To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the arrangements for prosecuting persons for fraud.

The majority of fraud prosecutions in England and Wales are the responsibility of either the Serious Fraud Office or the Crown prosecution service. Both departments operate under my superintendence.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the appointment of judges.

The Lord Chancellor seeks, for each judicial post, the candidate who appears to him to be the best qualified to fill it and perform its duties, regardless of sex, ethnic origin, political affiliation, or religion. Copies of a speech made by the Lord Chancellor on this subject, and copies of a booklet entitled "Judicial Appointments: The Lord Chancellor's Policies and Procedures" will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

To ask the Attorney-General what representations he has received concerning laws against incitement to violence on personal, racial or religious grounds; and if he will make a statement.

Prosecutions for incitement to racial hatred require the consent of the Attorney-General and he frequently receives representations in relation to individual cases. Changes to the law are a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Home Secretary.

To ask the Attorney-General how many legal aid certificates have been issued to people who have lodged claims for damages for contracting HIV through national health service infected blood or blood products; and how much has already been paid out under those certificates.

A total of 727 certificates have been issued, as at 8 November 1990. To date £708,088 has been paid under these certificates.

To ask the Attorney-General if the Serious Fraud Office gives advance notice to the press and media of a proposed search in premises of a company.

No.

To ask the Attorney-General what information he has as to how many employees of the Serious Fraud Office are of Greek Cypriot origin.

One employee within the Serious Fraud Office has ethnic origins within the Greek Cypriot community. That employee is not involved in the investigation into the affairs of Polly Peck International plc.

To ask the Attorney-General whether the Serious Fraud Office gave notice to the press and media of its search of the premises of Polly Peck International at Berkeley square, London on Tuesday 30 October.

No prior notice was given. Since the fact of the investigation was already in the public domain and the matter was one of substantial public interest, a short factual press notice was issued after the event.

To ask the Attorney-General if the Serious Fraud Office normally requests the support of the police when it proposes to raid the offices of companies.

Section 2(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 1987 requires that a search warrant issued on the application of the Serious Fraud Office should be directed to the police who are then responsible for its execution. The police should be accompanied by a member of the Serious Fraud Office or other appropriate person in accordance with section 2(6) and (7) of the 1987 Act.

To ask the Attorney-General whether the Serious Fraud Office had the full co-operation of the administrators of Polly Peck International on Tuesday 30 October; and why it requested the support of the Metropolitan police to carry out its raid of the company's office at Berkeley square on that date.

The Serious Fraud Office enjoys the co-operation of the administrators of Polly Peck International plc. The warrant in respect of the offices of Polly Peck International plc was directed to the Metropolitan police in accordance with the procedure set out in my earlier answer to the right hon. Gentleman.

To ask the Attorney-General how many persons are employed by the Serious Fraud Office.

A total of 132 people are currently employed by the Serious Fraud Office including temporary staff.

To ask the Attorney-General what recent discussions he has had concerning the administration of the existing laws relating to corporate and individual liability following the public transport disasters; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General and I have discussed questions relating to criminal liability with the Director of Public Prosecutions and others, in connection with the sinking of the Herald of Free Enterprise.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about his continuing inquiries into possible breaches of United Kingdom export licensing controls in relation to MV Gur Mariner and military-related exports to Iraq.

An examination of cargo recently offloaded from the MV Gur Mariner at Vlissingen, Holland has been completed by the Dutch authorities. Nothing that would justify criminal proceedings in respect of export licensing restrictions in the United Kingdom has been established.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what efforts have been made on the question of Sunday trading to reach possible grounds for compromise between the various factions involved; and if he will make a statement.

The Government continue to meet interested parties and encourage the development of common ground. There remain wide differences of view and no proposal for reform of the law has yet emerged with widespread support from the differing interests.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number of (a) men and (b) women who were being held in police cells in England and Wales on 1 November.

On 1 November there were 1,044 male and no female prisoners held in police cells in England and Wales.

Year	Cases of Complaints about Prison Conditions	Cases of Complaints about Prison Procedures	Findings of the Commission	Findings of the Committee of Ministers	Findings of the Court
1979		1		1 Violation
1980		3	1 Inadmissable	1 Violation
			1 Struck off
1981		6	1 Friendly
			settlement
			5 Inadmissable or
			struck off
1982		3	2 Inadmissable		1 Violation
1983		3	1 Friendly
			settlement
			2 struck off
1984		1	Inadmissable
1985		4	2 Inadmissable	1 Violation	1 Violation
1986		5	1 Withdrawn	1 Violation	2 Violations
			1 Friendly
			settlement
1987		—	—	—	—
1988		—	—	—	—

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will provide a breakdown of the proportion of prisoners retained under high security category A, according to age, sex, all-crime, for each of the years since 1975.

A full breakdown in the form requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The numbers of sentenced prisoners confirmed in category A at 30 September in each of the years requested are as follows:

Year	Adult male	Female	Young offender	Total
1975	235	3	4	242
1976	238	5	2	245
1977	252	5	—	257
1978	241	5	—	246
1979	249	6	—	255
1980	267	7	2	276
1981	257	6	2	265
1982	254	4	2	260
1983	269	3	4	276
1984	285	3	3	291
1985	309	1	4	314
1986	319	4	4	327
1987	356	3	11	370
1988	405	3	7	415
1989	413	4	4	421
1990	405	2	8	415

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will supply the number of appeals that have been received by the European Commission and Court of Human Rights from British prisoners for each year since 1979, the reason for them and the result of the appeal.

Of those cases which the Commission has decided to refer to the Government for observations, the following is the information available in respect of complaints about the prison system in England and Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current prison population as a proportion of adults imprisoned per 100,000 of the population in each European Community member state.

The latest available information, for 1 September 1988, was published by the Council of Europe in table 1 of "Prison Information Bulletin No. 12", a copy of which is in the Library. The prison population per 100,000 inhabitants in England and Wales has subsequently fallen to 90 on 30 September 1990.An article on "International comparisons of prison populations" by Collier and Tarling (Home Office Research Bulletin No. 23 pages 48 to 54) showed that the figures for different countries are unlikely to be strictly comparable, because the definitions of prisons and prisoners vary from one country to another, reflecting different legal and administrative systems. Examples of differences in the definitions are the inclusions or exclusions in a country's figures of juvenile offenders and mentally disordered offenders.

Applications for asylum in the United Kingdom by Ghanaian citizens, and decisions
		Decisions1
	Applications received	Granted asylum	Granted exceptional leave	Refused asylum or exceptional leave
1981	13	5	—	3
1982	407	—	12	28
1983	689	199	126	199
1984	337	73	59	157
1985	175	89	48	252
1986	220	72	49	40
1987	153	47	115	107
1988	170	39	113	58
19892	340	45	125	25
19902 (1 January to 30 September)	800	—3	—3	—3
1 Decisions in a particular year do not necessarily relate to applications made in that year.
2 Provisional figures.
3 Reliable figures for 1990 are not yet available because of delays in recording.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of the Animal Procedures Committee (a) have in the past held arid (b) currently hold licences to conduct animal experiments; and if he will list them.

Under section 19(3) of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, at least half the members of the Animal Procedures Committee are persons who neither hold, nor within the previous six years have held, any licence under the Act or under the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876 and the current membership of the committee

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the Government have spent in the last year promoting the use of postal and proxy voting among (a) the sick and disabled and (b) those whose occupation means they are unable to vote in person.

Advertising on postal and proxy voting is undertaken only in the period leading up to a general election.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications he has received from Ghanaians in each year since 1981 for political asylum and in each year how many have been (a) granted asylum, (b) refused and (c) are still pending.

Information on applications and decisions is given in the following table. An estimated 1,290 asylum applications by Ghanaian citizens were recorded as awaiting a decision on 30 September 1990: however, this figure is a maximum which overstates the position because of under-recording of decisions made earlier.conforms with this requirement. For some time, following attacks against researchers and their families, it has been our practice not to reveal the names of individual licence holders.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to achieve a reduction in the number of experiments under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986; and if he will make a statement.

As figure 5 of the "Statistics of Scientific Procedures on Living Animals, Great Britain 1989" (Cm. 1152)—a copy of which is in the Library—shows, the number of experiments on living animals declined steadily for 10 years or more and has continued to do so since 1987, when the strict controls of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 came into force.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many minors from Ethiopia with no support accommodation in the United Kingdom have been refused entry at Heathrow and Gatwick airports, respectively, during the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available.

No Ethiopian children have been refused entry at either Heathrow or Gatwick airports during the year ending 30 September 1990.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation to make ticket touting a criminal offence.

We expect to make relevant announcements in relation to football very shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list those newspapers, magazines, and periodicals in which the Government have placed advertisements aimed at encouraging electoral registration among ethnic minorities in the last year.

The Home Office electoral registration advertising campaign aimed at United Kingdom residents this year was a national poster site campaign; no advertisements were placed in newspapers or periodicals.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to seek to increase the powers currently available to courts for the recovery of arrears of maintenance for wives and children.

The Maintenance Enforcement Bill, which was published on 8 November, will improve the collection and enforcement of maintenance in the magistrates courts, the county courts and the High Court. The Bill gives the courts power to specify the method of payment when making, varying or enforcing a maintenance order. This should help to ensure that maintenance payments are paid regularly and reduce the number of enforcement actions.Courts will have the power to order payment by standing order direct to the maintenance creditor or make

Number of persons exempt from community charges at 1 June 1990
West Midlands	Coventry	Dudley	Solihull	Walsall	Wolverhampton
Severely mentally impared	768	517	168	436	557
In hospital or home1	2,141	1,689	850	n/a	1,554
Aged 18 or 192	1,880	1,190	1,200	771	760
Other3	29	61	19	44	121

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will state the distribution of changes in the percentage of net income paid in (a) domestic rates in 1989–90 and (b) community charge in 1990–91.

An analysis showing the distributional impact of the community charge was placed in the Library on 15 February. This showed that three out of five households would pay less with the community charge than they would have paid had rates continued.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has any plans to compensate local authorities which use their discretionary powers to waive the standard community charge for people whose repossessed former home remains unsold while they are liable to the community charge at their new address.

The method of distributing grant to local authorities does not take account of the potential for raising income through standard community charges. There is, therefore, no case for compensating local authorities if this income is reduced as a result of the proposed changes in the maximum level of the standard charge which can be levied in certain cases, or if local authorities exercise their discretion to waive charges for certain categories.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has any plans to treat overnight visitors as the equivalent of ordinary residents when calculating the standard spending assessment.

For 1991–92 standard spending assessments my right hon. Friend proposes to treat two overnight visitors as the equivalent of one ordinary resident, for the period of their stay.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if, following the reply to the hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside (Mr. Blunkett), 24 October, column 234, he will similarly list for each authority in the West Midlands county, and for Warwickshire, the numbers of people exempt from the poll tax.

Available information returned by local authorities is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether his proposal to increase (a) the proportion of community charge benefit paid by district councils by 60 per cent. and (b) the percentage paid by district councils in respect of rent relief for tenants with low incomes, is intended to increase the amount of community charge which district councils have to levy compared with what would be levied without those charges; and what he estimates the effect of these measures will be, per community charge payer, in the following district council areas: Mid Devon district council, East Devon district council and Teignbridge district council.

The reduction in the rate of subsidy for community charge benefit and some housing benefit cases from 97 to 95 per cent. was taken into account in the Government's proposals for the local authority finance settlement. The standard spending assessment for Mid Devon, East Devon, and Teignbridge district councils are provisionally estimated to rise by 28, 29 and 31 per cent. respectively to reflect, inter alia, the reduction in subsidy. There should therefore be virtually no impact on community charges.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list those local authorities in England which have sought an attachment of earnings for the recovery of the community charge before employing bailiffs to carry out the task;(2) if he will list those local authorities in England which have taken registered community charge payers to court for non-payment.

The Department does not have this information.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will update the answer given to the hon. Member for Norwich, North (Mr. Thompson) on 15 February, Official Report, column 404, using actual rather than projected figures for the community charge.

The analyses already provided offer the most valid illustration of the distributional effects of the introduction of the community charge system. Use of actual community charges would not provide a proper comparison with 1989–90 rates, since increases in local authority spending mean that the community charge is raising 30 per cent. more revenue than was raised by domestic rates.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, with regard to members' allowances under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989, what plans he has to consult the local authority associations and other interested parties, on the practical implementation of the scheme after it has been in operation for six months.

As I told the hon. Member on 26 July 1990, I intend to arrange for a review of the new system of councillors' allowances when that system has been in operation for about a year. Since the system has not yet been brought into operation, it is premature now to plan the review.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the Government propose to review councillors' travel and subsistence allowances under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

Councillors' travelling and subsistence allowances are governed by the Local Government Act 1972. The amounts are in the discretion of the local authorities within maxima prescribed by the Government. These maxima were last increased with effect from 1 January 1990. I shall shortly be carrying out a further review.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the new system of members' allowances under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 will be introduced; and whether the quantum available to local authorities will be uplifted to take account of current levels of inflation.

The new system of members' allowances will be introduced when we have resolved the technical problem that has been discovered. The regulations limiting the maximum amounts payable will take account of all the relevant factors up to the date at which they are made.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, with regard to members' allowances under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989, when the new scheme will be implemented.

When we make the regulations under section 18 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989, we shall take into account the representations from local authority associations that the new system of allowances should come into effect no earlier than 1 April 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list those allegations of anti-competitive behaviour against local authorities under the Local Government Act 1988 which his Department has received, detailing the initial date of complaint, the originator of the complaint, the subject of the complaint, that is, which local authority, and the nature of the complaints, on which the Secretary of State is currently considering futher action;(2) if he will list the number, and nature, of complaints made by private contractors, or others, to his Department with regard to alleged anti-competitive behaviour on the part of local authorities in the awarding of contracts; and if he will list which authorities, and when, were the subjects of those complaints.

These questions could be answered only at disproportionate expense.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the date, for each respective local authority, on which he received the initial complaint of alleged anti-competitive behaviour against the local authorities listed in his answer of 31 October, Official Report, columns 543–44.

The information requested is as follows:

• Bristol city: 8 May 1989
• London borough of Hillingdon: 12 May 1989
• Metropolitan borough of Knowsley: 19 May 1989
• Borough of Charnwood: 20 June 1989
• Metropolitan borough of Wolverhampton: 11 May 1989
• Braintree district: 13 April 1989
• Eden district: 4 August 1989
• East Lindsey district: 13 November 1989
• Birmingham city: March 1989
• York city: 3 August 1989
• Liverpool city: 31 May 1989
• Metropolitan borough of Bury: 18 December 1989
• *Humberside county: 15 September 1989
• *London borough of Camden: 2 October 1989
• Borough of Woodspring: 21 December 1989
• Leicester city: 27 February 1990
• Metropolitan borough of Doncaster: 19 February 1990
• Borough of Thurrock: 16 March 1990

In each case the date given is the date of the earliest complaint related to the matter which was the subject of the section 13 notice. In the two asterisked cases the complaint was not of anti-competitive behaviour but rather of financial failure under section 10 Humberside and Camden and a failure to comply with the detailed specification of the work under Section 7(8)—Camden—of the Local Government Act 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether his Department, as a matter of procedure, notified those local authorities against which he has received complaints of anti-competitive behaviour under the Local Government Act 1988.

The Department notifies the local authority concerned in all cases where my right hon. Friend investigates a complaint that a local authority has failed to comply with the requirements of part I of the Local Government Act 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the number and nature of complaints made by private contractors or others to his Department with regard to alleged anti-competitive behaviour on the basis of a direct services organisation or direct labour organisation not meeting the terms of the contract awarded to it by the local authority; and if he will list which authorities, and when, were the subject of those complaints.

The information requested is as follows:London borough of Camden: failure to comply with detailed specification under section 7(8) of the Local Government Act 1988: complaint made in October 1989.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the number of complaints of alleged anti-competitive behaviour received by his Department, initiated by the organisation Public and Local Service Efficiency Campaign; and which local authorities were the subject of complaints by PULSE.

It is our policy not to reveal the identity of the originators of complaints about failures by local authorities to comply with the requirements of part I of the Local Government Act 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his latest estimate for district councils achieving full local plans coverage by the end of 1992; and if he will make a statatement.

The available information is not fully up to date. I hope shortly to have the results of a survey of local authorities' intentions which was recently carried out by the District Planning Officers Society.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will indicate how long after the proposed implementation date of 1 October 1990 the standing orders under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 are likely to come into force;(2) if he will indicate the timetable for further consultation on the draft care standing orders under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

We are still considering representations from the local authority associations.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what advice he gives to those local authorities which wish to include planning gain policies in their local plans; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has advised local planning authorities in planning policy guidance note 15 that, where appropriate, detailed development plans should specify the policies that the authority proposes to implement by means of planning agreements. Such policies should have regard to our general guidance on the proper scope of planning agreements.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the implications of the downturn of the property market on the resources of urban development corporations and on the financial difficulties faced by urban development corporations as a result of falling land prices and rising infrastructure costs.

Urban development corporations are well placed to respond flexibly to changing economic conditions and are continuing to act positively to maximise development opportunities. The Government's firm commitment to their work is reflected in our spending programmes for the years ahead.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received over the problems and constraints resulting from the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and the community charge on the completing of local plans by councils; and if he will make a statement.

I have received no representations on this matter.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance he gives to local authorities that wish to obtain a district wide coverage of their local plans; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has urged district planning authorities in planning policy guidance note 12 to extend the coverage of local plans. Last year's White Paper—Cm. 569—indicated the Government's intention in the forthcoming planning Bill to impose a duty on authorities to secure districtwide coverage of plans. Transitional arrangements will ensure that work on revising and updating current plans will not be wasted.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what planning powers he holds in respect of county councils that award themselves deemed planning permission in contravention of their own structure plans; and if he will make a statement.

The Town and Country Planning (Development Plans) (England) Direction 1981 requires local planning authorities to report to my right hon. Friend any development proposal that would materially conflict with or prejudice the implementation of the development plan. My right hon. Friend may then require the proposal to be referred to him for decision.

	Teacher numbers
January each year	Actual (thousands)	Full-lime equivalent (thousands)	Pupil numbers Full-time equivalent (thousands)	Overall pupil/teacher ratio
19601	—	—	—	—
1970	347·8	328·7	7,514·9	22·9
1980	455·7	438·1	8,183·2	18·7
1989	421·0	397·4	6,761·7	17·0
19902	424·6	398·5	—	—
1 Not readily available.
2 Data on pupil numbers are not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how much money was budgeted for student loans expenditure in the current financial year; and how much money which was budgeted for student loans has been reallocated to other expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment to whom the Sheffield development corporation is accountable; who appoints the board members; who is responsible for monitoring their attendance and performance; and if he will make a statement.

Urban development corporations are accountable to the Secretary of State and Parliament. The Secretary of State appoints board members. The arrangements for board meetings are for the corporations to determine.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the provision of special needs education in west Cumbria.

Cumbria, including west Cumbria, is reviewing its provision for special educational needs, but no proposals are currently before the Secretary of State.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the number of teachers employed by local education authorities in 1960, 1970, 1980 and 1990, or the latest date available in actual and full-time equivalent terms and the number of children being educated by the local education authorities for each of the above dates and the teacher/pupil ratio in each case.

The information requested for local education authority maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools is given in the table.

There has been no change in the approved estimates provision for 1990–91 of a total of £147·6 million for student loans, shared between the Department of Education and Science, the Scottish Education Department and the Department of Education for Northern Ireland.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list the titles and origins of the published documents submitted to the European Council in Rome which are now deposited, together with a note concerning their location.

A complete version of COM (90) 600, the Commission's opinion on political union, was deposited in the House on 6 November. In accordance with normal practice, copies were sent to the Vote Office, to the Library and to the clerk to the Select Committee on European Legislation.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will list the Ministers and civil servants who were recalled from overseas in order to be available for a vote on dog registration; and what was the cost to public funds.

My right hon. and hon. Friends were in this country to vote on the Environmental Protection Bill to ensure that an important part of the Government's legislative programme was completed. Questions relating to costs should be addressed to the appropriate Departments.

To ask the Prime Minister if she will make representations to the Japanese Government in respect of their practice of allowing the mass slaughter of dolphins on their beaches.

The British embassy in Tokyo has made clear to the Japanese authorities our strong concern over the death of nearly 600 dolphins on the beach at Miiraku on 4 November, and has asked to be informed of the result of any further inquiries into this incident.

Ministerial salaries since 1970
	Prime Minister	Cabinet Minister		Minister of State		Parliamentary Under Secretary
		Commons	Lords	Commons	Lords	Commons	Lords
1 April 1965	14,000	8,500		5,625		3,750
1 April 1972	20,000	13,000		7,500		5,500
8 May 19751	20,000	13,000		7,500		5,500
30 June 1976	20,000	13,000		7,500		5,500	25,812
30 June 1977	20,000	13,000		7,500		5,500	6,020
31 July 1978	22,000	14,300		8,250	38,822	6,050	6,622
26 July 1979	433,000	19,660		12,625	12,911	9,525	9,811
28 July 1980	34,650	23,500		16,250	16,400	12,350	12,500
13 June 1981	36,725	27,825		19,750	23,275	15,100	18,600
23 June 1982	38,200	28,950		20,575	24,200	15,700	19,350
27 July 1983	38,987	29,367	530,110	20,867	25,350	15,917	20,390
1 January 1984	40,424	30,304	31,680	21,364	26,670	16,154	21,450
1 January 1985	41,891	31,271	32,260	21,881	28,000	16,411	22,520
1 January 1986	43,328	32,208	34,820	22,378	29,320	16,648	23,580
1 January 1987	44,775	33,145	36,390	22,875	30,640	16,885	24,640
1 January 1988	45,787	34,157	40,438	23,887	34,688	17,897	28,688
I January 1989	46,109	34,479	41,997	24,209	37,047	18,219	30,647
1 January 1990	46,750	35,120	44,591	24,850	39,641	18,860	33,241
1 In 1975 all Ministers chose to forgo any increase in their Ministerial salary.
2 In 1976, only Parliamentary Under-Secretaries in the Lords received an increase in their Ministerial salary.
3 In 1978 a similar differential to 2 was implemented for Ministers of State.
4 In 1979 the Prime Minister chose to forgo any increase and from 1980 she has accepted the same salary as her Cabinet colleagues in the Commons.
5 Since 1983 Cabinet Ministers in the Lords have received a higher salary than their Commons counterparts.

To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will give the basic salary, and dates on which it applied, for hon. Members' pay and Ministers' pay, including the Prime Minister, for the period 1 January 1970 until the present.

The information requested is as follows:

Parliamentary salaries since 1970
	Full Parliamentary salary	Reduced Parliamentary salary
	£	£
16 October	3,250	1,250
1 January 1972	4,500	3,000
13 June 1976	5,750	13,000–3,700
13 June 1976	6,062	3,000–4,012
13 June 1977	6,270	3,208–4,222
13 June 1978	6,897	3,529–4,642
13 June 1979	9,450	5,265–5,820
13 June 1980	10,725	6,130–6,410
13 June 1981	13,150	7,670
13 June 1982	14,510	8,460
13 June 1983	15,308	9,543
1 January 1984	16,106	10,626
1 January 1985	16,904	11,709
1 January 1986	17,702	12,792
1 January 1987	18,500	13,875
1 January 1988	22,548	16,911
1 January 1989	24,107	18,148
1 January 1990	26,701	20,101
1 Between 1975 and 1980, Ministers received differing amounts of reduced Parliamentary salary according to their office.

To ask the Lord President of the Council how many times the House of Commons sat beyond midnight (a) in Session 1988–89 and (b) in Session 1989–90.

In Session 1988–89 the House sat beyond midnight 77 times; in Session 1989–90, it was 60 times.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of total visible exports was accounted for by defence exports in 1989.

In 1989 approximately 2·6 per cent. of United Kingdom total visible exports were accounted for by items falling under those customs tariff headings which have been identified by the Ministry of Defence as covering purely military equipment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will place in the Library an English language translation of the European Court of Justice report on the preliminary hearing of the Leybucht bay case heard at Luxembourg on 16 October.

A copy will be placed in the Library as soon as it is available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff are to be sent as observers to the hearing on 5 December at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg in the case of European Commission ν. Federal Republic of Germany regarding Leybucht bay.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many of his (a) legal, (b) planning and (c) other staff went as observers to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg on 16 October regarding the Leybucht bay case.

One member of my legal division.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the cost to public funds of sending legal representation from his Department to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg on 16 October to observe the case of the European Commission ν. the German Federal Republic re contravention of the EC wild birds conservation directive at Leybucht bay.

A total of £376.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish or place in the Library a copy of the report to him by Mr. Roy Stoner of the university of Southampton institute of groundwater studies on the adequacy of the terms of reference of the hydrotechnical study of the groundwater effects of the proposed Cardiff bay barrage and his reply.

I have placed a copy in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has made to the European Community Commission in Brussels concerning the designation of further areas of marginal land in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

The Government submitted an application to the European Commission in June 1989 to extend the less-favoured areas in the United Kingdom. We are still awaiting a formal decision by the Commission.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if any north Wales sheep farmers are still being compensated for the fall-out effect of the Chernobyl disaster; and if he will make a statement.

Those producers who farm in the restricted areas continue to benefit from compensation measures.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution will investigate the release of toxic waste to the environment at the Euromet Chemicals recycling plant at Pontlottyn, on 29 October; and what risks were posed to the local population and the work force by these toxic fumes.

The operation of the site is not subject to control by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution; it is the responsibility of the regulatory authorities—the Rhymney Valley district council, the Health and Safety Executive and the National Rivers Authority—to determine the existence and extent of any hazard posed by the operation of the Euromet site to water, public health and local amenity. HMIP's advice is available to these agencies on request.I am advised, following investigations and remedial work undertaken to date by the district council and the Health and Safety Executive, that the site is in a stable condition with regard to risk of further incident similar to that of 28 October. If, during the further investigations and work on site, any immediate hazard is identified appropriate action will be taken.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made towards establishing the European bank for reconstruction and development following the recent London conference of prospective members.

Good progress was made at the October conference on draft operating regulations, rules of procedure and the framework for a business plan. The next conference is in January, after the missions to eastern Europe by the president-designate and his team. The new bank has good temporary headquarters in London, and negotiations are in hand for a long-term headquarters building. I hope that the bank will start operations next spring.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Llewellyn Davis report on UNRWA commissioned by his Department.

I was pleased to fund a major feasibility study commissioned by the UNRWA and carried out by Llewellyn-Davies Planning Ltd. on improvements to shelter and services in refugee camps in the West Bank and Gaza. The report was presented to the UNRWA in March 1990. We await its detailed response.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what funds have been allocated by the Government to promote sustainable timber industries in tropical rain forest regions during 1990–91 and 1991–92.

The ODA currently expects to spend about £400,000 in 1990–91 and about £490,000 in 1991–92 on such projects in Honduras, Papua New Guinea, the Solomons and Vanuatu. The Commonwealth Development Corporation also has investment commitments to projects in seven countries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what resources have now been made available by the United Kingdom, as part of the international relief effort, to assist those refugees fleeing from Iraq and Kuwait.

The Government have provided almost £11 million to help developing country nationals fleeing from Iraq and Kuwait. Of this, £2 million was contributed to the international airlift and £750,000 to provide relief in the camps in Jordan. The balance is the United Kingdom share of European Community emergency programmes. British voluntary agencies and airlines also responded quickly and generously to the relief effort.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has any plans to increase aid to Cambodia; and if he will make a statement.

The Government are supporting the humanitarian activities of British non-governmental organisations and United Nations agencies, which are helping displaced persons within Cambodia. We are ready to consider with other donors how Cambodia's need for help with repatriation, reconstruction and development might best be met in the context of a comprehensive political settlement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs under what circumstances Her Majesty's Government will fund development programmes in Cambodia.

The Government are ready to consider with other donors, initially in a reconvened Paris international conference on Cambodia, how refugee repatriation, development and reconstruction needs might best be met when a comprehensive political settlement is implemented.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement detailing the extent of financial aid to be given to each country of eastern Europe to support their policy of economic growth through privatisation and the creation of enterprise economies.

Expenditure on the know-how funds for Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia in 1990–91 will be £15 million. As announced on 8 November, provision for know-how fund activities overall in 1991–92 will be £30 million. For the specific purposes of privatisation and small business creation we have so far committed £2·1 million for Poland, £0·6 million for Hungary and £0·5 million for Czechoslovakia, but this is only part of the total assistance committed for the banking, finance, accountancy and management training sectors which all serve to underpin the policy of economic growth through privatisation and the creation of enterprise economies.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the 10 World Health Organisation co-ordinated national AIDS control programmes in Africa and the Caribbean to which the Overseas Development Administration has provided bilateral assistance.

The Overseas Development Administration has pledged support for 15 WHO co-ordinated AIDS control programmes in Africa and the Caribbean. The countries are (a) in Africa—Botswana, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe and (b) in the Caribbean—Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos islands. The ODA is also supporting the regional AIDS control programme of CAREC—the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre. Total ODA spending to date amounts to £7·18 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much money the Overseas Development Administration has contributed to (a) the World Health Organisation's global programme on AIDS and (b) the International Planned Parenthood Federation's AIDS work in each year since their inception.

The Overseas Development Administration has made the following contributions to the World Health Organisation's global programme on AIDS:

1986 £250,000; 1987 £3 million; 1988 £4·5 million; 1989 £4·53 million; 1990 £4·55 million—a total of £16·83 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many development projects are currently funded by the United Kingdom in the black townships and camps of South Africa; and if he will make a statement.

We have provided assistance so far this financial year to more than 260 community development projects in deprived urban and rural areas throughout South Africa. This is part of a substantial and growing programme of support for black South Africans. Total expenditure in 1990–91, including our share of the cost of European Community assistance, will come to about £12 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the total revenue generated by the Callstream Gulf advice line; and how much of this has accrued (a) to his Department and (b) to British Telecom plc.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's share of the tariff for the 0898 service was £8,136. It is not the policy of British Telecom to divulge details of its share of revenue accruing from individual agreements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what has been the total number of calls made to the Callstream Gulf advice line to date.

A total of 38,699 calls was received between 8 August when the 0898 number was introduced and 3 October when it was discontinued and replaced by a freefone facility.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to what purpose the proceeds of the Callstream Gulf advice line will be employed.

The proceeds from the 0898 service will go to pay the accommodation costs of the Gulf Support Group. Any funds remaining will go towards a good cause connected with the Gulf crisis.

To ask the Secretary of Stare for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what subject matter is to be included in the comprehensive political settlement to be agreed by the Supreme National Council under the United Nations framework plan for Cambodia.

A reconvened Paris international conference on Cambodia, in which the Supreme National Council will participate, will agree a comprehensive political settlement on the basis of the New York framework drawn up by the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. This comprises transitional arrangements for the administration of Cambodia during the pre-electoral period; military arrangements during the transitional period; elections under United Nations auspices; human rights protection; and international guarantees.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs under what conditions the Paris international conference on Cambodia will be reconvened; and what its agenda will be.

The Paris international conference on Cambodia will be reconvened at ministerial level once the conference's co-ordinating committee has finalised a draft agreement. Its purpose will be to adopt the final agreement of a comprehensive political settlement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what efforts the Government are taking to prevent arms from being supplied to the warring factions in Cambodia, and in particular the Khmer Rouge.

The cessation of outside arms supplies to all the Cambodian parties is vital for peace. It forms an essential part of the framework for a comprehensive political settlement which all the Cambodian parties have accepted in its entirety and the United Nations General Assembly has unanimously endorsed. We are working continually, with other interested parties, for the implementation of the framework. There is no Government involvement of any kind in training, equipping or co-operating with the Khmer Rouge forces.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information is available about the supply of Chinese weapons, particularly tanks, to the Khmer Rouge.

We are aware that China provides a variety of military hardware to the Cambodian resistance. We understand that the Khmer Rouge has acquired a number of tanks.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) Hans Dietrich Genscher and (b) Gianni de Michelis about the visit to Iraq of Willy Brandt.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has explained to the German and Italian Foreign Ministers our view that the proposal for Mr. Brandt and other European politicians to visit Iraq under United Nations auspices would be contrary to the conclusions reached in Rome at the European Council.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response he has given to the Falkland islands request to declare a continental shelf around the islands to sell licences for the exploration of oil and other minerals.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 31 October at column 567.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in the North Western health authority region are currently receiving kidney dialysis treatment (a) in national health service centres and (b) contracted out to private facilities; and at what cost in each category.

This information is not held centrally. My hon. Friend may wish to write to Mr. R. B. Martin, the chairman of North Western regional health authority for the information he requires.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he will estimate the costs of a full trial of people who are claiming damages for contracting HIV through national health service infected blood or blood products.

It is not possible to estimate the costs of such a trial at this stage.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department is negotiating with the solicitors of people who have taken court action claiming damages for contracting HIV through national health service infected blood or blood products.

We have not been engaged in such negotiations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the costs, including legal fees and departmental resources, to the Government so far in the legal case of people who are taking action claiming damages for contracting HIV through national health service infected blood or blood products.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. and learned Friend the then Secretary of State gave the right hon. Member for Manchester, Wythenshawe (Mr. Morris) on 15 October at column 664.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what studies have been undertaken by his Department, consultants to his Department or in conjunction with other Departments to evaluate the carcinogenic properties of methylene chloride.

The Department's independent expert advisers have evaluated the available data and have concluded that methylene chloride should not be considered as a human carcinogen.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to introduce a card system under which doctors would be required to report incidents of ill health in which pesticides may be implicated; and if he will make a statement.

Clear-cut cases of poisoning by pesticides are reported to the agricultural inspectorate of the Health and Safety Executive. A card system could be useful and a pilot study is being undertaken on behalf of the HSE.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the number of court cases in the last five years launched against the health authorities in respect of medical negligence; and of these (a) the number which were settled out of court, (b) the number which were resolved by a final court judgment and (c) the number still outstanding.

This information is not held centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has on foodstuffs contaminated with listeria monocytogenes, in World Health Organisation categories 4.2.2.2 and 4.2.2.4, being sold within the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

The public health laboratory service carries out regular surveys of a variety of foodstuffs including some from the two World Health Organisation categories identified in the question. The results demonstrate that listeria monocytogenes is widely distributed in the environment and that, as the WHO report concludes,

"the total elimination of listeria monocytogenes from all food is impractical and may be impossible."