queen's awards for exporting or technological achievement were as follows:

	Number
1975–80	22
1980–87	29

This double-counts the four awards in 1980.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will take the appropriate steps to investigate the financial operation of the YTS scheme administered by the Development Board for Rural Wales; why the scheme is to be transferred to the Mid Wales training unit; and if he will arrange for an independent audit into the scheme covering the period 1983 to 1987.

[pursuant to his reply, 9 April, c. 375]: Adequate audit arrangements already exist and I know of no reason for further financial investigation of the scheme. Any transfer to a new management would require the approval of the Manpower Services Commission, which has received no request for such approval.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales how many new council houses were built in the financial year 1978–79 in (a) Wales and (b) Neath, respectively; and what was the corresponding position in the financial year 1986–87.

[pursuant to his reply, 27 April]: The numbers of local authority dwellings completed in Wales in 1978–79 and 1986–87, (including completions by new town corporations), were 3,869 and 828 respectively. The corresponding figures for Neath are 137 and 28.

asked the Prime Minister if she raised the subject of unitary taxation at her meeting with the Governor of California on Thursday 9 April; and if she will make a statement.

The matter was discussed. I welcomed the progress which California had made, but said that we hoped the further steps needed to meet our concern would also be taken.

asked the Prime Minister what steps are taken to ensure that Ministers have sufficient contact with the Data Protection Registrar during the design stage of major Government computer projects which process large volumes of personal data.

Civil Servants in Great Britain
1 January dates	Full-time	1Part-time	Total Civil Service as a percentage of
			2(i) the employed labour force	3(ii) working population
1970	686,600	28,100	2·9	2·9
1971	690,100	26,200	3·0	2·9
1972	688,100	27,600	3·0	2·9
1973	679,900	25,500	2·9	2·8
1974	680,800	27,100	2·9	2·8
1975	679,500	28,800	2·9	2·8
1976	729,200	31,800	3·1	3·0
1977	730,600	31,100	3·1	3·0
1978	722,900	30,100	3·1	2·9
1979	718,400	29,600	3·0	2·9
1980	693,200	28,800	2·9	2·8
1981	681,400	27,300	2·9	2·7
1982	662,800	25,200	2·9	2·6
1983	641,200	22,700	2·9	2·5
1984	622,000	21,200	2·8	2·4
1985	608,900	21,300	2·6	2·3
1986	584,200	24,700	2·5	2·2
1987	585,700	27,500	2·5	2·2
1 Part-time staff are shown as whole units and are treated as such in the calculation of the column of percentages. The more usual practice for Civil Service manpower counts and targets is to treat them as half units.
2 Figures for the employed labour force include employees, the self-employed and members of Her Majesty's Forces but exclude the unemployed. For all years Department of Employment estimates for the previous mid-December dates have been used.
3 Figures for the working population represent the employed labour force plus the unemployed. Estimates for the previous mid-December dates have been used.

asked the Prime Minister what has been the outcome of the examination of statements made by certain persons alleged to have been involved in war crimes following their arrival in the United Kingdom and subsequently when applying for citizenship.

Last month, my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary invited the Simon Wiesenthal Centre to supply the evidence on which its list of alleged war criminals was based. Until this evidence is available to us,

Under section 38 of the Data Protection Act 1984, each Government Department is treated as separate from any other Government Department. It is accordingly for individual Ministers to decide how much contact they need to make with the Data Protection Registrar at the design stage of major computer projects for their department. The Data Protection Registrar welcomes close contacts with Departments in these matters at an early stage.

asked the Prime Minister if she will publish in the Official Report the total numbers of full and part-time civil servants employed in each year since 1970 up to the most recent date for which figures are available, indicating in percentage terms the proportion that each figure represents of the total working population; and if she will make a statement.

The figures are as in the following table:it will not be possible to tell whether it calls into question the truth of the statements to which the right hon. Member refers.

asked the Prime Minister what policy steps she intends to take to counteract the increasing violence and deaths caused by republican terrorism in Northern Ireland since 1 January; and if she will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has already reviewed the present security situation with his advisers, including the Chief Constable and the General Officer Commanding and is urgently considering what further measures and resources may be necessary to reinforce the campaign against terrorism in Northern Ireland.

asked the Paymaster General what are the latest figures for the number of people who have had their claims for unemployment benefit suspended since the availability for work tests were introduced in (a) South Humberside, (b) Lincolnshire and (c) each unemployment office in these two areas.

Under long-standing legal rules adopted by successive Governments, it has always been the practice that, wherever a doubt arises as to whether a benefit claimant is available for work, payments are suspended until the independent statutory adjudicating authorities decide entitlement. Those rules have not been changed in recent years.

asked the Paymaster General if he will set out the number of applicants waiting for each of the courses offered at the Deptford skillcentre at the most recent convenient date, together with the estimated waiting period in each case.

The waiting period for skillcentre courses can vary depending on the length of the course, which can range from two to 52 weeks, and on whether it recruits as vacancies become available or by block entry, for example to meet particular examination dates set by external bodies. The latest available information for courses running at Deptford skillcentre in 1987–88 is as follows:

Class	Number on waiting list at 24 April	Estimated waiting period (months)
Bricklaying	28	8
Carpentry	60	12
Commercial Technology	36	3
Commercial Technology (Intermediate)	7	2
Group Electronics	9	5
Kitchen Fitting	15	5
Office Machinery	20	5
Painting and Decorating	50	12
Plastering	43	5
Plumbing	4	1
Screen Process Printing	26	7
Work Related Skills (Commercial)	47	4
Work Related Skills (Manual)	16	4
1 This course requires a block entry of 12 trainees, so the waiting period cannot be estimated.

In addition to these, Deptford Skillcentre has been accepted as a managing agent for the new job training scheme, for which it expects an annual throughput of 1,200 trainees. Recruitment for the new scheme has just begun.

asked the Paymaster General whether he will publish in the Official Report the number of employees covered by each column in tables 18.7 to 18.11 of the Monthly Digest of Statistics.

For industries within manufacturing industry at September 1986, the available information on the number of manual employees corresponding to tables 18.7 to 18.9 of the "Monthly Digest of Statistics" is shown in Table 1.10 of Employment Gazette, December 1986, a copy of which is in the Library.Employment estimates for the nearest comparable industry groupings to those shown for the average earnings index in tables 18.10 and 18.11 of the "Monthly Digest of Statistics", at December 1986, are as follows:

Employees in Employment in Great Britain December 1986
	Division, Class or Group of SIC (80)	Number of employees in employment (thousands)
	0–9	21,270
	2–4	5,152
	1–4	5,666
	01–03	313
	11–14	216
	15–17	298
	21–24	434
	25–26	343
	32	705
	33–34	630
	35	249
	36	274
	31, 37	394
	41–42	551
	43	251
	44–45	331
	46	217
	47	476
	48–49	296
	50	1007
	61–65, 67	3,301
	66	1,018
	71–72, 75–77, 79	1,313
	81–82, 83, 84	2,046
	91,921	1,699
	93,95	2,941
	97–98	656

Some of these estimates are subject to considerable estimation error due to the small number of employees in the industries concerned.

asked the Paymaster General if he will place copies of the Manpower Services Commission internal memorandum concerning the withdrawal of funds from the unemployed resource centres in the Library; and if he will make a statement.

The Manpower Services Commission has no internal memorandum on the withdrawal of funding from centres for the unemployed. All applications for the renewal of community programme projects, including those from centres for the unemployed, must meet normal community programme criteria.

asked the Paymaster General if he will list the contracts, with the subject of the assignment, awarded to management consultancy or accounting firms by his Department in 1986, with the name of the consultants concerned.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Beaconsfield (Mr. Smith) on 18 February at column 611.

asked the Paymaster General, pursuant to his answer of 10 April, Official Report, column 434, when he expects to be able to provide the relevant information on the job training scheme; and if he will consider publishing it in the Official Report.

The Manpower Services Commission expects its area offices to have signed contracts with all new job training scheme managing agents by the end of May. Full details should be available at its head office by mid-June.I will write to the hon. Member as soon as these details are available and place a copy of my letter in the Library.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he next plans to meet the Trades Union Congress textile committee to discuss the future of the textile and clothing industries.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply to a similar question of his on 10 December last. I have no plans at present to meet the Trades Union Congress textile committee.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the number of computers paid for by his Department in schools.

Yes, Sir. My Department has made excellent progress towards the Government's objective of introducing and encouraging the use of computers in schools.Since 1981, my Department's help towards the purchase of computers and related equipment by schools has included: Three Microcomputer in Schools schemes (June 1981-December 1984) whereby a total of £15·1 million was spent on providing 6,514 secondary schools and 27,407 primary schools with a half-price micro system plus monitor; in March of this year, a grant of £3·5 million allocated to local education authorities and the independent sector, which resulted in the purchase of over 2,000 computers in addition to other peripheral IT equipment. Assistance to enhance the capabilities of existing computers has included: the Support for Educational Software scheme with £3·5 million funding over three years (1985–86 to 1987–88) which encourages the purchase of additional software; and in March 1986 the Modems in Schools scheme, under which every middle and secondary school received a free modem to give them access to national databases.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on Government support for Airbus.

Discussions with British Aerospace about its combined application for launch aid in respect of the Airbus A330 and A340 projects are continuing. We aim to reach a decision as soon as possible and an announcement to the House will be made thereafter.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action he has taken on information so Far received from the inspectors appointed by him to inquire into insider dealing at the Department of Trade and Industry.

I have received no information from the inspectors which calls for action on my part.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what evidence is available to him that other steel producers in the European Economic Community are receiving state subsidies for steel production.

None. Almost all forms of state aid for steel have been banned since 1 January 1986 by unanimous decision of the Council of Ministers, and with my encouragement the Commission has been keeping a vigilant watch since then.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he has any plans to review the current criteria for regional aid; and if he will make a statement.

I have no such plans.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress he has achieved in securing wider access for British exports to the Japanese market.