To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportions of undergraduates in engineering, physics and mathematics are women.

The information is as follows:

Full-time United Kingdom domiciled undergraduates at universities in Great Britain
	Per cent women
1986
Physics	16
Mathematical sciences1	25
of which Mathematics	32
Engineering and technology	10
1 Includes Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Studies.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he has any further proposals to ensure that standards of teaching are adequately assessed: and if he will make a statement.

The intended outcome of pilot work on teacher appraisal in six authorities is a proven set of guidelines which will form the basis of an agreed national framework. The implementation of that framework should lead to a system which will both enhance career development for teachers and raise standards of teaching in our schools.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he will reply to Councillor Mrs. P. M. Lea, chair of Salford education committee, who wrote to him on 30 November 1987 about Salford's family partnership scheme.

I very much regret that councillor Mrs. Lea's letter was mislaid within the Department. A copy has been obtained, and I have replied to her today.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the current level of the United Kingdom contributions to CERN.

The United Kingdom subscription to the CERN budget in 1988 is 128·2 million Swiss francs (about £52 million); this represents 16·8 per cent. of the organisation's total budget.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will now authorise payment of the £39,086·84 to the Exeter Diocesan education committee in respect of Roborough (Bickleigh Down) Church of England primary school, a claim for which was submitted on 20 February 1987.

This sum was paid to the diocese's bank account on 22 February 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the provision he is making for research in materials science.

The Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) is currently funding materials science research in a wide range of academic departments. Present total expenditure on grants, studentships and facilities is just over £30 million. The council will shortly be considering the results of a recently completed review of this support.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science which education authorities have decided not to recognise normal pay increments when employing supply teachers.

The school teachers' pay and conditions document 1987 gave local education authorities greater flexibility in the payments they make to supply teachers, including the possibility of adopting a standard rate for all such teachers. It is for each LEA to decide how to use this flexibility: no information is held centrally about the policies of individual authorities on payments to supply teachers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions Her Majesty's ambassador to Panama has had with the Government of Panama covering the Panama canal treaty.

Her Majesty's ambassador in Panama has had no discussions with the Government of Panama on the Panama canal treaty between the United States and Panama.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contact Her Majesty's ambassador to E1 Salvador has had with human rights, trade unions and non-government parties since 1986.

As part of their normal duties, Her Majesty's diplomatic staff accredited to E1 Salvador maintain regular contact with human rights and other organisations including political parties and trade unions.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been received from any Pacific Government concerning the 1988 RIMPAC exercises.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contacts there have been with the Government of Argentina to discuss the Falklands in the past year.

Following my right hon. and learned Friend's statement in the House on 29 October 1986 we received some informal ideas from the Argentines, via the United States Government, which relate exclusively to the co-ordination and the avoidance of incidents in the south-west Atlantic. We replied using the same channel. The exchange continues.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visits to prisons Her Majesty's ambassador to Chile has made in the past year.

The honorary British consul in Concepcion made several visits to one British prisoner, who has since been released on bail. There have been no other British citizens in prison in Chile during the past year. Her Majesty's embassy staff have no consular standing to visit imprisoned Chileans.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what meetings Her Majesty's ambassador has had with human rights, trade unions and opposition parties in Chile in the last year.

Her Majesty's ambassador in Chile and his staff have had numerous meetings with human rights groups, trade union representatives and opposition parties during the past year. A full list is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he is now able to state on what passports the Irish Republican Army terrorists shot in Gibraltar were travelling and in whose names; in what nationality the additional passports were found; and whether any other passports were found.

Two British passports in the names of Robert Wilfred Riley and Catherine Alison Harper (amended to Mrs. Smith) and one passport, believed to be Irish, in the name of Brendan Coyne, were found on the bodies. Two Irish passports in the names of John Samuel Miller and Mary Johnston and one British passport in the name of Edward McArdle were found in a Ford Fiesta car found on the Spanish side of the border. No information is yet available on other passports.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his latest estimate of the chemical weapon capacity of Iraq.

Iraq's use of chemical weapons against Iranian forces has been confirmed by several United Nations reports since March 1984. We believe that Iraq has a capacity to manufacture chemical weapons and is capable of using such weapons effectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his latest estimate of the chemical weapon capacity of the Soviet Union.

As my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence told the House on 10 November 1987, the Soviet Union commands the world's largest and most sophisticated chemical warfare capability. It has produced and stockpiled a wide variety of chemical agents and munitions, and has a massive tonnage of nerve agent alone. In December last year the Soviet Union declared that the size of its chemical weapons stockpile was 50,000 tons. This figure is substantially lower than western estimates.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has on the number and nature of notification made since May 1979 by (i) by the Federal Republic of Germany and (ii) France to the European Commission under Euratom treaty articles 103 and 104, regarding draft contracts for exports of nuclear technology and materials to non-European Economic Community member states.

The information requested is not readily available, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Information is provided directly by individual member states to the Commission and we would not normally be informed of agreements or contracts involving other member states.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his latest estimate of the chemical weapons capacity of the United States.

As my hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces told the House on 3 December 1987, it would be inappropriate to comment in detail on the defence capabilities of an ally. As is well known, the United States has a limited and aging retaliatory chemical weapons capability which it is in the process of modernising.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will seek to obtain for his departmental library a copy of "Nuclear Rivals in the Middle East" by Shyam Bhatia published by Routledge in March.

Yes; the book has already been ordered.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he possesses concerning the Amirabad nuclear complex near Tehran in terms of its technical capacity to assist in nuclear weapons production.

I assume the hon. Member is referring to the Tehran university nuclear centre which is sited in Amirabad. The centre possesses a research reactor which was designed for the production of medical isotopes. Iran has signed the non-proliferation treaty and has placed all her nuclear materials under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. We have no evidence to suggest that these are being circumvented.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has on the case of Miss Elena Gurevich in the Soviet Union; and if he will make a statement.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon, South (Mr. Marshall) on 10 March at column 289.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his latest information on the case of Mr. Raoul Wallenberg; and if he will make a statement.

The Soviet authorities have maintained since 1957 that Mr. Wallenberg died in prison in 1947. There have been reports over the years suggesting that Mr. Wallenberg may have been alive and in prison in the Soviet Union considerably later than 1947, but these accounts were never confirmed. We have frequently pressed the Soviet Union for a full account of the fate of Mr. Wallenberg, including, if he did indeed die in 1947, a detailed statement of the manner in which he died. The Soviet authorities have not so far provided adequate information.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will raise the case of Mr. Raoul Wallenberg with the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics; and if he will make a statement.

We have pressed the Soviet authorities on a number of occasions to give a full and frank account of the fate of Raoul Wallenberg and they are well aware of our views in this case.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures Her Majesty's Government are taking to monitor on behalf of the United Nations the oil embargo on South Africa.

None, since we voted against the United Nations General Assembly resolution establishing the monitoring group. However, our own guidelines, which exclude the export of United Kingdom continental shelf crude oil to South Africa, are effective.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's policy towards dealing with the removal of disparities in the conventional forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and the Warsaw pact in separate arms control negotiations, before any agreement has been reached on the elimination of chemical weapons.

Our policy in the conventional arms control field was set out in the statement issued at the NATO summit on 2 March, a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House. Negotiations on the global elimination of chemical weapons are being pursued separately at the conference on disarmament in Geneva. They have made progress, but many complex issues remain to be resolved.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether there are any categories of nuclear weapons in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation which cannot be subject to total elimination in disarmament negotiations: and if he will make a statement.

The recent NATO summit on 2–3 March confirmed that for the foreseeable future there is no alternative to the Alliance strategy of deterrence based upon an appropriate mix of adequate and effective nuclear and conventional forces, which will continue to be kept up to date where necessary. NATO's immediate arms control priorities are for 50 per cent. cuts in the strategic offensive weapons of the United States and Soviet Union, the conclusion of a global and verifiable chemical weapons ban, and the elimination of the conventional imbalance between NATO and the Warsaw pact in Europe.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations he has received from hon. Members in each of the last five years to date concerning entry clearance into the United Kingdom; and how many representations he has received from hon. Members since five countries became subject to visa control in 1986.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers have received representations from hon. Members concerning entry clearance into the United Kingdom during the past five years as follows:

	Entry Clearance
1983	1,105
1984	1,472
1985	1,753
1986	2,183
1987	3,467

Records of representations received relating specifically to applicants from the five countries for which a visa requirement was introduced in 1986–87 are not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library such parts of the intercepts relating to the La Belle discotheque bombing on 5 April 1986 as are no longer classified; to whom these intercepts have been shown, when and why; and if he will make a statement.

No. It is not our practice to comment on intelligence and security matters.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he anticipates bringing into force section 49 of the Criminal Justice Act 1972 to enable courts to impose a community service order in lieu of a warrant of commitment for failure to pay a fine.

Following consultations with a range of interested bodies, we said, in the White Paper on criminal justice published in March 1986, that we were inclined not to implement this section, since it would add to the complexity and reduce the effectiveness of the fine enforcement process and consume probation service resources without appreciably reducing imprisonment for default. We propose to look again at the possibility of implementing this provision and we shall be seeking further views from the interested bodies.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received about the Sunday trading law.

Since 18 December 1987 when I last answered a similar question from my hon. Friend the Member for Basildon (Mr. Amess)—column 834 — we have received 100 written representations broadly in favour of Sunday trading and 61 against.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he plans any new initiatives to seek to prevent crime in shops.

Advice on the prevention of theft from shops is featured in the handbook "Practical Ways to Crack Crime" which was published on 9 March in support of the Department's national crime prevention publicity campaign. The Home Office is also in touch with officials from the retail trade's main representative bodies — the Retail Consortium, the British Retailers Association and the Association for the Prevention of Theft in Shops — regarding the proposal, which I welcome, that the trade should mount its own national campaign aimed at the prevention of shop theft.As an aid to planning effective measures against theft from shops we shall shortly be publishing, as a Home Office crime prevention unit paper, a report prepared by a representative of the Dixon Group plc, working in collaboration with the crime prevention unit, under the title "Retail Crime: Prevention through Crime Analysis".

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average length of time taken for his Department to deal with cases of application for asylum (a) at ports of entry and (b) made by people who already have leave to enter.

For applications decided in 1987 it is estimated that the average length of time between the receipt of the application and the decision was 10 months for those applying at ports of entry and 16 months for those already in the United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what indications he has about the effectiveness of recent crime prevention initiatives taken or encouraged by his Department.

We have been encouraged by reports from a number of chief officers of police in urban areas of falls in the recorded level of certain crimes notably burglary, which are often targeted by local crime prevention schemes. The Department will continue to encourage the expansion of these schemes in the light of growing evidence that, when they are properly organised and supported, they can be effective in preventing certain crimes and in reducing the fear of crime more generally.A good example of the effectiveness of the multi-agency preventive approach to local crime problems is a burglary reduction project in Rochdale, supported by the Home Office. This has produced a 60 per cent. reduction in that crime over a seven-month period.Multi-agency crime prevention projects established as demonstration models in "Five Towns" in 1986 with Home Office funded co-ordinators have each demonstrated their effectiveness in a number of different ways, notably in securing increased public support for crime prevention work, bringing down the figures for particular crimes and in reducing also the public's fear of crime. It is a measure of the success of the "Five Towns" projects that each has gained sufficient local support to continue beyond the period of Home Office funding. The lessons learned in the "Five Towns" projects will be applied to the development of the "Safer Cities" programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officers were in post in England and Wales as at 31 December 1983.

There were 17,939 staff in the prison officer class on 31 December 1983.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were served with exclusion orders under the Prevention of Terrorism Act between 1 and 7 March; who they were; what the provisions of the exclusion orders were; and why they were served with the order.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act between 1 and 7 March; who they were; where they were detained; why they were detained; for how long they were held; and what charges were brought against them.

Between 1 and 7 March eight people were detained under section 12 of the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1984 on suspicion of involvement in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism. All eight were detained in London. Four were detained for 11 hours, 3 days 18 hours, 3 days 23 hours, and 3 days 23 hours, respectively, before being released. The other four were detained for 4 days 19 hours, 4 days 19 hours, 4 days 2 hours and 3 days 22 hours. At that point, on 8 March, I signed orders excluding them from the United Kingdom. They were then detained under article 9(3) of the Prevention of Terrorism (Supplemental Temporary Provisions) Order 1984 for a further 1 day, 1 day, 22 hours and 22 hours respectively, pending their removal from the United Kingdom. No charges were brought against any of those detained.It is not our normal practice to name individuals detained under the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1984.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will visit the county of Clwyd to meet full time and retained firemen to discuss current and proposed manning levels; and if he will make a statement;(2) if he will visit Buckley and Queensferry fire stations; and if he will make a statement;(3) whether he has recently visited the county of Clwyd fire service headquarters and fire stations in Clwyd; and if he will make a statement;(4) what is the authorised establishment of the Clwyd fire service; how many officers are currently in post; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has not recently visited the Clwyd fire service and has no present plans to do so. The whole time firefighter establishment of the Clwyd fire brigade at 1 January 1988 was 197 and the retained establishment was 240. Staff actually in post were 184 and 227, respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list by country of origin the total number of applications for political asylum received by it currently outstanding; and how many of these have been outstanding for (a) more than six months, (b) more than one year and (c) more than two years.

Information on the total numbers of asylum applications outstanding at the end of 1986 was published by nationality of applicant in "Refugee Statistics, United Kingdom, 1986" — Home Office Statistical Bulletin, No. 13/87—a copy of which is in the Library. Reliable information on the breakdown of these figures by length of time the application had been outstanding could be produced only at disproportionate cost. It is planned to publish a further bulletin relating to 1987 later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are currently held in (a) police stations, (b) prisons, (c) remand centres arising from the operation of immigration laws; and what are the comparable figures for March and September of each year since 1983.

Information in the form requested is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. On 10 March 1988 there was a total of 178 people detained at the two main establishments used for detention arising from the operation of the immigration laws; that is, 90 at Latchmere house and 88 at Harmondsworth.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for registration under the British Nationality Act 1981 have been (a) received by his Department, (b) fully processed and accepted, (c) acknowledged but not decided upon and (d) awaiting acknowledgement.

Since 1 April 1987 an estimated 295,000 applications of all types for British citizenship have been received; 43,895 applications have been granted. Some 105,000 applications for registration and naturalisation which have yet to be decided upon have been acknowledged and a further 130,000 packages containing citizenship applications await acknowledgement.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) whether, in the light of the Equal Opportunities Commission's recent report, he will consider introducing an equal treatment Bill giving women positive equality rights in law;(2) whether, in the light of the Equal Opportunities Commission's recent report, he will consider introducing legislation banning discrimination in private clubs where there is a male and female membership;(3) whether, in the light of the Equal Opportunities Commission's recent report, he will consider seeking to strengthen and widen the Commission's powers to initiate formal investigations;(4) whether, in the light of the Equal Opportunities Commission's recent report, he will consider

The Equal Opportunities Commission's proposals were published on 8 March. We will be giving its recommendations careful consideration in consultation with colleagues.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the cost of policing football matches in England and Wales in each of the last three football seasons.

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Darlington (Mr. Fallon) on 10 March, at column 285.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sentenced prisoners were held in police cells during February in England and Wales.

This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sentenced prisoners are currently being held in police cells in England and Wales.

On Friday 11 March, 191 sentenced prisoners were being held in police cells in England and Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the total cost to public funds of the extradition proceedings in connection with the Heysel stadium disaster; if any part of this sum is recoverable from the Belgian Government; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 15 February]: Expenditure so far identified includes about £30,000 incurred by the police and £61,000 by the Crown Prosecution Service. Legal aid costs borne by the Lord Chancellor's Department have yet to be settled. None of this expenditure is recoverable from the Belgian authorities because the extradition treaty provides that the costs incurred in such proceedings are borne by the requested state.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information relating to Professor Colin Blakemore's work was improperly disclosed from the animals procedures committee; and why.

[holding answer 2 March 1988]: I have today written to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 8 February, Official Report, column 41, what police inquiries were carried out into the loss of security classified material from the office of the hon. Member for Southend, East (Mr. Taylor) and what were the conclusions of such inquiries.

[holding answer 7 March 1988]: I understand that my hon. Friend the Member for Southend, East (Mr. Taylor) was interviewed by an officer of the Metropolitan police on 10 April 1986 and a file of papers was then recorded as lost property. I further understand that the file was later found and that no other police inquiries were made.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will explain the basis on which she stated at a press conference following her visit to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation on 17 February that Her Majesty's Government are modernising Polaris with Trident in accordance with the Montebello resolutions, as stated on page 7 of the Central Office of Information transcript; and if she will make a statement.

The Government's decision in 1980 to replace Polaris with Trident was taken in order to maintain the effectiveness and credibility of Britain's independent strategic nuclear deterrent well into the next century. The decision is entirely consistent with NATO's commitment, articulated at Montebello in 1983 and also most recently this month at the NATO summit, to maintain effective and up-to-date nuclear forces.

To ask the Prime Minister when she next expects to meet with the leaders of the United Kingdom's partner depository states for the nuclear non-proliferation treaty to discuss progress and initiatives under article VI.

I have at present no plans to do so.

To ask the Prime Minister (1) if, during her meeting with President Mitterrand at the NATO Ministers meeting in Brussels on 2–3 March, she discussed the prospects of France joining the nuclear non-proliferation treaty;(2) if, during her meeting with President Mitterrand at the NATO summit in Brussels on 2–3 March, she discussed the joint Anglo-French stand-off air-launched nuclear missile system.

I had no separate meeting with President Mitterrand at the NATO summit.

To ask the Prime Minister if, pursuant to her answer of 7 December 1987 to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell), Official Report, column 11, she will detail the changes made for the sake of clarification or completeness in the revised note of guidance on the duties and responsibilities of civil servants.

Such changes are numerous, but can be readily identified from a comparison of the revised text—Official Report, 2 December 1987, columns 572–75 —with the original text—Official Report 26 February 1985, columns 130–32.

To ask the Prime Minister what steps she is taking to discover the source of the leak of a letter from Mr. Paul Gray to Mr. Tom Jeffrey in relation to educational testing; and if she will make a statement.

It is not the usual practice to give information on such matters.

To ask the Attorney-General, pursuant to his answer of 22 February, Official Report, column 15, what representations he has received about possible prosecutions in relation to offences concerning alleged attempts to subvert the Government of Lord Wilson; and if he will make a statement.

Since becoming Attorney-General I have received about 100 letters from Members of Parliament and the public about the "Spycatcher" case. Several of these letters have raised the question of investigations or prosecutions in relation to the allegations to which the hon. Member refers. I have referred correspondents — and also the hon. Member — to the Prime Minister's statement of 6 May.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will give the latest estimate of the likely total eventual cost of the legal proceedings and advice in the United Kingdom and abroad in connection with cases to date on "Spycatcher."

The total amount of costs expended to date is about £660,000. I cannot usefully estimate the total eventual cost.

To ask the Attorney-General how many civil actions in which Her Majesty's Government are or were the plaintiff have been instituted since May 1979; and in how many cases (a) judgments and (b) costs were awarded against Her Majesty's Government.

The information sought by the hon. Member is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Attorney-General how many prosecutions were brought in the past eight years for the unlawful promotion of dog fights and other forms of animal baiting; and if he will make a statement.

No separate records are maintained by the Crown Prosecution Service of prosecutions brought by that service for such offences. Records of convictions in cases involving cruelty to animals are kept by the Home Office.

To ask the Attorney-General, pursuant to his answer of 9 March, if he will propose to the British Broadcasting Corporation the appointment of an independent third party with security clearance to examine transcripts of the remaining programmes in the British Broadcasting Corporation series "My Country, Right or Wrong" with a view to establishing to Her Majesty's Government's satisfaction whether the transmission of the programmes would raise any security problems; and if he will make a statement.

No.

To ask the Attorney-General how many officials in the Lord Chancellor's Department are responsible for formulating policy on the introduction of a family court.

Currently a specialist lawyer and an executive officer in the Lord Chancellor's Department are engaged full-time, in collaboration with officials in their own and other Departments, on policy formulation relevant to the whole area embraced by the concept of a family court.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has met representatives of Oxfam to discuss the provision of aid to Kampuchea; and if he will make a statement.

This issue, with many others, was discussed when I met the director of Oxfam, Mr. Frank Judd, last December.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to assist Commonwealth countries in sub-Saharan Africa with their current problem of external debt.

The United Kingdom has put forward an initiative to alleviate the debt problems of the poorest sub-Saharan African countries, including those which are members of the Commonwealth. We have also promised major contributions to the IMF's enhanced structural adjustment facility and the World Bank's special programme of assistance, both of which will provide considerable help to these countries.Gross bilateral aid for Commonwealth countries in sub-Saharan Africa in 1986 was £200 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has any information regarding the alleged supply via food aid of European Economic Community radioactive contaminated foodstuffs to Third world countries; and if he will make a statement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has any information regarding the alleged supply via food aid of European Economic Community radioactive contaminated food-stuffs to Third world countries; and if he will make a statement.

We have no evidence that any of the European Community's food aid consignments have exceeded the maximum levels of radioactivity permitted for the Community's exports of foodstuffs; these levels are the same as those permitted for imports from third countries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reply he has received to his most recent approach to the Ugandan Government concerning the payment of pensions to a few ex-civil servants now resident in the United Kingdom.

Our high commission in Kampala raises this matter regularly. It has reported that restoration of pension payments to certain former public servants now resident in the United Kingdom is under investigation by the Government of Uganda.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment Her Majesty's Government made, in deciding on their policy of giving aid for the whole of Cyprus on a Government to Government basis, of the degree of control exercised by Greek Cypriot Government over northern Cyprus and the extent to which it has a mandate to act on behalf of the Turkish Cypriot population.

We recognise only one Republic of Cyprus. However, as far as education and training awards of benefit to the Turkish community are concerned, the British Council deals directly with the Turkish Cypriot authorities in the educational field.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many vehicles are currently undertaking relief work in the Sudan, provided under the United Kingdom aid programme.

In 1987 the ODA provided 20 trucks for the combined agencies relief team (CART) at a cost of £400,000. These vehicles are enabling CART to distribute food in and around Juba.In January this year the Sudanese army commandeered 15 of the CART trucks, 14 of which have now been returned. We are awaiting further information on the last truck.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what work is being undertaken to ensure that food supplies are reaching southern Sudan.

Donors are working with the Government of Sudan to identify ways of providing relief supplies to the whole of southern Sudan. The ODA responded to a world food programme appeal for 1,400 tonnes of food aid to be airlifted into Juba by providing 400 tonnes, with associated transport costs; the European Community provided a further 600 tonnes. This food is being distributed by ODA-funded trucks. In February, a military-escorted convoy of barges organised by the Sudanese Government delivered 2,600 tonnes of relief aid to Malakal for the Upper Nile region. Of this the ODA financed 450 tonnes through the Catholic fund for overseas development. The International Committee of the Red Cross is now waiting to receive the agreement of the Sudanese Government and the rebel forces to begin relief work in areas of southern Sudan previously inaccessible because of civil war.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assurances have been received that the vehicles for moving food supplies in the Sudan will not be used for other purposes by the Sudan Government.

On 27 February the Prime Minister of Sudan, Sadiq el Mandi, informed our ambassador in Khartoum that the commandeering of vehicles provided by the ODA had been due to a breakdown in communication. I have accepted assurances that this will not happen again. These trucks are once more being used to distribute food supplies around the Juba area.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if any United Kingdom aid-supported projects in geographical areas subject to attack or disruption by the Mozambique National Resistance have been disrupted by the Mozambique National Resistance; and if he will make a statement.

We have had reports of two incidents at or near the sites where teams from the National Railways of Zimbabwe are reconstructing the Limpopo railway from Chicualacuala. In addition work has been disrupted from time to time on the Beira and Nacala railway projects. All aid-financed activities, particularly emergency relief, suffer in varying degrees from the disruption of internal transport caused by the security situation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will state the level of United Kingdom aid to Mozambique, giving details of (a) the nature of each project supported, (b) the level of support given to each project and (c) the location within Mozambique of each project.

Commitments of United Kingdom aid to Mozambique amounted to £35 million in 1987, of which £15 million was for balance of payments support and £15 million for emergency relief. We are also contributing to transport projects in Mozambique sponsored by the Southern African development co-ordination conference. Details of current capital projects are as follows:

Project	Total commitment (£ million)	Location
Mozambique bilateral aid
Prawn fisheries: boat and jetty rehabilitation	2·515	Angoche
Road and bridging material	0·297	Various
Aeronautical telecommunications	0·721	Maputo, Beira, Tete
Leyland trucks for coal industry	0·660	Moatize
SADCC aid
Limpopo railway	14·000	Gaza and Maputo
Nacala railway rehabilitation	1·453	Niassa and Nampula provinces

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when negotiations for the ninth replenishment of the International Development Association will commence.

The association has yet to announce a date, but negotiations will probably begin early in 1989.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received regarding the repayment of 3½ per cent. war stock; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has received a number of representations on this subject.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has any proposal to raise the advisory cost limit of £200 for answering parliamentary questions.

Yes. The advisory figure of £200 was introduced in 1982 as the level at which the likely cost of a full reply to a parliamentary question should be drawn to the attention of Ministers. This figure is now out of date. It is accordingly being raised as from today to £250.This does not alter the discretion of individual Ministers to decide that a particular question should be answered partially or in full regardless of cost.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the reduction in tax take for Her Majesty's Government from banks in respect of the current year, as compared with last year, as a result of their write-down of Third world debt.

[holding answer 29 February 1988]: Tax receipts in the current year are provisionally estimated to be lower by about £270 million as a result of losses incurred by banks on irrecoverable loans to third world countries. The estimate for 1986–87 is £30 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has as to which member states apply a positive rate of value added tax to magazines and which also provide a subsidy in the form of tax relief for such publications.

[holding answer 8 March 1988]: A positive rate of VAT is applied to magazines by Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Spain. The supply of periodicals in Italy with a cover price of less than 8,000 lire and sold by persons other than the editor is zero-rated.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has as to the annual average percentage increase in (i) gross domestic product at constant market prices, (ii) manufacturing output, (iii) wages per head in manufacturing, (iv) retail prices, (v) manufacturing productivity, (vi) manufacturing investment at constant prices, (vii) wages and salaries per unit of output in manufacturing, over the period 1983 to 1987 in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) the United States of America, (c) Germany, (d) France, (e) Japan, and (f) Sweden.

[holding answer 10 March 1988]: Data on (i) GDP (or GNP) at constant market prices are given in OECD Quarterly National Accounts. Data on (ii) manufacturing output and (iv) retail (consumer) prices are given monthly in OECD Main Economic Indicators. Data on (iii) wages per head in manufacturing are given monthly in the Employment Gazette. Data for (vi) manufacturing investment at constant prices are given in the OECD National Accounts (Volume II: Detailed Tables). Data for (v) manufacturing productivity can be calculated from the series for manufacturing output and employment given in the OECD Main Economic Indicators. Data on wages and salaries for unit of output are not published in any standard international source.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will provide figures for gross and net investment, as totals per head and as a proportion of gross domestic product for the last five available years in the following countries: Norway, Sweden, Japan, Western Germany, France, the United States of America, Italy and the United Kingdom.

[holding answer 11 March 1988]: The following three tables give annual data for 1982 to 1986 for gross and for net fixed investment as a percentage of gross domestic product and for gross fixed investment per head of the population in US dollars. Comparable figures, in a common currently, are not available for net investment per head.

Gross fixed capital formation as a percentage of gross domestic product1
	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986
United States of America	17·2	17·2	18·0	18·1	17·8
Japan	29·7	28·3	27·9	27·7	27·8
Germany	20·5	20·5	20·2	19·7	19·4
France	21·4	20·2	19 ·3	19·0	18·8
United Kingdom	16·2	16·2	17·3	17·2	17·2
Italy	22·3	21 3	21·2	21·2	20·1
Norway	25·5	25·7	26·0	21·7	27·6
Sweden	18·8	18·7	18·6	19·1	18·2
1 Exact definitions of fixed capital formation vary from country to country.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether there will be full consultation with the Council of Civil Service Unions about any proposals for further dispersal of Civil Service functions.

The Council of Civil Service Unions will be given an early opportunity to comment upon developments in the policy on the location of Government work referred to in my answer to the hon. Member for East Kilbride (Mr. Ingram) on 18 February, at columns 475–76. Furthermore, it is normal practice for Departments to consult their trade union sides before undertaking significant relocations.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will make an announcement, supplementing the Prime Minister's statement of 18 February, about the further dispersal of Civil Service functions.

I expect shortly to be in a position to make the further statement about the location of Government work forcast in my answer of 18 January, at columns 475–76, to the hon. Member for East Kilbride (Mr. Ingram).

To ask the Minister for the Arts what is his estimate of the current inflation rate of building costs within the British Library project; and if he will make a statement.

The estimate for the current inflation rate of building costs for the new British Library at St. Pancras is 7 per cent. on an annual basis.

To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will place in the Library the terms of the trust deed setting up the South Bank Board as an independent body.

I will place a copy of the trust deed in the Library as soon as it is finalised.

To ask the Minister for the Arts what changes are to be made to the standing and organisation of the South Bank Board.

Arrangements are being considered whereby the South Bank Board would become an independent charitable trust, under the terms of the Arts Council's charter, from 1 April 1988. The details are not yet complete but I will advise the House of them as soon as decisions are reached.

To ask the Minister for the Arts when he expects to name the new members of the independent South Bank body; and whom he is consulting.

I have asked Mr. Ronald Grierson to continue as chairman of the South Bank Board with effect from 1 April 1988 for a further three years. Arrangements for other members of the board depend on finalising the details of a new independent charitable trust.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what has been the percentage change in the volume and value of exports from and imports into the United Kingdom of biscuits, chocolate, chocolate and sugar confectionery, respectively, since 1972: (a) with the European Economic Community and (b) with the rest of the world.

The information is given in the table.

Percentage changes 1972–1978 European Economic Community (as at 1 January 1988)
	Exports		Imports
	Volume	Value	Volume	Value
Biscuits (SITC 048.42 (part))	+218	+1,485	+123	+1,150
Chocolate and chocolate confectionery (SITC 073.0)	+ 243	+ 1,572	+ 127	+ 1,449
Sugar confectionery (SITC 062.0)	+ 48	+ 885	+255	+1,697

Rest of the World
	Exports		Imports
	Volume	Value	Volume	Value
Biscuits (SITC 048.42 (part))	+ 15	+419	+ 316	+ 1,442
Chocolate and chocolate confectionery (SITC 073.0)	+ 19	+ 379	+ 98	+ 904

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what has been the level of direct investment in overseas manufacturing industry and gross domestic fixed capital formation from private sector United Kingdom manufacturing industry in each year since 1977.

The information is given in the table. It should be noted that net overseas direct investment is a financial concept and is not the same as capital expenditure on fixed assets or the growth in a company's net assets. Direct investment covers only the sums invested in a related concern by the parent company and that concern will then decide how this is to be used, whether on fixed assets, to increase debtors, repay borrowing etc.

	Net United Kingdom direct investment in overseas manufacturing1	Private sector manufacturing gross domestic fixed capital formation2
	£million	£million current prices
1977	1,077	4,190
1978	1,520	5,220
1979	1,397	6,163
1980	1,427	6,182
1981	2,528	5,113
1982	1,579	5,260
1983	2,126	5,655
1984	2,100	6,997
1985	2,860	8,443
1986	5,663	8,823
1 Includes overseas direct investment in manufacturing by public corporations and by non-manufacturing companies in the United Kingdom. Separate figures excluding these categories arc not available.
2 Excludes assets held on financial lease by manufacturing.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has completed his investigations concerning the question of the alleged sale of radio equipment by Racal Ltd. to the Palestine Liberation Organisation in 1981; and if he will make a statement.

A conclusion to the investigation is expected shortly.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether the current investigation concerning the alleged sale of radio equipment by Racal Ltd. to the Palestine Liberation Organisation in 1981 includes an inquiry into the training of militiamen from the Palestine Liberation Organisation in battleground communications provided by Racal Ltd.

No.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Sunderland, North concerning Government support for British Shipbuilders sent to him on 4 March.

:I have written to the hon Member this morning.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what recent representations he has received from Lonrho plc about the conduct of the inquiry by his Department's inspectors into the affairs of House of Fraser plc; and if he will make a statement.

I cannot discuss matters relating to the investigation of the affairs of House of Fraser Holdings plc while it is in progress.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether the City Action team to be located in Leeds will also be responsible for all the Bradford metropolitan district; whether any City Action team officials will be based permanently or temporarily in any part of the Bradford metropolitan district; what action City Action team officials are taking to contact public, private and voluntary agencies in Bradford; and how such agencies in Bradford may make contact with City Action team officials.

The Leeds — Bradford City Action team will cover the Leeds and Bradford urban programme areas. City Action team officials are located in the regional offices of the Departments of the Environment, of Employment and of Trade and Industry which are in Leeds. Officers in all three Departments already have close contacts with organisations and agencies in the whole area the team covers. If any person or agency in Bradford wants to get in touch with the team they should contact one of the three departments.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what budget will be available to the City Action team based in Leeds; what part of that budget represents new financial resources; what proportion of the overall budget will be spent within the Bradford metropolitan district; and who is the responsible accounting officer for City Action team expenditure in Leeds and Bradford.

The total funds which the three City Action team departments estimate they will spend in Leeds-Bradford in 1987–88 is around £100 million. They estimate around £50 million of this will be spent in Bradford. In addition the Government are now making available £0·79 million for the City Action team to spend in 1988–89 on special pump-priming projects involving the private sector and designed to stimulate enterprise and employment. The responsible accounting officer for that special top-up fund is the Permanent Secretary of my Department.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what preference will be given to those living within the Bradford metropolitan district in any employment from projects arising directly or indirectly from activity undertaken or initiated by the City Action team based in Leeds; and what preference Bradford-based companies will be given in the placing of orders or contracts by the City Action team based in Leeds.

The Government's City Action team for Leeds-Bradford covers both these cities and its activities will be of benefit to both.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what progress has been made in implementing the programme of references under section 11 of the Competition Act 1980 announced on 7 September 1987.

A reference of the Welsh Water Authority was sent to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission on that day and the Post Office counter service at Crown offices was referred on 6 November. I am sending a reference of British Coal's capital and investment activities to the Commission today.The remaining reference in the programme announced on 7 September, London Underground, will be deferred until later this year to enable management to concentrate on the investigation into the King's Cross disaster and any follow-up action needed. Its place in the programme will be filled by a reference relating to British Rail's provincial sector which will be made later in the spring.I then propose to announce a further programme of references for the remainder of 1988 and early 1989.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many Action for Cities working breakfasts will take place; where they will be held; which Ministers will be involved; how many business people will be involved; and what will be the total cost.

My present intentions are to hold six working breakfasts in Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool and London. They will be attended by my hon. Friend the Member for Northavon (Mr. Cope) — the Minister of State, Department of Employment — my hon. Friend the Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Mr. Trippier) — the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment—my hon. Friend the Member for South Ribble (Mr. Atkins) — the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Industry — and myself as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister responsible for the co-ordination of Government inner city policies.An audience of 200 to 250 senior representatives of industry and business will attend each presentation. Final costs are not yet known, but are expected to be in the region of £0·5 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has any proposals to extend to advertising the range of advice offered by his Department or financed by grants for consultancies under the enterprise initiative.

[holding answer 11 March 1988]: The subject of advertising is already addressed by the marketing initiative.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will provide figures for the total amount per head of population spent on research and development for the last five available years in the following countries: Norway, Sweden, Western Germany, France, the United States of America, Japan, Italy and the United Kingdom.

[holding answer 11 March 1988]: The available information is given in the table.

Gross expenditure on research and development per head of the total population1
2£ per head
	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985
Norway	71	81	93	109	120
Sweden	117	n.a.	151	n.a.	200
West Germany	126	139	151	n.a.	184
France	101	115	125	139	153
United States of America	167	186	206	235	270
Japan	100	115	132	150	177
Italy	41	46	51	58	70
United Kingdom	110	n.a.	123	n.a.	146
n.a. Data not available.
1 For 1985, where this was not available that for the nearest year has been taken.
2 Exchange rates at purchasing power parities calculated by OECD have been used to convert foreign currencies to sterling.