To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give separate figures for the spending by the Overseas Development Administration on (a) television advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) newspaper advertising and (d) other promotional material in 1979–80 and in each following year; and what are his latest estimates for 1990–91 and budgets for 1991–92.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply he received on 25 April from my hon. and learned Friend the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals he has to privatise any activities of the Overseas Development Administration.

I have no proposals to privatise any activities of the Overseas Development Administration.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has given, or proposes to give, assistance directly to the Ethiopian Relief Organisation after the cancellation of the joint relief partnership scheme by the Ethiopian central Government.

The joint relief partnership—JRP—has not been cancelled. Latest reports indicate that the JRP continues to operate the southern line relief supply route satisfactorily. We are providing assistance through the southern line and in other ways. I have no plans at present to give assistance directly to the Ethiopian Relief Organisation.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the relationship between the balance of payments cost of an increase in overseas aid and the domestic balance of taxation and net public spending.

Overseas aid in the form of cash grants counts as a transfer debit in the invisible trade balance of the current account. An increase in such aid would therefore reduce the surplus on invisibles and so increase the current account deficit. It would count as public expenditure. To the extent to which it added to the planning total, it would need to be financed from general taxation.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing gross rates as a percentage of equivalised disposable income for each category and each year itemised in table R of the article on household incomes in the March issue of "Economic Trends"; and if he will add the average for all households in each tenure type;(2) whether he will publish in the

It is not meaningful to compare unequivalised gross rates with equivalised values of income.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the numbers of households in each of the lowest two quintiles in table 3 appendix 1 of the article on household incomes in the March issue of "Economic Trends", receiving a rate rebate of (a) 100 per cent. and (b) 50 to 99 per cent. and the numbers receiving combined housing benefit/rate relief in excess of rates.

The figures are as follows:

1988 Quintile groups of equivalised disposable income
	Number of households
Percentage of domestic rates	Bottom	2nd
Rate rebates
1. 100 per cent.	68	53
2. 50 to 99 per cent.	344	197
3. 0 to 49 per cent.	1,041	1,203
	1,453	1,453
Households where total of rate rebate and rent rebate/allowance is in excess of domestic rates	601	489

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table, further to the article on household incomes in the March issue of "Economic Trends", showing the increase in real disposable incomes since 1979 of the top and bottom deciles of households and the increases in the percentage of real disposable incomes taken by gross rates in each case.

The analysis behind the article on household incomes has not been designed to give reliable estimates of increases in absolute income levels between two years. The remaining information is as follows.

Gross rates as percentage of disposable income in: 1979 and 1988
	Decile group of households ranked by equivalised disposable income		All households
Per cent.	Bottom	Top
1979	9	3	4
1988	15	3	5

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing for each column in each table in the article on household incomes in the March issue of "Economic Trends" the average amount of tax relief in total and per recipient.

The information could be produced only at disproportionate cost.

Decile groups of unadjusted disposable income
1988 Number of households	Bottom	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	Top	All households
Total rate rebate and rent rebate allowance, as a percentage of domestic rates:
100 per cent, or more	301	392	267	126	60	34	19	14	6	2	1,221
50 to 99 per cent.	107	59	42	30	18	12	12	4	2	2	288
0 to 49 per cent.	318	276	418	570	649	680	696	708	719	722	5,756
Total	726	727	727	726	727	726	727	726	727	726	7,265

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will tabulate in the Official Report the amount charged for the full Vote bundle in each Session of Parliament for 1980–81 to date in cash prices and at 1990–91 prices; and if he will state the amounts charged during the current Session, its estimated cost and method of calculation.

The cost of taking one copy of the Vote bundle throughout each Session of Parliament since 1980–81 is as follows:

Session	Prices charged	Prices charged uplifted to 1991 prices
	£	£
1980–81	1,757	3,221
1981–82	2,113	3,510
1982–831	1,509	2,396
1983–842	3,039	4,586
1984–85	2,738	3,895
1985–86	2,885	3,937
1986–871	1,569	2,058
1987–882	4,664	5,913
1988–89	4,128	4,852
1989–90	4,304	4,680
1990–913	3,800	3,800

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish a table showing for each of the decile groups in table 2 of appendix 3 to the article on household incomes in the March issue of "Economic Trends", the estimated gross amount of council tax payable compared to the gross rate, together with the corresponding tax rebate.

Estimates of council tax are not available.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the numbers of households in each decile of table 2, appendix 3 of the article on household incomes in the March issue of "Economic Trends" that received rate rebates or housing benefit equal to (a) 100 per cent. and (b) 50–99 per cent. of rates.

The figures are as follows:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing for each quintile group of households in the family expenditure survey ranked by the gross amount of council tax payable the average (i) unadjusted disposable income, (ii) equivalised disposable income, (iii) number of households qualifying for relief and (iv) the amount of relief per qualifying household;(2) whether he will publish in the

Estimates of council tax cannot be made from the data available.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the average increase in the amount payable by (a) council tenants and (b) other householders under the council tax over rates in 1979–80 and 1989–90; and if he will provide corresponding figures for each region.

I have been asked to reply.The information requested is not available.

£000s
	TV Advertising	Press Advertising	Radio	Outdoor Posters	Point-of sale etc.	Total spend
1991–92	15,500	13,500	—	—	11,826	110,826
1990–91	5,242	4,226	—	—	1,412	10,880
1989–90	5,813	4,842	—	—	642	11,297
1988–89	5,389	4,745	—	1,063	3,090	14,287
1987–88	6,575	4,029	—	1,705	660	12,969
1986–87	5,145	7,706	—	2,104	3,518	18,473
1985–86	1,727	6,197	—	1,847	1,936	11,707
1984–85	1,998	6,021	—	1,728	2,419	12,166
1983–84	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	9,693
1982–83	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	8,479
1981–82	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	8,279
1 estimated

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give separate figures for the spending by the Inland Revenue on (a) television advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) newspaper advertising and (d) other promotional material in 1979–80 and in each following year; and what are his latest estimates for 1990–91 and budgets for 1991–92.

Information relating to the financial years 1979–80 to 1985–86 inclusive is not readily available and cannot be obtained without disproportionate cost. The spend on advertising, omitting staff and accommodation-related costs, for the remaining years is as follows:

£ thousand
	Televison	Rado	Newspaper	Other promotional
1986–87	0	0	15	300
1987–88	0	0	15	350
1988–89	0	0	20	250
1989–90	0	0	30	400
1990–911	4,376	0	2,155	692
1991–922	0	0	20	300
1 Forecast outturn
2 Budget

The figures for 1990–91 include expenditure of £6·95 million on an advertising campaign to increase public awareness of the new arrangements for non-taxpayers to register for payment of bank and building society interest without deduction of income tax.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give separate figures for the spending by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise on (a) television advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) newspaper advertising and (d) other promotional material in 1979–80 and in each following year; and what are his latest estimates for 1990–91 and budgets for 1991–92.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give separate figures for the spending by the Department for National Savings on (a) television advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) newspaper advertising and (d) other promotional material in 1979–80 and in each following year; and what are his latest estimates for 1990–91 and budgets for 1991–92.

Figures for the years 1981–82 to 1991–92 are as follows. No breakdown by advertising medium is available for the years 1981–82 to 1983–84 and no total figures prior to 1981.

Her Majesty's Customs and Excise has not used television, radio or newspaper advertising for promotional purposes. The information available on other promotional material is as follows:

	Estimate expenditure
	£
1984–1985	21,000
1985–1986	29,000
1986–1987	28,000
1987–1988	29,000
1988–1989	47,000
1989–1990	31,000
1990–1991	44,000
1991–1992	54,000

The figures do not include recruitment advertising. The figures for 1979–are not available.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give separate figures for the spending by Her Majesty's Stationery Office on (a) television advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) newspaper advertising and (d) other promotional material in 1979–80 and in each following year; and what are his latest estimates for 1990–91 and budgets for 1991–92.

HMSO has not used television or radio advertising. Expenditure on advertising in newspapers and journals and on other promotional material for each financial year was:

Year	Advertising in Newspapers and Journal 1	Other promotional material
	£000	£000
1983–84	42	151
1984–85	45	125
1985–86	69	191
1986–87	61	160

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has to privatise any activities of the Department for National Savings.

None.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has to privatise any activities of Customs and Excise.

In common with other Departments, Customs and Excise carries out a continuing programme of market testing reviews of its activities. Where market testing identifies areas where value for money could be improved by contracting out work to the private sector, the feasibility of doing so will be examined.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total amount paid in (a) petroleum revenue tax, (b) royalties and (c) corporation tax arising out of oil and gas operations in the United Kingdom continental shelf in each year since 1979; and what is his estimate of the total amount of each tax to be paid in fiscal year 1991–92.

The information required (in £ millions) is contained in the table:

Fiscal Year	1Petroleum Revenue Tax	Royalties	2Corporation Tax
1979–80	1,435	628	250
1980–81	2,410	992	341
1981–82	4,415	1,396	681

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give separate figures for the spending by the Department for National Savings on (a) television advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) newspaper advertising and (d) other promotional material in 1979–80 and in each following year; and what are his latest estimates for 1990–91 and budgets for 1991–92.

Figures for the years 1981–82 to 1991–92 are as follows. No breakdown by advertising medium is available for the years 1981–82 to 1983–84 and no total figures prior to 1981.

Fiscal Year	1 Petroleum Revenue Tax	Royalties	2 Corporation Tax
1982–83	5,669	1,632	521
1983–84	6,017	1,904	877
1984–85	7,177	2,426	2,432
1985–86	6,375	2,057	2,916
1986–87	1,188	919	2,676
1987–88	2,296	1,024	1,298
1988–89	1,371	602	1,210
1989–90	1,050	575	768
1990–91	866	606	849
1991–923	0	500	900
1 Including supplementary petroleum duty in 1981–82 and 1982–83.
2 Before ACT set-off.
3 Forecast.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government with regard to the reinvestment of £50 prizes won under the premium bond scheme.

I have decided that winners of £50 prizes should be permitted to reinvest them in additional bonds if they so wish. Amendments to the regulations to effect this change will be laid before Parliament shortly.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the comparative figures for expenditure on civil research and development, as a percentage of their gross national product, of the United Kingdom, Canada, Belgium, France, Germany and Sweden, for each year since 1974.

[holding answer 7 May 1991]: Separate data for civil R and D expenditure by industry in the United Kingdom were collected for the first time in 1989. Provisional figures indicate that total civil R and D expenditure from all sources in 1989 represented 1·7 per cent. of gross domestic product. Standard international comparisons of R and D expenditure are usually given in terms of gross domestic product and not gross national product.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Wyre Forest (Mr. Coombs) of 12 February, Official Report, columns 437–38, if he will list all local education authorities in England in rank order of central administration expenditure on education per secondary pupil per year, starting with the highest spending authority.

Expenditure for central administration is collected only as a single figure for all education services. That figure is not allocated to individual sectors of the education service, so expenditure attributable to a single sector such as secondary schools is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Wyre Forest (Mr. Coombs) of 12 February, Official Report, columns 437–38, if he will list all education authorities in England in rank order of total combined expenditure per secondary pupil per year on school meals, central administration, debt charges or revenue contributions to capital outlay.

Expenditure figures for the central services identified in the question are collected only as single totals for all education services. The figures are not allocated to individual sectors of the education service, so expenditure attributable to a single sector such as secondary schools is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what additional (a) loan sanction and (b) grant has been granted to Doncaster local education authority for education purposes for (i) the current financial year (ii) the last financial year and (iii) for the year 1992–93.

Details of the annual capital guidelinesACGs—and the educational grants made to Doncaster for 1990–91 and 1991–92 are set out in the table. Grants and ACGs for 1992–93 have not yet been determined.

£ thousands
	1990–91	1991–92
(a) Annual Capital Guidelines
ACGs	860·0	375·0
(b) Grants
VA capital allocations1	345·0	145·0
ESGs2	1,272·0	—

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total amount of moneys that his Department has allocated to Doncaster local education authority for the maintenance and repair of school buildings for the current financial year; and what was the amount for the last financial year.

The Government do not allocate to LEAs separately identified recurrent funds for repairs and maintenance: it is for each authority and, under local management, its schools, to determine what proportion of the total recurrent funds available to them to allocate for that purpose.As far as capital works on school buildings is concerned, Doncaster local education authority has been given an education annual capital guideline—ACG—of £375,000 for 1991–92 to contribute towards capital spending in schools. The authority is free to spend its overall capital resources as it chooses, and can supplement its annual capital guidelines from capital receipts and other sources of funding, including its revenue budget. The LEA also received an allocation of £145,000 for projects at voluntary aided—VA—and special agreement—SA—schools.For 1990–91 Doncaster received an ACG of £860,000—of which £780,000 was for schools, and an allocation for VA and SA schools of £345,000.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what assessment he has made concerning the unit costs of material, textbooks, samples, maps or other aids including films, videos or filmstrips, models, globes or other equipment required as capital and revenue expenditure in order to provide for the geography curriculum and programme of study specified in SI 1991, No. 678.

My right hon. and learned Friend had general regard to the resource implications of the attainment targets and programmes of study specified in the document attached to SI 1991, No. 678. However, it is for each school to decide what, if any, additional equipment it requires to deliver the national curriculum. In 1991–92, grants will be available to support up to £15 million of expenditure by local education authorities on equipment for the national curriculum.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will state the amount of specialised space required by current school building regulations in respect of studies in geography consequent on the requirements of SI 1991, No. 678 in terms of room units or floor space, including storage space, per thousand pupils or similar ratio.

The minimum teaching accommodation requirements set out in the Education (School Premises) Regulations 1981 refer only to the overall area to be provided. The requirements do not specify space standards for particular subjects of the curriculum.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will state the relationship between the programme of study and attainment targets specified in his approved geography curriculum, as set out in SI 1991, No. 678, and the general certificate of secondary education in geography.

Although GCSE courses in geography are currently unaffected, with effect from autumn 1994 all GCSE geography syllabuses will have to reflect the curriculum requirements outlined in SI 1991, No. 678.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he expects each child in local education authority-supported schools to have a record of personal achievement; and what guidance he is offering to local education authorities.

Regulations laid last summer require parents to be given reports on the achievements of all children in years 1, 2, 3, 7 and 8 and sixth formers, and will extend progressively to cover all years by 1994. The accompanying circular 8/90, "Records of Achievement", offers guidance both on the legal framework and how it might be developed at schools' discretion. All secondary schools have in addition been encouraged to give all their school leavers a national record of achievement from this summer.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what were the numbers of places, total cost, and cost per place of places under the assisted places scheme at each school in Newcastle upon Tyne for each of the last five years.

The information requested is given in the tables, but figures in respect of the academic years prior to 1988–89 are not readily available. The Church high school joined the assisted places scheme from the start of the 1989–90 academic year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information he has on how many access courses there are in the United Kingdom; what percentage of men and women take part in these courses; and if he will give a breakdown of the percentage of men and women by region.

A survey published by the educational counselling and credit transfer information service listed 522 access courses in England in 1989. Based on information from the "Further Education Statistical Record", 34 per cent. of students enrolled on access courses in England at Novembver 1989 were men and 66 per cent. were women. Percentages by region are:

To ask the Secretary of Stale for Education and Science what progress has been made on the review of the attainment targets and programmes of study for mathematics and science in the national curriculum.

Jointly with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales, I am today publishing statutory proposals for new orders setting out the attainment targets and programmes of study for mathematics and science in the national curriculum. Our purpose is to make the assessment of these subjects more manageable for teachers and others, and to make reports on pupils' achievement in them easier for parents to understand. The effect of our proposals is to reduce the number of attainment targets in each subject to five. Within the attainment targets the number of statements of attainment will also be reduced, by slightly more than half. Our proposals will not change in substance the content of

Institution	Course
BED COURSES
Two-year
Sheffield City Polytechnic	Primary and Secondary
La Sainte Union CHE	Primary
Edge Hill CHE	Primary
Hatfield Polytechnic	Primary
Leeds Polytechnic	Primary
Thames Polytechnic	Secondary
Wolverhampton Polytechnic	Secondary
Newcastle upon Tyne Polytechnic	Secondary
Birmingham Polytechnic	Secondary
Manchester Polytechnic	Secondary
Gwent CHE	Secondary
Crewe and Alsager CHE	Secondary
Middlesex Polytechnic	Secondary
Four-year
Derbyshire CHE	Primary
La Sainte Union CHE	Primary
Bath CHE	Primary and Secondary
Crewe and Alsager CHE	Primary and Secondary
Cheltenham and Gloucester CHE	Primary and Secondary
Liverpool Polytechnic	Secondary
Middlesex Polytechnic	Secondary
Charlotte Mason College	Secondary
PGCE COURSES
Two-year
Bradford Community College	Primary (P/T)
Leeds University	Secondary (P/T)
Southampton University	Secondary
King's College, London	Secondary (P/T)
Oxford University	Secondary (ATS)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the postgraduate certificate of education and B.Ed teacher education and training courses presently operating under temporary approval.

[holding answer 29 April 1991]: The PGCE and B.Ed courses presently operating under temporary approval are listed in the table. The Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education—CATE—intends to complete its scrutiny of these courses and make its recommendations to the Secretary of State by the end of July.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will set out in detail the procedures for the forthcoming appointment of a new holder of the office of Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools, including the nature of the involvement of Ministers in the appointment.

[pursuant to his reply, 4 March 1991, c. 42]: Before proceeding with the choice of a permanent successor to the present senior chief inspector I wish to carry out a thorough internal review of the structure and role of Her Majesty's inspectorate. I see this review as a necessary consequence of my decision to remove further education and sixth-form colleges from local education control and of the decisions of a growing number of maintained schools to opt out from local authority control. I will explore all possible options for an inspectorate capable of delivering an effective system of quality control based on inspection for the evolving pattern of educational provision. The outcome could well be a very different job description for the head of the inspectorate. I have asked therefore the Civil Service Commissioners to take no further action with the open competition they have been organising to identify a new senior chief inspector. In the meantime it is important that HM inspectorate should be under sound and strong leadership when the present SCI retires at the end of August. I am therefore appointing an internal candidate as SCI who will be well able to carry out the functions of the post until the review is complete and a new appointment can be made following a public competition.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has received a further progress report from British Rail on implementation of the recommendations of Sir Anthony Hidden's report on the Clapham junction railway accident; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Bob Reid has submitted British Rail's third progress report to me, and I have arranged for copies to be placed in the Library. BR has continued to make progress on these recommendations, and all of those for BR or the British Transport police are either complete or have actions in hand. Some of the recommendations require long-term development. I welcome the report, which demonstrates BR's commitment to maintaining a very high standard of safety. Safety improvements under way include changes in working methods, improved training, new safety management systems and investment in new equipment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what advice he has been given and what research has been carried out or commissioned by his Department on the safety implications for dry cargo ships of (a) fitting ships with structural monitoring systems, (b) the speed with which ships are loaded and (c) other technical and staffing considerations relating to safety; and if he will make a statement.

My Department has jointly funded with "Lloyd's Register of Shipping" the developments of the "black box" voyage data recorder. This equipment is presently being evaluated at sea. It embodies, among other things, features designed to monitor stress levels at critical locations of a vessel's structure. Stress levels may be monitored with this equipment during loading and unloading operations, and in addition recorded for analysis at a later date.Research commissioned by the Department into the "Technology and Manning for Safe Ship Operations" in 1986 formed the reference work for a strategic policy committee, under the Merchant Navy Training Board, to develop a modular structure of qualifications based on standards to perform separate shipboard functions. These new initiatives on training and future manning models are referred to in "British Shipping: Challenges and Opportunities", which suggests a target date for their implementation of September 1992.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement in respect of an incident on the evening of 22 March when a train carrying explosives was involved in an emergency alert near Thirsk, Yorkshire.

I understand that on 22 April British Rail's lineside equipment detected hot wheel bearings on a train at Thirsk. The fire brigade was called as a precautionary measure. The incident was not reported to the Health and Safety Executive's railway inspectorate, but the inspectorate is making inquiries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 22 April, Official Report, columns 348–49, how much of the £1·4 billion will be invested in (a) Scotland, (b) in new rolling stock, (c) on improvement of lines connecting the channel tunnel with Scotland and the north of England, (d) electrification of lines and (e) special measures for the protection of the environment both in Scotland and in England.

Proposals for providing freight services north of London are currently being examined by British Rail as part of its £1·4 billion programme of investment to take advantage of the initial opening of the tunnel. Possible sites for a freight terminal in Strathclyde are being considered. No firm figures are therefore available for expenditure in Scotland. Spending of over £650 million is planned on new rolling stock for freight and inter-capital passenger services. A total of £21 million will be spent improving freight routes connecting the channel tunnel to Scotland and the north of England. On electrification, £43 million will be spent on the west London line and the line between Tonbridge and Redhill. Spending on environmental protection relating to work on existing lines cannot he separately identified.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the individual appointments excluding casual vacancies he is scheduled to make to quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations in (a) 1991 and (b) 1992 indicating in each case the title of the post, the salary if any and the duration of the appointment.

The readily available information about appointments for which my right hon. and learned Friend is responsible is given in "Public Bodies 1990" and "Public Appointments: A Handbook for Women's Organisations", copies of which are in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the precise nature of the work currently being undertaken on the central reservation of the A40 in the London borough of Ealing; when he expects it to be completed; what the final cost will be; and if he will make a statement.

The work currently under way on the A40 Western avenue in the London borough of Ealing entails the repair and replacement of central reserve safety fencing and to bring it up to the latest departmental standards. At the same time, existing emergency crossover points are being closed permanently on road safety grounds and the street lighting is being improved.Work is scheduled for completion by the middle of May at an estimated cost of £377,000.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimates he has made of the amount of carbon dioxide which may be emitted from the existing heavy goods vehicle fleet during its remaining lifetime.

The latest available figure is 28,000 tonnes per annum for 1988 and relates to total carbon dioxide emissions from all road vehicles. No breakdown of this figure between vehicle types is available. The remaining life of the existing heavy goods vehicle fleet depends on varying factors and cannot be predicted with accuracy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many representations he has received called for the lowering of the maximum speed limits on roads in the United Kingdom.

I receive a substantial quantity of correspondence concerning national speed limits and their enforcement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of yellow box junctions in accident prevention; and if he has any plans to extend their use to pedestrian crossings.

[holding answer 7 May 1991]: Yellow box markings were introduced in the Traffic Signs Regulations 1975 primarily as a means of speeding up traffic flow at junctions. At signal-controlled junctions their introduction led to marked reductions in injury accidents, particularly involving pedestrians.There are no plans to extend their use to pedestrian crossings. At "zebra" crossings the yellow box would conflict with the zebra stripes. Yellow box markings used at "pelican" crossings would be likely to have little impact.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has any intention of reviewing the criteria for qualification for a pelican crossing; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 7 May 1991]: It is for individual local highway authorities to decide whether a particular crossing is needed in the light of criteria published by the Department. These are to be reviewed further with the local authority associations later this year.

Organisation and appointment	1991	1992	Salary	Duration of appointment
Imperial War Museum
Members of Board of Trustees	1	—	—	7 years
Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission
Member	4	2	—	3 years
Commonwealth Institute
(i) Director-General	1	—	C£45,000	5 years
(ii) Chairman of Board of Governors	1	—	—	3 years
(iii) Vice-Chairman	1	—	—	3 years

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to announce his decision on the siting of Scotland's Eurofreight rail terminal.

The siting of channel tunnel freight terminals is a commercial matter for British Rail. I understand that it is currently discussing possible locations in Strathclyde with local authorities and private sector developers and hopes to make an announcement this summer.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals there are to promote safety zones for Kurds presently on the Iran-Iraq border.

We are continuing our policy of establishing safe havens in northern Iraq. We will assist with the most appropriate measures to meet the humanitarian needs of all Iraqi refugees as quickly and effectively as possible. We hope that the United Nations will soon be in a position to take over the operation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps to safeguard minority interests and human rights in Bangladesh his Department has taken with reference to (1) the protection of tribal people in Chittagong hill tracts, (2) the protection of non-Muslim temples, churches and relics, (3) the exodus of Bengalese to India to escape harassment and (4) the Enemy Property Act.

Through our regular contacts with the Bangladesh Government, I know that they are well aware of the importance we attach to respect for human rights, including the rights of minorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the individual appointments exluding casual vacancies he is scheduled to make to quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations in (a) 1991 and (b) 1992 indicating in each case the title of the post, the salary if any and the duration of the appointment.

Individual apopintments are scheduled to be made in 1991 and 1992 to the following bodies for which the diplomatic and aid wings of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are responsible:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his recent visit to the middle east.

I visited Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia from 1 to 4 May. In addition to meetings with those Governments, I also had a discussion with the Foreign Minister of Yemen in Cairo on 2 May.In Cairo I had useful talks withn President Mubarak, Foreign Minister Abdul Meguid and presidential adviser Osama Al Baz. We discussed regional issues, including the middle east peace process. Bilateral issues discussed included President Mubarak 's forthcoming state visit. We agreed that there are now no significant differences in the British and Egyptian approach to the main problems of the middle east.In Jordan I had discussions with King Hussein, the Crown Prince, the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister. Jordan is keen to play a helpful role in Mr. Baker's peace initiative and to rebuild relations with the west and her Gulf neighbours. I made clear our continuing friendship for Jordan and our wish to see Jordan resume its rightful position in the Arab world.In Kuwait I saw the state of the country following liberation. I was shocked at the extent of the destruction by the Iraqis during their brutal occupation. Much remains to be done before Kuwait is functioning again as a prosperous society, and in this task of reconstruction Britain intends to take a full part. We discussed this co-operation in detail. My meetings with the Amir, the Crown Prince and the Foreign Minister covered a number of issues. I raised reports of human rights abuses following liberation and in particular the position of Palestinians in Kuwait. The Amir said that the Government would hold to their commitment to hold general elections in 1992. He emphasised his concern at Iraq's failure to return a large number of Kuwaitis detained in Iraq and property removed from Kuwait during the occupation.In Saudi Arabia my discussions with the King and his Minister of Foreign Affairs revealed a close identity of view. The Saudis remain concerned to support the middle east peace process and to keep up the pressure on the Iraqi Government to fulfill their commitments to the United Nations. I explained the background to our efforts to provide humanitarian help to Iraqi refugees and displaced persons and our view that Iraq could not be allowed to rejoin the family of nations while Saddam Hussein remained in power in Baghdad.In all four countries there was appreciation for Britain's continuing role in the middle east whether in pressing for a settlement of the Arab-Israel dispute on the basis of UN Security Council resolutions or in underpinning new arrangements for ensuring the security of the Gulf.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what restrictions exist on the sale of replica guns by mail order;(2) if he will introduce measures to curb the sale of replica guns;(3) what restrictions exist on the sale of replica guns through retail outlets.

Under the Firearms Act 1982 the sale and possession of replica firearms which can be readily converted to fire live ammunition are subject to the same stringent controls as those imposed on real firearms under the Firearms Acts 1968 to 1988. Where such a replica is sold, whether by mail order or through a retail outlet, the purchaser must produce a firearm certificate as proof of authorisation to acquire the weapon concerned. The possession of any imitation firearm, whether readily convertible or not, with intent to commit an offence or resist arrest is an offence for which the maximum penalty is life imprisonment. We have no plans to control the sale of replica firearms that cannot be readily converted to fire live ammunition.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received criticising the easy availability of replica guns.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the question by my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridgeshire, South-East (Mr. Paice) on 7 March at column 269 since when he has written to the Home Office on this matter. No other such representations have recently been received.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if there have been any recent changes in the level of offences involving the use of replica guns.

Figures for the last four years for which statistics are available are shown in the table:

Year	Number of offences
1989	235
1988	185
1987	201
1986	195

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what comments he has received from Her Majesty's inspector of constabulary on the effect of the Government's proposed poll tax capping of Warwickshire county council on policing within the county.

Her Majesty's inspector of constabulary will report on the Warwickshire constabulary following his inspection of the force on 7 to 9 May. No specific comments have been received on the effect of the proposed cap.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from the chief constable of Warwickshire on the likely impact of the Government's proposed poll tax capping of Warwickshire county council.

My right hon. Friend has received no such representations since my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment announced on 3 April his proposals for capping a number of local authorities, including Warwickshire.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will publish a table showing the level of recorded crimes in the categories (a) burglaries, (b) crimes of violence against the person and (c) property theft, including theft from vehicles, for each police authority in England in 1979, 1989 and 1990;

Information on notifiable offences of violence against the person, burglary and theft and handling stolen goods by police force area is published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales". The information is given in table 32 of the issue for 1979 and table 2.5 for 1989. Copies of these publications are available in the Library. Corresponding figures for 1990 have also been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the average length of time between each notification of an unexplained death and the determination of cause of death by a coroner in each of the past two years, for (a) England and (b) Medway.

I regret that this information is not collected centrally. I understand that coroners endeavour to hold inquests as soon as practicable following the death, but sometimes delays are experienced because of the need to wait for witnesses or other evidence.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to abolish the visa requirement for Polish citizens wishing to visit the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

We have no plans to abolish the visa requirement for Polish nationals.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects his Department to be able to supply Doncaster metropolitan borough council with parliamentary candidates" nomination forms.

Nomination papers for candidates at parliamentary elections are not supplied by the Home Office. I understand that the acting returning officer in Doncaster obtains supplies from Her Majesty's Stationery Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the medical establishments to which he has given a licence to acquire animals which have not been bred specifically for the purpose of research.

It is not our practice to give details of individual scientific procedure establishments.