To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action he is taking to obtain the agreement of the United States Government to eliminate their cabotage regulations preventing United Kingdom airlines from developing feeder networks within the United States of America; and if he will make a statement.

Discussions with the United States Government are taking place about possibilities for the liberalisation of transatlantic air services. Our aim is to remove unnecessary regulation and obstacles to fair competition between airlines, and United States cabotage restrictions are among those being discussed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many convictions have been obtained as a result of prosecutions brought under article 39 of the Registration of Clubs (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 since 1 February 1988;(2) how many prosecutions have been brought under article 39 of the Registration of Clubs (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 since 1 February 1988.

The information requested is as follows:

	Prosecutions	Convictions
1988	3	—
1989	1	1
1990	—	—
11991	—	—
1 Figures not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on what date the firm of Robins AHW Ltd., loss adjusters, was appointed to deal with compensation claim ASC 24337/45 submitted on behalf of Owen and James Carragher.

The letter of appointment was issued on 13 September 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the average annual wage received by a constable in the RUC; and how much overtime he or she is likely to do during 12 months.

I am advised by the Police Authority for Northern Ireland that the annual average wage received by a constable in the RUC is £30,370. This figure includes allowances and average overtime of 540 hours per year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the current financial subvention made to Northern Ireland; and if he will break it down into the relevant parts of the economy that benefit.

[holding answer 14 November 1991]: The figures for the subvention from the United Kingdom to Northern Ireland for 1990–91 are as follows:

	1990–91 outturn £ million
Grant in aid under the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973	1,066
Expenditure by Northern Ireland Office	699
Expenditure by Northern Ireland Court Service	28
Contribution from the Great Britain National Insurance Fund	225
Total Subvention	2,018

The grant in aid is a general contribution to revenue and is not hypothecated to any particular area of public expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for he Home Department what is his policy on counter-terrorist checks at airports.

Under schedule 5 to the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1989, the police may examine and detain any person who has arrived in or is seeking to leave Great Britain or Northern Ireland by ship or aircraft for the purpose of determining whether he or she appears to be or to have been concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism. Controls unde schedule 5 to the 1989 Act are operated selectively by special branch officers at designated airports throughout the United Kingdom. The Government believe that port controls are an essential part of the national response to the threat of terrorism and they must remain in place as long as the circumstances require.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what level of Government resources were devoted to counter-terrorist checks at Cardiff Wales airport six months ago; and what is the level at the current time.

It is not the practice to disclose the size of special branch units at ports and airports. However, the costs of such units are met by the respective police authorities, subject to the payments of specific grant by my Department at a rate in the case of provincial forces of 51 per cent.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report from the chief constable of the South Wales constabulary on the penetration of illegal drugs into Wales from abroad.

No. Police forces throughout the United Kingdom make every effort to tackle drug trafficking.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place a copy in the Library of his report and conclusions on his visit to Glanely comprehensive school on 6 November; and if he will supply a copy of the same report to the chairman of the education committee of South Glamorgan county council.

I will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the outstanding number of cases before the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board; and how much compensation has been paid for each year in the last 10 years.

At the end of October 1991, 80,404 cases were outstanding of which 58,645 were awaiting decision by a member of the board or the staff, 10,020 were awaiting the applicant's response to an offer, and 11,739 were awaiting an oral hearing.Compensation paid in each of the last 10 years was as follows:

	£
1981–82	21,976,696
1982–83	29,444,675
1983–84	38,820,772
1984–85	35,293,451
1985–86	41,559,996
1986–87	48,241,764
1987–88	52,042,581
1988–89	69,381,286
1989–90	72,721,563
1990–91	1109,330,303
1 Provisional figure.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many cases since 1989 the Home Secretary has overturned a decision by immigration officers at the ports following representations by hon. Members to allow passengers into the country.

The information requested is not available centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what immediate steps he intends to take to remedy the understaffing of the Staffordshire police force; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has approved eight additional police posts for Staffordshire as from 1 October 1991, bringing the establishment to 2,211. There were 15 vacancies at the end of October, bringing the force within 1 per cent. of its establishment.It is for the Staffordshire police authority to determine the level of manpower required, subject to my right hon. Friend's approval. The authority has made an application for 20 additional police posts in 1992–93; my right hon. Friend will make an announcement on the allocation of additional police posts for 1992–93 shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent agreements have been reached between Her Majesty's Government and the Isle of Man about adjustments of territorial waters.

As my right hon. Friend announced on 1 August, Her Majesty's Government and the Isle of Man Government have agreed terms for the extension of the provisions of the Territorial Sea Act 1987 to the Isle of Man. An order in Council extending the territorial sea around the Isle of Man from three to 12 miles came into force on 2 September.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average time take by appeals tribunals considering police discipline measures in England and Wales; and what proportion of recommendations made by them are(a) accepted and(b) rejected by him.

During the year ended 31 October 1991 it took an average of 14·7 weeks for an appeal tribunal to make its recommendations known to my right hon. Friend. Over the same period my right hon. Friend accepted the recommendations in 30 cases (81 per cent.) and rejected those relating to the level of punishment in 7 (19 per cent.).

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will supply the figures for the number of people(a) arrested,(b) charged and(c) convicted of a criminal offence under Operation Burlington conducted by the Metropolitan police in 1991;(2) if he will list the offences under which people were charged when arrested under Operation Burlington conducted by the Metropolitan police in 1991.

I understand from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis that under Operation Burlington and its successor, Operation Taurus, 817 people have been arrested, of whom 702 have been charged with one or more of the following criminal offences:

Offence	Charge
Begging	Section 4 Vagrancy Act 1824
Possession of Offensive Weapon	Section 1 Prevention Crime Act 1953
Possession of Pointed Articles in Public	Section 39 Criminal Justice Act 1988
Drunk and Disorderly	Section 91 Criminal Justice Act 1967
Theft	Section 1 Theft Act 1968

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will issue guidance to police forces on means of improving the information which is passed between police forces on the existence and movement of hippy convoys during the summer months.

No. I understand that chief constables already make arrangements for the collection and dissemination of such information.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy on answering parliamentary questions in respect of bodies given agency status.

I or the responsible Minister will reply on agency policy issues and on any other matters which do not fall within the responsibility of the chief executive. The chief executives will reply on matters within their areas of responsibility, because they are best placed to do so. This policy is described in the framework documents of the United Kingdom Passport Agency and the Forensic Science Service, copies of which were placed in the Library in April. It has been recently restated in the Government's reply to the seventh report from the Treasury and Civil Service Committee (Cm 1761).

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the authorised establishment figure for each police force in England and Wales; and what was the actual strength on the last day for which figures are available.

The information requested is set out in the table.

As at 31 August 1991	Authorised Establishment1	Strength
Avon and Somerset	3,081	3,068
Bedfordshire	1,085	1,091
Cambridgeshire	1,209	1,226
Cheshire	1,889	1,893
Cleveland	1,502	1,476
Cumbria	1,175	1,174
Derbyshire	1,812	1,716
Devon and Cornwall	2,865	2,870
Dorset	1,272	1,302
Durham	1,378	1,369
Dyfed Powys	944	946
Essex	2,875	2,881
Gloucestershire	1,164	1,169
Greater Manchester	7,028	6,963
Gwent	1,009	1,002
Hampshire	3,175	3,183
Hertfordshire	1,669	1,656
Humberside	2,007	2,021
Kent	3,020	3,021
Lancashire	3,203	3,210
Leicestershire	1,814	1,822
Lincolnshire	1,198	1,203
Merseyside	4,701	4,644
Norfolk	1,409	1,401
Northamptonshire	1,142	1,138
Northumbria	3,560	3,488
North Wales	1,352	1,340
North Yorkshire	1,408	1,380
Nottinghamshire	2,344	2,327
South Wales	3,168	3,143
South Yorkshire	2,998	3,004
Staffordshire	2,203	2,218
Suffolk	1,205	1,200
Surrey	1,659	1,676
Sussex	2,964	2,976
Thames Valley	3,685	3,718
Warwickshire	1,008	1,011
West Mercia	2,024	2,029
West Midlands	6,910	6,874
West Yorkshire	5,281	5,193
Wiltshire	1,099	1,199
City of London	798	802
Metropolitan	28,554	28,193
Totals	125,846	125,216
1 Police establishments are those approved for 1990–91, so as to be compatible with the latest strength figures. Establishments for 1991–92 were increased from 1 October 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons convicted of taking away vehicles without consent were given custodial sentences of up to three years' imprisonment in each of the five years before the penalty was reduced to six months in the Criminal Justice Act 1988.

The information requested is given in the table. Of those sentenced, about 3 per cent. in each year received a sentence of over six months in custody.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the latest available figures showing the average number of prisoners being held in police cells per day in each police authority area.

The average number of prisoners held in police cells in each police force for the period 28 October to 8 November are as follows:

	Number
Avon and Somerset	42
Bedfordshire	26
Cambridgeshire	23
Cheshire	40
Cleveland	19
Cumbria	27
Derbyshire	38
Devon and Cornwall	31
Dorset	8
Durham	23
Dyfed	26
Essex	18
Gloucestershire	8
Greater Manchester	230
Gwent	25
Hampshire	27
Hertfordshire	18
Humberside	54
Kent	33
Lancashire	89
Leicestershire	35
Lincolnshire	16
City of London	2
Merseyside	81
Metropolitan	142
Norfolk	21
North Wales	14
North Yorkshire	34
Northamptonshire	26
Northumbria	57
Nottinghamshire	29
South Wales	61
South Yorkshire	92
Staffordshire	11
Suffolk	13
Surrey	5

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners are being kept in police cells as a direct result of the dispute at Her Majesty's prison, Cardiff.

The industrial action at Cardiff was temporarily suspended with effect from 5 November. On 8 November, the latest date for which figures are available, 178 prisoners in police cells were from courts in Cardiff prison's catchment area.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if persons killed or injured by joyriders are covered by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 7 November 1991]: The criminal injuries compensation scheme applies where injury or death is caused by a deliberate attempt to run the victim down. Otherwise, claims for compensation for death or injury arising from the use of a stolen vehicle are dealt with by the owner's insurers or by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many district general hospitals there are currently in each of the health districts in Greater London; and what are the numbers of residents in each of those districts.

There is no agreed definition of a district general hospital. Acute hospital services may be provided to a district from single site or multiple site general

District Health Authority	June 1990 Populations (in thousands)	March 1991 Number of hospitals with
		acute beds	more than 100 acute beds
North West Thames RHA
Barnet	310·0	3	2
Harrow	192·5	1	1
Hillingdon	235·5	3	3
Hounslow and Spelthorne	282·3	3	2
Ealing	293·3	1	1
Parkside	380·2	5	2
Riverside	280·7	7	3
North East Thames RHA
Barking, Havering and Brentwood	447·8	5	3
Hampstead	112·0	2	1
Bloomsbury	127·7	19	3
Islington	173·6	2	1
City and Hackney	195·8	3	2
Newham	208·6	2	2
Tower Hamlets	166·9	2	2
Enfield	264·3	2	2
Haringey	192·8	2	1
Redbridge	234·8	3	2
Waltham Forest	213·4	3	1
South East Thames RHA
Bexley	220·2	1	1
Greenwich	215·9	3	2
Bromley	300·1	3	3
West Lambeth	154·3	3	1
Camberwell	212·0	3	2
Lewisham and North Southwark	318·0	5	2
South West Thames RHA
Croydon	319·4	1	1
Kingston and Esher	180·8	2	1
Richmond, Twickenham and Roehampton	236·5	1	1
Wandsworth	187·0	5	1
Merton and Sutton	332·9	4	1

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimates he has made of the number of additional pensioners in receipt of the retirement pension who will be in receipt of income support arising from the recent uprating statement and as a consequence will be eligible for(a) free eye tests,(b) free dental check and(c) any other health entitlements, giving the number and projected costs by category and funding source in each case.

A breakdown by age is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what advice is now given to parents on the avoidance of cot deaths; and if he will make a statement;(2) what progress is being made in reducing the incidence of cot deaths.

The rate of cot death has been coming down over recent years, from 2·35 per 1,000 live births in 1988 to 1·81 in 1990. We welcome this reduction, and hope to see a further reduction following the advice

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the investigations made at the Brompton hospital into the use of NHS services for private patients.

I understand that no substantive evidence has been found to support such allegations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish inspection reports on pharmaceutical plants for the years 1986 to 1988 carried out by the Medicines Control Agency.

Section 118(1) restricts the disclosure of "any information with respect to any manufacturing process or trade secret" obtained on inspection. Details of inspection reports on pharmaceutical companies by the Medicines Control Agency are not, therefore, published.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much free childcare provision is available through the state.

The information available centrally about total local authority provision of day care for the under fives is set out in the table. Information is not collected centrally about how much of the total provision is free. Following the implementation of the Children Act 1989, the Department will be collecting information about provision made for children under eight.

	Number at 31 March 1990
Children on the register of local authority day nurseries	32,413
Children placed and paid for by local authorities in non-local authority day nurseries	1,788
Children on the register of local authority playgroups	2,525
Children placed and paid for by local authorities in non-local authority playgroups	11,556
Places with childminders sponsored by the local authority	1,889
Children placed and paid for by local authority with registered childminders not provided by the local authority	5,492

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many reports made by port health officials into matters relating to public health on ships passing between the United Kingdom and the United States of America and departing the port of Southampton were made public in the year 1990.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to extend the patent life of new drugs developed in the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom, along with some other member states, considers the present EC proposals to be overgenerous, but is committed to working constructively towards a satisfactory outcome.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will make available to local authorities the specific funding for social work student placements which is available to voluntary and private agencies;(2) what action he is taking to ensure that local authorities provide an adequate number of social work placements for students on the course leading to the Diploma in Social Work.

It is the responsibility of local authorities as employers to ensure that they have adequate numbers of suitably qualified social work staff. Authorities must, therefore, plan to make available sufficient good quality practice placements for students on social work qualifying courses and to honour agreements to do so into which they have entered as partners in Diploma in Social Work programme provider consortia.Funding for practice placements is made available to local authorities through the revenue support grants, and we have also allowed authorities to use the training support programme to fund additional placement days. In recognition of the importance which we attach to securing practice placement provision, we have provided CCETSW with £1·85 million (rising to £2·5 million in 1993–94) for a practice placements initiative which will enable additional practice teachers to be appointed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration has been given to using the training support programme for social work student placements in local authorities.

Practice placements for social work students are already eligible expenditure under the training support programme. In 1990–91 over 16,800 additional practice placements days were funded from TSP.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many national health service consultant obstetricians are currently facing legal action relating to possible medical negligence; and if he will also give the figure for orthopaedic consultants in the national health service.

This information is not held centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration he has given to setting up an arbitration board to consider compensation in medical accident cases; and if he will make a statement.

A consultation document entitled "Arbitration for Medical Negligence in the National Health Service" was issued by the Department on 29 October. Comments are requested by 31 January 1992: detailed consideration will be given to these responses. Copies of the document are available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money has been paid out by regional health authorities as medical accident indemnity since the present scheme started; and how funding to regional health authorities reflects the carrying of indemnity on the regional health authority budget.

Between January 1990 and March 1991 it is estimated that English health authorities spent about £60 million on costs associated with legal claims for clinical negligence against doctors and dentists in NHS hospitals. This includes payments of damages to plaintiffs, legal and other fees, and in-house expenses. Prior to January 1990 these liabilities were borne by the medical defence organisations. Figures for the financial year 1991–92 are not yet available.Health authorities meet these costs from within their overall resources. Most regional health authorities operate pooling or other arrangements to assist district health authorities with the costs of large settlements. In addition the NHS has access to funds set up by the medical defence organisations as part of the agreements when these liabilities were passed to the NHS. Between January 1990 and March 1991 payments of some £9 million were authorised from these funds to English health authorities to help meet the cost of settlements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Her Majesty's Government has yet decided on their preferred candidate for the position of chainnan of the World Health Organisation general assembly in May 1992; and if he will make a statement.

It has been the practice for a number of years for the post of President of the World Health Assembly to be rotated between the six regions of the World Health Organisation—that is, European, Eastern Mediterranean, African, South East Asian, Western Pacific and American. It is left to the region whose turn it is to hold the Presidency to decide which candidate to put forward for nomination to the World Health Assembly. Candidates are normally elected unopposed. In 1992 it will be the turn of the eastern mediterranean region to nominate a candidate for the Presidency.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is Her Majesty's Government's policy on the level and type of national insurance rebates for those who contract out of the state earnings-related pension scheme for the 1993–98 quinquennium.

We are awaiting the Government actuary's report on his review of the contracting out rebate before determining what the rebate should be for the 1993–98 quinquennium.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, further to his reply of 7 November,Official Report, column240, how many of the parliamentary questions which were not answered due to disproportionate costs were(a) matters answered by the benefits agency and(b) matters answered by the Department both as a number and as a percentage of total questions answered.

All 70 questions were answered by Ministers of the Department. These questions represent approximately 3 per cent. of the 2,157 answered during the year. However, 29 answers concerned matters which are the responsibility of the Benefits Agency which represents about 1 per cent. of the questions answered.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what representations he has received from Scottish local authorities which are funding Iraqi students in Scotland in the form of section 12 payments under the Social Work (Scotland) Act who have no other income following the freezing of Iraqi Government assets in the United Kingdom; and if he intends to introduce social security reforms to provide for students from abroad in an emergency situation such as war.

I met representatives of Strathclyde regional council and Glasgow district council on 30 September 1991. There are no plans to change the existing provisions in the income support rules relating to students from abroad.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the extra costs(a) to local authorities and(b) to his Department of those additional benefits including (i) poll tax benefit and (ii) housing benefit payable to pensioners as a result of their becoming eligible for income support as a result of the recent uprating statement.

[holding answer 5 November 1991]: Depending on the numbers of newly eligible pensioners who choose to claim, the total extra cost of their gains through income related benefit provision could be as much as £35 million in a full year. Any costs arising out of extra benefit provision by local authorities will be financed by central Government through the usual subsidy arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he intends to bring forward to compensate local authorities for the initial costs incurred as a result of extending compulsory competitive tendering.

None. We expect that any initial costs incurred in preparing for compulsory competitive tendering for additional services will be more than offset by the savings that will result from competition.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about the financial position of Gloucestershire county council.

My right hon. Friend and other Environment Ministers have received a number of representations,

Gloucestershire County Council
	Central Government Support1
	Block grant in respect of current year £'000	Relevant specific grants £000	Non-relevant specific grants £000	Transport supplementary grant £'000	County precept £000
1980–81	239,170	8,835	6,544	312	88,004
1981–82	70,732	10,075	7,838	325	77,631
1982–83	71,059	11,287	7,725	418	84,809
1983–84	69,411	12,641	7,552	380	88,983
1984–85	70,413	14,018	7,887	1,670	92,691
1985–86	67,710	14,945	8,121	1,138	102,313
1986–87	71,477	17,361	9,630	861	122,068
1987–88	70,837	19,919	9,818	942	134,365
1988–89	70,422	22,001	10,185	1,077	155,288
1989–90	64,202	25,505	13,958	1,563	169,580
		Specific grants in AEF	Specific grants outside AEF		County precept
31990–91	—	27,516	17,824	—	273,940
41991–92	—	30,177	22,530	—	298,500
1 In 1980–81, only the needs and resources elements of Rate Support Grant were paid directly to the County. Between 1981–82 and 1989–90 only the Block Grant element of Rate Support Grant was paid to the County. Domestic element, Domestic Rate Relief Grant and Rate Rebate Grant were paid directly to the Districts' Rate Funds. From 1990–91 only Specific Grants are paid directly to the County General Fund. All other grants are paid into the Districts' Collection Funds which is used to fund expenditure by different tiers of authority. It is therefore not possible to say what proportion of the county precept is funded by central Government support, or from other sources.
2 Needs and Resources Elements of RSG before adjusting for National Pools.
3 Revised estimate.
4 Budget estimate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information is available to his Department on the financial position of Gloucestershire county council.

The financial information available to the Department for all local authorities includes all the information necessary to calculate grant entitlement and standard spending assessments, authorities' budget estimates for previous years and statements of outturn expenditure for the years to 1989–90. These figures show that in 1989–90 Gloucestershire overspent against their budget by £6·7 million, or 3 per cent.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what level of funding for social work student placements has been assumed within the revenue support grant settlement.

The local authority finance settlement provides for an appropriate level of spending by local authorities on their various functions. The resources made available are not attributed to particular activities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment by how much the(a) central provision and(b) other funds available to Gloucestershire county council have changed each year since 1979.

The available information is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what powers the London Docklands development corporation has south of the River Thames; and how it is intended London Docklands development corporation will run the proposed docklands light railway extension to Lewisham.

Section 136 of the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980 provides that the object of an urban development corporation shall be to secure the regeneration of its area. I consider that an extension of the Docklands light railway to Lewisham will contribute to that object.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what further measures he has under consideration to deal with noise nuisance from noisy parties.

The working group set up to consider whether there is a need for further measures to control noisy parties, announced by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Environment and Countryside on 10 September met for the first time on 6 November.The members of the group are Mr. Richard Ashworth, chief executive (environmental health and trading standards), Merton London borough council; Mr. David Horrocks, head of environmental health services, Brentwood district; Mr. Ron Hadfield, chief constable, West Midlands police; and officials from my Department and the Home Office.The group are currently considering the extent to which existing legislation to control parties causing excessive noise might be used more effectively. The group expects to go on to consider whether amending legislation may be required.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action he proposes to take against those local authorities whose direct labour organisations made significant financial losses in 1989–90.

Statutory notices under the Local Government Planning and Land Act 1980 and the Local Government Act 1988 were served on 26 local authorities between July and October this year in respect of financial failure in 1989–90. The Secretary of State has now considered the responses of the 11 authorities on whom notices were served at the beginning of July. He has today given directions under section 19B and section 14 of the 1980 and 1988 Acts respectively to Barrow-in-Furness borough council in respect of major new construction, Harrogate borough council (refuse collection, building maintenace, and highways work), Shepway district council (building maintenance), and the London borough of Tower Hamlets (highways work).He has decided to take no further action in respect of financial failure in 1989–90 against Epsom and Ewell borough council (vehicle maintenance), the London borough of Redbridge (building cleaning), West Devon borough council (refuse collection), North Tyneside metropolitan borough council. (vehicle maintenance), Shepway district council (highways work), the London borough of Camden (minor new works), and Salford city council (in respect of anti-competitive behaviour).He is still considering the responses of the London borough of Camden, Copeland borough council and Salford city council, all in respect of building maintenance work, and expects to announce his decisions shortly. He is also considering responses from a further nine authorities on whom notices were served on 30 July.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he proposes to contract out the deer management in Richmond and Bushy parks.

Management of deer is a specialised and skilled operation. We have made it clear that we would not contract this out unless we could guarantee the welfare of the animals. Following consultation with the British Deer Society we have concluded that we should continue to undertake deer management in the Richmond and Bushy parks. We will therefore continue to employ three gamekeepers.Nature conservation is an important element in the management of Richmond and Bushy parks and the gamekeepers will continue caring for wildlife generally. The management of the contracts and the work carried out by the contractor's staff will also take this into account.

To ask the Prime Minister under what legal authority he would sign any treaties agreed at Maastricht; and what force such treaties would then have in British law.

Signature of any treaty agreed at Maastricht would be an Executive act and as such would have no force in the United Kingdom law. Ratification of any treaty is a prerogative act, exercised by the Government on behalf of the Crown. Before the United Kingdom could ratify any treaty signed at Maastricht, its provisions would need to be incorporated into United Kingdom law by amending the European Communities Act 1972.

To ask the Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the potential benefits and penalties that would arise from the full operation of a European central bank as currently proposed in the Dutch draft treaty for economic and monetary union.

That judgment can be made only if and when the adoption of a single currency becomes a realistic prospect. Under the treaty now under negotiation the earliest date envisaged for the introduction of a single currency is some years away. It will be for the Government and Parliament to assess at that stage the potential benefits and penalties of a European central bank.

To ask the Prime Minister on how many occasions he has declined to appoint a special adviser nominated for appointment.

The appointment of special advisers is a matter for the relevant Minister in consultation with me. It would not be appropriate to give the information requested.

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answers of 5 November,Official Report, column42 and 11 November,Official Report, column353, listing current political advisers, if he will list the names of the advisers alongside the Ministers and Department which they serve.

The special advisers (political) who are currently serving are:

To ask the Prime Minister what steps the Government are taking to help prepare black South Africans for a role in public administration under a post-apartheid constitution.

Our growing aid programme for black South Africans emphasises education and training as the key to enabling black people to play their rightful role in a post-apartheid South Africa. In this context, my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Minister for Overseas Development has announced the Government's plans to help to train those who may become officials within the new political system. This help is open to black South Africans of all parties and to those without political affiliation. We have invited nominees from various political groups, including the African National Congress, the Inkatha Freedom party, the Pan-Africanist Congress and AZAPO, as well as from non-political bodies. A course for potential senior officials will start in January at the Civil Service college. My right hon. Friend is preparing plans for further help in this area.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the priority Her Majesty's Government attache to environmental policy against the Government's other policies.

[holding answer 14 November 1991]: The Government aim to integrate environmental concern into all policies, as explained in detail in the White Paper, "This Common Inheritance" (Cm 1200) and "This Common Inheritance: The First Year Report". (Cm 1655)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many(a) nursery schools,(b) primary schools,(c) universities,(d) polytechnics and(e) colleges of further education he has visited in the last 12 months.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Science has visited a number of varied institutions in the past twelve months, including five primary schools, seven universities, three polytechnics and four colleges of further education.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the local education authorities to which he has sent information or advice regarding the past, current or future component of the standard spending assessment for adult education and local education authority the amounts so specified.

My right hon. and learned Friend has sent no information or advice on this matter to local education authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many undergraduates from the United Kingdom were attending courses in(a) EC countries and(b) non-EC countries in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement.

Estimates prepared by the United Kingdom Erasmus Student Grants Council show that, in academic year 1990–91, some 4,800 United Kingdom domiciled students were studying under ERASMUS arrangements in a higher education institution of another EC member state as part of their United Kingdom undergraduate course.Information on other United Kingdom students studying abroad is not available centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish a table showing the numbers of members of Her Majesty's inspectorate of schools in each category of job function which will be lost when Her Majesty's inspectorate is reduced to the level proposed in his statement of 27 September 1991.

Detailed decisions of this kind have not been taken and need not be taken at this stage. The figure of 175 is the best estimate that the senior chief inspector and I have made of the eventual size of HMI when they assume their full duties after a suitable transitional period.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information is available showing the numbers of teaching and non-teaching employees of each local education authority in 1991.

Numbers of teaching and non-teaching staff employed by local authorities are collected regularly by the joint staffing watch, managed by representatives of local and central Government.Figures for the education service within each authority for March 1991 are now available and have been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the number of primary school pupils in class sizes of one to 15, 16 to 20, 21 to 25, 26 to 30 and 30 and over, by local education authority for each school year since 1979–80.

It is not possible to provide all the information requested for the number of years stated because of disproportionate cost. Tables showing the number of pupils taught by one teacher in classes of sizes one to 30, 31 to 35, 36 to 40 and 41 and over in maintained primary schools in each local education authority in England for the years 1988 to 1991 (provisional) are being placed in the House of Commons Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the effect of the decision by the Inland Revenue to tax the profit element of the motor car mileage allowances paid to the voluntary car drivers used by the Scottish Ambulance Service.

We greatly appreciate the work undertaken by the voluntary car drivers and the contribution which they make to the community.The Inland Revenue's decision mainly affects those volunteer drivers who exceed 4,000 miles per year who will be liable for income tax on the profit element of their mileage allowance. The new tax arrangements will be phased in gradually over a number of years. Only one quarter of the profit element for the period 6 October 1991 to 5 April 1992 and for 1992–93 will be taxed, one half for 1993–94 and three-quarters for 1994–95. Tax will therefore not be payable on the full amount of the profit element until 1995–96.I have, however, agreed that mileage allowances for voluntary car drivers should be substantially increased. The new rates are:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will make it his policy to increase the hectarage payments made under the hill livestock compensatory allowance to the level of the limit set by the European Community;(2) if he will make it his policy to increase the level of headage payments for

The payment arrangements for the hill livestock compensatory allowance scheme are considered within the context of the autumn review of economic conditions and prospects for our hill and upland farmers. The HLCA payment arrangements to apply from 1 January 1992 will be announced as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the total expenditure by his Department on local road improvements, at constant prices, in each year between 1979 and 1990.

Expenditure on local roads in Wales is the responsibility of each county highway authority. Capital expenditure on new construction and improvement and current expenditure on highway maintenance, structural maintenance (including bridges), lighting, street cleaning, and other highways purposes, at constant prices are:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the outstanding applications for road bypass schemes before his Department, and the date on which each application was initially submitted.

Trunk road bypass schemes are added to the programme as a result of route and feasibility studies and have been listed in successive editions of "Roads in Wales". Current plans are given in the supplement to "Roads in Wales: Progress and Plans for the 1990s" published in February.Applications from local authorities for transport grant support in 1992–93 include bypass schemes. These are under consideration and an announcement will be made shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the total number of nursing posts filled in Wales in each year from 1986 to 1990.

Information on the whole time equivalent (wte) number of nursing and midwifery staff in Wales is given in the following table:

	wte1
1986	27,187
1987	27,764
1988	27,920
1989	28,037
1990	28,093
1 At 30 September.

The increase of 906 in the number of nurses in the Welsh NHS in just four years is an indication of the Government's commitment to improving the NHS.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will list the specific criteria and allowances in means tesing applicants for mandatory and discretionary home improvement grants.

Details of the test of resources are contained in "The Housing Renovation etc. Grants (Reduction of Grant) Regulations 1990 (SI 1990 No. 1189)" (as amended) copies of which have been placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many cases of sheep scab there were in Wales during the last 12 months; what were the corresponding figures for 1970 and 1980; and if he will make a statement.

In the last 12 months 14 cases of sheep scab were reported in Wales. No cases were reported in 1970 and 1980.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has any plans to develop the harbour at Aberystwyth, Cardiganshire during the next five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ceredigion district council has submitted a bid for additional resources under the projects of regional or national importance (PRNI) scheme to enable them to provide infrastructure works prior to development of a marina. This bid, together with all others received under the PRNI scheme is presently being considered.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many applicants have been accepted under the new enterprise allowance scheme; and if he will give the figures by regional or local authority area.

New flexibilities in the operation of the enterprise allowance scheme were introduced on 1 April 1991 for existing TECs. TECs going live after that date were able to use the flexibilities when they became operational.In the current financial year, to 15 September, 22,294 people in England and Wales have started a new business with the help of an enterprise allowance. A regional breakdown of these entrants is shown in the table. It is not possible to give a breakdown of entrants by local authority area.

Region	Participants
Northern	1,375
North West	3,397
Yorkshire and Humberside	2,770
West Midlands	2,238
East Midlands and Anglia	2,541
South East	2,387
South West	2,560
London	3,163
Wales	1,863

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons were on ET sponsored training programmes in each travel-to-work area in Cumbria for each month since January 1990.

The information is not available in the format requested. The following table gives the numbers of people in Employment Training (ET) in the area covered by Cumbria training and enterprise council for each month from January 1990 to September 1991.