To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he will list in the Official

Women graduates in veterinary medicine in institutions in the United Kingdom
	1986			1987
	Total	Women	Women as a percentage of total	Total	Women	Women as a percentage of total
Bristol	46	21	45·7	40	24	60·0
Cambridge	53	29	54·7	56	23	41·1
Liverpool	47	14	29·8	47	12	24·5
London	57	26	45·6	65	29	44·6
Edinburgh	51	29	56·9	51	23	45·1
Glasgow	58	29	50·0	52	27	51·9
Belfast	1	1	100·0	2	1	50·0
Total	313	149	47·6	313	139	44·4

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list in the Official Report the total number of British-domiciled graduates in

Destinations of first degree graduates in veterinary medicine (United Kingdom1)
	Home employment	Overseas employment	Total employment	Total graduates
1982–83	222	6	228	321
1983–84	207	4	211	319
1984–85	210	5	215	334
1985–86	229	7	236	313
1986–87	227	4	231	313
1 Includes a small number of students at university in Northern Ireland and a small number of non-United Kingdom domiciled students.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the statutory provision made for children of normal ability whose academic progress is impeded by irregular school attendance caused by the crises of chronic medical conditions such as a sickle cell anaemia or asthma.

It is the responsibility of local education authorities to make suitable education available for all children in their area. Such provision can be made either in schools or "otherwise than in schools"—for example, home tuition or hospital education. It is for each authority to determine what provision is appropriate for each child, after having taken account of individual circumstances, such as any particular medical condition.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he proposes to introduce Report the total number of women graduates in veterinary medicine in each British college in each of the past five years, showing this figure also as a percentage of the total number of graduates;(2) if he will list in the

The available information is shown in the following table. Information prior to 1986 is not readily available.veterinary medicine who

The available information is as follows:additional facilities for additional voluntary contributions within the teachers' superannuation scheme; and if he will make a statement.

The prudential pension fund services have been appointed to provide a new additional voluntary contributions (AVC) scheme for teachers who are members of the teachers' superannuation scheme for England and Wales. They have also been appointed to provide these facilities for members of the teachers' scheme in Scotland.The AVC scheme will offer a flexible, money-purchase alternative to the existing provision for buying-in added years. Members will be able to choose to invest their contributions in a with-profits or a unit-linked fund, or on cash deposit at building society rates of interest, or to apply them to the purchase of additional life insurance cover, or in any combination of these investments. Members will also be free to vary their contributions, and their allocation between investments, at any time.We intend to lay regulations before Parliament shortly to give effect to the new scheme, and to seek approval for it under section 592 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 so that teachers' contributions are allowable as a deduction from income before assessment to tax. Subject to these requirements, the scheme will come into operation on 1 April 1989, enabling members to secure tax relief on single premium payments in the 1988–89 tax year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what new initiatives he will propose at the coming meeting of the Southern Africa Development co-ordination conference in Angola.

[pursuant to her answer, 1 February 1989]: My hon. Friend the Minister for Overseas Development has today told the annual donors meeting of the Southern African development co-ordination conference (SADCC) that commitments of British aid for SADCC projects now stand at £60 million. This follows his approval of a £15 million project to finance the second phase of the rehabilitation of the Limpopo railway linking Zimbabwe to Maputo. He has announced that Britain will contribute £500,000 to the programme co-ordinated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to repatriate Namibian refugees from Angola and Zambia; and that we are ready when appropriate to provide technical assistance to help reopen the Benguela railway in Angola. He has also announced an additional £250,000 to help finance UNHCR's programme for Mozambican refugees in Malawi, bringing total British aid for this purpose to £3·328 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the most recently available index figure for output in manufacturing industry; and what was the figure for the same month in 1973, 1979, 1983 and 1986.

The figures are as follows:

	Manufacturing Output (1985 = 100)
November 1973	111·2
November 1979	106·6
November 1983	94·9
November 1986	104·1
November 1988	116·4

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has as to what efforts are being made by the credit card companies and associated banks to assist those borrowers with problems of excessive personal indebtedness.

The clearing banks through the banking information service provide information on credit and debt, through educational visits, videos and literature. Some 20 financial organisations, of which seven are banks, are providing £750,000 over a period of three years for money advice.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has as to the average merchant service charge paid by retailers accepting (a) Visa, (b) Access, (c) American Express and (d) Diners Club for each year since 1984.

Merchant service charges paid by retailers accepting credit cards are a matter for commercial negotiation between the retailer and card company, and information about these charges is not held by my Department.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has as to what range of interest rates are available to personal borrowers in the following categories: (a) bank credit cards, (b) store credit cards, (c) mortgages, (d) bank loans and (e) other forms of credit.

Detailed information on ranges of interest rates available to personal borrowers is not centrally available. The Consumer Credit (Total Charge for Credit) Regulations 1980 (SI 1980/51) prescribe the items to be included in and the method of calculating the annual percentage rate of charge (APR) so that consumers can compare the various rates on offer.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has as to what proportion of credit card applicants have been rejected by the credit card companies in each of the past 10 years.

The information requested is not available. Whether to accept or reject a credit card application is a commercial decision for the card company concerned. However, a major credit card company recently announced that it rejects about one in three applications.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what information he has as to what proportion of borrowers in each of the following categories pay interest at the full annual percentage rate; and what is the average percentage paid in each category (a) bank credit cards, (b) store credit cards, (c) bank loans and (d) other forms of credit;(2) what information he has as to the annual increases in borrowing on which interest is paid for

Credit business statistics published by the Department (there is no earlier comparable data) show that the amounts outstanding to lenders from borrowers were:

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has as to what weighting is given, when calculating annual percentage rates, of the effect of the free credit period which holders of bank credit cards receive from the day of their purchase to their statement date.

Items to be included in the annual percentage rate of charge and the way it is calculated are set out in the Consumer Credit (Total Charge for Credit)

£000's
Scheme	1984–85	1985–86	1986–87	1987–88	1988–89	Total
Energy audit scheme	20	13	0	0	0	33
Industrial energy thrift scheme	2	3	0	6	—	11
Renewable energy source scheme	24	11	0	2	0	37
Energy conservation demonstration scheme	338	194	134	16	0	682
Industrial heat recovery consultancy scheme	291	594	878	173	7	1,943
Total	675	815	1,012	197	7	2,706

The responsibility of the then Department of Industry for improving energy efficiency in United Kingdom industry was passed to the Department of Energy in 1982 on the recommendation of a Rayner review. The payments shown in the table (excepting those for the industrial heat recovery scheme) arose from contracts entered into prior to the review. The industrial heat recovery scheme closed to new applicants in 1986. The activities of the regional energy efficiency officers located in the Department's regional offices are paid for by the Department of Energy under an agency agreement. Payments made under other DTI industrial support schemes contain conservation-related components but these are not separately identifiable.Funds devoted by the Department to savings on the costs of its own energy consumption are likely to be some £208,000 in 1988–89.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if in the light of the training and experience required of workers in the Channel tunnel, he will take steps to bring this and similar activities under supervision of Her Majesty's inspectors of mines and within the Mines and Quarries Regulations.

The decision on which inspectorate supervises a particular activity is an internal management Regulations 1980 (SI 1980/51). Any period of interest-free credit is not taken into account in the calculation of the annual percentage rate of charge.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how much has been spent by his Department in each of the last five years on the development and encouragement of energy saving schemes in the public and private sector.

[holding answer 26 January 1989]: Payments made over the past six years by my Department to the private sector under schemes explicitly designed to encourage and develop energy savings are itemised in the table.matter for the Health and Safety Commission and Executive, and it is for them to decide on that allocation. The Channel tunnel project is a work of engineering construction and is regulated by the provisions of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 and the construction regulations, which are enforced by HM factory inspectorate.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what has been the number of deaths, serious injuries and minor injuries sustained in the docks industry (a) in dock labour scheme ports and (b) in non-scheme ports, for each year since 1979.

The figures are not available in the form requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Coventry, South-East, on 30 January, he will give such information as he has as to the level of compensation or damages received by the families concerned following fatalities on YTS schemes from: (a) departmental or Training Agency payments and (b) insurance cover of YTS managing agents and training managers.

The Department or Training Agency does not offer compensational damages to families of trainees fatally injured on YTS. However YTS managing agents and training managers are contractually obliged to obtain insurance to cover any claims to compensation or damages. Compensational damages paid by either insurance companies or YTS managing agents and training managers are a private matter between them and the trainees' families. The Training Agency is not informed of these settlements.

To ask the Attorney-General on how many occasions since 1979 his Department has made extradition applications for terrorist offences; and how often, by whom, and for what reasons such requests have been rejected.

With respect to extradition requests to the Republic of Ireland I refer the hon. Member to answers given on 8 and 13 December 1988 by my hon. Friends the Minister of State for the Home Office, the Scottish Office and the Northern Ireland Office and to the answers I gave on 19 December 1988 to my hon. Friends the Members for Northampton, North (Mr. Marlow and for Orpington (Mr. Stanbrook).Applications for extradition from other countries are a matter for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Home Department, for Scotland and for Northern Ireland.

To ask the Attorney-General what was the average time taken by each of the land registry offices from receipt to completion of property transfers for each of the years 1984 to 1988.

	Permanent Staff
		Staff in Post
	Authorised complement 1 January 1989	1 January 1988	1 January 1987	1 January 1986	1 January 1985	1 January 1984
Croydon	550	458	495	472	484	477
Harrow	585	520	520	535	526	537
Tunbridge Wells	725	631	633	638	612	596
Lytham	670	573	535	533	520	526
Nottingham	890	712	686	641	644	639
Gloucester	770	687	697	662	650	651
Stevenage	695	612	622	614	548	527
Durham	770	526	463	466	475	476
Plymouth	665	568	497	457	450	468
Swansea	640	466	377	366	331	323
Birkenhead	560	406	376	359	359	357
Weymouth	620	499	445	431	375	319
Peterborough	680	547	432	411	375	338
Telford	400	153	44	—	—	—
Coventry	350	163	—	—	—	—
Hull	340	112	—	—	—	—
Leicester	130	—	—	—	—	—
Headquarters (including Computer Services Division based at Plymouth)	388	348	329	320	294	273
Land Charges Department	172	158	151	152	153	146
Total	10,600	8,139	7,302	7,057	6,796	6,653

The average completion times in weeks at each office for all categories of substantive applications at the end of December for the year indicated are shown in the table.

Office	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988
Croydon	5	7	13	18	22
Harrow	10	10	17	21	19
Tunbridge Wells	9	10	18	15	15
Lytham	8	7	14	24	18
Nottingham	8	8	16	22	27
Gloucester	7	8	17	25	28
Stevenage	8	8	14	19	19
Durham	8	6	14	21	22
Plymouth	7	8	14	24	24
Swansea	5	7	14	19	22
Birkenhead	9	9	11	19	15
Weymouth	5	7	1	1	17
Peterborough	6	6	11	23	26
Telford	—	—	—	—	19
Coventry	—	—	—	—	25
Hull	—	—	—	—	19

The last three offices were opened as district land registries in 1988.

To ask the Attorney-General what is the current complement of staff at each of the land registry offices and what were the levels of staff for each of the years 1984 to 1988.

[holding answer 20 January 1989]: The authorised complement at each of the land registry's offices at 1 January 1989 and the total numbers of permanent staff in post on the same day in the years 1984 to 1988 are set out in the table.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans she has to improve co-ordination between Government Departments to promote the protection of the environment.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans she has to improve co-ordination between Government Departments to promote the protection of the environment.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans she has to improve co-ordination between Government Departments to promote the protection of the environment.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans she has to improve co-ordination between Government Departments to promote the protection of the environment.

I am satisfied that the present arrangements effectively promote environmental protection.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to create a department of environmental protection; and if she will make a statement.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to create a department of environmental protection; and if she will make a statement.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to create a department of environmental protection; and if she will make a statement.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to create a department of environmental protection; and if she will make a statement.

We already have a Department of the Environment whose duties include environmental protection matters.

To ask the Prime Minister whether, following to the recently published White Paper, "Scottish Enterprise", it is the intention of Her Majesty's Government to retain the name of the Scottish Development Agency.

It seems sensible to have a new name for a new body, but we shall consider carefully all the comments received on the White Paper.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to convene an international conference on global environmental issues.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to convene an international conference on global environmental issues.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to convene an international conference on global environmental issues.

In March my right hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment and I are convening an international conference in London to address the major global issue of saving the ozone layer. His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales will attend a dinner for heads of delegations hosted by my right hon. Friend. President Moi of Kenya will give the keynote speech at the opening ceremony.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has any plans to visit Hyndburn to discuss the threat to steak pie and ox tongue production posed by the EEC hormone ban.

I have at present no plans to do so.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list all Government contracts with (a) Zeus and (b) Securipol Ltd. since 1979; and if she will give the purpose of each contract.

Details of contracts placed by other Government Departments are not held centrally. Records for my office are readily available only from April 1984. No contracts have been placed with, or payment made to, Zeus or Securipol Ltd. by on behalf of my office during that period.

To ask the Prime Minister whether Her Majesty's Government has contracted out to any private company the monitoring of individuals or organisations who are concerned about or object to the sub-sea disposal of nuclear waste; and if she will make a statement.

The recent consultation exercise undertaken by UK Nirex Ltd. on the options for a deep disposal facility for radioactive waste has enabled individuals or organisations to make their views known. I know of no monitoring of those concerned about or objecting to the sub-sea disposal option.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 2 February.

This morning 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.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he intends to present to the House the amendment to the treaty of Brussels of 1948, providing for the accession of Spain and Portugal to the Western European Union; and if he will make a statement.

The accession of Spain and Portugal to the Western European Union does not require an amendment to the treaty of Brussels which was modified in 1954. However, the protocol of accession of Spain and Portugal to the organisation will be laid before the House shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what foods have been found to be contaminated with listeria following diagnosis of a medical condition which has resulted from the consumption of such foods.

Two cases of listeriosis in the United Kingdom have been associated with the consumption of soft cheese, one with cooked chicken and one with vegetable rennet.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate for each English regional health authority the percentage resource difference from its resource allocation working party target in 1989–90 on the basis of the resource allocations presently outlined.

The allocations for 1989–90 which I announced on 21 December 1988 allow every regional health authority to benefit from the additional resources available. These allocations were even handed and not based on the old RAWP method. As the White Paper published on 31 January makes clear, the Government now intend to move on from RAWP to a simpler and fairer system. Distances from target on the old basis are therefore no longer relevant and will no longer be produced by my Department.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many replies are still outstanding to his Department's questionnaire on haemoglobinopathy services from the district health authorities canvassed.

Four replies to the questionnaire on screening and counselling for sickle cell and thalassaemic diseases are still outstanding.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Caerphilly, 16 January, Official Report, columns 36–37, what is (a) the number of batches of the blood product factor 8 which have been discarded due to viral hepatitis B infection, (b) the dates on which such batches were discarded and (c) the percentage of overall production which the discarded batches represent.

I am advised that since 1982 when the Central Blood Laboratories Authority was established, batches of factor 8 were discarded for this reason in 1983, 1984 and 1988. A total of 10 batches representing approximately 1 per cent. of batches produced were involved.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients with listeriosis were treated in Plymouth hospitals during 1987 and 1988.

We do not hold this information centrally. However, the information we have obtained from South Western regional health authority is as follows:

Number of patients with listeriosis treated in Plymouth hospitals
Financial Year
1986–87	information not available
1987–88	none
1988–89	not yet available

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Wakefield, Official Report, 23 January, column 411, he will indicate the sources of the evidence presented to his Department's expert group which suggested that the cook-chill meals produced would be safe and microbiologically sound.

[holding answer 30 January 1989]: The expert group which recently reviewed the existing guidelines considered published and unpublished papers on the microbiological safety of the system, including papers on low temperature pathogens.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Wakefield, Official Report, 23 January, column 411, there was any evaluation of cook-chill catering in relation to possible dangers from listeria and other psychrotrophs undertaken by the Department of Health and Social Security between 1970 and 1980.

[holding answer 30 January 1989]: The expert group which produced the cook-chill catering guidelines between 1977 and 1980 did not evaluate possible dangers from listeria and other psychrotrophs. At that time there was, and there remains, no evidence to indicate that the recommendations in the guidelines would lead to problems from listeria monocytogenes or other pathogenic psychrotrophs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has prepared draft regulations to cover cook-chill food at retailing outlets; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 31 January 1989]: I refer the hon. Member to my replies to the hon. Member for Wakefield (Mr. Hinchliffe) and my hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge (Mr. Shersby) on 23 January 1989 at columns 410–11 and 27 January at column 801.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many nursing staff at all levels are employed in the Mourne hospital, Kilkeel; how many of these staff have been advised of their new grades under the clinical grading review; and how many appeals have been received.

There are 37 nursing staff employed in the Mourne hospital, Kilkeel all of whom have been advised of their new grades. Twenty-six asked to have their grading reviewed under the informal review procedure and eight nursing staff who remained dissatisfied have invoked the formal grievance procedure.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the most recent figure for empty local authority housing; how many of these properties have been vacant for periods over six, 12 and 24 months, respectively; and if he will make a statement.

Provision of public sector housing in Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive. I am informed by its chief executive that at 31 December 1988 the information requested is:

	Number
Total number of vacant properties	2,525
Vacant 6–12 months	335
Vacant over 12 months	1,072
Vacant over 24 months	n/a

Type	Eastern per cent·	Northern per cent·	Southern per cent·	Western per cent·	NI average
Statutory1	55·6	70·5	73·9	74·5	64·1
Voluntary	28·9	11·1	16·0	24·0	22·4
Private	15·5	18·4	10·2	1·5	13·6
1 In Northern Ireland local authorities have no responsibility for statutory residential homes: these are provided by the four health and social services boards·

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people in the Greater Belfast area are estimated to be suffering from alcohol-related illnesses; and what has been the trend during the past ten years.

The information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list all those beaches in Northern Ireland which failed to meet the European directive on bathing water quality standards in the last year for which data is available; when it is planned for each of these beaches to meet these standards; and what is the estimated cost in each case.

; Information on the quality of Northern Ireland's bathing water during the 1988 bathing season is at present being collated. I expect the results to be announced before the start of this year's bathing season. We have recently improved the sewage treatment facilities at Ballycastle, Co Antrim, at a cost of almost £1 million and are currently providing sewage treatment facilities at Newcastle, Co Down, at an estimated cost of £5 million. Further improvements will be considered if the 1988 results show that they are necessary.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of continuing care residential places are provided for the elderly (a) by local authorities, (b) by voluntary organisations and (c) by the private sector in each health board for (i) the year 1981 and (ii) the year 1988.

The information is not held centrally in exactly the form requested. At 31 December 1987, the latest date for which figures are available, the percentage of all available places for the elderly (including a small number of places designated for rehabilitation or respite care) in each of the health and social services board was as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proposals he has to allocate milk quotas to those producers who had temporarily entered into Community schemes for the cessation of milk production at the time when the original milk quotas were established; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 1 February 1989]: The Council of Agriculture Ministers has agreed measures to comply with the ruling of the European Court in the Mulder case. When the necessary Community legislation has been published, steps will be taken to implement the arrangements in the United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much each health authority spent in 1988 on the fees paid to medical employment agencies for providing locum services for their hospitals; and what was the highest, lowest and average hourly rate paid by each health authority.

Details of the hourly rates paid by Welsh health authorities for locum services are not collected centrally. The health authorities' annual accounts do not disaggregate expenditure on locum services within hospitals from overall expenditure on such services. During 1987–88 the total expenditure on medical locum services by each District Health Authority in Wales was as follows:

£000
Clwyd	198·8
East Dyfed	221·4
Gwent	0·7
Gwynedd	348·5
Mid Glamorgan	569·3
Pembrokeshire	392·7
Powys	4·5
South Glamorgan	1·9
West Glamorgan	221·6
Wales	1,959·4

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he expects to make a statement on the work of the Welsh Language Board.

My right hon. Friend will respond to the Welsh Language Board's findings as they emerge.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the extent to which Mr. Edward Rea's membership of the Welsh Language Board is compatible with his current membership of and recent position as council member of the Economic League; and if he will make a statement.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list for the Welsh Water Authority the

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he can make an estimate of the acreage of land available with planning consent for building homes in Ceredigion; and if he will make a statement.

This information is not collected centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what action is being taken in the current year to build nursery factories in Ceredigion; and if he will make a statement.

The Development Board for Rural Wales' factory construction programme for 1988–89 includes plans for the construction of four 1,500 sq. ft. units in Cardigan and six 750 sq. ft. units in Aberystwyth. The board has offered grant assistance to Ceredigion district council to provide a workshop of 1,500 sq. ft. in Cardigan.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of continuing care residential places are provided for the elderly (a) by local authorities, (b) by voluntary organisations and (c) by the private sector in each health authority for (i) the year 1987 and (ii) the year 1988.

The information requested is shown in the table:number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letters to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied.

The Authority has not advised any intention to seek consent variations in respect of works of this size.

To ask the Minister for the Arts, pursuant to his written answer to the hon. Member for Warley, East on 24 January, Official Report, column 486, which figures of museum and gallery attendances during 1988 in his answer were actual and which were estimated.

The term "estimated" allows for a margin of error at those institutions where the number of visitors is counted manually. In such cases figures are usually regarded as being accurate to within 5 per cent.

To ask the Minister for the Arts why his Department failed to include the Library Association in the organisations consulted about the European Community's proposed programme on "A European Space for the Book" which includes specific recommendations relating to libraries.

[holding answer 31 January 1989]: No European Community proposals for "A European Space for the Book" have yet been put forward for discussion, although some preliminary ideas are in circulation, including those of the current Presidency of the Community. The Library Association will be among those organisations consulted if proposals are put forward with a library component.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are his estimates of future rates of inflation for (a) the next five and (b) the next 10 years; and what assumptions were made in their calculation.

The Treasury does not publish such forecasts.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has as to what levels of personal borrowing are attributable to (a) bank credit cards, (b) store credit cards, (c) mortgages, (d) bank loans and (e) other forms of credit.

The table is adapted from figures in table 9.3 of the January edition of Financial Statistics.

Outstanding Stock of Personal Sector Borrowing, September 1988
	£ billion	Percentage of total
Total of which:	286	100
Bank credit cards	6	2
Non-bank credit, including store credit cards	7	3
Mortgages	215	75
Other bank loans1	57	20
Other credit (with insurance companies)	1	—
1 Includes some borrowing by unincorporated businesses.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has as to what percentage of bank credit card holders on average repay in full each month, for each year since 1984.

Data are not collected centrally in the form requested.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his practice when answering questions by reference to previous written answers which have been published in the Official Report to attach the answer so referred to.

No; to copy extracts from the Official Report for hon. Members would be an inappropriate use of resources.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with whom he consulted before imposing a pay settlement, without negotiations, on staff of the new community charge tribunals.

I have been asked to reply. The Department has not imposed a settlement. An offer increasing the pay of local valuation panel staff has been tabled, which the Society of Clerks and NALGO are considering.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to ensure continued security of the Whitehall parcel delivery and self-drive car service subsequent on its contracting out.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment will take whatever steps are necessary.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to implement his Department's proposals to enable the site licensing authority to take into account the previous performance of an applicant for a waste disposal site licence.

Legislation will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time permits.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish in the Official Report a full list of the waste disposal authorities in England, indicating those that have not yet completed their waste disposal plans and deposited them with his Department.

Following is a list of waste disposal authorities in England grouped according to the current status of their disposal plans:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what guidance he issues on the circumstances in which information used for the maintenance of the community charge registers may be disclosed to (a) other Departments of Government, (b) the police and (c) public utilities;(2) what guidance he issues on the use of the personal data collected by the community charge officer for community charge purposes as a general information resource for the charging authority to use for other purposes; and whether he will make a statement.

We have made no provision for personal data to be disclosed for the purposes or to the organisations mentioned by the hon. Member. Guidance has been issued to registration officers on the disclosure of information in practice notes entitled "The Community Charges Register" and "Data Protection and the Community Charge". Copies of both practice notes are available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assistance his Department is able to offer to tenants of precast reinforced concrete houses designated under the Housing Defects Act 1984 whose local authorities are unable to afford to repair, or who are unable to secure a mortgage to cover buying or selling; and if he will make a statement.

Tenants of properties designated under the housing defects legislation have the right to buy their homes. They will be eligible for discount in the normal way and have a right to a mortgage from their local authority. If the property is unrepaired we advise tenants to get a survey, to establish the structural condition of the property including how soon works might be needed; and to satisfy themselves that the valuation properly reflects this. If tenants are unhappy with the authority's valuation they can seek an independent one from the district valuer.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will take steps to exempt from the 1988 Budget changes on tax relief for home improvement those living in precast reinforced concrete houses designated under the Housing Defects Act 1984.

Changes to the tax system are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the number of houses seriously defective, or defective, as defined by statute, in each local housing authority and standard region.

Information on the numbers and distribution, by local authority and region, of properties designated under the housing defects legislation is available in the House Library. This is based on survey material obtained in 1983 and updated in 1986 and again in 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if, pursuant to his answer of 25 January to the hon. Member for Leeds, West, he will give the number of properties repossessed by mortgagors for each six month period from January 1982 to June 1988.

This information is published in table 17 of the BSA bulletin Nos. 49 and 56 copies of which are in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he proposes to make a statement on any changes to the home improvement grant entitlement regime.

The Local Government and Housing Bill, published today, contains provisions introducing a new system of home improvement grants to replace those in part XV of the Housing Act 1985. Entitlement for grant will depend on an applicant's financial resources.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what was the number of home improvement grants made in each year from 1983 to 1988; and what is his estimate for 1988–89 (a) nationally, (b) for each local housing authority and (c) by standard region;(2) what was the expenditure in current and standard prices on home improvement grants in each year since 1983 and estimated for 1988–89

The information requested has been laid in the House of Commons Library. The figures, including the advance estimates for 1988–89, are those provided by local authorities on their HIP2 returns.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will hold a public inquiry on section 7(1) submissions from Warrington and Runcorn development corporation affecting Appleton Cross and Graffenhall Hays.

I have yet to receive these submissions. Local inquiries into submissions under section 7(1) of the New Towns Act 1987 are exceptional, but are held when necessary.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if the Housing Corporation will purchase the freehold of the land in Hounslow on which the Beaver estate is situated and of which the United Kingdom Housing Trust is the leaseholder.

This is a matter for the Housing Corporation, but I understand that it is not its intention to purchase the freehold.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what is the policy of his Department concerning the ability of established housing associations to manage property for temporary letting to homeless people; and whether the Government will facilitate the transfer of council housing to such associations;(2) if he will explain the policy of his Department concerning cheaper alternatives to bed and breakfast accommodation for homeless households in housing association property.

Housing associations can help provide temporary accommodation for homeless people through lettings both of their own stock and of short life property leased from local authorities. These leasing arrangements work well and I am not aware that any special action is required to facilitate associations' access to council housing.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give the reasons for the delay of 347 days before his Department replied to the request of 27 November 1987 by the London borough of Ealing to enter into agreements with Shepherd's Bush housing association and others to manage properties for temporary letting to homeless people, under section 10 of the Housing and Planning Act 1986; and if he will give a date for a reply to this request.

My Department has written to, or telephoned, officers of the London borough of Ealing on eight occasions since the council's application was received in November 1987. We hope that, when they have replied to the latest letter of 29 December 1988, it will be possible to make a final decision.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to grant the Norfolk local authorities' superannuation fund a sanction under section 19(1) of the Local Government Act 1982 in the even that the legality of the adjustment of contributions, as proposed at the superannuation committee of 26 July 1988, were challenged.

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will make it his policy that the Director General of Water Services designate will play a role in fixing the cost of water to the consumer;(2) whom he will be meeting to discuss the value of K, prior to flotation of the water industry.

The setting of the initial charges limit applying to water undertakings on their appointment is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State. In order to promote consistency of procedures on matters such as consultation with those that the director general is likely to follow in subsequent reviews of the charges limit, he will hold discussions with the director general designate when his/her appointment has been made.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list for the Southern water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(2) if he will list for Wessex water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(3) if he will list for the Severn-Trent water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(4) if he will list for the Northumbria water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(5) if he will list for the Anglian water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(6) if he will list for the South West water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(7) if he will list for the North West water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(8) if he will list for the Thames water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied;(9) if he will list for the Yorkshire water authority the number of sewage treatment works serving populations of less than 1,000 which are eligible to apply for consent variation, following his letter to the chairman of 21 November 1988, and the number which have applied.

The information is not held centrally. No applications from water authorities for variations in the consent conditions for small works serving populations of less than 1,000 have yet been received by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the locations of the 63 sewage treatment works in the Yorkshire water authority area which exceeded their discharge consents in 1987.

Seventy-four sewage treatment works in the Yorkshire water authority area exceeded their discharge consents in 1987. Copies of the returns submitted by Yorkshire water authority were placed in the Libraries of both Houses in June last year. The works are identified by name.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what further developments have taken place since his announcement in December 1988 of the proposed maximum rate limits for rate capped authorities in 1989–90.

Of the seven rate-capped authorities, Tower Hamlets has accepted the proposed rate limit within the statutory period.The remaining six authorities have not accepted the proposed limits. I have carefully considered all the representations made by these authorities, including their proposals to agree a different limit with me, and all other relevant information and representations.In the case of Camden, I am now seeking from the council further information in relation to certain factual matters it has raised during its representations.For the remaining five authorities I am now proposing:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the Government have reviewed the proposals on the conduct of local authority business set out in the White Paper Cm 433.

The Government have considered very carefully the many views that have been expressed since the publication of Cm 433. On a number of points they are convinced that the legislation should be adapted to take account of these points. The Local Government and Housing Bill, presented yesterday, is accordingly drafted to give effect to these changes.The points where the Bill differs from the proposals in the White Paper are as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what responses he received to his consultation paper on local authority capital finance; and if he will make a statement.

The consultation paper "Capital Expenditure and Finance" was published on 7 July 1988. Four hundred and fifty two responses were received by my right hon. Friend and a further 17 by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales. My right hon. Friends are grateful to all those who set out their views.The consultation paper proposed, in light of the accountability that will be brought about by the community charge, a switch from controlling capital expenditure as such to controlling the use of credit to pay for it. That proposal appears to have generally been welcomed and the majority of the responses related to individual features of the new system as outlined in the consultation paper, and in particular the method of equal instalments of principal by which it was proposed that provision should be made from revenue accounts to meet existing and future credit liabilities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what conclusions he has reached as a result of the consultative paper "Local Authorities' Interests in Companies" issued in June 1988.

My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for the Environment and the Secretary of State for Wales have considered the responses received to the consultation paper and have decided to make a number of amendments to the proposals which are set out in the document which I have today placed in the Library of the House.The amendments are:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what a typical ward sister would pay (a) in rates, (b) in community charge and (c) in a system of capital value rates plus local income tax paid in the proportions of 80:20, respectively, if she lived in a typical one-bedroom flat in Walthamstow.

A ward sister earning £15,000, living in a flat in Walthamstow worth £55,000 with a rateable value of £300, would pay a rates bill of £634, a community charge of £269, disregarding the transitional safety net, and £665 under a system of capital value rates plus local income tax.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if, pursuant to his answer to the hon.