To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will publish a table of the volume of exports per head of population of the Group of Seven countries.

The information in both value and volume terms is in the following table.

Exports per head of population, 1988
	1Volume 1985=100	Value Untied States$
France	110	2,896
Federal Republic of Germany	111	5,273
Italy	110	2,247
United Kingdom	109	2,538
Canada	117	4,316
United Stales of America	129	1,302
Japan	103	2,160
1 Export volume index adjusted for population change between 1985 and 1988.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proposals he has for ending the Post Office monopoly.

We keep the options under review, but we have no present plans to end the monopoly. We have, however, made it clear that the Post Office's letter monopoly is a privilege, not a right, and that in the event of a cessation or serious disruption of the letter service, we would consider suspending it.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will give the figures for the number of certificates issued for licensed liquidators since the Insolvency Act 1986 came into operation.

There are currently 1,737 individuals authorised to act as insolvency practitioners under the Insolvency Act 1986.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether any decisions have been made as a result of the recommendations from the Director General of Telecommunications about the further liberalisation of telecommunication services; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. and noble Friend the Secretary of State has received advice from the Director General of Telecommunications following a major consultation exercise which he undertook earlier this year. We are very grateful to the director general and his staff for the thorough and professional way they carried this cut.We have decided to accept the recommendations the director general has made for changes to the current regime for the provision of telecommunications services using the networks of, or circuits provided by, a fixed-link public telecommunications operator (PTO), that is British Telecommunications plc, Mercury Communications Ltd. or Kingston Communications plc.The first, and most important, of these is that we have decided to liberalise entirely the use made by companies of private circuits domestic to the United Kingdom leased from a PTO. Until now, companies leasing circuits have not been permitted to resell capacity to others or to share it with them. This prohibition arose from the fact that the price of private circuits leased from BT was historically below cost and provided significant opportunities for the use of leased lines to bypass the public network, tp the detriment of the ordinary user. For this reason, the operating licences of the PTOs prohibited until 1 July 1989 the use of leased lines to provide simple resale, that is the routing of a call from the public network, over a leased line and back on to the public network. This was intended to allow for the rebalancing of leased line and network charges.This rebalancing has now largely taken place within the United Kingdom, and we see no need any longer to prevent companies making use of leased lines however they choose, whether for voice or data services. We therefore intend to issue a licence permitting simple resale of United Kingdom domestic private circuits as well as other forms of resale, bypass and shared use. Those networks connected to the public switched network (PSN) will continue to be subject to the rules on technical quality standards.Although considerable tariff rebalancing has taken place on circuits within the United Kingdom, international tariffs are still out of line with costs. We have therefore decided to retain the current prohibition on international simple resale for the time being. However, we have accepted the director general's recommendation that he should keep the situation under review and advise us as and when further liberalisation is justified. The new licence will therefore be drafted in such a way as to allow us to liberalise international private circuits on a case-by-case basis as opportunities arise.The director general has also recommended other major changes to the existing licensing regime. In the light of his experience in administering the fair trading rules in the current value-added and data services licence, he has recommended that they be simplified in operation and more clearly targeted on companies likely to abuse a dominant position. Thus, companies which the director general considers dominant, with large businesses in telecommunications services, will continue to be covered by the present rules against cross-subsidisation, showing undue preference or discrimination and other detailed conditions. However, those rules in the current regime which impose heavy cost and which may deter people because of the difficulty of compliance are to be removed. These include the rule on publication of prices which is in abeyance already. Conversely, rules which are of value to users, such as those on privacy and confidentiality, metering and numbering are to be applied to all operators, rather than just the largest.We have also accepted the director general's advice that the new licence should include a condition aimed at alleviating the nuisance to the users of the telephone, fax or other telecommunications systems caused by persistent but unsolicited attempts to sell products and services. Sellers by telephone or fax or those acting as their agents, will be required by the new licence to stop making these direct sales calls to any particular user of a telecommunication system when he has given them a written instruction to do so.Other changes which are to be made include provisions allowing greater flexibility for installers, maintainers and users of call-routing apparatus, the reduction of the minimum period for the termination of maintenance contracts to 42 days and the introduction of a requirement to provide inductive couplers in emergency telephones in lifts.Although the limit of 200 m for the provision of privately provided circuits between buildings will be retained, service providers will be permitted to run these systems on others' premises and the procedure for permitting exceptions to the 200 m rule (where justified) will be simplified.We believe these changes will add greatly to the freedom and the flexibility of telecommunications operators in the United Kingdom, and will keep the United Kingdom in the vanguard of telecommunications liberalisation both in Europe and worldwide. We intend to bring these changes about by issuing a new branch systems general licence during July. This will replace both the existing branch systems general licence and that for value-added and data services. My Department and the Office of Telecommunications are currently finalising the details of the new licence, and we shall inform the House when it is to be issued.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the number of staff in post in central Government Departments at 1 April.

On 1 April 1989, there were 569,215 staff in post in central Government Departments. Of these 499,821 were non-industrials and 69,394 were industrials.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a statement about the residence status of trustees for income tax purposes in the light of the recent decision of the House of Lords in the case of Dawson vCIR.

We have considered the implications of the House of Lords' recent decision in the case of Dawson v CIR, and have decided that the present law does not deal satisfactorily with the residence status for income tax purposes of trustees in cases where the trustees of a settlement include both a United Kingdom resident and a non-resident. We therefore propose to introduce new rules to determine the residence status of such "mixed residence" trustees. Provided that the settlor was not resident, not ordinarily resident and not domiciled in the United Kingdom at the time he made the settlement (and at any later time when he provided funds), the trustees will be treated as not resident in the United Kingdom. Otherwise "mixed residence" trustees will all be treated as United Kingdom resident.This proposal will not affect trusts where the trustees are all United Kingdom residents, or all non-resident. In those cases, the existing rules will continue to apply.There will also be similar rules governing the residence status of personal representatives of a deceased person, where they include both a United Kingdom resident and a non-resident.There will also be provisions, applying to all trustees and personal representatives, to make it clear that income tax assessments may be made on any one or more of them.Further details of the proposals are set out in an Inland Revenue press release published today. The necessary provisions have been tabled for Committee stage of the Finance Bill.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to increase the personal savings ratio.

We expect many of the factors which led to the fall in the personal savings ratio to reverse themselves over the medium term. In addition, the rise in interest rates over the past year will encourage higher savings and lower borrowing.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps Her Majesty's Customs and Excise take to prevent the smuggling of rare orchids into Britain.

[holding answer 9 June 1989]: Customs and Excise makes every effort to prevent the illegal import of listed orchids and other items covered by the convention on international trade in endangered species.

To ask the Minister for the Civil Service whether any conditions have been attached by the advisory committee on business appointments to the employment by Balfour Beatty of Mr. David Morphet, formerly of the Department of Energy; and if he will make a statement.

It is not our practice to divulge information about individual applications under the business appointment rules, as to do so would be a breach of confidence and privacy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many spent AGR fuel rods are expected to be produced in each year from 1989 to 2000 and if advanced gas-cooled reactors produce electricity at their planned output during the 1990s.

This is an operational matter for the Central Electricity Generating Board. I have asked the chairman to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is the earliest date by which the proposed Heysham AGR dry storage facility could be ready; and whether it will be large enough to store all the spent AGR fuel from all of Britain's AG Rs for their planned lifetimes.

This is an operational matter for the Central Electricity Generating Board. I have asked the chairman to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will set out the details of safeguards inspection for civil nuclear materials and facilities agreed with the European Commission regulation 3227/76; and when such inspections began.

Euratom inspections began in 1973. It is not the custom within Euratom to publish details of the inspection arrangements for any nuclear facility in the Community.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Newport, West, June, he will list the countries of origin and dates on which consignments of irradiated fuel have been returned to their countries of origin since 1979.

The country of origin of the shipments referred to in the answer to the hon. Member on 7 June is included in those listed in the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Eddisbury (Mr. Goodlad) on 18 February 1987 at column 635. Details of individual consignments are confidential.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy, pursuant to the reply to the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy, (Dr. Thomas) Official Report, 8 May column 289, whether the reports on plutonium production sent by reactor operators to safeguards authorities are detailed routinely to (a) single gramme quantities, (b) tens of grammes quantities, or (c) hundreds of grammes quantities.

Euratom regulation 3227/76 article 21 (a) requires quantities of special nuclear material to be expressed in grammes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy, pursuant to the reply to the hon. Member for Newport, West, Official Report, 19 May, column 314, which was the competent authority in Namibia which gave the N obligation code to the consignment of Namibian uranium imported to the United Kingdom since 1979.

The N obligation code was assigned by the Euratom safeguards authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will detail all his Department's policies and proposals regarding (a) acid rain and (b) pollution by nuclear waste; and if he will make a statement.

The Government will ensure that the CEGB and its successor companies contribute to the emission reduction requirements of the European Communities' large combustion plant directive. These are to reduce emissions of sulphur dioxide by 60 per cent. on 1980 levels by 2003 and nitrogen oxides by 30 per cent. on 1980 levels by 1998. We shall encourage the development and application of renewable energy sources wherever they have prospects of being economically competitive and environmentally acceptable. Furthermore, the non-fossil fuel obligation which will be placed on the public electricity suppliers in the privatised electricity industry and the continuing work of the energy efficiency office will help to reduce acid rain.Policy on radioactive waste is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will detail his Department's specific proposals for energy conservation for each year since 1981.

Details of the Government's proposals on energy efficiency have been published annually in the public expenditure White Paper and in response to reports of the Select Committee on Energy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many withdrawals from safeguards, under article 14 of the 1978 tripartite safeguards agreement between United Kingdom—Euratom—International Atomic Energy Authority, have been made since May 1979.

[holding answer 11 May 1989]: Some temporary withdrawals have been made for technical operational reasons with the material being returned to safeguards after it has been processed in unsafeguarded facilities. Some permanent withdrawals have also been made. It would not be in the public interest to reveal details of these.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many schools careers local education authority school teachers there were in Wales in May 1980 and at the latest available date; and if he will make a statement.

The information is not available in the form requested. However, information from the 1984 secondary school staffing survey indicates that in 1984 there were 473 teachers of careers education. A further staffing survey is currently under way.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he has met teachers' organisations to discuss his Department's plans to test children at seven years of age; and if he will make a statement;(2) if he has met teachers' organisations to discuss his Department's policy of testing pupils at the age of 14 years; and if he will make a statement.

Welsh Office Ministers and officials have met representatives of teachers' organisations on numerous occasions and the subjects discussed have included assessment and testing of children in accordance with the Education Reform Act.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has plans for compulsory dog registration in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

I have no plans to introduce dog registration in Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will meet Alyn and Deeside district council, Clwyd county council and the Deeside town and community councils to discuss how his Department might assist in the building of a Shotton and Connah's Quay bypass, including a new river crossing of the River Dee at Connah's Quay; and if he will make a statement.

It would not be appropriate: this is a matter for Clwyd county council as the responsible highway authority. However I am fully aware of its proposals and expect to receive a bid for transport supplementary support.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will visit Clwyd county council and Alyn and Deeside district council to discuss with them how his Department might assist those local authorities in developing land adjacent to the River Dee which was previously the site of steelmaking activity at Shotton.

No. My statutory responsibilities under the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 preclude me from discussing with local authorities the proposals for the development of specific sites. If proposals that emerge for the development of the site demonstrate a need for central Government financial support, my Department's officers will be available to discuss this with the local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give for hill farms in marginal land areas within the less-favoured areas the (a) average size in hectares, (b) farm income, (c) number of farms, (d) number of ewes and (e) number of beef cows for the latest period for which figures are available.

Figures relating to holdings in the disadvantaged areas of the less-favoured areas in respect of June 1988 are given in the following table:

	Figures
(a) Average size in hectares	41·5
(c) Number of holdings	6,082
(d) Number of breeding ewes	582,024
(e) Number of breeding beef cows	23,859

A figure for

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the impact of proposed European Economic Community regulations on minibus licensing on voluntary organisations in Wales; and whether he will oppose the proposed regulations.

The proposed EC regulation, which would require new minibus drivers to take a second driving test and to meet higher health standards, would have significant social and cost consequences for voluntary and community transport organisations which rely heavily on volunteer drivers. The Government consider there are no road safety reasons for the proposed change, and the European Commission is being pressed to avoid introducing unnecessary restrictions.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what date Welsh local authorities were first informed of changes in the amount of mandatory repairs grant from 75 per cent. to 25 per cent. for landlords under sections 130 and 131 of the Housing Act 1988.

Local authorities were consulted about proposals for changes to the rate of repair grant for landlords during the course of 1987 and 1988, and were notified of the change in rate (to 20 per cent.) in advance correspondence which was issued on 10 January this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Bridgend on 12 June, Official Report, columns 306–308, concerning the applications from the Welsh water authority for variations of existing discharge consents for sewage treatment works, if he will indicate for which of the works listed requests were made for the discharge standards to be (a) relaxed and (b) tightened up.

I shall write to the hon. Gentleman with full details of the applications as soon as possible and I will place a copy of my reply in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was spent by central and local government in Wales, for the last year for which figures are available, on (a) local authority services, including the police, (b) health services and (c) economic development.

[holding answer 12 June 1989]: Details of expenditure within my responsibility are given in "The Government's Expenditure Plans 1989–90 to 1991–92" (Cm. 617) and in the Welsh Office commentary. The last year for which firm outturn figures are available for local authorities is 1986–87. The net public expenditure figures requested are as follows:

£million
	1986–87 outturn
Local authority expenditure in Wales1	2,015
National Health Services	989
Industry and Employment	178
1 Including police and other non-Welsh Office services.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what funds he is currently providing to promote crops substitution in Pakistan to control heroin traffic: how the funds are to be administered and monitored; and if she will make a statement.

We have committed £3·4 million to the United Nations fund for drugs abuse control crops substitution and special rural development programme in the Dir district of the North-West Frontier province. The programme is part of the special development and enforcement plan for poppy growing areas. £2·4 million of the grants has been spent so far.Administrative and monitoring arrangements are to be strengthened by the recruitment of a three-man technical support unit to assist provincial government officials and the UNFDAC field officer.

To ask the Prime Minister if she has received representations regarding the European Commission.

I receive a number of such representations.

To ask the Prime Minister what communication she has received from the Government of Brazil concerning assistance with preservation of the tropical rain forest.

Following discussions with senior representatives of the Brazilian Government, the Secretary-General of the Brazilian Ministry of the Interior has written to my hon. Friend the Minister for Overseas Development inviting Her Majesty's Government to agree on a programme of technical co-operation in the environmental field. A team of British professional experts has this week returned from Brazil where they discussed how we might help; my hon. Friend will take this further when he visits Brazil in July.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will raise at the next meeting of the European Council the scale and pattern of directives emerging from the Commission; and if she will make a statement.

I expect the European Council to discuss a number of current Community issues. I also refer my hon. Friend to my reply to him on 6 June at column 129.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for 'Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list her official engagements for Thursday 15 June.

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 Prime Minister whether, in the light of paragraph 13 of the guidance on conventions on Government publicity issued by the Cabinet Office, advice on the propriety of methods of releasing official information by officials will be sought from the Cabinet Office prior or subsequently to the receipt of ministerial sanction for express approval for the release of such information.

It is for Departments to decide whether and when to seek such advice in the light of paragraph 12 of the guidance.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what guidelines he follows in determining which journalists are invited to press briefings by his Department.

The journalists invited to press briefings depend upon the matter under discussion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish the amount of money spent on medical research in each of the last 10 years broken down into (a) the total figure per year, (b) the percentage spent on AIDS and (c) as a percentage of the total research budget.

The main agency through which the Government support medical research is the Medical

	(a)	(b)	(c)	(d)	(e)
	Grant in aid to MRC	Amount of (a) spent on specific programmes of AIDS research	(b) as a percentage of (a)	Science Budget	(a) as a percentage of(d)
	£ million	£ million	Percentage	£ million	Percentage
1979–80	57·2	—	—	333	17·2
1980–81	86·6	—	—	396	21·9
1981–82	101·5	—	—	440	23·1
1982–83	107·5	—	—	469	22·9
1983–84	113·7	—	—	504	22·6
1984–85	117·2	0·1	0·1	535	21·9
1985–86	122·3	0·4	0·3	571	21·4
1986–87	128·3	0·7	0·5	603	21·3
1987–88	139·8	3·7	2·6	658	21·2
1988–89	149·6	5·0	3·3	709	21·1

In addition, universities and medical schools support a range of medical research, including AIDS research, from block grants provided by the Universities Funding Council (formerly the University Grants Committee). Other medical research is supported by the health authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will issue a circular to local authorities, concerning the dangers caused to pupils and teachers through inadequate fencing around primary schools.

It is not necessary to issue a circular on the danger caused to pupils and teachers through inadequate fencing around primary schools. Local authorities are already aware of the requirements of the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act and circular 11/74 issued by the DES following that Act.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many tenders were received for the development of the Gateshead city technology college; and what were the various tender prices submitted.

Five tenders were received. Prices ranged from £6,730,000 to £7,245,000. The price offered by Laing Northern was the lowest, and its design proposals were considered to be the most appropriate of those submitted.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science in the light of the contribution from public funds towards the development costs of the Gateshead city technology college (a) who will own the buildings, (b) who will own the land which constitutes the site once the project is completed and (c) to whom the assets will revert should the school fail to open or close at some future date.

The Tyneside city technology college trust will own the land and buildings. The funding Research Council. The following table shows, for each of the last 10 years, the grant in aid to the MRC, the amount of that spent on specific programmes of AIDS research, and the grant in aid to the MRC as a percentage of the total science budget:agreement between my right hon. Friend and each individual CTC will specify the conditions under which repayment will be made to him in the event that the school should close.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science on what date John Laing plc became a sponsor of the Gateshead city technology college.

John Laing announced its sponsorship of the CTC in Gateshead in October 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what elements of the national curriculum the Gateshead city technology college will be obliged to adopt.

As a condition of grant, all CTCs will be bound to offer the full national curriculum including assessment arrangements throughout the compulsory years of education.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what investigations were made into possible inner-city sites for the Gateshead city technology college.

Investigations were made into other sites in Tyne and Wear, but none was found to be suitable.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total contribution of the CTC Trust to the development of the Gateshead city technology college to date; for what specific purposes such money has been allocated; and what further advances are planned.

The CTC Trust has not itself contributed financially to the development of the Gateshead CTC. It was, however, involved in the negotiations for the acquisition of the site.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what proportion of the Gateshead city technology college roll must be drawn from the inner-city area in order for the college to comply with the aims and objectives of Her Majesty's Government's policy to develop city technology colleges.

The catchment area for the Gateshead CTC is not yet finalised, but it will be drawn so as to include surrounding areas of deprivation, and every effort will be made to ensure that as high a proportion of children as possible come from those areas.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what were the opening and closing dates for the submission of tenders for the development of the Gateshead city technology college; and what date the tender from Laing Northern was received; and who had access to the tenders submitted prior to the closing date.

The date for submission of tenders was 12 May. All tenders, including the tender from Laing Northern, were received under sealed cover on that day. They were opened, stamped, and their contents formally recorded, in the presence of five witnesses. I do not know of any person who had access to the tenders before submission. The DES, and the sponsors (other than John Laing plc), and the members of the panel had no such access.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science which of the sponsors of the Gateshead city technology college were involved in the decision to award the development contract to Laing Northern.

The decision upon the award of the development contract was made by an evaluation panel composed of Mr. Peter Vardy, as the principal sponsor, the chief architect of Argyll plc, the chief architect of the DES, the project director, and three independent assessors nominated by my Department. John Laing plc was not represented on the panel and had no part whatsoever in the decision.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if it is his intention to charge interest on student loans in cases where repayment is deferred because of low earnings after graduation.

As was made clear in the White Paper "Top-up Loans for Students" (Cm. 520), the Government's proposals arc for a zero real interest rate on the outstanding balance of the top-up loan; where repayments are deferred because a graduate's income is low, a real interest rate of zero will continue to apply during the period of deferment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received about the future of the scheme ports once the dock labour scheme is abolished; and if he will make a statement.

I have received a number of representations supporting the Government's proposals to abolish the dock labour scheme so that scheme ports can become more competitive and attract new investment to provide jobs in the ports themselves and in surrounding areas.Lifting the barriers to business and jobs imposed by the scheme's damaging and unnecessary controls has been widely welcomed throughout industry.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government towards those clauses of the European Community's draft social charter which would ensure the participation of the work force in decision making within companies.

The Government believe firmly that employee involvement in the United Kingdom is best developed on a voluntary basis. We shall therefore continue to oppose attempts to legislate on this subject.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what contingency plans his Department has for dealing with an accident involving (a) any seaborne, (b) any airborne or (c) any landborne nuclear weapons, in the course of non-operational activities, including courtesy calls.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence gave today to a similar question from the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, further to his answer of Thursday, 25 May, Official Report, column 25, if he will place those representations on tree planting in the Library.

The representations were contained in private correspondence and it would therefore be inappropriate to place them in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will produce a table for each district council showing the total yield from the rate payment for 1988–89 showing the breakdown of the amount attributed to district and region.

The estimated yields from rate payments are set out in the table.

	Total District Rate Income 1988–89	Total Regional Rate Income 1988–89	Total Rate Income 1988–89
Islands Councils
Orkney	—	9·076	9·076
Shetland	—	50·370	50·370
Western Isles	—	6·656	6·6:56
District Councils
Berwickshire	0·765	3·925	4·690
Ettrick and Lauderdale	1·766	8·015	9·781
Roxburgh	1·800	7·345	9·145
Tweedale	0·644	3·426	4·070
Clackmannan	4·617	13·468	18·085
Falkirk	12·819	46·081	58·899
Stirling	11·063	26·574	37·637
Annandale and Eskdale	1·958	8·568	10·526

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will provide a breakdown of the figures given in the table in his written answer of 12 June showing the amount attributable to the district and the region.

The figures given in the table are the estimated yields, in 1989–90, of community and water charges in the district, regional and islands councils in Scotland.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what arrangements he is proposing to make for relieving owners of unoccupied farm cottages of their liability to pay the standard community charge.

I have today laid before Parliament a set of regulations—the Standard and Collective Community Charges (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1989—which provide that certain unoccupied and unfurnished agricultural dwellinghouses, which fulfil conditions prescribed in those regulations, will be exempt from the standard community charge and the standard community water charge.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much land was approved for afforestation in (a) Scotland, (b) England and (c) Wales in the 12 months ending 1 April; of this how much was for (i) coniferous and (ii) deciduous planting; how much was actually planted; and of both approved and planted totals how much was in respect of land on which set-aside payments were being made.

The following areas of land were approved for afforestation under Forestry Commission grant schemes in the year ended 31 March 1989:

Hectares
Country	Area of planting (including set-aside)	Area under set-aside
Scotland	16,000	120
England	2,100	40
Wales	600	nil
Total	18,700	160

Information is not held centrally on the breakdown of these areas between broadleaves and conifers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether Indic language teaching in Scottish schools is given equal status with European languages; and what is done to overcome any lack of availability of such classes for school children of Asian extraction who wish to learn one of the Indic languages.

[holding answer 14 June 1989]: Guidance to education authorities on the teaching in schools of languages other than English, issued in SED circular No. 1178 of 12 January 1989, urges that Asian languages and the traditions they represent should be respected and fostered, and confirms that the inclusion of an Asian language within the curriculum from SI or S2 is appropriate where demand exists and can be met. It is for education authorities to decide whether and when it may be appropriate to include such a language in the curriculum of any school.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the shortfall in eggs to meet domestic demand this summer; and whether he has any control over the eggs imported to meet this shortfall.

It is not possible to provide a precise estimate of the likely balance between the supply and demand for eggs this summer. Placings for egg layer production have fallen in recent months, in line with reductions in demand earlier this year, and this will have an effect on the supply situation. On the question of controls on imported eggs, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Angus, East (Mr. Welsh) on 20 April at column 280.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the depth at which monofilament nets are usually set at (a) inshore waters and (b) at sea; and if he will list the regulations and byelaws which control the siting and setting of such nets.

Monofilament nets are set at varying depths depending on the location and the species of fish sought. There are no specific national regulations governing the siting and setting of fixed nets within the fishery limits for England and Wales but their use out to six miles may be regulated by local byelaws made by water authorities and sea fisheries committees. Details of such byelaws are available from the offices of these bodies.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether his fisheries inspectors routinely examine fixed monofilament nets by removing them from the water; if these inspections involved the recording and monitoring of the incidental capture of marine mammals and sea birds; and if he will make a statement.

There are currently no regulations on fixed monofilament nets and consequently no requirement for my fisheries inspectors to examine them. As regards the incidental capture of marine mammals, I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 20 March 1989 at column 464: my Department is continuing to develop its plans for the monitoring scheme. We have no plans at present for monitoring the incidental capture of sea birds, although we are keeping the situation under review.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list those notifiable diseases in animals for which a slaugher and compensation scheme operates; and if he will list those notifiable diseases in animals for which a compensation scheme does not operate.

The information is as follows:

(a) Notifiable diseases for which a slaugher and compensation scheme operates are:

• African swine fever
• Aujeszky's disease
• Bovine spongiform encephalopathy
• Brucellosis melitensis in cattle
• Cattle plague in ruminants and swine
• Classical swine fever
• Foot and mouth disease
• Pleuro-pneumonia in cattle
• Rabies
• Swine vesicular disease
• Tuberculosis in cattle

(b) Notifiable diseases for which a slaughter and compensation scheme does not operate are:

• African horse sickness
• Anthrax
• Contagious equine metritis
• Dourine in horses, asses, mules and zebras
• Enzootic bovine leukosis
• Epizootic lymphangitis in horse, asses and mules
• Equine encephalomyelitis
• Equine infectious anaemia
• Fowl pest (fowl plague, Newcastle disease and paramyxovirus) in poultry of any kind
• Glanders and farcy in horses, asses and mules
• Paramyxovirus in pigeons
• Sheep pox
• Sheep scab
• Teschen disease of pigs
• Tuberculosis in deer
• Warble fly

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has concerning the leaching of nitrates from land formerly used for nitrogen-fixing crops once that land has been included in the set-aside scheme.

Such information is not yet available from set-aside scheme trials, but it will be provided by experiments currently in progress. Meanwhile, scientific evidence indicates that nitrate leaching from land converted from nitrogen fixing crops to permanent fallow could be relatively high in the first year, but it would fall subsequently.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what provision is made within the set-aside scheme to minimise pollution of ground water and water courses by nitrates.

Under the rules for the management of land set aside to fallow under the scheme, a plant cover must be established and maintained on the land concerned and the use of fertilisers is not generally permitted. Furthermore, advice is available to farmers from my Department on the best practices for the avoidance of pollution by nitrates.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he expects to announce his top-up scheme for enhancing the environmental value of set-aside land.

The top-up scheme, which will be known as the countryside premium for set-aside land, will be administered by the Countryside Commission with advice and assistance from the Nature Conservancy Council, the Department of the Environment and my Department. Details of the scheme are to be announced on 19 June by the chairman of the Countryside Commission.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether cows treated with bovine somatatropin under experiment can subsequently be sold for slaughter for human consumption; and whether his Department imposes any time limit on the period to elapse between the ending of bovine somatatropin treatment and slaughter.

When the animal test certificates for BST products were assessed, the veterinary products committee, following rigorous evaluation of all the available data, was satisfied that it would be safe to eat meat from treated cows when they were culled. Accordingly, such cows may be sold for slaughter for human consumption; no withdrawal period has been specified.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) for what purpose information is collected on each dog imported into the United Kingdom;(2) how many American bandogs are presently in quarantine following importation;(3) if he will make a statement on the powers available to his Department to control the importation of dogs;(4) if records on the importation of dogs kept by the animal health division of his Department are kept manually in written form, or on computers;(5) what advice has been issued to members of his Department concerning American bandogs; and if he will make a statement;(6) what information he has on the origins, purpose, characteristics and temperament of the American bandog; and if he will make a statement;(7) what is the number of Neopolitan mastiff bitches currently in quarantine in the United Kingdom; and what information he has as to the purposes of their import;(8) what records his Department keeps on the importation of dogs; and whether these include information as to the breed, sex, age, weight, name, colour, distinguishing marks, exporter and importer of each dog;(9) what returns of information on the importation of dogs are submitted by the animal health division of his Department to the central statistical unit of his Department.

The Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974 as amended restricts the importation of dogs to licensed animals landed at prescribed ports and airports and requires them to be quarantined for six months. These powers are designed to prevent the introduction of rabies into this country and not to limit the number and breeds of dogs imported. Applicants for import licences must provide information, necessary for identification should it escape during quarantine, concerning the dog's breed, sex, age, weight, name, colour and distinguishing marks, together with details of the owner, authorised carrying agent, quarantine premises and expected date of landing. No information is required as to the purpose of the importation.All information is retained on a confidential basis by the animal health division in the form of manual records. Summary data by breed are not kept and it is not possible to say how many Neopolitan mastiff bitches or American bandogs are presently in quarantine, as these may not have been described as such in the licence application. I understand that an American bandog is a cross between a pit bull terrier and a Neopolitan bull mastiff bull. No advice has been issued concerning this breed.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the latest information he has on the prevalence of rabies in Europe.

The WHO centre at Tuebingen, West Germany recorded 5,051 European rabies cases for the fourth quarter 1988. The total for the same quarter 1987 was 4,280 cases. A species breakdown for the fourth quarter 1988 reveals:

	Numbers
Wild animals	3,950
of which Red Fox	3,536
Domestic animals	1,100
of which
Dogs—Europe	75
Dogs—Turkey	100

Urban rabies continues to occur in Turkey, where 77 per cent. of all cases were in dogs, and 99·6 per cent. of all cases occurred in domestic animals. One human case occurred, in Blackburn, England. The disease had been contracted in Pakistan. There are undoubtedly cases of human rabies in Turkey but there is no regular reporting of these cases to the rabies centre. In several countries, a substantial rise in cases has been reported. Although a single quarter's figures must not be taken out of context, it is clear that the progress being made in the control of wildlife rabies in western Europe will be slow.The yearly total shows a reduction of 3·7 per cent. In West Germany, which has previously recorded dramatic falls in the number of cases, the number recorded was 31 more than in the fourth quarter 1987. A substantial increase in cases (490–53 per cent. of the country's total) occurred in the Bundesland Hessen. All the other Bundeslander registered slight rises or remained stable. However, the total for 1988 in West Germany was 2,628, compared with 791 in 1987. It seems that areas where the oral vaccination of foxes has only been used once are the most vulnerable. Clearly, this form of control has to be repeated regularly. Although expensive, this appears to be a successful method of limiting the number of cases. It is not, however, a procedure which will, without other supporting mechanisms, lead to the eradication of rabies from Europe.In Belgium, the number of cases continues to increase, taking the year's total to 515 cases; however, in the areas where oral vaccination of foxes has been carried out, the number of cases has reduced by 49 per cent.In France, there has been no extension of the "rabies front" westwards. A total of 2,223 known cases was recorded in 1988, 155 more than in 1987. Most of the cases are found in the fox.Italy has recorded 19 cases in the area bordering Yugoslavia. Much surveillance of wild and domestic animal carcases has been carried out, and some foxes were found positive in one Alpine region. Oral vaccination of foxes is planned in the spring, using the Tuebingen vaccine, in conjunction with Yugoslavia and Austria. Vaccination of dogs and grazing animals is also compulsory.Switzerland recorded only 16 cases, and none were recorded from Ireland, Portugal, Denmark, Greece, Norway and Spain.Bats found positive to rabies-related virus were recorded in the Netherlands (5) and West Germany (1). The total number of cases in Europe in 1988 was 53, compared to 140 in 1987. Denmark and Spain (affected in 1987) had no new cases. There continues to be no evidence of bat-related rabies virus in terrestrial mammals in Europe. During the quarter, 25 bats were examined in Great Britain, and all were found to be negative.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what were the annual administration costs, for each of the last five years of operation of the beef variable premium scheme and of maintaining the register of confusion marks; and how many animals were so registered in each of these years.

[holding answer 13 June 1989]: The beef variable premium scheme was administered on behalf of the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce by the Meat and Livestock Commission in Great Britain and by the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland in Northern Ireland. Their costs over the last five years are estimated to have been as follows:

£ million
	1MLC	DANI
1984–85	3·8	0·6
1985–86	4·0	0·7
1986–87	4·1	0·7
1987–88	4·4	0·8
1988–89	4·4	0·8
1 BVPS duties were usually carried out by MLC officers concurrently with their responsibilities under the sheep variable premium scheme. BVPS costs are therefore calculated as a proportion of the total cost of administering both schemes based on the number of presentations under each.

These figures include the costs of administering the confusion mark procedures. These were operated on a local basis and the costs of administration and numbers animals were not centrally recorded.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what contingency plans his Department has for dealing with an accident involving (a) any seaborne, (b) any airborne or (c) any landborne nuclear weapon, in the course of non-operational activities, including courtesy calls.

Contingency plans throughout the United Kingdom for accidents involving nuclear weapons are a matter for the Secretary of State for Defence. In the event of any such incident affecting Northern Ireland these would be complemented by local contingency plans.