To ask the Attorney-General how many defendants in motoring cases have been acquitted during the last year due to legal technicalities; and if he will make a statement.

The great majority of motoring cases are disposed of in the magistrates courts. As a general rule, magistrates are not required to give their reasons for acquitting defendants, and do not do so. The information that the hon. Member requires is therefore not available.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will give the latest figures for the numbers of county court actions against debtors.

In 1987 a total of 2·2 million claims for money only—default actions—were issued in county courts in England and Wales. Of these the great majority were claims in respect of alleged debt.

To ask the Attorney-General what action he is taking under section 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, in connection with (a) the recent shooting of a goshawk in South Yorkshire, (b) the recent shooting of a peregrine falcon in the Yorkshire Dales national park and (c) the recent shooting of a goosander in the Yorkshire Dales national park; and if he will make a statement.

No papers have been referred to the Crown Prosecution Service in this matter. If the hon. Member will write to me I shall endeavour to make inquiries and provide a more detailed reply.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the level of aid to Kampuchea in the current year.

We do not give aid to Cambodia. We do, however, contribute to international programmes for the relief of Cambodian refugees in Thailand. In 1987, our contribution amounted to almost £.1·5 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will raise with the chairman of British Rail the case for improvements in the access to station platforms for disabled people; and if he will make a statement.

I have no plans to raise this specific matter with the chairman. British Rail has its own special adviser on facilities for the disabled traveller.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has any plans to meet the chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority in relation to the Gatwick-Manchester-New York air route, operated by British Airways; and if he will make a statement.

I have no immediate plans to meet the chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority to discuss the Gatwick-Manchester-New York air route. However, there have been complaints about the quality of service offered on this route, which I understand British Airways have undertaken to improve. Over the next few months the Civil Aviation Authority will be monitoring aspects of the performance of this service.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has carried out monitoring exercises in compliance with the code for the Commission of Racial Equality and Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively.

Yes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what positive measures his Department has taken in accordance with the codes for the Commission of Racial Equality and the Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively, other than those specified in his answer to the hon. and learned Member for Leicester, West on 26 May, Official Report, column 281.

We have encouraged women members of staff to become members of promotion and recruitment boards; provided (jointly with our trade unions) an experimental child-care scheme at a residential training centre, and a holiday playscheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has appointed an equal opportunities officer.

Yes. He serves both the Department of Transport and the Department of the Environment other than the Property Services Agency.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport by whom and when measures were taken to reduce under-representation of women in the higher grades and of black and Asian staff throughout his Department; and with what results.

The measures have been taken in accordance with Government policy, mainly within the last three years, by the staff responsible for action in the areas concerned. There has been an increase in the number of women in the executive grades. It is too early to judge results in relation to ethnic minority members of staff.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what promotion and monitoring projects have been carried out by his Department, and when and with what results.

We have been monitoring recruitment, part-time working and job-sharing, and special leave since 1987. The results so far are being analysed to see if discrimination might be occurring. We intend to monitor a series of promotion boards this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what percentage of officers in each grade and overall in his Department are women and from ethnic minorities, respectively.

Numbers and percentages of women are as follows, as at 31 May 1988:

Grade band	Number	Per cent.
1–4	1	—
5	6	7
6	3	3
7	34	5
8 and 9	196	10
10	756	18
11 and 12	5,630	73
Total	6,626	45

Numbers and percentages of ethnic minority staff are available, as at 31 March 1988, only for those staff who have responded to the voluntary monitoring surveys. Figures are as follows:

Grade band	Number	Per cent.
1–6	3	1½
7	9	2
8	32	5
9	27	3
10	46	2
11	121	6
12	97	3
Total	335	3

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has any plans to improve equality of opportunity for women and for people from ethnic minorities in all grades of his Department, in connection with employment, training and promotion, respectively.

Yes. The policy of equal opportunities is well established. Plans for improvements include proposals for expanding part-time working and job-sharing; setting up a keeping-in-touch scheme for people who have left for domestic reasons; reviewing training; participating in promotion and other monitoring projects to investigate possible areas of discrimination; and taking appropriate follow-up measures.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to announce his proposals for the A3 at Hindhead.

Shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the contract for repair of the Thornbridge viaduct on the M6 midland link motorway to be completed.

Middle of August 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the daily contracted hours of work of his contractor working on the Thornbridge viaduct of the M6 motorway.

Twenty-four.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if any noise pollution measurements have been taken of the effect of early morning and late evening working of his contractor for the Thornbridge viaduct of the M6 motorway.

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations he has held with any of the officers of the preserved standard gauge steam railways in the United Kingdom during 1986, 1987 and 1988; and if he will list the occasions and the subjects discussed.

I attended the annual conference of the Association of Railway Preservation Societies and attended functions on various preserved railways by invitation. Officials of the Department of Transport have had various consultations with officers of preserved steam railways mainly about safety. A list could be prepared only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has made any calculations of journey times for a return trip, including station stops for the operation of the Settle-Carlisle section of British Rail under a light railway order with a 25 mph speed limit; and if he will make a statement.

No. It is for any potential new operator of this line to decide what service to offer and what form of statutory operating authority to seek for it. Operating the line as a light railway is only one of a number of options.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations he has held with the railways inspectorate regarding any safety criteria for the private and separate operation of the Settle-Carlisle section of British Rail; and if he will make a statement.

There has been no need for consultations with the railway inspectorate. The safety criteria which would be applied if the Settle to Carlisle railway were to be privately and separately operated are those which are applied to any statutory railway in this country.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the total proportion of freight traffic moved by rail as a percentage of the whole for each year from 1970; and if he will make a statement.

The latest available figures are published in "Transport Statistics for Great Britain 1976–86", a copy of which is in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what decisions were taken at his meeting with European transport ministers on 21 and 22 June in regard to proposed changes to European regulations concerning weights and dimensions of certain road vehicles; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State insisted that the existing derogation on drive axle weights should cover other vehicles. No decisions were made on this or other weights and dimensions issues.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that consultants for the London assessment studies discuss with the boroughs participating in the studies any options they are considering for dealing with transport problems in the areas and that relevant papers are placed in the Library.

Yes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he has any plans to review the fire resistance standards for car upholstery set out in BS AU 169 1978–1985 to meet criteria parallel to the new regulations for domestic household furniture which has to be introduced as of 1989–90;(2) if he will extend more stringent regulations, to apply to roof linings, carpeting and sound insulating material in motor vehicles;(3) if he will introduce, as a compulsory requirement for motor vehicles sold in the United Kingdom, the fitting of impact inertia switches to the electrical pumps of the fuel system;(4) what recent Government representations have been made to car manufacturers with regard to the reduction of the risk of accidental fire;(5) what recent attempts have been made by the Government to reduce risk of accidental fire in motor vehicles; and, in particular, what attempts have been made with regard to

[holding answer 26 June 1988]: Over the past two years we have made representations to the manufacturers about the instances of vehicle fires. The response has generally been constructive. Manufacturers are currently examining information from Home Office reports complied from fire brigade data. They have also provided information about fusing methods and given assurances that existing fuel cut-off devices on vehicles fitted with high-pressure fuel injection systems are sufficient to prevent fire risk from this source. They are considering how best to obtain further information on under-bonnet car fires. Given the information and assurances provided by the manufactures on cut-off devices fitted to prevent fuel leakage from pressurised fuel systems, we have no plans to make the fitting of inpact inertia switches to such fuel systems compulsory.The transport and road research laboratory is about to commission a short research programme investigating car electrical systems. This will include fusing arrangements and will identify low fire risk wiring methods. Any future action will depend on the findings of this research.There are no plans to extend the strength of impact zones in relation to fire risks. The performance of cars is monitored through our accident investigation study. Shortcomings in the design of individual models are taken up with the manufacturer to rectify the problem in question. The fitting of automatic fire extinguishers could not be justified.BS AU 169 is a test method to establish the burning rate of materials and does not differentiate between good and bad materials. The inflammability of car trim and upholstery is not a major cause for concern as the occupants of a car can escape quickly except in major crashes where the vehicle structure is severely distorted. In those instances, the slight delay in the spread of any resultant fire afforded by current fire resistant trim materials would make no difference to the occupants. We have no plans to ask BSI to review the test method or to introduce requirements for fire resistant materials in cars.In the case of coaches, however, there is a risk as escape is not so straightforward if a fire has taken hold. For that reason, we have taken the initiative in getting provisional agreement on inflammability requirements for the interior of coaches included in an EEC directive. We will be making the new requirements mandatory at the earliest opportunity. The plastic laminates used in coach interiors will have to meet the fire resistance requirements laid down in the standard.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if, further to his answer to the hon. Member for Waveney on 14 June, he will consider adding (a) seasonal tourist use and (b) growth in population to the list of criteria for cost benefit analysis in new road schemes.

[holding answer 21 June 1988]: The Department's computer program for cost-benefit analysis of new trunk road schemes, COBA9, incorporates factors for seasonal tourist use, where appropriate. The Department has recently reviewed this issue, and its report, "Tourism, Leisure and Roads", published in October 1987, confirms that the special characteristics relating to the tourism and leisure industry are fully taken into account in reaching decisions on road schemes. Local population growth is taken into account in the preparation of local traffic forecasts used in COBA9.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will provide a breakdown of the distribution to individual local education authorities of the additional resources for GCSE-related expenditure of (a) the sum for secondary school libraries and (b) the general allocation.

The table gives the amount allocated to each local education authority within the education support grant for 1986–87 for the additional costs of books and equipment associated with the introduction of the GCSE. The subsequent distribution of these resources is the responsibility of the individual authorities. These amounts do not include provision within the LEA training grants scheme in 1988–89 of £15 million for in-service training related to the assessment of achievement including GCSE; nor do they include the additions to rate support grant in respect of GCSE-related expenditure, of £90 million in 1987–88 and £77 million in 1988–89.

Category XIII—E.S.G. paid 1986/87
GCSE	Grant paid £
301 Barking	30,100
302 Barnet	45,491
303 Bexley	48,160
304 Brent	34,523
305 Bromley	50,250
306 Croydon	60,760
307 Ealing	42,350
308 Enfield	51,653
309 Haringey	26,877
310 Harrow	33,110
311 Havering	53,900
312 Hillingdon	45,010
313 Hounslow	38,290
314 Kingston-Upon-Thames	24,500
315 Merton	27,025
316 Newham	36,346
317 Redbridge	40,530
318 Richmond-Upon-Thames	21,700
319 Sutton	34,553
320 Waltham Forest	48,160
427 ILEA	351,610
330 Birmingham	234,850
331 Coventry	65,170

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has carried out any monitoring exercises in accordance with the codes of the Commission for Racial Equality and the Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively, other than by using ethnic monitoring in sample recruitment surveys; and if he make a statement.

Yes. All staff on our training courses are now asked to complete an ethnic monitoring questionnaire on a voluntary basis.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when the sample recruitment surveys were carried out to measure the number of white and ethnic minority applicants and to identify significant variations in their success rates throughout the competition; and with what results.

We began to monitor our recruitment in July 1987. We do this continuously, not on a sample basis. It is planned to compile and analyse the information on an annual basis.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he is using sex monitoring in sample recruitment surveys to measure the number of women applicants and to identify significant variations in their success rates throughout the competition; and if he will make a statement.

We do not use sex monitoring in sample recruitment surveys and have no plans to do so.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) when his Department last reviewed its range of employment practices in the light of Civil Service policies on equal opportunities; and what that review revealed concerning past inequalities in employment practices in his Department;(2) how many and what percentage of officers in each grade and overall in his Department are

The Department keeps its employment practices under continuing review in the light of developing Civil Service policies on equal opportunities. The numbers and proportion of women in the Department at 1 May 1988 were

		Percentage
Grades 1 to 7	156	23
Higher and Senior Executive Officer	135	39
Executive Officer	203	53
Administrative Officer and below	881	78
Overall	1,375	54

The proportion of women in posts in DES compares favourably with the Civil Service as a whole; we have sought to improve their position further by measures such as the introduction of "keeping in touch" arrangements to provide reinstatement opportunities for staff in all grades who resign for domestic or associated health reasons and wish to return to work within five years. We have also provided equal opportunities training, including women-only development courses. The Department's Darlington office has had a flexible working hours system since 1976.The Department does not hold information on the ethnic origin of all its staff. Of those who had responded to a recent ethnic origins survey by 1 May 1988, those from ethnic minorities were

Grades	Number	Per cent.
1 to 7	10	11·7
HEO and SEO	7	22·6
Executive Officer	21	6·9
AO and below	118	15·1
Overall	156	8·1
1 of respondents in those grades.
2 of respondents.

The Department monitors the recruitment of ethnic minority staff in direct recruitment grades (administrative officer and below). Applicants who do not have the minimum academic qualifications can take a short answer test.A number of in-house training courses aimed specifically at women are available, including assertiveness training and management training for women. There are also courses in equal opportunities awareness and equal opportunity sessions on other courses. Staff on training courses are now asked to complete an ethnic monitoring questionnaire on a voluntary basis. An anti-racism training film package is used as part of induction courses for all new staff.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has appointed an equal opportunities officer; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. An equal opportunities officer for the Department was first appointed in 1984. A separate equal opportunities officer for our Darlington branch was appointed in 1986.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what provision will be made for health education within the GCSE curriculum, in particular warning against solvent abuse; and if he will make a statement.

GCSE syllabuses are determined by the GCSE examining groups in accordance with the GCSE general criteria and with the subject-specific national criteria, where appropriate. GCSE criteria and syllabuses will be revised to reflect the 16-plus attainment targets and programmes of study for the national curriculum subjects, including any relating to health education which is a cross-curricular theme to be covered within the core and other foundation subjects.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his answers of 14 and 16 June to the hon. Member for Wakefield, if he will give the reasons why he will not take steps to encourage the greater availability of rugby league as part of the content of physical education courses at teacher training colleges.

My right hon. Friend considers that the precise range of sports included within courses of physical education at initial teacher training institutions is a matter for the institutions themselves.

To ask the Prime Minister when she next expects to pay an official visit to Bradford.

I have at present no plans to do so.

To ask the Prime Minister when she expects to make an official visit to Pinner in the county of Middlesex.

I have at present no plans to do so.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 23 June.

This morning I returned from Canada. I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House I shall be having further meetings later today including one with the President of West Germany.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will publish in the Official Report the text of her letter to Jacques Delors, President of the European Commission, concerning the proposed takeover of Rover; and if she will make a statement.

It is not my usual practice to publish correspondence of this kind.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will introduce legislation to control the sale and use of fireworks.

I have no present intention to do so.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to what extent the adoption of policies on race relations and equal opportunities for women, agreed with his departmental trade unions in 1984, included monitoring in accordance with the codes of the Commission for Racial Equality and of the Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively.

The policies agreed with our departmental trades unions in 1984 and in subsequent years made provision for monitoring ethnic origin (which is now in hand, or proposed) in the following areas:

• Recruitment
• Promotion
• Career development
• Training

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has carried out monitoring exercises in accordance with the codes of the Commission for Racial Equality and of the Equal Opportunities Commission respectively.

Yes. The DTI has contributed towards the following reports published by the Cabinet Office:

"Ethnic Origin Surveys. Non-industrial staff in the Civil Service: London and the South East of England" 1987.

"Report on a Trial Recruitment Survey" 1987.

"Equal Opportunities for Women in the Civil Service: Progress Report 1984–1987" April 1988.

Copies of these have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when the ethnic monitoring survey of all staff was undertaken; and what that survey revealed concerning past effects of employment practices in his Department.

An ethnic monitoring survey of DTI staff was completed in April 1988. The information obtained is now being prepared for analysts to see what indications it gives.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what positive action he has taken in order to remove the effects of past inequalities in employment in accordance with the codes of the Commission for Racial Equality and of the Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively;(2) how and when he has made all departmental staff aware of their personal responsibility to ensure equality of opportunity; and whether he has taken any steps to ensure equality of opportunity in his Department.

I refer the hon. and learned Member to my answer to his question given in the Official Report for 27 May at column 370.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has any plans to improve equality of opportunity for women and for people from ethnic minorities in all grades of his Department, in connection with employment, training and promotion, respectively.

Information on equal opportunities has been and is being collected and will be analysed to see whether any further action is necessary.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether his Department provides specific language or other courses for black personnel.

No. All training opportunities are available to black personnel as to other staff in the DTI.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has appointed an equal opportunities officer.

Yes. An equal opportunity officer was appointed in this Department in 1984.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many and what percentage of officers in each grade and overall in his Department are women and from ethnic minorities, respectively.

The figures for non-industrial staff as at 1 June 1988, and by groups of grades, are as follows:

	Female
	Number	Percentage
Grades 1–7	132	9·5
SEO-EO and similar (other than* below)	1,029	33·3
AO and AA	2,341	59·4
*Technical and scientific	245	15·1
Typing and Secretarial	1,089	98·6
*Insolvency and Patents grades	199	18·9
Office support	736	69·7
TOTAL	5,771	43·5

Ethnic origin of staff who contributed to the DTI's ethnic classification monitoring survey (as at June 1988)
	Other	Percentage
Grades 1–7	21	1·7
SEO and similar (other than* below)	152	5·6
AO and AA	559	17·0
*Technical and scientific	86	6·5
Typing and secretarial	147	15·4
*Insolvency and Patents grades	58	6·2
Office support	31	3·5
TOTAL	1,054	9·3

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) if his Department made any assessment of consumer opinion regarding privatisation of Girobank among its customers before his statement in the House on 7 June;(2) how many customers of Girobank wrote to him urging its privatisation before his statement in the House on 7 June.

Privatisation should strengthen Girobank and allow it to provide more services. Customers should welcome this. None wrote to support it before the announcement. They will have seen no need to urge the Government to make a proposal consistent with their own policies.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what plans he has for the harmonisation of plugs and sockets for use with domestic supplies of mains electricity.

None.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will give the latest figure for the United Kingdom balance of trade.

The current account for the period January to April 1988 is estimated to have been in deficit by about £3·5 billion.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many mergers were referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission in each year from (a) 1974 to 1979 and (b) 1979 to 1988.

The number of mergers referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission for the years in question is as follows:

Year	Number
1974–1979
1974	5
1975	5
1976	4
1977	8
1978	2
1979	2
1979–1988
1979	2
1980	5
1981	7
1982	9
1983	8
1984	4
1985	6
1986	13
1987	6
1988	3

These figures do not include references of mergers involving newspapers made under section 59 of the Fair Trading Act 1973.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether, as part of his Department's inquiry into the activities of Barlow Clowes he will also examine the activities of Brookwood Asset Management and Woodhill Developments; and if he will make a statement.

The inspectors have wide powers under the Companies Act 1985 and the Financial Services Act 1986 to investigate dealings between companies in the James Ferguson Group (including Barlow Clowes, Gilt Managers Ltd) and other persons. If my hon. Friend has any information pointing to the need for separate investigation of Brookwood Asset Management and Woodhill Development I would be grateful to receive it.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster by what date Sir Godfray Le Quesne QC will complete his report into his Department's handling of Barlow Clowes.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects the report of the investigation into his Department's handling of matters relating to the Barlow Clowes group to be completed and made available.

Sir Godfray Le Quesne has been asked by my right hon. and noble Friend to report to him as soon as possible.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if his Department has any evidence that Barlow Clowes and Partners in England transferred money to Barlow Clowes International in Gibraltar after October 1987.

I have appointed inspectors under section 432 of the Companies Act to look into James Ferguson Holdings plc which will enable the affairs of all that company's subsidiaries to be investigated. It will be open to the inspectors to look into the nature and extent of any transactions between those companies. It would he inappropriate for me to comment in advance of receiving the inspectors' report.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if the findings of the inspectors appointed under section 432 of the Companies Act 1985 to examine the affairs of James Ferguson Holdings plc will be made public, and when he expects the inspectors to complete their investigations.

It is the practice to publish reports of inspectors appointed under section 432 Companies Act 1985 into public companies unless there are strong reasons to the contrary.I am unable to say how long the investigations will last. The inspectors and I are anxious that their investigation should be concluded as quickly as possible.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on his recent meeting in Strasbourg with the European Commissioners for competition, concerning the proposed takeover by British Aerospace of Rover.

The meeting between my right hon. and noble Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and the European Commissioner with special responsibility for competition policy in Strasbourg on 15 June was one of a series of discussions concerning the state aid aspects of the proposed sale of the Government shareholding in Rover Group to BAe. Such meetings are arranged as necessary to facilitate a full understanding of the United Kingdom case for the aid in order that the Commission can complete its examination as expeditiously as possible.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he will take steps to reduce the cost of compliance with his Department's regulations under the Insurance Companies Act.

I am setting up a review of the regulation of non-life insurance business, excluding Lloyd's, with a view to improving the cost effectiveness of regulation and improving the presentation of the related returns required by insurance companies legislation. Lessons from this review will be taken into account in considering the returns required for life insurance business. The review will be carried out by Mr. Geoffrey Hunt, who has been seconded to the DTI from a senior position in the insurance industry.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report on the counter services provided by the Post. Office at Crown offices will he published.

The commission noted that in the short time since it was established counters had found many ways of reducing the costs of operating its network. These included the closing of some Crown offices, regrading others as sub-offices or franchised offices, closing some urban sub-offices and introducing community offices in rural areas; in its plans counters had assumed that the Crown network would be reduced from 1,500 to 750 offices by the conversion of 750 offices to sub-offices or franchises. The commission decided that a major conversion of Crown offices into sub or franchised offices would reduce counters costs yet maintain similar services. Its report therefore commended the action taken so far by the counters business but recommended that counters should compare the costs and contributions of Crown and sub or franchised offices and consider regrading an even greater number of Crown offices.The commission found that there had been some improvement in the quality of performance attained by Crown offices. It commended the Post Office's efforts to reduce queueing time by, for example, installing new types of stamp vending machines and selling stamps through retailers.Two automation projects being developed by the counters business were considered. The first project is a major scheme, which will incur further costs of some £360 million over the next 15 years. This will introduce electronic equipment in some 3,000 Crown and sub-offices out of a total of 21,500. The second scheme involves the introduction of electronic cash registers (ECCO) at all Crown offices. The commission has serious doubts about the financial justification for both the automation and ECCO schemes and concluded that the automation scheme, which would affect only 15 per cent. of counters business, is not financially justifiable at present. Approval of any further roll-out of the automation scheme should not, in the commission's view, be given until the planned pilot scheme had been properly tested.Some working practices and clerical procedures were found to be outdated and inefficient and staff in Crown offices could be more effectively employed. The commission has therefore recommended that counters should carry out a detailed organisation and methods study in respect of the work of the counters offices; it considers that savings from the productivity recommendations could amount to some £10 million per annum.The commission also concluded that the staffing of the central and territorial headquarters of the counters business appeared to be excessive for the management of a network where day-to-day management has been decentralised to 32 district managers. Recommendations that the territorial level of management should be abolished with resulting savings of about £5 million per annum are included in the report.In an overall assessment of the counters business, the commission found that the management, in the relatively short time that it had been responsible for it, had put in hand many changes to improve efficiency. It concluded that the Post Office was not, in relation to the counters business, pursuing a course of conduct which operated against the public interest.The Post Office will be producing a preliminary response to the commission's findings within three to four months, in the light of which a further statement will be made.

To ask the Chancellor of Duchy of Lancaster what measures will be taken following the proposed privatisation of the British Steel Corporation to ensure that the people of Dragonby, near Scunthorpe, and the county council as the highway authority will receive adequate compensation from any subsidence damage to either homes or roads arising from former deep-level iron-stone mines in the ownership of the British Steel Corporation in the vicinity.

[holding answer 20 June 1988]: Under the terms of the British Steel Bill, currently before Parliament, all the property, rights and liabilities of the British Steel Corporation will be transferred to a public limited company nominated by the Secretary of State. Any potential liability of BSC in respect of the matters referred to will therefore become the responsibility of the successor company and will be unaffected by the privatisation process.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many copies of Votes and Proceedings and Notices of Motions are printed daily; and what is the approximate average daily cost.

On average 2,080 copies of Votes and Proceedings and 1,980 copies of Notices of Motions are printed daily. The approximate average daily production cost is £7,000 which HMSO recovers through revenue from sales.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer why no statements of guarantee on borrowing by nationalised industries and public corporations have been laid by the Treasury recently.

I regret that due to failure in our clerical procedures a number of statements of guarantees given by the Treasury over the past year have not been laid in the House. Some relate to temporary borrowing and have now expired. Statements for those which are still current are being laid today, along with statements for the batch of guarantees normally issued at the start of the financial year.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a further statement, pursuant to that by the Economic Secretary, Official Report, 21 June, column 957, about the timing of the imposition of value added tax on contracts for non-domestic construction.

All non-domestic construction work will continue to be zero-rated until 1 April 1989. VAT at the standard rate will then be payable only in respect of work done and paid for on or after 1 April 1989. Any contract entered into prior to 21 June 1988 will continue to be zero-rated for the life of the contract. I should make it quite clear that no VAT will be payable in respect of any construction work done before 1 April 1989.Provisions to levy VAT at the standard rate from 1 April 1989 will be subject to the House of Commons passing the necessary Budget Ways and Means resolutions, which will be laid before the House in the normal way at the time of the Budget statement. These provisions will also be subject to the enactment of the subsequent Finance Bill in the normal way.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how the scale charges in relation to the taxation of company cars are calculated; what are the independent studies he was referring to in his Budget speech; and what was the detailed basis of his calculation that an employee with a typical company car may be taxed on only about a quarter of its true value.

[holding answer, 21 June 1988]: The scale charges introduced in 1976 have been increased each year on a percentage basis. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer takes a number of factors into account in deciding the appropriate level of increase for any year. One of these is the value of the benefit to the employee. Various independent studies appear annually quantifying the benefit of having a company car available for private use. They use a variety of methods to estimate the benefit and some—for example, Income Data Services top pay unit report and the PA Personnel Services annual fringe benefits report—base their calculations on figures of motoring costs collected by the AA. Although the results naturally vary in detail, the broad picture emerging from such studies was consistent with the Government's own view that the 1987–88 car scales represented only about a quarter of the value of the benefit.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what information he has as to the proportion of civil servants at grade 3 and above in his Department who were educated in (a) private schools and (b) state schools.

[holding answer 20 June 1988]: None of the names of schools attended by civil servants grade 3 and above in my Department are recorded on personal files.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the limit on the number of personal car imports imposed on an individual per year.

[holding answer 21 June 1988]: No limit is imposed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) motorcars, (b) vans, and (c) other motor vehicles, imported as new vehicles from the Irish Republic, have been processed through the Vehicle Inspection Branch, Balmoral road, Belfast, in each of the last 12 months for which figures are available.

[holding answer 21 June 1988]: Vehicle inspection branch processes only those cases of imported private cars where there is doubt about their compliance with type approval requirements. Type approval does not apply to vans and other motor vehicles. The number of private cars referred to vehicle inspection branch is set out in the following table.

	No.
June 1987	0
July 1987	0
August 1987	0
September 1987	1
October 1987	1
November 1987	1
December 1987	0
January 1988	3
February 1988	0
March 1988	2
April 1988	1
May 1988	1

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish in the Official Report a table to show (a) the investigation reports published by the Fair Employment Agency in each of the last three years, (b) for each of those reports the percentage of Roman Catholics employed, on the basis of the information obtained by the Fair Employment Agency, (c) the percentage which the Fair Employment Agency considered to reflect that fair employment procedures were being followed, (d) the percentage of Roman Catholic employees which the employers believed to be in the work force and (e) by what means the Fair Employment Agency determined the number and percentage of Roman Catholics and what methods they used to check the accuracy of their figures.

[holding answer 22 June 1988]: The table lists reports of investigations by the Fair Employment Agency over the past three years indicating the percentage of Roman Catholics identified by the agency in each work force and indicating those organisations where the agency found that equality of opportunity had been afforded. Copies of these reports are available in the Library. Apart from two employers highlighted in the table no others were aware of the religious composition of their work forces prior to the agency's investigation.The agency assesses perceived religion from questionnaires issued to employees, from original applications for employment or from personnel records. Personal details taken into account, include name, address, school attended, subjects studied, names of referees and leisure interests.

Reports published	Per cent4
October 1985—Northern Ireland Housing Executive	136·5
November 1985—Northern Ireland Ambulance Service	24·0
March 1986—Southern Health and Social Services Board	47·0
March 1986—Ulster Museum	16·0
March 1986—Building Societies in Northern Ireland
—Halifax	9·0
—Woolwich	17·0
—Abbey National	14·0
—Gateway	11·0
—Nationwide	16·0
—Leicester	146·0
—Leeds Permanent	8·0
—Anglia	146·0
—Progressive	4·0
March 1986—Banks
—Trustee Savings Bank	20·0
—Northern Bank	16·0
—Allied Bank	72·0
—Ulster Bank	23·0
—Bank of Ireland	58·0
November 1986—Insurance Companies
—Prudential	22·3
—Pearl	133·3
—Commercial Union	11·0
—General Accident	7·5
—Britannic	50·0
—Refuge	63·6
—United Friendly	55·8
—Royal	11·5
September 1987—Derry City Council	169·0
November 1987—Hyster (NI) Limited	136·0
March 1988—Northern Ireland Railways	221·0
May 1988—AVX Limited	125·4
May 1988—Irish News	86·0
May 1988—Century Newspapers	311·0
1 In these cases the Fair Employment Agency was of the opinion that equality of opportunity was afforded.
2 Northern Ireland Railways challenged the Agency's assessed percentage of Roman Catholic workers but the final figure was mutually agreed.
3 Century Newspapers assessed percentage of Catholic workers was confirmed by the Agency's investigation.
4 FEA Assessment of percentage of Catholics employed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) when he proposes to announce his decision on the bids to purchase Connah's Quay power station; and if he will make a statement;(2) if he will make it his policy to allow Alyn and Deeside district council to acquire Connah's Quay power station site for economic, environmental and social development; and if he will make a statement.

The disposal of Connah's Quay power station is a commercial matter for the CEGB.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is the maximum weight of aircraft and speed of impact provided for in the design of nuclear power stations to withstand the impact of aircraft crashes.

The hazards associated with aircraft crashing on to nuclear power stations are assessed by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate. An assessment of the hazard at each site shows that the risk of an impact is sufficiently low to support the judgment that no specific features need to be incorporated into the design of the stations to take account of aircraft impacts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy which advertisements relating to equal opportunities in his Department have been placed with which selected newspapers from the ethnic minority press; and when and with what results.

In the Department's current recruitment campaign, advertisements were placed in the week beginning 6 June 1988 with the Daily Jang and The Voice, as well as with the South London Press. To date, three inquiries have been received from people citing the Daily Jang as their source, and 54 from applicants citing The Voice. So far eight application forms have been returned from these inquiries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he has appointed an equal opportunities officer.

Yes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he has any plans to improve equality of opportunity for women and for people from ethnic minorities in all grades of his Department, in connection with employment, training and promotion, respectively.

The good practice which underpins the employment policies that operate within my Department ensures equality of opportunity for employment, training and promotion for women and for people from ethnic minorities in all grades.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he has taken any positive action, pursuant to the codes of the Commission for Racial Equality and Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively, other than those measures specified in his answer to the hon. and learned Member for Leicester, West on 27 May, Official Report, columns 398–99.

Yes. Career managers encourage women, as well as employees from ethnic minority groups, to apply for promotion; for staff who are directly recruited, jobcentres in areas where ethnic minority groups are concentrated are regularly asked to advertise vacancies; applications from both sexes for leave to undertake domestic responsibilities are sympathetically considered whenever possible; and arrangements for residential training courses are made well in advance so as to enable staff with young children to make appropriate childcare arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many and what percentage of officers in each grade and overall in his Department are women and from ethnic minorities, respectively.

Based on staff in post on 1 June 1988, the table sets out the numbers and percentage of women employed in each grade in my Department. Information on the numbers and percentage of staff from ethnic minorities is not yet available.

Grade	Total staff in post (at 1.6.88)	Female staff in post	Per cent. Female staff in grade
1	1	—	—
2	2	—	—
3	11	—	—
4	1	—	—
5	39	3	7·7
6	20	1	5
7	132	15	13·7
SEO	38·5	2·5	6·5
HEO/HEO (D)	91·5	13	14·2
EO/AT	124	45	36·3
AO	124·5	68	54·6
AA	57	30·5	53·5
Chief Typing Manager	1	1	100
Typing Manager	4	4	100
Senior Personal Secretary	10	10	100
Personal Secretary	49	47	95·9
Typists	37·5	35·5	94·7
Office Keeper	1	1	100
Senior Paperkeeper	1	—	—
Paperkeeper	9	9	100
Senior Messenger	4	4	100
Messenger	19	11	57·9
Security Officer	8	2	25
Cleaner	1	—	—
SPTO/SSO (Senior Professional) and Technology Officer/Senior Scientific Officer)	18	—	—
HPTO/HSO (Higher)	9	—	—
PTO/SO	4	1	25
ASO	1	—	—
Reservoir Evaluation Specialist I	1	—	—
Res II	2	—	—
Res III	9	—	—
Res IV/V	20·5	8·5	41·5
Petroleum Specialist I	1	—	—
PS II	2	—	—
PS III	8	—	—
PS IV	21	—	—
PS V	1	—	—
Senior Engineering Inspector	3	—	—
Engineering Inspector	—	—	—
Chief Electricity Meter Examiner	1	—	—
Deputy Chief EME	1	—	—
Assistance EME	8	—	—
EME	10	—	—
Chief Gas Examiner	—	—	—
Area Gas Examiner	3	—	—
Gas Examiner	5	1	20
Chief Gas Meter Examiner	1	—	—
Assistance Chief GME	1	—	—
Gas Meter Examiner I	2	—	—
GME II	10	—	—
GME II	10	—	—

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he has carried out monitoring exercises in accordance with the codes of the Commission for Racial Equality and the Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively.

My Department monitors its direct recruitment to determine the success of its equal opportunities policies for women and for people from ethnic minority groups. My Department also monitors its promoting processes to determine progress towards equal opportunities for women. Because of difficulties in obtaining reliable data, monitoring the ethnic origin of staff in promotion processes is not yet undertaken.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what estimate he has made of the likely increase in the price of electricity in consequence of the decision of the Council of Ministers on 17 June in relation to curbing acid rain emissions; and if he will make a statement.

The CEGB was already planning to fit flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) equipment to 6000MW of existing capacity, the equivalent of three large coal-fired power stations, and to fit new coal-fired power stations with this equipment. The recent decision of the Council of Ministers could require the retrofit of a further three existing coal-fired stations. Much uncertainty surrounds the costing of FGD technology which has not been used before in the United Kingdom on the scale now contemplated. The CEGB estimated the effect of its original programme of FGD retrofits as possibly requiring an increase in electricity prices of around 1·5 per cent. by the year 2000. My Department estimates, on the basis of present knowledge, that the effect of the further work needed to fulfil the Council decision should be broadly similar.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he is satisfied with the levels of impounded water in the counties of Gwent, Mid and South Glamorgan; and if levels are sufficient to avoid restrictions on use during the next three months.

Present levels of impounded water in the three counties are typical of those to be expected at this time of year. The water resources position currently gives no cause for concern and there are no plans to introduce restrictions on use. The situation will, of course, be subject to review as the summer progresses.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the progress being made by the Welsh Health Common Services Authority in relation to the disputes arising from design and construction faults in the buildings of Ysbyty Gwynedd, Bangor.

I am pleased to be able to report to the House that an out-of-court settlement has been reached between the Welsh Health Common Services Authority and the Hospital Design Consortium in the main dispute over the cost of rectifying design faults in the hospital building. Under the terms of the settlement, the Hospital Design Consortium has paid damages of almost £5·3 million and has waived outstanding fees due on the main hospital and residential building contracts currently estimated at £600,000. Judgment in the Welsh Health Common Services Authority's action against Haden Young Ltd. claiming £190,000 for fire damage alleged to have been caused by the negligence of the defendant employees was given in favour of Haden Young Ltd. However a proportion of this claim was met under the main settlement with the Hospital Design Consortium.The dispute with IDC Ltd. remains unresolved. The Welsh Health Common Services Authority has withheld £130,000 from IDC to pay for remedial work to windows and cavities. Further remedial work may be needed to repair defective wall ties in the residential buildings and to modify some staircase balustrades. Under the terms of the main settlement, the defendants now agree to assist the Welsh Health Common Services Authority in the action necessary to bring these matters to a conclusion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, if he will convene and chair a conference of north Wales and north-west England health authorities to discuss the terms of reference for a comprehensive study of all cancer treatment services in north Wales including the possibility of a satellite radiotherapy centre in north Wales; and if he will make a statement.

The terms of reference of a review of cancer treatment services to north Wales patients have already been the subject of consultation with appropriate health authorities in Wales and England.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will take urgent steps to set up a satellite radiotherapy cancer centre in Clwyd, north Wales; and if he will make a statement.

The feasibility of a satellite radiotherapy centre in north Wales will be addressed in a review of cancer treatment services for north Wales patients.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many general practitioner maternity units have been closed in Wales since 1979.

Since January 1979, nine general practitioners maternity units have closed and two have opened in Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement concerning the circumstances surrounding the application for the siting of a 200,000-gallon slurry tank on Ciliau Moor Common, Dyfed.

During the course of construction of a collection chamber and slurry tank in the area of Ciliau Moor, it became apparent that the consent of the Secretary of State was required for these works because the site

Contractor	Description	Cost ('000)
1. British Coal Enterprise, Cardiff	Small Firms' Training Needs	18
2. Cambrian Manpower Development Unit, Aberystwyth	Environmental Training Needs in Industry in Wales	5
3. Cardiff Bay Development Corporation	Training Study of South Glamorgan Labour Market	18·775
4. Cardiff Chamber of Commerce	Cardiff Training Development Project	25
5. Carmarthen College of Technology and Art	Organic Fanning	46·7
6. Nature Conservancy Council	Environmental Manpower Project	12
7. People and Work Unit, Newport	Small Businesses	30
8. Swansea College of Further Education	Learning Skills for Adults	20
9. Swansea College of Further Education	Learning Skills for the Unemployed	25·224