To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the issue of nuclear sanctions against South Africa will be on the agenda for the forthcoming Council of Ministers meeting in Granada, Spain, on 15 and 16 April; and if he will make a statement.

There was no discussion of nuclear sanctions against South Africa at Granada, although the possibility of South Africa's accession to the nonproliferation treaty was noted and EC Foreign Ministers agreed to keep it under review.It remains our policy not to supply any materials or equipment to South Africa which would aid her nuclear programme. This policy is exercised through the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1985.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will report the progress made on concluding prisoner repatriation agreements with Egypt, Peru and Thailand; and if he will make a statement.

Details of our negotiations with Foreign Governments are confidential. However, the present position is as follows.The agreement with Egypt was to have been signed in Cairo in December 1988. Unfortunately, this did not prove possible. Discussions continue.The Peruvians proposed a revised draft text of a proposed agreement in July 1988. Further discussions will shortly take place with the Government of Peru.A Thai delegation is expected in London in the next few months to discuss the outstanding points on the proposed agreement with Thailand.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out, for each of the last five years for which figures are available, the number of British citizens who are convicted of offences abroad and who have not received custodial sentences, giving the nature of the offences and the sentences passed; and if he will make a statement.

The information requested is unavailable. There is no requirement for us to be notified of non-custodial sentences enforced on British nationals by foreign courts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to the Government of Turkey regarding the detention of Dr. Nihat Sargin and Mr. Haydon Kutlu; and what effect Turkey's continued detention of political prisoners has on Her Majesty's Government's policy towards Turkey's application for admission to the European Community.

The Turkish Government are well aware of our concern about such cases, and our expectation that they should respect and abide by the human rights conventions to which they are a party.Turkey's application to join the EC has been referred to the Commission for its opinion. Once available, the Council of Ministers will consider it further, taking alto account all relevant factors including Turkey's human rights record.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will now authorise the reimbursement of the legal costs of the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority in relation to its representation at the King's Cross public inquiry.

We see no reason to question Mr. Fennell's judgment, reached after careful consideration of representations from the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority, that it was not appropriate that it should receive an order for costs, notwithstanding his acknowledgement of the substantial contribution made to the proceedings by the authority.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many responses he has received to date to the White Paper, "The Road User and the Law".

We have had over 90 representations from hon. Members, interested organisations and members of the public. We welcome the enthusiastic public response that the White Paper has received.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received about the closure of the southern exit off the M5 motorway at junction 26 and its consequences for access to Wellington; why the closure is necessary; and what temporary signposting measures he is taking to assist southbound motorway traffic heading for Wellington.

The work involves the complete reconstruction of about one mile of the southbound carriageway including that length through the interchange abutting the southbound slip road, which has to be closed for reasons of practicality and safety. The work should be completed before the spring bank holiday.Signs warning of the closure were installed at junctions 25 and 26 about four weeks before work started. The diversionary routes are well signed on the M5, A38 and A358 at strategic positions. These routes are little longer but may take more time depending on the level of traffic congestion in Taunton.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 11 April to the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth, when he expects to conclude his consideration of what remedial action is required to ease the way for traffic leaving the M1 and joining the M25.

We expect to make an announcement in early summer following completion of the current comprehensive review of the road programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 11 April to the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth, what action he will be taking to reduce congestion during peak hours to restore traffic flows between junctions 9 and 10 of the M1.

We are seeking to increase capacity, assist traffic flow and offer improved alternative roads.Our current programme includes the provision of climbing lanes for use by slow moving heavy goods vehicles in both directions from junction 9. The northbound one will extend the whole length between junctions 9 and 10, creating an extra lane. The southbound one will extend 1·41 km. from junction 9. Work is planned for 1991–92.The possibility of further improvement is being considered in the current review of the road programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the current hourly traffic flow standards for (a) two-lane motorways and (b) three-lane motorways.

The Department uses "design reference flows" rather than traffic flow standards when designing motorways. These indicate only the starting point for detailed economic and operational assessment of options.The Department's design reference flows for a dual three-lane motorway range from 50,000 to 79,000 vehicles per annual average day in the design year (15 years after the road opens). Comparable figures for a two-lane motorway are 28,000 to 54,000 vehicles per day.The capacity of roads is substantially greater than design reference flows.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what Government financial assistance has been allocated to county road building and improvement programmes for 1988–89 and for 1989–90.

The 108 local highway authorities in England were given a total capital allocation of £567·111 million for capital expenditure in 1988–89 on road building and improvements. Of this £191 million was provided by way of transport supplementary grant towards the cost of schemes of more than local importance. The corresponding figures for 1989–90 are £513 million and £204 million respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what Government financial assistance has been allocated to East Sussex's road building and improvement programme for 1988–89 and for 1989–90.

East Sussex county council was given a capital allocation of £7·180 million for expenditure on road building and improvements in 1988–89. Of this £2·121 million was provided by way of transport supplementary grant towards the cost of schemes of more than local importance. The corresponding figures for 1989–90 are £6·720 million and £2·482 million respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the implications for transport safety of the decision to withdraw the services of watchmen from the Forth rail bridge.

Whilst this is a management matter for British Rail, which considers that the decision does not endanger safety, I understand that watchmen's duties were to guard against risk of fire from steam trains and to deter trespassers when the only other means of crossing the Forth was by ferry.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set up a departmental inquiry into traffic problems in Dronfield, Derbyshire.

An A61 Trunk road bypass on Dronfield was opened in October 1975. Any traffic problems within Dronfield are a matter for the local highway authority, Derbyshire county council.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all current publicity campaigns being conducted by or for his Department or one planned for the first three months of 1989–90, indicating those which involve television advertising and the starting and finishing dates of each campaign.

It would be extremely difficult to draw up a complete inventory of all the Department's publicity material (posters, leaflets, TV and radio "fillers", etc) which are likely to be issued or broadcast during the current quarter. Nor could all this material be properly dignified with the title of "campaign".The Department produces a wide range of publicity material, particularly in the road safety field, which will be available throughout the period in question. Specific campaigns to be conducted during the first three months of 1989–90 are as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures he proposes to take to reduce the number of pedestrian accidents.

I have today announced a series of proposals in a document "Pedestrian Safety: Making Walking Safer". I am placing copies in the Library. The measures include:

1. A major pilot "Traffic Club" demonstration for pre-school children, funded by General Accident, and covering some half a million children.

2. Proposals to amend the road hump regulations so as to allow them to be used more widely, and to help and encourage local authorities with area wide traffic calming and urban safety schemes.

3. A campaign this autumn to encourage the greater use of reflective material on children's clothing.

4. Enlisting the help of the motoring organisations in improving driver awareness of pedestrian safety.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give details of General Accident's support for the Government's efforts to reduce road accidents and road casualties.

General Accident has supported the Government's road safety efforts magnificently. Its initiatives since 1986 have included:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list all current publicity campaigns being conducted by or for his Department or ones planned for the first three months of 1989–90, indicating those which involve television advertising and the starting and finishing dates of each campaign.

The Department is not currently involved in any publicity campaigns. However, a teacher recruitment publicity campaign mounted by the teaching as a career unit has recently been completed. This included newspaper advertising but not television advertising. The campaign has attracted over 10,000 responses. There are no plans at present for any Departmental publicity campaigns in the first three months of the financial year 1989–90.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he proposes to reply to the report of the Select Committee on Education, Science and Arts entitled "Educational Provision for the Under Fives".

I have sent the Government's response to this report to the Chairman of the Committee today. A copy has been placed in the Library.

To ask the Attorney-General what steps are taken to ensure that the security arrangements at the land registry in Nottingham are sufficient to ensure that documents remain confidential and are not disposed of in public places; and if he will make a statement.

All the normal security arrangements to be found in government offices obtain for the Nottingham district land registry. Those arrangements at Nottingham, as at all district registries, remain under constant review to ensure that documents are in safe custody. A small number of papers stolen from the Nottingham district land registry have recently been recovered. An urgent, independent investigation is being conducted into the loss of these documents, and the circumstances of their recovery.

To ask the Attorney-General when he expects to make a decision on implementation of the recommendation of the working group of the Law Commission on commonhold, Cm. 179; and if he will make a statement.

The Lord Chancellor hopes to be in a position to announce a decision on the implementation of the Law Commission working group report on commonhold during the summer. Work is continuing at the Law Commission on the preparation of draft legislation to give effect to the report.

To ask the Prime Minister if, in the last three years, she has met medical consultants concerning the location of the second district general hospital in the Norwich health district.

As the House is aware, my normal practice is and will continue to be neither to confirm nor to deny whether meetings with private individuals have taken place, even in those cases where no such meeting has occurred.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how much will be spent by his Department in the next financial year in energy efficiency work; and what was the expenditure of his Department five and 10 years ago.

Expenditure by my Department on energy efficiency programmes was £2·4 million in 1979–80 and £17·5 million in 1984–85. The provision for expenditure by the energy efficiency office in 1989–90 is £15 million as published in the supply estimates.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many and what percentage of officers in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, respectively, and overall in his Department are (a) women and (b) members of ethnic minorities.

As at 1 April 1989 there were no women in grades 1 to 4; three (7 per cent.) at grade 5; one (5 per cent.) at grade 6; and 18 (12.5 per cent.) at grade 7. Information on ethnic origin in these grades is not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when his Department last conducted a survey of the ethnic origin of its employees; when it next plans to do so; and whether he will make a statement.

A survey was completed in 1986 and a further survey is planned later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what steps he has taken to recruit members of ethnic minorities in top grades of employment at his Department.

My Department, which is an equal opportunities employer, does not itself recruit to senior posts. The Civil Service Commission recruits to these positions, following equal opportunities procedures.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list all current publicity campaigns being conducted by or for his Department or campaigns planned for the first three months of 1989–90, indicating those which involve television advertising and the starting and finishing dates of each campaign.

There is a continuing programme of publicity to promote the work of the Department's energy efficiency office, offshore supplies office and the use of renewable sources of energy. None of these campaigns will involve television advertising.

To ask the Minister for the Civil Service when he next plans to visit the Fylde coast area to discuss matters relating to Civil Service recruitment and training.

I have no plans to do so. However, I am pleased to note that, in terms of the north-western region as a whole, numbers of civil servants have been increasing in recent years, a period when overall numbers in the service and numbers in the south-east have declined. I am sure that the relative attractiveness of the region for departmental recruitment has been an important factor in this.

To ask the Minister for the Arts how many and what percentage of officers in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, respectively, and overall in his Office are (a) women and (b) members of ethnic minorities.

The number, and percentage, of women officers in grades 2, 5, 6, 7, and overall, in the Department, are given in the table. The Department does not employ anyone at grades 1, 3 and 4.

	Number of women in grade	Percentage
Grade 2	—	—
Grade 5	1	25
Grade 6	1	100
Grade 7 (and equivalent)	4	33
Departmental total	27	45

My information is that none of the staff of the Office of Arts and Libraries is a member of the ethnic minorities.

To ask the Minister for the Arts when his Office last conducted a survey of the ethnic origin of its employees; when it next plans to do so; and whether he will make a statement.

The last survey was conducted in 1986. There are no plans to repeat it, but the ethnic origins of all new entrants to the Office of Arts and Libraries are monitored on a continuous basis by the Cabinet Office.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he now expects Britain's trade to be in balance.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he next expects the balance of trade to be positive.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he now expects Britain's trade to be in balance.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he now expects Britain's trade to be in balance.

The Financial Statement and Budget Report for 1989–90 shows a forecast of a deficit in visible trade in 1989. Forecasts of the balance in later years are not published.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the level of the parameters of inaccuracy for the balance of trade.

The estimates for trade in goods are generally considered to be of fairly high quality. Figures for trade in services are subject to much wider margins of error.There are considerable difficulties in measuring the United Kingdom's balance of payments account as a whole, and over the last three years, the "balancing item" has averaged £14 billion per year. The "balancing item" reflects errors and omissions in both the current and capital account.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what he now expects to be the trade deficit in 1989.

The Financial and Budget Report for 1988–89 shows a forecast deficit for visible trade in 1989 of £211/2 billion.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the manufacturing trade deficit in 1989.

The Financial Statement and Budget Report for 1989–90 shows a forecast deficit in manufactured trade in 1989 of£151/2 billion.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the deficit in trade in manufactures for 1990–91.

The Financial Statement and Budget Report for 1989–90 provides a forecast of the manufactured trade balance for 1989 only. Forecasts of the balance in later years are not published.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will bring up to date the information in his reply dated 28 July 1988, Official Report, columns 497–98, concerning the United Kingdom net contribution to the European Community budget; and if he will add forecasts for 1989, 1990 and 1991, drawing attention to any differences between these figures, and those used for the estimates in table 21.2.2 of Cm 21.

[holding answer 18 April 1989]: The updated figures are set out in the table. An estimate of the United Kingdom's net contribution in 1989 will be contained in the statement on the 1989 Community

£ million
Year	Net contribution before refunds or VAT abatements (cash)	Negotiated-refunds	VAT abatements	Net contribution after refunds and abatements (cash)1	Net contribution after refunds and abatements at constant 1988 prices2
1975	-56	—	—	-56	-180
1976	167	—	—	167	467
1977	369	—	—	369	908
1978	822	—	—	822	1,813
1979	947	—	—	947	1,828
1980	804	98	—	706	1,138
1981	1,090	693	—	397	574
1982	1,625	1,019	—	606	815
1983	1,454	807	—	647	827
1984	1,184	528	—	656	802
1985	2,035	61	166	1,808	2,090
1986	2,273	—	1,701	572	639
1987	2,866	—	1,153	1,713	1,827
1988	2,956	—	1,594	1,362	1,362
1 United Kingdom figures show payments to the Community budget on a cash flow basis. Budget refunds and abatements are credited to the year they are paid.
2 Constant prices have been constructed using the GDP deflator at market prices.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has on what percentage of the capital of British banks was represented by outstanding loans by major Third world borrowers in each of the last five years.

[holding answer 11 April 1989]: The percentage of the capital of major British clearing banks with exposure to highly indebted Third world countries represented by outstanding loans to those countries in each of the last five years is as follows:

Year	Figures
1984	179
1985	128
1986	103
1987	81
1988	65

The figures for exposure do not take account of the provisions made by the banks against their loans to these countries. Net of provisions the banks' exposure to these countries represented 44 per cent. of their capital in 1988 (56 per cent. in 1987).

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what percentage of officers in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, respectively, and overall in his Department are (a) women and (b) members of ethnic minorities.

The information is as follows:

	Women		Ethnic minorities1
	Number	Percentage of staff in grade	Ethnic Number2	Percentage of staff in grade
Grade 1	0	0	0	0
Grade la	1	25	0	0
Grade 2	0	0	0	0
Grade 3	3	13	0	0
Grade 4	0	0	0	0

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when his Department last conducted a survey of the ethnic origin of its employees; when it next plans to do so; and whether he will make a statement.

My department conducted an ethnic survey of all its non-industrial staff during 1986; updating and monitoring information on the ethnic origins of our staff is a continuous process.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he has taken to recruit members of ethnic minorities in top grades of employment at his Department.

The Civil Service Commission is responsible for recruitment to the top grades in my Department.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the total value to the latest available full year of public sector contracts in England of a character which will make them open to Community-wide bidding as part of the creation of the internal market.

None. The cost of assessing the value of public contracts in England to be opened to Community- wide bidding would not be justified. The European Commission is currently investigating the effect of applying procurement rules to contracts above various value thresholds in sectors excluded from the existing Community directives.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many farms in England were advised by agricultural development advisory service staff about methods of controlling agricultural pollution in each of the last five years.

This information is not available in the form requested.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many grain stores the intervention board owns and manages on his behalf; if he

Location and managers	Storage area '000 sq.ft.)	Capacity (tonnes wheat equivalent)	Value1(£'OOO)
1 Driffield (North Humberside)
Fishers Seeds and Grain Ltd.	180	74,000	650
2 Hartlebury (Hereford and Worcester)
Anglia Agricultural Merchants Ltd.	214	67,000	900
3 Hemswell (Lincolnshire)
William Gleadell and Sons Ltd.	180	75,000	800
4 Locharbriggs (Dumfries)
Storage Services (Leith) Ltd.	135	71,000	960
5 Manby (Lincolnshire)
Wilsons Corn and Milling Ltd.	155	53,000	800
6 Prees Heath (Shropshire)
Wilsons of Hadleigh	144	59,000	600
7 Tangmere (Sussex)
John Bryant (Romsey) Ltd.	86	29,000	1,320
8 Yorkshire (Yorkshire)
Fishers Seeds and Grain Ltd.	230	78,000	2,750
1 As advised in 1988 by the Inland Revenue district valuers with the intervention board as sitting tenants.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on what information he based his opinion recorded in the preamble to the Food Protection (Emergency Prohibitions) (Sea Fish) (Revocation) Order 1989, S.I., 1988, No. 619, that the toxic substances which escaped as a result of the sinking of the MV Perintis were not in the area designated in the schedule to the Food Protection (Emergency Prohibitions) (Sea Fish) Order, S.I., 1989, No. 529.

The precautionary ban on fishing was lifted after the French navy had completed an intensive search of the sea-bed in the area concerned. I understand their search operation extended over two weeks and involved a number of specially equipped surface ships and submersibles at a cost of over 8 million French francs but they were unable to find the lindane container in the area where they previously suspected it had sunk. In addition, the results of fish and water sampling which we and the French authorities were carrying out revealed no evidence of lindane leakage in this area.

The intervention board does not own any intervention grain stores but rents eight Government-owned properties from the Property Services Agency estates. Details of the locations, volumes, capacities, values and managing companies are given in the table. Managing companies are contracted by the intervention board after selection by competitive tender. Information on amounts paid to individual companies is commercially confidential. The stores are used exclusively to store intervention grain or oilseeds and the intervention board derives no income from their use other than the European Community's contributions at standard rates towards handling and storage costs. In terms of the cost per tonne of grain or oilseeds handled and stored, they are fully competitive with the commercial stores contracted for intervention storage.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will indicate the types and approximate number of fishing vessels registered in the United Kingdom and other countries, which have been, or are likely to be, affected by the precautionary fishing ban, invoked by the Minister, under the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985 following the foundering of the vessel Perintis on 13 March.

The precautionary fishing ban, which applied to United Kingdom and Channel Islands vessels between 21 March and 7 April, covered an area of sea lying within a radius of seven nautical miles, centred a n the position where the container of lindane was presumed to have sunk.For part of the period the area was unsuitable for fishing because of poor weather and tidal conditions.The area is used for potting by six vessels from Alderney. No English or other Channel Island vessels are understood to take significant catches from the area.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will indicate the methods of monitoring instituted by his Ministry, following the loss of the MV Perintis in the Channel on or about 13 March; and if he will make a statement.

Immediately following the sinking of the MV Perintis, my Ministry undertook a programme of monitoring of water and biological material (fish and crabs) from around the wreck of the vessel and from the area in which the container of lindane was presumed to have sunk. This programme has since been extended to include fish landed at south coast ports. The results of the monitoring indicate that there has been no leakage of the permethrin, cypermethrin or lindane being carried by the vessel.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consultations are taking place regarding the retrieval of the container containing five tonnes of organochlorine insecticide, lindane, which was lost when the vessel Perintis foundered north-west of Guernsey on or about 13 March; and if he will make a statement.

My officials have kept in close touch with the Department of Transport, the Home Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Department of Health and the Department of the Environment in connection with the search by the French authorities for the container of lindane lost from the MV Perintis on 13 March. Contacts were maintained with the French authorities both directly and through the Department of Transport, which has lead responsibility for marine pollution control operations. Officials from my Department participated in a meeting with French and Channel Island experts on 4 April to review the degree of threat to the marine environment posed by this container of lindane.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will outline the role performed by his Department in the monitoring of the area above and on the seabed surrounding the wreckage of Piper Alpha; and if he will make a statement.

Monitoring in the area concerned is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he has any plans to switch the beef special premium from its present administration to on-farm administration.

The beef special premium scheme has been in operation for just over two weeks. I have no plans to change its administration in Great Britain at present. However, as my right hon. Friend announced on 6 March we shall be reviewing the operation of the scheme with my colleagues in other Departments to assess the practicability and cost-effectiveness of moving to an on-farm operation in due course.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food why he established the beef special premium as an off-farm administration.

We have had only a very short time in which to make arrangements for the operation of the beef special premium scheme in Great Britain. As my right hon. Friend announced on 6 March, we concluded that in the first instance it was desirable to build on the arrangements then in place for the operation of the beef variable premium scheme and thus to operate the scheme at live markets and abbatoirs. This method of operation has the further advantage of enabling producers to apply for premium under the new scheme in much the same way and at the same marketing stage as they like to apply for beef variable premium. In practice, the transition to the new arrangements has been effective relatively smoothly, largely in consequence of this decision.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to ensure that those British owners of fishing vessels who have not yet been issued with full or temporary certificates despite submission of bona fide applications are not in any way disadvantaged in terms of access to fishing quotas and grounds.

I understand that the Department of Transport has now issued full or temporary certificates to all applicants fulfilling the necessary requirements. Fishing entitlements for such vessels have not been affected by the introduction of the new registration arrangements.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list all current publicity campaigns being conducted by or for his Department or ones planned for the first three months of 1989–90, indicating those which involve television advertising and the starting and finishing dates of each campaign.

The current publicity campaigns being conducted by my Department and planned for the first three months of 1989–90 are as follows:

On-going campaigns:
Imports
Rabies
Food	additives
	labeling
	surveillance
Farm and conservation grants scheme
Recruitment
Farm woodlands
Environmentally sensitive areas
Diversification

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he will announce his conclusions following the review of potato market policy.

My right hon. Friends and I have considered the many replies to the consultation document. I have also just completed meetings with various producer and processor interests. We now need time to reflect on the conclusions to be drawn from this exercise. I do not at present envisage an announcement before the end of May.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what is the estimated total cost related to participation by civil servants at the Tweed Towards 2000 symposium to be held in May; and if any charge is being made by his Department to the organisers of the symposium for this service.

Five scientists from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland laboratories at Aberdeen and Pitlochry were invited to participate in the symposium on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 May 1989 by the organisers, the Tweed Foundation. The scientists will be attending in their own time with their travelling and accommodation costs being met by the Tweed Foundation. A charge by the Scottish Office for their services would not be appropriate in the circumstances.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) if L-Threonine is available on the National Health Service for the treatment of motor neurone disease;(2) how many people in Scotland suffer from motor neurone disease.(3) if he will list the drugs available on the National Health Service for sufferers from motor neurone disease in Scotland;(4) what representations he has received about the availability of L-Threonine.

Under the NHS, general medical practitioners have freedom to prescribe whatever drugs they consider to be clinically necessary for the treatment of their patients, except items which are excluded under the selected list scheme. Foods and food supplements are not normally prescribable and L-Threonine is more properly classed as a food supplement than as a drug. Doctors can, however, prescribe food supplements where they are, in their clinical judgment, necessary for the treatment of patients but may be asked to justify their prescribing by their area medical committee. Exact information on the numbers of people in Scotland suffering from motor neurone disease is not centrally available. There are no drugs which are specifically recommended for the treatment of motor neurone disease. Representations have been received from the hon. Members for Strathkelvin and Bearsden (Mr. Galbraith) and for Livingston (Mr. Cook) and from two general medical practitioners.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland why the decision not to allow the sale of the extract of the community charge register was taken; and if he will make a statement.

The decision was taken after careful consideration of representations made by the Data Protection Registrar and others that the sale of the publicly available community charges register was not an essential part of the community charge system and that there would be a potential threat to privacy if extracts were made too readily available to interests who might wish to use them as mailing lists.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will consult local authorities about the possibility of introducing a temporary flat rate allowance for officers in provided accommodation in Scotland to take account of their requirement to pay the community charge and pending the final outcome of the rent allowance arbitration.

No. This matter was considered at a meeting of the police negotiating board on 17 April when the staff side's proposal for an interim housing allowance payable to officers in provided accommodation was rejected by the official side.However negotiations between the two sides on long-term arrangements proposed by the Police Arbitration Tribunal are continuing.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what representations he has received from police authorities in Scotland concerning the desirability of interim financial arrangements being introduced to ensure that no police officer is worse off as a result of the introduction of the community charge pending the final outcome of the recent rent allowance arbitration; and if he will make a statement;(2) if he will consider the difficulties facing new recruits to the police forces in Scotland due to the uncertainty surrounding the financial recompense for the community charge pending the final outcome of the rent allowance arbitration; and if he will take urgent action in conjunction with the local authorities to introduce interim arrangements as suggested by the arbitrators, subject to subsequent adjustment following the Government's decision on the recommended implementation of the new housing allowance.

My right hon. and learned Friend has received a number of representations from police authorities about this issue. In response it was made clear that the question of interim arrangements was a matter for the police negotiating board. The question was considered at a meeting of the board on 17 April when, with the position of my right hon. and learned Friend being reserved, the official side agreed the staff side's proposal that all officers in Scottish forces in receipt of rent allowance on 31 March 1989 should continue to receive the levels payable at that date pending the introduction of a new housing allowance recommended by the Police Arbitration Tribunal. There are no grounds for interim arrangements for officers entering the service after 31 March 1989.The tribunal accepted the official side's case that the community charge payable by police officers should not be reimbursed.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many projects have been supported by regional assistance over the past year.

My Department expects to have supported in excess of 7,500 projects through regional assistance during 1988–89. Specifically, the Department has made 1,275 offers of regional selective assistance and 920 offers of regional enterprise grant, approved 5,380 projects under the revised regional development grant scheme and made payments under the original regional development grant scheme in respect of some 270 projects. All these figures are provisional.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many projects have been supported by his inner-city task forces.

Since the task forces began their work in 1986 over 1,200 projects have been approved and over £38 million has been committed. These projects are projected to secure over 4,000 jobs, facilitate over 23,500 training places and provide support for over 2,600 businesses.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he last met the leaders of the inner-city task forces; and what matters were discussed.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Stockport (Mr. Favell) on 15 March 1989 at column 256.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on the distribution of European regional development fund moneys within the United Kingdom.

Since the inception of the European regional development fund in 1975, the United Kingdom has received commitments valued at £3,307 million. Commitments for England have been £1,602 million, for Scotland £792 million, Wales £491 million and Northern Ireland £343 million. The remaining £79 million has been committed on a multi-regional basis. The future distribution will depend on decisions by the Commission, and may fluctuate from year to year.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what recent estimates his Department has made of the effects of 1992 on Britain's regions.

None. It is for individual businesses, wherever they are, to assess for themselves what the effects of the single market will be for them. My Department provides a comprehensive information service to enable them to do so.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has on the percentage increase in expenditure on mergers and acquisitions since 1979.

Expenditure on acquisitions and mergers by industrial and commercial companies within the United Kingdom in 1988 is estimated to be about £22 billion. In current prices this is about 13 times greater than the 1979 total of about £13/4 billion.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what information he has on the percentage increase in expenditure on mergers and acquisitions since 1979.

Expenditure on acquisitions and mergers by industrial and commercial companies within the United Kingdom in 1988 is estimated to be about £22 billion. In current prices this is about 13 times greater than the 1979 total of about £13/4 billion.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proposals he has for strengthening the national network of consumer advice centres.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proposals he has for strengthening the national network of consumer advice centres.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proposals he has for strengthening the national network of consumer advice centres.

I have no such proposals. Funding of consumer advice centres is a matter for the local decision and local funding. The Government do fund the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux, and Citizens Advice Scotland which provide central support services for local bureaux. In recent years the grant to these bodies has risen substantially in real terms. In 1980 the local bureaux took over a considerable proportion of the work of consumer advice centres.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he last met representatives from local authority consumer advice centres; and what matters were discussed.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he last met representatives from local authority consumer advice centres; and what matters were discussed.

To askton the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he last met representatives from local authority consumer advice centres; and what matters were discussed.

I have had no such meeting and none has been requested.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects Britain to have a trade surplus in information technology.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects Britain to have a trade surplus in information technology.

It is not possible to make a prediction of the kind that the hon. Member seeks. What is important is that this Government's economic policies have led to record levels of productivity, output and investment and have helped to attract companies such as Fujitsu which will provide a major boost to our balance of trade in imformation technology, through both exports and import substitution.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received on his response to the Select Committee on Trade and Industry's report into information technology.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received on his response to the Select Committee on Trade and Industry's report into information technology.

We have received no formal representations on this response.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement of the Government's policy for information technology.

The Government's response to the Trade and Industry Select Committee's report on information technology published on 9 March as Cm 646 contains a comprehensive statement of the Government's policy towards information technology.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the balance of trade in information technology in 1979 and 1988.

For the information technology and electronics manufacturing sector the United Kingdom had an adverse balance of trade in 1979 of £444 million. In 1987, the latest full year for which figures are available, the adverse balance for this sector was £2,226 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the balance of trade in information technology in 1979 and 1988.

For the information technology and electronics manufacturing sector the United Kingdom had an adverse balance of trade in 1979 of £444 million. In 1987, the latest full year for which figures are available, the adverse balance for this sector was £2,226 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is his latest estimate of company liquidity; and when it was last lower.

The liquidity ratio for all large industrial and commercial companies is estimated by the Department's survey to be 76 per cent. at the end of the fourth quarter of 1988 on a seasonally adjusted basis. This is the lowest figure since the end of the third quarter of 1982.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster by what proportion manufacturing productivity has increased since 1980.

In the three months to February 1989 manufacturing productivity, as measured by output per person employed, was 55 per cent. higher than the 1980 average level.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what recent representations he has received regarding the British footwear industry.

Since I replied to a similar question from the hon. Member on 15 February at column 305 of the Official Report for 16 February a number of hon. Members have made known to me the concerns of their constituents.I am taking a close interest in this matter and in the outcome of the Commission's investigation into imports of footwear from Taiwan and South Korea.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on the range of advice available to borrowers and potential borrowers on alternative forms of credit, especially in the inner cities.

The Office of Fair Trading has a statutory duty under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 to inform the public about credit. It gives advice through the media, and booklets, posters and videos which are freely available through citizens advice bureaux, trading standards departments and public libraries. In addition the banks provide a banking information service. In the inner-city areas certain local authorities have set up money advice services; and some 20 financial organisations are providing £750,000 over a period of three years for money advice and debt counselling services.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in which Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries the proportion of gross domestic product spent by Government on civil research and development has fallen since 1983.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reduced the share of gross domestic product spent on civil research and development between 1983 and 1986; and which countries increased it.

I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Tyne Bridge (Mr. Clelland) on 15 March at column 265.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reduced t he share of gross domestic product spent on civil research and development between 1983 and 1986; and which countries increased it.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reduced the share of gross domestic product spent on civil research and development between 1983 and 1986; and which countries increased it.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Blackburn (Mr. Pike) on 14 February at columns 256 and 257 of the Official Report for 15 February.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received on the Macdonald report on communications infrastructure.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received on the Macdonald report on communications infrastructure.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received on the Macdonald report on communication infrastructure.

I refer the hon. Members to the reply given to the hon. Member for Middlesbrough (Mr. Bell) on 15 March at column 266.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many times in the last 10 years he has exercised his power to disbar directors of public companies; and if he will make a statement.

The Secretary of State may apply to the court to disqualify directors under various provisions now consolidated in the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986.Between 1 April 1979 and 28 April 1986, when the current provisions came into force, 111 applications were made. Since 28 April 1986 the number of applications has been:

	Number
1986	22
1987	180
1988	421
11989	99
1 To 31 March.

Such applications relate both to public and private companies.The Act also empowers the courts to disqualify directors in certain criminal proceedings and where the Secretary of State brings such prosecutions it is his practice to draw the court's attention to these powers.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what are the latest indications he has for the growth in industrial investment over the past year.

The volume of investment by the manufacturing, construction, distribution and financial industries in 1988 was nearly 11 per cent. higher than in 1987.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received from industry on matters affecting competitiveness.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received from industry on matters affecting competitiveness.

Frequent, numerous and diverse.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received from industry on matters affecting competitiveness.

Most contacts which my Department has with industry and commerce involve matters having a bearing on United Kingdom competitiveness.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what action he is taking to ensure that the European Community does not erect protectionist trade barriers.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to him on 16 February at column 248.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what are the latest indications he has of awareness in the business community about opportunities presented by the completion of the single market in 1992.

Our surveys indicate that over 90 per cent. of firms throughout the country are aware of the single market challenge.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement about the achievements of his 1992 campaign.

Since the campaign was launched on 18 March 1988, the DTI has handled over 205,000 requests for further information. Our surveys indicate that over 90 per cent. of firms throughout the country are aware of the single market challenge and that around 50 per cent. of British business is taking action or considering steps to prepare for the single market.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many calls have been received to date by his Department's 1992 hotline.

Our 1992 hotline has received over 123,000 calls since it opened on 18 March 1988.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received over the activities of the Midland bank in (a) the distribution of unsolicited auto-cheque cards and (b) other banking issues; and if he will make a statement.

I am not aware of any representations about unsolicited auto-cheque cards or other banking issues relating to Midland bank. I understand that as certain service cards are renewed some have been incorporated into a multi-purpose card but I am not aware that this has caused any difficulties.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proportion of the Boeing 747 series of aircraft is manufactured by the British aerospace industry.

A number of United Kingdom aerospace companies participate in the Boeing 747 programme but the United Kingdom share is largely dependent upon the choice of engine. If a Rolls-Royce engine is selected, as is increasingly the case, the United Kingdom share of the initial sale value of the aircraft is 25 per cent., rising to 30 per cent. of its lifetime value once engine spares have been provided.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he now has plans to bring forward legislation affecting consumer rights.

We intend to improve the protection given to consumers in a number of ways, including the introduction of regulations under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 on price indications at bureaux de change and changes to other legislation affecting consumers' interests.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he last met representatives of Business in the Community; and what matters were discussed.