To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much public grant aid Sean Quinn Quarries Ltd., Derrylin has received for each of the years 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989.

Grant aid received by Sean Quinn Ltd. for each of the financial years from April 1985 is as follows:

	£
1985–86	26,795
1986–87	905,480
1987–88	2,475,004
1988–89	1,065,746
1989–90	99,756

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the accounting procedures of Enterprise Ulster in regard to the supply and use of materials, whether provided by the client or by Enterprise Ulster.

All accounting procedures of Enterprise Ulster, including those concerning the supply and use of materials, are subject to the approval of the Department of Economic Development and subsequently to internal and external audit.I am satisfied that the accounting procedures are adequate and that they are properly audited.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many supervisors and area superintendents are employed by Enterprise Ulster; how they were trained in materials usage and stock control; where the training took place; and how long the courses of training lasted.

Enterprise Ulster currently employs nine area superintendents and 101 supervisory grade personnel.Instruction on materials usage and stock control is given to all new supervisory staff as part of their normal induction programme. These subjects are also included on refresher courses which are attended periodically by supervisory staff and on courses of study undertaken by them.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what level of European Community funds was used to assist the creation of peat extraction businesses by the local enterprise development unit.

[holding answer 3 May 1990]: The information is as follows:

	Amount
1987	Nil
1988	Nil
1989	£1,375

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received recently about the problems of the removals industry.

I am not aware of any recent representations to this Department about the problems of the removals industry. However, Her Majesty's Customs and Excise have received representations about VAT on removal charges after the completion of the single market.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what value for money savings have been achieved by his Department in the last year; and how much of this was as a result of advice from the central unit on purchasing.

Figures for last year (FY 1989–90) are not yet available. The saving achieved in FY 1988–89. on a spend of £133·8 million, was £13·92 million, or 10·4 per cent. against the set target of 5 per cent.In general, it is not possible to attribute particular value for money savings to advice from the central unit on purchasing. The role of the unit is to provide advice and guidance on best purchasing practice; it provides overall support and guidance and encourages value for money across all Departments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is his latest assessment of the possible military uses of the parts of equipment already sent to Iraq by Sheffield Forgemasters and Walter Somers.

[holding answer 26 April 1990]: In the light of the criminal charges laid against individuals, and in the light of the continuing investigations by Customs and Excise, it would be inappropriate to give any further information on these matters.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on recent European Community discussions on Delors stages 2 and 3.

The possible development of economic and monetary union beyond stage 1 of EMU and the arrangements for the forthcoming inter-governmental conference were last discussed at the informal meeting of the European Community's Economic and Finance Council on 31 March and the special meeting of the European Council on 28 April which were reported to the House on 3 April at column 523 and on 1 May at column 902.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assistance the Inland Revenue gives to the Department of Social Security to help trace absent parents who are not paying maintenance for lone-parent families in receipt of income support.

Section 59 of the Social Security Act 1986 permits the Inland Revenue to provide information to the Department of Social Security and the Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland, in connection with the operation of the benefit Acts, without breaching their confidentiality obligations. At present the information provided is confined to the details required to account for class 1 national insurance contributions, which the Inland Revenue collects on behalf of the DSS, and details of those known to be self-employed to assist DSS in collecting class 2 national insurance contributions.I have now asked the Inland Revenue to extend the disclosures made under its authority to include the addresses of absent parents and, where appropriate, the names and addresses of their employers, in cases where the absent parent is liable under the Social Security Act 1986 to maintain lone-parent families receiving income support.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if the Inland Revenue will establish a clearance procedure under which it will advise whether or not a particular trust is a qualifying ESOP trust.

My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer proposed in his Budget statement a new relief from capital gains tax for those selling shares to qualifying employee share ownership trusts, as defined by schedule 5 to the Finance Act 1989. Since owners of shares may want to know if a trust is a qualifying trust before a sale of shares takes place, I have authorised the introduction of an arrangement under which the Inland Revenue will be willing to examine executed employee share ownership trust deeds and inform the trustees whether in their view the trust meets the qualifying conditions of schedule 5. The trustees will then be able to inform any potential vendors concerned as to the status of the trust itself.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what additional weekly, monthly and yearly income tax payments a married man on average earnings with two children would pay if tax rates were at the levels in place on 3 May 1979.

[holding answer 8 May 1990]: The information is as follows:

Increase in tax liability at average earnings1 in 1990–91 if tax rates and thresholds applicable on 3 May 1979 were to he indexed for inflation and re-introduced
	£ per week	£ per month	£ per year
Married man	20·00	86·50	1,037·80
1 Average earings are for full adult males in all occupations in 1990–91; £303·80 per week; in line with the assumptions in 3.02 of the 1989 Autumn statement.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has as to the amount of extra tax a married man with two children earning (a) £25,000 a year and (b) £30,000 a year would pay if income tax rates were increased to 50p in the pound and national insurance to 9 per cent.

[holding answer 8 May 1990]: If the higher rate of income tax were raised from 40 per cent. to 50 per cent. and the upper earnings limit for class 1 national insurance contributions were abolished so that 9 per cent. was paid on all earnings above the lower earnings limit, the extra payments by a married man in 1990–91 would be:

Earnings £ per annum	Increase in tax and national insurance contribution liability £ per annum
25,000	612·00
30,000	1,519·50

The calculations assume the married man has no other forms of income and no reliefs or allowances other than the personal and married couple's allowances.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish, in the Official Report, the numbers and percentages of his staff in grades 1 to 7 who have (a) arts, (b) science and (c) technical degrees, (d) who are qualified accountants, (e) have post-graduate qualifications in management and (f) who were educated in (i) local authority and (ii) private schools.

[holding answer 2 May 1990]: The information which is available at non-disproportionate cost, (a), (b) and (d), is as follows:

Grade	Arts1 degrees	Science12 degrees	Qualified accountants
0–1A	4 (100)3	—	—
2	9 (82)	1 (9)	1 (9)
3	23 (82)	1 (4)	—
4	2 (50)	—	—
5	48 (64)	13 (17)	1 (1)
6	8 (21)	5 (13)	4 (10)
7	94 (35)	48 (18)	18 (7)
1 First degree subjects leading to the award of BA(Arts) or BSc(Science).
2 Includes some "technical" degrees eg engineering.
3 Staff numbers precede the percentages which are shown in brackets.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what volume of cannabis has been recovered each year since 1979 by the Customs authorities: what was the estimated value of the cannabis at current prices for each year; and what were the pattern of locations where these drugs were secured.

[holding answer 4 May 1990]: Following is the information:

January-December	Total seized in kg	Street value in £ million
1979	11,670	34·04
1980	25,610	71·20
1981	24,188	67·55

January-December	Total seized in kg	Street value in £ million
1982	16,424	44·58
1983	19,335	54·18
1984	26,186	73·52
1985	20,905	58·99
1986	22,381	65·81
1987	16,292	47·44
1988	44,018	127·34
11989	50,715	166·75
1 Provisional.

Values are expressed in current prices based on geographical averages calculated by the national drugs intelligence unit.Information on the pattern of locations involved is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if Her Majesty's Customs and Excise will now reopen investigations into Aero Technologies in respect of illegal arms exports to middle eastern countries.

[holding answer 4 May 1990]: If any information comes into the possession of Customs and Excise which might warrant an investigation the Commissioners would give that appropriate consideration.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what will be the increase in the retail price index due to the increase in local government expenditure not funded from the Exchequer or the business rate.

[holding answer 8 May 1990]: The average community charge set by local authorities in Great Britain is around £350, a rise of over 30 per cent. on domestic rates in 1989–90. This is expected to add just under 1½ per cent. to the level of the RPI from April and, correspondingly, about one percentage point to the annual rate of inflation.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on civil service vacancies and recruitment.

[holding answer 8 May 1990]: My right hon. Friend keeps all aspects of the staffing of the civil service under review. Statistical information about the civil service, including recruitment, can be found in successive editions of "Civil Service Statistics"; and information about that recruitment which is carried out by the Civil Service Commission can be found in its annual reports.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) on what dates payment of the funds made available to football through the reduction in the football pools betting duty from 42·5 per cent. to 40 per cent. will commence and cease;(2) from what date the reduction in the football pools betting duty from 42·5 per cent. to 40 per cent. will apply.

[holding answer 8 May 1990]: Negotiations involving the Football Trust, the Pools Promoters Association and football authorities have reached an advanced stage. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor hopes to be able to make an announcement to the House shortly.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what advice he has given to the Amex, Visa and Diners credit card groups and to joint stock banks about their facilities being used for the transmission of funds in response to posted invitations from West German state and institutional lottery groups.

[holding answer 8 May 1990]: None.

To ask the Prime Minister what criteria were used in deciding whether she should meet the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama is a distinguished spiritual leader, who is welcome to visit the United Kingdom at any time. But he is also regarded by many of his followers as the leader of a government in exile, which is not recognised by any Government, and with which successive British Governments have had no dealings. I believe that a meeting with him would therefore be open to misinterpretation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will establish different criteria in the measurement and analysis of noise created as the result of the opening of new motorways.

I am satisfied that the existing criteria for measuring and analysing noise are satisfactory. However, I am aware from many representations that I have received that noise from new or widened motorways can be a problem, and my Department is seeking constantly to ensure that noise from road surfaces is kept to a minimum.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received about the use of EEC money for the electrification of the north Wales coast rail line.

We have received a number of representations. This matter was discussed in an Adjournment debate on 3 May.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with British Rail in respect of the provision of charter trains to national football and sporting events at Wembley in the interest of public safety.

None. British Rail has a well-established procedure for providing and policing trains to national football and sporting events at Wembley.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations have taken place between officials or members of the British Railways Board and the railway inspectorate respectively concerning the introduction of driver-only passenger trains on Southern Region services.

There has been full consultation between British Rail and the railway inspectorate about the introduction of driver-only operation generally. The inspectorate's views have been taken into account in BR's criteria for driver-only operation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what value for money savings have been achieved by his Department in the last year; and how much of this was as a result of advice from the central unit on purchasing.

The value for money savings made on procurement in 1989–90 are approximately £90 million. The Department takes advice from the central unit on purchasing and it is not possible to apportion savings arising from improved purchasing practices in DTp and those arising from CUP.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will encourage, either by legislation or non-legislation means, drivers of vehicles which are either slow by their nature or are slow by virtue of the load they are carrying, periodically to draw to the side of the road to permit other vehicles safely to pass them.

Advice to that effect is contained in paragraph 45 of the highway code.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to publish the report of the public inquiry into pilotage exemption certificates.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has today published the inspector's report on the public inquiry held into charges for the use of pilotage exemption certificates at Portsmouth and has announced his decision. A copy of the decision letter and of the report has today been sent direct to my hon. Friend.

Proceeds from disposal of NHS land
Receipts in £ millions to nearest £0·1 million
Region	1979–80	1980–81	1981–82	1982–83	1983–84	1984–85	1985–86	1986–87	1987–88	1988–89
Northern	0·2	0·1	0·8	0·4	0·9	1·4	1·3	6·2	3·9	4·3
Yorkshire	0·8	0·7	1·0	1·8	0·8	1·1	2·0	4·1	5·5	13·2
Trent	0·5	1·6	1·7	1·6	2·3	3·9	4·9	6·3	7·6	13·8
East Anglian	0·3	0·2	0·4	0·7	0·9	8·2	3·5	3·9	3·8	10·4
North West Thames	1·2	1·3	4·4	2·7	6·1	6·7	6·6	24·5	50·3	43·6
North East Thames	1·8	1·4	1·0	1·1	3·8	2·8	6·3	13·2	28·0	51·4
South East Thames	0·3	0·8	1·2	2·2	1·6	2·6	11·1	19·8	25·6	30·3
South West Thames	0·1	3·5	2·0	0·9	2·4	10·5	9·1	30·2	24·5	24·4
Wessex	1·3	0·8	0·4	0·5	1·2	2·0	4·7	10·2	5·7	17·6
Oxford	0·9	1·6	1·2	2·3	1·5	1·8	7·6	2·9	10·6	16·9

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will review the level of prescription charges paid by asthmatics.

No. As the result of the present wide-ranging exemption arrangements over 75 per cent. of all items dispensed in the NHS are provided free. Many patients with asthma benefit from these arrangements. Those who are not exempt but who need a lot of medication can save money by buying prescription pre-payment certificates, or season tickets. These certificates can lead to significant savings for anyone needing more than 14 items in a year or five items in a four-month period.To extend these arrangements or to reduce the level of the prescription charge for all patients who suffer from asthma or any other medical condition would benefit only those whose resources exceed the qualifying threshold for help on low income grounds and would therefore not make the best use of the resources available to the NHS.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received recently about the side-effects of the drug triazolam.

In the last six months, the Committee on Safety of Medicines has received three reports of adverse reactions which may be associated with triazolam. A report of a suspected adverse reaction does not necessarily mean that there is a causal relationship with the drug. In addition, the Department has received correspondence from a physician on published papers relating to the drug.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much land has been sold by each district health authority in England in each year since 1979; and if he will give details of (a) the total value in each year and (b) the overall value for England.

The information requested is not held centrally and it could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Information is held centrally in respect of regional health authorities and the information is shown in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 13 March, Official Report, column 181, whether the hours women spent in seclusion in Rampton, Broadmoor, and Moss Side special hospitals during the 12 months from December 1988 to December 1989 included night hours; what percentage of women spent no time in seclusion; and what were the maximum number of hours women spent in seclusion.

The Special Hospitals Services Authority advises me that the information requested is not readily available without extensive examination of individual patient records. This work has been put in hand, and the chairman of the authority will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will list the 25 largest parliamentary constituencies by electorate with their electorates; and what is the average constituency electorate on the current register;(2) if he will list the shire counties, London boroughs and metropolitan boroughs in England in ranking order according to the degree by which their electorates vary from the nationally averaged electorate appropriate to the numbers of parliamentary constituencies within them.

The 1990 electorate figures have been collected and published by local authority area in OPCS Monitor EL 90/1, copies of which are available in the Library. The data are still being reassembled by parliamentary constituency, and will be published in "Electoral Statistics: 1990" (Series EL No. 17) in July.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is intended to reimburse the preparatory cash at those general practitioner practices preparing to submit formal applications for fund-holding status from April 1991.

Yes. A preparatory allowance of up to £16,000 per practice will be available to practices which have reached agreement with their relevant regional health authority to undertake preparatory work for fund holding. The allowance will be used to reimburse the costs of additional work which practices will need to complete in order to be in a position to take on fund holding status from 1 April 1991. Parliamentary approval to this new scheme is being sought in the main estimate for hospital and community health services, family practitioner services (part) and other services, England (class XIII, vote 1). Pending that approval and the enactment of the National Health Service and Community Care Bill when formal applications for GP practice fund holding status can be made, urgent expenditure estimated at £1,500,000 will be met by repayable advances from the contingencies fund.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the number of three and four-year-olds attending private and voluntary sector (i) nursery schools and (ii) playgroups in Cambridgeshire together with the percentage of the total number of three and four-year-olds in Cambridgeshire which these represent; and what is the cost of local authority support for each category (a) in total and (b) per place for the latest year in which figures are available.

The information requested is not available centrally in the form requested.In January 1989, in Cambridgeshire, 117 children attended non-maintained schools registered with the Department of Education and Science. Private and voluntary nursery schools are registered with the local authorities under the Nurseries and Childminders Regulation Act 1948. Information held centrally relates to numbers of places in day nurseries, playgroups and with childminders. Places in nursery schools are not identified as a separate category. This information is published in "Children's Day Care Facilities". The most recent relates to the year ending 31 March 1988, a copy of which is in the Library. Statistics relating to the rate per 1,000 population are calculated on the total number of children aged under five. The number of children under five attending non-maintained schools in Cambridgeshire represents 2·64 per 1,000 children aged under five.The cost of local authority social services departments support in total was £19,000 for day nurseries and £13,000 for play groups for the year ending 31 March 1988. These figures expressed as an average for each place in voluntary and private provision was some £30 per place for day nurseries and £2 per place in playgroups. Some of the private and voluntary providers may have received no support.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list (a) the number and location of (i) local authority day nurseries and (ii) local authority playgroups in Cambridgeshire together with the number of places available in each location and the percentage of the total number of three and four-year-olds in Cambridgeshire which these places represent (b) the total cost of providing and supporting each category (c) the average cost per child place in each category in Cambridgeshire and (d) the national average cost per child place for each category.

Information is not available centrally as to the location of these facilities. The number of premises and the total number of places for each authority is published in "Children's Day Care Facilities"; the most recent relates to the year ending 31 March 1988 and a copy is in the Library.Children under three may attend local authority day nurseries or playgroups. The number of places is shown as a rate per 1,000 of all children under five.The net current expenditure by Cambridgeshire in the year ended 31 March 1988 was £467,000 on day nurseries and £129,000 on playgroups.The net current cost expressed as an average cost per child place at 31 March 1988 in each category in Cambridgeshire in the year ended 31 March 1988 was £2.8 thousand per place for day nurseries and £0.2 thousand per place for playgroups.The equivalent figure for England per child place for each category was for £3,400 per place for day nurseries and £2,400 per place for playgroups.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list those National Health Service pathology departments which have established income-generating schemes which share the profits between the National Health Service and the staff; and if he will place in the Library details of all such schemes.

This information is not available as details of all such schemes are not collected by the Department. Nevertheless, I understand that several NHS pathology departments have established income generation schemes, which they run themselves or as a joint venture with a private company. There should, however, be no question of NHS employees sharing in the profits resulting from income generation activity undertaken as part of the normal duties under their NHS contracts.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he will publish the results of tests which are being carried out on the levels of the fungicide ethylene thiourea in various food products.

On 29 March the food safety directorate of the Department published and placed in the Library of the House the full results of tests on samples of produce previously analysed for ethylene thiourea (ETU) by Parents for Safe Food (PFSF) and Friends of the Earth (FOE). The PFSF/FOE issued their findings in a press release dated 14 February 1989 under the heading "Dangerous Agrochemicals in Supermarket Foods." This gave rise to widespread press coverage with headlines such as "Tomato Ketchup in Cancer Scare."The Department's tests showed that PFSF/FOE main results grossly overstated the residues of ETU in their samples. We found no detectable ETU residues in bread, compared with PFSF/FOE findings of levels more than 300 times our limit of detection. For tomato ketchup, the PFSF/FOE results overstated actual levels by up to 150 times. For the other products for which duplicate samples were provided, residues were generally either absent or within predicted levels. Low levels of residues were found in dried potato products but presented no risk to health and would be greatly reduced after dilution and reconstitution.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what value for money savings have been achieved by his Department in the last year; and how much of this was as a result of advice from the central unit on purchasing.

Responsibility for expenditure is largely decentralised to line managers who are in the best position to seek value for money, and there is no comprehensive record of savings achieved. However, information on savings in the field of purchasing in 1988–89 (the latest available period) indicate that departmental action has saved about £6·7 million or 6·9 per cent. of the purchasing spend. The central unit on purchasing provides general guidance on best purchasing practice and it is not possible to attribute specific savings to its advice.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) where the pigs on farms in Yorkshire and Hampshire discovered to have eaten pigfeed contaminated with Cyanox 425 were slaughtered;(2) if he will publish the preliminary results of his tests into the issues of pigs contaminated with Cyanox 425.

The Department has been involved in investigations since early this year into a number of cases of Ataxia (hind limb weakness) in breeding pigs. This condition has occurred on over 60 farms, mostly in Yorkshire. Although the condition is not fatal animals suffering from it are often slaughtered for welfare reasons and some 700 animals have been slaughtered in this way, mostly on the farms. Pigs subjected to post-mortem examination exhibited lesions consistent with poisoning by an organophosphorous compound. The common factor between the affected farms was the use of feed from one particular consignment of wheat screenings imported from France. Farmers were warned not to feed suspect material to their animals and the feed supplier withdrew the original material from sale. Samples of the feed were analysed at the central veterinary laboratory. The material was found to be contaminated with Cyanox 425 (widely used in the plastics industry) and Isofenphos, an organophosphorous pesticide which is licensed in France but not in this country. It is believed that the second of these was responsible for the outbreak.There was no threat to human health. Residues of both these agents in the meat of slaughtered animals were well within internationally recognised safety limits. We believe that none of the animals concerned entered the food chain; but even if they had, the amounts consumed even by an extreme consumer of sows and boarmeat would have been well within the acceptable daily intake prescribed internationally.I am grateful for the co-operation which has been shown by the feed company and by the manufacturers of Cyanox 425, and I must pay tribute to the high quality of the work carried out by the veterinary investigation service and the central veterinary laboratory. The Department's officials visited France to investigate the circumstances surrounding this contamination and the Department will be pursuing with the French authorities the question of how it arose.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list by county the number of farms where pigs have been discovered to have eaten pig feed contaminated with Cyanox 425.

The total number of pig farms which received the suspect feed is 106 in all: 93 located throughout Yorkshire, seven in Humberside, one in Nottinghamshire and five in Durham.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will announce the guaranteed price for wool for the 1990 clip; and if he will make a statement.

Together with the Secretaries of State for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland I have reviewed the state of the wool market and prospects for the 1990 clip.1989–90 has been a difficult year for the wool industry. There is now a world surplus of wool, and the domestic market has been affected by a decline in consumer spending. This, and other factors, including the withdrawal of China as a major buyer, have had an adverse effect on average market prices which have fallen back sharply from a high point of 145p/kg to as low as 90p/kg, well below the 1989 clip year guranteed price of 129p/kg. For 1990 the prospects remain uncertain.Ministers have also had to take account of the Government's already announced intention of legislation to end the wool guarantee as soon as parliamentary time is available. I know and understand the wish of the British Wool Marketing Board that this should be done as soon as possible.It has also been necessary to draw up a new financial agreement to cover the period from 1990. Following discussions with the industry the new financial agreement with the British Wool Marketing Board will last for two years. It will provide a new flexibility to enable the returns to producers to reflect more quickly any substantial recovery in the wool market above the guarantee price.In the light of the review and taking account of these factors, it has been decided to set the guarantee at 125p/kg for the 1990 clip year—a reduction of 4p/kg on the 1989 guarantee price. At the same time the deficit in the stabilisation fund is being written off as provided for in the existing financial agreement. This relieves producers of a significant burden equivalent to about 18p/kg over two years.I believe that these various elements constitute a significant step towards actual market prices and provide a sound basis for preparing for the ending of the guarantee. At the same time the new financial agreement enables producers to benefit at an early stage if market prices should recover markedly.

To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will issue guidance on the use of House of Commons franked pre-paid envelopes within the European Community.

House of Commons franked or pre-paid envelopes are not valid for use within the European Community. Current arrangements do allow, however, for the cost of official postage to countries within the European Community to be reimbursed by the Fees Office. Discussions are at present taking place to establish a more convenient procedure. Subject to their outcome, relevant guidance will be included in the regulations governing the use of the House emblem, House of Commons stationery and post-paid envelopes, which is issued to Members.

To ask the Lord President of the Council what arrangements he has made to demonstrate the application of live subtitling and signing to the televised proceedings of the House.

As part of its continuing review of the experiment, and in response to requests from hon. and right hon. Members as well as from organisations representing the deaf, the Select Committee on Televising of Proceedings of the House has organised separate trials of both the live subtitling and the signing of Prime Ministers's Question Time.The live subtitling trial will take place in the weeks beginning 14 and 21 May. The subtitling itself will be carried out "as live" and unrehearsed, but for the convenience of the majority of Members who wish to attend Prime Minister's Question Time in the Chamber, it is proposed that only an unedited recording of the subtitled material will be shown on a special monitor set up in the No Lobby. Four separate Prime Minister's Question Times will be subtitled and the tapes will be available for viewing between 4pm and 5pm on each Tuesday and Thursday of the two weeks trial period. Copies of the tapes will also be supplied to organisations representing the deaf in order to give them an opportunity to submit comments to the Select Committee if they wish.The trial with sign language insets will be conducted on the same basis, but will take place in the weeks beginning 4 and 11 June. The tapes will be shown between 5pm and 6pm on each Tuesday and Thursday of the trial period.The purpose of these trials is to establish the acceptability to Members from an editorial and aesthetic point of view of the use of these two techniques for assisting the deaf. In the case of live subtitling, it will also be important to test the ability of the system (which involves the use of innovatory technology) to cope with the speed and specialist vocabulary of Question Time.I should, however, stress that there is as yet no commitment on the part of the broadcasters to adopt these techniques as part of their parliamentary coverage and the Select Committee itself has not reached any conclusions on the subject.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the total cost to (a) NATO and (b) to the United Kingdom of Exercise Mallet Blow.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Wansbeck (Mr. Thompson) on 30 March 1990 at column 331.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what guidance has been issued to his Department's personnel at the nuclear submarine base on whether signing the petition organised by Dumbarton Conservative party to oppose planning permission for the Faslane peace camp would infringe the Queen's regulations.

Queen's regulations forbid service personnel from taking an active part in the affairs of any political group. There is, however, no restriction on attendance at public meetings provided that service uniform is not worn, service duties are not impeded and no action is taken which would bring the service into disrepute.The signing of local petitions by service personnel as private citizens is not seen as an infringement of Queen's regulations. Advice to this effect was issued to all personnel at the Clyde submarine base by the Commodore Clyde in a memorandum dated 9 March 1990.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received on behalf of the schoolchildren at Mintlaw academy, whose exams were disturbed by the aircraft exercises over their school, on 26 April; and if he will make a statement.

Apart from representations made by the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan, the Ministry of Defence is aware of only one representation, made to RAF Buchan, on behalf of the schoolchildren at Mintlaw academy. Should any schools feel that the examination performance of their pupils might have been adversely affected, it is a matter for them to make appropriate representations to the Scottish Examination Board which will, I am sure, give them careful consideration.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if, when planning any future low-flying air defence exercises, he will take into account the timing of certificated exams taking place in the areas over which the exercises will be happening; and if he will make a statement.

I have nothing to add to the letter of 27 April 1990 to the hon. Member from my noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces, a copy of which has been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give details of any representations he has received regarding the disruption caused by the recent Exercise Elder Forest 90; what was the nature of these complaints; and if he will make a statement.

Apart from representations made by the hon. Member, the Ministry of Defence is aware of only three complaints about disturbance caused by low-flying aircraft during Exercise Elder Forest 90. One related to activity in the Scunthorpe area and two to activity to the west of Peterhead.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the latest assessment of the Soviet military presence on the Kola peninsula; and if there have been any noticeable reductions in recent months.

There have been no significant reductions in recent months in either the level of activity or size of the Soviet military presence (including the northern fleet) on the Kola peninsula. The northern fleet continues to evolve as an increasingly modern and professional force; we believe other forces are essentially unchanged.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his policy of encouraging the export sale of arms to reduce unit costs to United Kingdom armed services.

The Government's policy is to support the sale of British defence equipment overseas whenever this is compatible with the United Kingdom's political, strategic and security interests. Defence exports contribute to a strong, viable defence industry. They also provide longer production runs and enable economies of scale in providing equipment for our own armed services, in addition to the foreign earnings which are reflected in the balance of trade.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the units which provide parachute training; and if he will give for each the numbers trained.

Around 60 units provide parachute training, but I am not able to give further information on security grounds.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will outline the preliminary training given to trainee parachutists for them to acquire the L5 landing certificate.

The syllabus of training for Regular Army personnel attending No. 1 parachute training school (PTS) for basic parachute training allocates approximately two and a half hours to achieve the appropriate level of competence in landing techniques to commence "L5" training. The TA soldier is required to have achieved this level of ability prior to commencement of training at No. 1 PTS and is given instruction, at unit level, by an appropriate detachment parachute jumping instructor.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many accidents and deaths occurred during parachute training at Brize Norton in 1989.

In 1989, 1,704 Regular and TA troops completed static line parachute training at No. 1 parachute training school, Brize Norton and carried out 12,310 descents. There were a total of 97 injuries including one fatality. Over half of these injuries were minor enough to allow trainees to return to parachute training within a week.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in what ways medication given to parachute trainees is monitored to check that no medication which might impair reactions is given in the period before a jump; and on what occasions such medication was given to a parachute trainee at Brize Norton in 1989.

A parachute trainee who has reported sick will not recommence training until he has been certified fit to do so by the medical officer, and any medication thought likely to impair reactions will necessitate withdrawal from training for an appropriate period. It is essential for any trainee feeling ill to report the matter before undergoing further parachute training.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what procedure is adopted if parachute trainees report sick.

Arrangements to see the medical officer will be made for trainees reporting sick. The trainee is briefed to return the appropriate medical form to the course flight sergeant after examination, with the medical officer's written comments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what medical checks are made on parachute trainees during their training and before their jumps.

Unless a trainee reports sick, indicates to an instructor that he is sick, or displays some infirmity which is recognised by the training staff, no medical checks will be carried out. Each individual arrives with a medical certificate declaring his fitness to undergo training. It must be the responsibility of the individual to declare any lack of fitness to continue which may not be readily noticeable.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many of the parachute trainees at Brize Norton in 1989 who arrived without an L5 landing certificate were (a) given a certificate without the training for it, (b) given training at the base to enable them to acquire the certificates and (c) sent home;(2) how many of the parachute trainees going to Brize Norton in 1989 had with them an L5 landing certificate on arrival; and how many of these were the result of training given by Brize Norton staff instructors at other bases.

The vast majority of trainees arriving at Brize Norton will have possessed a L5 certificate. None would have been allowed to commence parachute training without proof of their competence to do so and none would have been provided with a L5 certificate without undergoing the training required. The further information requested in the hon. Member's questions has not been recorded.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the implications for his Department's policies of the national council for modern languages' report on the teaching of oriental and African languages, a copy of which has been sent to him.

Consistent with Government policy to increase the scope for higher education institutions to respond to the various demands placed on them, it is for the institutions themselves to determine provision for all subject areas, in consultation as necessary with the Universities Funding Council and the Polytechnics and Colleges Funding Council.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what value for money savings have been achieved by his Department in the last year; and how much of this was as a result of advice from the central unit on purchasing.

The information requested is not yet available but for the previous year (1988–89) the figure was approximately £2 million.In general, it is not possible to attribute particular value for money savings to advice from the central unit on purchasing. The role of the unit is to provide advice and guidance on best purchasing practice; it provides overall support and guidance and encourages value for money across all Departments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement about his Department's decision not to participate in the Government supply index.

The Department has fully evaluated the system but at present the items currently covered by the GSI do not form a significant part of our expenditure and it is not therefore economically viable to join the system. If the situation changes the matter will be reconsidered.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many current applications for voluntary aided status for schools are lodged with his Department; and when he expects to announce a decision on each of them.

There are currently 12 proposals published under section 13 of the Education Act 1980 for establishing a voluntary aided school which fall to be decided by my right hon. Friend. In addition there are two proposals before him under section 54 of the Education (No. 2) Act 1986 to change the status of a voluntary controlled school to voluntary aided. He will reach a decision on the proposals as quickly as is compatible with a full and careful consideration of all the issues involved. He has stated that it is his intention to come to a decision on statutory proposals within five months of publication wherever possible. Delays in some cases arise from factors outside the Department's control.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will set out the latest available figures on the number of 16 to 18-year-olds on YTS who receive part-time education at further education colleges.

In November 1988 the number of students studying part-time in maintained colleges of FE in England as part of a YTS was as follows:

	Aged 16	Aged 17	Aged 18	Aged 16–18
All part-time (including evening)	62,000	56,000	5,000	123,000

The ages are those at 31 August 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give (a) the number and location of (i) nursery schools, (ii) nursery classes and (iii) under-five units in reception classes provided by Cambridgeshire education authority together with the number of places available at each unit and the percentage of the total number of three and four-year-olds in Cambridgeshire which these places represent (b) the total cost of providing and supporting each category, (c) the average cost per child place in each category in Cambridgeshire and (d) the national average cost per child place for each category.

Information on the number of under-five units in reception classes and the number of places available at each unit is not available centrally. Information on the total cost of providing and supporting each category is no longer collected separately by the Department. In January 1989 the number of nursery schools, nursery classes and the number of pupils under five in Cambridgeshire is as follows:

	Number	Pupils under five	Percentage of the esti-mated 3 and 4-year-old popula-tion
Nursery schools	7	661	4
Primary schools
Nursery classes	31	1,355	8
Other classes		5,073	30
Total		7,089	42

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information he has received on children of school age in the London borough of Tower Hamlets unable to find a school place in the current academic year because of shortages of teachers; what discussions he has had about this problem with the Inner London education authority and the London borough of Tower Hamlets; and what action he proposes to take to ensure that all children in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets enjoy the basic right to state education.

The local education authority estimates that, excluding rising fives, there were about 220 children of compulsory school age not in school at the end of the spring term. These figures take no account of the take-up of 180 places at Bigland primary school which opened this term.The Department is in regular contact with the local education authority about this and other matters, and will continue to give support to the measures Tower Hamlets is taking to secure an adequate supply of teachers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what action he has taken to implement recommendations 7 to 15 of the Home Affairs Select Committee in its first report in Session 1986–87 on Bangladeshis in Great Britain; and if he will make a statement.

I am able to report the following developments since the Government response to the Home Affairs Select Committee Report "Bangladeshis in Britain" was published in July 1987. The Department issued last July a circular (16/89) to local education authorities and others, instituting from September 1990 a national scheme for the collection of ethnically based statistics on school pupils. Three projects aimed at addressing the particular educational needs of Bangladeshi pupils have been included in the education support grant programme on ethnic diversity.Local education authorities are already required to set targets and performance indicators for English language support teaching funded through grants paid under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966. In the proposals for the future administration of the grant recently published by the Home Office, local authorities will be required to review the effectiveness of existing section 11 funded provision and set specific objectives and quantifiable targets for continued funding.Pre-school provision of children from linguistic minorities and home-school liaison, particularly with parents who speak little English, are eligible for support under current arrangements for section 11 and continue to be identified as areas for support in the proposed new arrangements.As regards recommendations 11 and 14 concerning local authority support for voluntary initiatives, under current section 11 arrangements it is open to local authorities to apply for grant support for posts to work on detached duty with voluntary organisations.Under the proposed new arrangements for the grant the Government will expect local authorities to include in their funding bids applications for posts based in the voluntary sector, although as with current applications in respect of the voluntary sector, these will have to meet the relevant criteria for grant. Bengali has been included among those modern foreign languages specified as eligible to be taught as a national curriculum foundation subject. Since last autumn, schools have been able to offer Bengali towards the national curriculum requirements, provided that they also offer at least one of the working languages of the European Community.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners held on remand in each year from 1979 to 1989 were found not guilty.

The latest information is published in table 2.8 of "Prison statistics England and Wales 1988" (Cmn. 825), a copy of which is in the Library. Final data for 1988 and provisional data for 1989 are not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many overstayers were granted leave to remain in the United Kingdom in the latest available year having given evidence of stable marriages to British citizens with right of abode in the United Kingdom.

The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what Minister from the Home Office will be attending and speaking at this year's Prison Officers Association annual conference; and if he will make a statement.

Neither I nor my right hon. and learned Friend have been invited to attend or speak at the Prison Officers' Association annual conference.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what guidelines he issues to the Race Relations Board over its encouragement and help of complainants in bringing cases before an industrial tribunal;(2) whether, when next he meets the chairman of the Race Relations Board, he will discuss with him his policy of encouraging individuals to bring cases of complaint where those individuals have deliberately approached several companies for employment as a test exercise.

The criteria on which the Commission for Racial Equality considers applications from complainants for assistance are laid down in section 66 of the Race Relations Act 1976. I am assured by its chairman that the commission would want to avoid supporting any complaint made as the result of a "test exercise" approach to a number of employers, as opposed to assisting genuine job applicants who complain of discrimination.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consider introducing legislation to compensate those people who are put to expense in defending actions brought before industrial tribunals with the support of the Race Relations Board where the case is dismissed or the complainant drops his or her allegations at a late stage.

I understand that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment has no plans to extend the provisions in the Industrial Tribunals (Rules of Procedure) Regulations 1985 to cover the award of costs in all cases where a case is dismissed or dropped at a late stage.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he can give a breakdown of the charges faced by pregnant women currently held on remand.

On 1 May 1990 there were eight pregnant females held on remand. Of these one is charged with murder, one with burglary and theft, four with theft or fraud, one with arson, and one with criminal damage.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women prisoners were pregnant at the last count.

On 1 May 1990, 35 female prisoners were known to be pregnant.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women who have been known to be pregnant have been sentenced to prison in each of the last 10 years.

The information requested is not available.The annual reports of the work of the prison department do however record the number of pregnant females temporarily removed to outside hospitals for delivery and returning to establishments afterwards. The figures are:

	Number
1988–89	63
1987–88	75
1986–87	71
1985–86	71
11984–85	70
1983	270
1982	251
1981	74
1980	75
1979	274
1 Covers 15 month period.
2 Additionally, in each of the years 1979, 1982 and 1983 there was one delivery in an establishment.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will give a breakdown of the sentences subsequently received by pregnant women held on remand in each of the last 10 years.

The information requested is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he can give a breakdown of the offences for which pregnant women who have been sentenced to jail have been convicted.

On 1 May 1990 there were 27 pregnant females serving sentences of imprisonment. Of these:

• 10 had been convicted of offences of theft or fraud.
• 7 had been convicted of offences of violence against the person.
• 6 had been convicted of drugs offences.
• 2 had been convicted of burglary offences.
• 1 had been convicted of a sexual offence.
• 1 had been convicted of aiding and abetting blackmail.

Where a woman had been received on sentence for several offences, only the principal criminal offence has been stated.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consider the introduction of legislation of forbid the payment of money to people convicted of murder by those making films based on their crimes; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 30 April 1990]: It is deplorable that criminals—especially those convicted of the most heinous offences—should be able to profit indirectly from their crimes by payments for publication of them, in films or any other medium. We are already considering what steps could be taken, although we recognise that there are practical difficulties because benefits can be received indirectly, or covertly, or outside our jurisdiction.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has received in recent weeks regarding food convoy movements in Ethiopia; and if he will make a statement.

The latest information available on the southern line operation for transporting food across the conflict lines is that in the period 20 March (when the operation started) to 2 May, 61 convoys have carried 8,803 tonnes of food into northern Wello and Tigray. Of this total, 4,214 tonnes have been delivered to Makelle in Tigray. In the six days up to 2 May a total of 2,067 tonnes was delivered.In addition, substantial amounts of food have been delivered into Eritrea and Tigray by convoys operated by the Eritrean Relief Association (ERA) and the Relief Society of Tigray (REST). We do not have details of movements of convoys along these routes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations Her Majesty's Government have made to the development assistance committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development to ensure that aid to eastern Europe is counted separately from aid to developing countries in development assistance committee calculations of official development assistance.

The Government supported the proposed conclusion, reached by the development assistance committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, that assistance to eastern Europe should not be included in the calculation of official development assistance as a proportion of GNP used in DAC statistical presentations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the non-governmental organisations in receipt of grants from his Department in 1989–90; and what is the size of each grant.

The figures for 1989–90 are not yet available. The figures for 1988–89, including support both for long-term development projects and for emergency and refugee relief, are as follows:

Overseas Development Administration
Non Governmental Organisation	Amount (£)
ACAFESS (Afro Caribbean Community Organisation)	130,130
Acord	1,157,918
Action Aid	1,308,095
Action Around Bethlehem	27,550
Action on Disability and Development	97,163
Action Water	10,000
Afghanaid	1,313,580
Africa Now	10,300
Aga Khan Foundation	1,560,040
Appropriate Health Resources and Technologies Action Group (AHRTAG)	468,754
Aid for India	20,826
African Medical Research Foundation (AMREF)	182,541
Avon Industrial Award Scheme	5,000
Band Aid	169,953
Boston-Jalchatra Project	12,000
Boys Brigade	15,349
British Airways Trust	48,500
British Executive Services Overseas	300,006
British Red Cross Society	1,714,379
British Refugee Council	6,000
CAB International (Commonwealth Mycological Institute)	57,437
Catholic Fund for Overseas Development (CAFOD)	3,814,990
Care Britain	4,139,404
Centre for Economic Policy Research	49,827
Centre for World Development Education	135,000
Christian Aid	5,433,561
Christian Outreach	189,103
Christians Abroad	17,000
CIIR	994,673
Commonwealth Human Ecology Council	50,013
Concern	1,137,451
Council for Education in World Citizenship	6,500
Council Of Europe North South Campaign	30,000
Co-operation For Development	544,584
Commonwealth TUC	51,020
Cusichaca Project	32,155
Disasters Emergency Committee	2,106,700
Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme	5,000
Equipment for Community Hospitals Overseas	6,307
Food and Agriculture Research Mission	12,514
Friends of Urambo and Mwanhala	13,672
Hand in Hand	17,636
Health Unlimited	48,175
Help the Aged	199,903
Homeless Trust	169,237
International Council for Bird Preservation	37,570
International Institute for Environment and Development	55,000
Institute of Development Studies	1,262,000
Intercare	9,732
International Bee Research Association	29,600
International Boys Town Trust	21,621
International Extension College	198,200
International Medical Relief	14,500
Int Committee of the Red Cross	610,000
Intermediate Technologies Development Group	1,902,562
International Voluntary Service	774,886
King Mahedra Trust	14,750
Leonard Cheshire Foundation	57,691

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what investigations are made by his Department into the political activities of those charitable institutions in receipt of grants from his Department;(2) what guidelines are set for charitable organisations in receipt of Government grants from his Department regarding any policy that might be influenced by political considerations of the officers of that charity;(3) whether he will consider withdrawing all grants from his Department to any charitable organisation that is under investigation by the Charity Commissioners.

My Department does not make general grants to voluntary agencies. Our support is confined to specifically identified and agreed projects, both for long-term development and for emergency and refugee relief. Our prime concern is the quality and relevance to local communities in developing countries of the proposed projects. We also take account of the probity and administrative and professional competence of the agencies to operate and maintain the projects; and they are required to account to us for the use of our funds.We do not fund voluntary agencies' campaigning or political activities. They are independent organisations and as such are free to express their own views. The way in which they do that and the content of their campaigning is essentially a matter for the agencies, their supporters and the Charity Commissioners. I certainly do not see eye to eye with some agencies' views, and when appropriate I do not hesitate to take issue with them. But it is for the Charity Commissioners to judge whether an agency over-steps the guidelines on what constitutes acceptable activities for a charity and it would not be proper for me to seek to intervene in the commissioners' deliberations.I look forward to continuing to support the excellent work of the NGOs in developing countries. Our support will continue to be confined to agreed projects and will be available only to those agencies which are properly maintaining charitable status.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the know-how fund for Czechoslovakia is now in operation; and if he will give details of the specific help on offer.

The extension of the know-how fund to Czechoslovakia was announced during the visit of President Havel to Britain in March. Detailed projects and programmes have not yet been worked out, but assistance will initially be concentrated on the financial, employment, energy and environment sectors, and on the provision of management training.