To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the countries with which the United Kingdom has extradition arrangements in which there is no obligation on a requesting country to provide evidence amounting to prima facie guilt.

The following countries, listed in part 1 of schedule 2 to the European Convention on Extradition Order 1990–1990 No. 1507—do not have to provide prima facie evidence:

Austria, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total number of suicides in prisons in England and Wales during the year 1991; and if he will list the prisons and the number of suicides that took place within them.

The total number of deaths in 1991 which resulted from an act of deliberate self-harm was 41. Of the 26 inquests which have so far been held into these deaths, a verdict of suicide was recorded in 20. The establishments at which the deaths occurred are listed in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the present nightly cost of keeping a remand prisoner in police station cells.

The current average daily cost of keeping a prisoner in a police cell is £228.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) men and (b) women, were being held under rule 43 in prisons in England and Wales on 13 January.

The numbers of prisoners removed from association under rule 43 of the prison rules and rule 46 of the young offender institution rules on 13 January were as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) from which sources the names on the animal rights national index are obtained;(2) what measures he takes to ensure that the animal rights national index does not include those involved only in legitimate and legal campaigning.

The animal rights national index holds information received from police forces throughout Great Britain. The use of the index is the operational responsibility of chief officers of police.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis on the amount of police time expended on investigating the discovery of photographs involving the Texan business man Mr. Steve Wyatt.

No. This is an operational matter for the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.

To ask the Attorney-General if he hasx any plans to issue a Green Paper on the division of occupational pension rights on divorce.

I have no plans to issue a Green Paper on this subject. Occupational pensions fall within the ministerial responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Security.

To ask the Attorney-General what was the cost to public funds of the retrial of Dr. Malde Modhwadia of 245 Goodwood road, Leicester, which took place on 6, 7 and 8 January.

The legal aid costs of Dr. Modhwadia's solicitors and counsel have yet to be determined. However the prosecution costs, that is counsel's fees and witness expenses, were £3,626.72 and the costs incurred by the Lord Chancellor's Department and the Consolidated Fund amount to approximately £5,500.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the time taken to bring the case of Dr. Malde Modhwadia of 245 Goodwood road, Leicester, to retrial.

On 25 June 1991 the Court of Appeal criminal division allowed Dr. Modhwadia's appeal against conviction and ordered a fresh trial. The Crown Court at Northampton was notifed of that judgment on 24 July. Subsequently, on 19 August, those representing Dr. Modhwadia informed the court that they would not be ready for trial until January 1992. The trial took place between 6 January and 8 January 1992.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will list by year, for the last 10 years, the number of companies that have been wound up by the High Court due to trading while insolvent.

The only figures available, as set out in the table, for the number of companies that have been wound up over the last 10 years in England and Wales are for the years 1983 to 1990. Full figures for 1991 are not yet available.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will review the advice given to judges in the sentencing of male juveniles convicted of rape; and what representations he has received on this subject since 13 December.

Subject to the statutory limits laid down by Parliament, sentencing policy is a matter for the Court of Appeal criminal division which from time to time issues guidance to the judiciary. This takes the form of a judicial decision, with general comment which may be expressed as formal guidelines setting the class of offence in the general context of the court's overall sentencing practice. The court has issued guidelines for rape and they are contained in the judgment in the case of R v. Billam which is reported in the 1986 "Criminal Appeal Reports" at page 347. The court has given no separate guidance for the sentencing of juveniles convicted of rape.I have received 10 letters on this subject in the period between 13 December 1991 and 17 January 1992 and my noble Friend the Lord Chancellor has received 19 over the same period.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to ensure vacant, dormant, derelict and under-utilised sites in public ownership in urban areas are built on first before green-field sites beyond city boundaries are used.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to ensure vacant, dormant, derelict and under-utilised sites in public ownership in urban areas are built on first before green-belt sites beyond city boundaries are used.

I refer my hon. Friends to the reply I gave earlier today to my hon. Friend the Member for Swindon (Mr. Coombs).

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received regarding the tendering procedure that has resulted in the appointment of the Co-operative bank as bankers to the city of Birmingham.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has received one representation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the progress of preparations for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development.

The United Kingdom Government are taking an active role in the preparations for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in June 1992. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has indicated that he intends to lead the United Kingdom delegation and is encouraging other Heads of Government to attend. We have submitted our national report for UNCED; we have prepared reports for the preparatory committee on technology transfer and population; we are providing financial assistance so that developing countries can play an effective part in the preparations; and we are consulting non-governmental organisations, business and local government on their preparations for UNCED. We have also pledged £40.3 million to the global environment facility which is helping developing countries to address global environmental problems.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of current developments within the control of housing associations out of public funds are (a) for private ownership and (b) for public letting; what are the total numbers in each case; and if he will make a statement.

The Housing Corporation estimates that this financial year its approved development programme will provide 2,400 homes for low-cost home ownership and 24,700 homes available for letting. These figures represent, respectively, 9 and 91 per cent. of the total number of completions.Next year, the Housing Corporation will introduce a major programme of "do-it-yourself" shared ownership. This will be targeted on existing council and housing association tenants, thereby releasing rented accommodation for the homeless.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from local authorities on the present revenue grant system.

My right hon. Friend has received 301 written representations from local authorities and their associations on the revenue grant settlement. In addition, Ministers have held meetings with 62 local authorities to discuss the settlement.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the amount of capital receipts currently being held by local authorities.

Based on the most recent returns submitted by local authorities to my Department, it is provisionally estimated that the amount of capital receipts held by authorities in England at 31 March 1991 was £6.5 billion. Of this total, it is estimated that authorities had set aside £5.1 billion to redeem debt and that £1.4 billion was available to finance capital expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the present situation with regard to the release of RECHAR funding; and whether he will make a statement.

The United Kingdom's RECHAR programmes are being blocked by Commissioner Millan's unjustifiable refusal to approve them.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance is given by his Department to local authorities on applications under the RECHAR programme for EC support for environmental projects in former coal-mining areas.

None at present, as the United Kingdom's RECHAR programmes are being blocked by Commissioner Millan's unjustifiable refusal to approve them.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what discussions he has had with Commissioner Ripa di Meana concerning the effect of directive 85/337/EEC on British development projects; and if he will make a statement.

There have been a number of exchanges between Ministers and the Commissioner about the application of the directive. I discussed the matter with him yesterday and contacts will continue while the Commission considers the Government's recent response to the Commission's letter of 17 October about the application of the directive in the United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many additional housing association properties for rent he estimates will be completed during 1991–92.

The Housing Corporation estimates that its approved development programme will provide 21,800 new homes for rent in the current financial year. This includes 1,800 homes brought back into use by the corporation's short-life repair programme—"mini-HAG". In addition, 2,900 homes will be released for reletting by the corporation's tenants incentive scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on poll tax arrears in England and Wales.

At the end of September 1991 authorities in England had, on average, received 95 per cent. of the community charge that they expected to collect for 1990–91 and 39 per cent. of that amount for 1991–92.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many new council houses will be completed in the United Kingdom in the financial year 1991–92.

Based on reported activity to November 1991, English local authorities are expected to complete 7,000 to 8,000 dwellings in 1991–92.We do not plan a specific level of council house building. It is for local authorities to propose how best to use the resources made available under their housing investment programme allocations. Housing associations are now the main providers of new subsidised rented housing, and public expenditure provision for the Housing Corporation is planned to increase from £1.1 billion last year to over £2 billion by 1993–94, when output of housing by associations will rise to over 50,000.For information about other parts of the United Kingdom, I refer the hon. Member to the Secretaries of State concerned.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the number of local authority empty homes at June 1979, June 1983, June 1987 and June 1991; and what is the most recent available figure.

The Department gets this information from local authorities in their annual housing investment programme returns, and this gives the position at 1 April. The latest available figures relate to April 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will consider changing the policy on development to a greater emphasis on the east of London rather than the west of London.

I am reviewing the existing regional guidance for the south-east—PPG9—which already aims to redress the balance of attraction between the eastern and western parts of the region. I have appointed consultants to study the east Thames corridor—the area stretching from docklands to Tilbury and the Medway towns—to help in considering options for the future location of development in the south-east.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has any plans to extend the rents-to-mortgages scheme; and if he will make a statement.

The pilot schemes in Basildon and Milton Keynes have so far helped about 100 new town tenants into owner-occupation, and they have successfully tested the working of rents to mortgages. We will now consider whether to extend the scheme to local authority tenants.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he last met the chairman of the National Rivers Authority to discuss the quality of water in rivers.

I meet Lord Crickhowell regularly to discuss matters relating to the National Rivers Authority's responsibilities for the water environment, including river quality.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress is being made in cleaning up rivers.

The National Rivers Authority's 1990 river quality survey showed that despite a small net deterioration in water quality, around 90 per cent. of our rivers, canals and estuaries are of good or fair quality—compared with the average of 75 per cent. for the European Community.The survey was too soon to reflect the major investment on which the industry has embarked following privatisation, or the vigorous action being taken by the NRA against polluters. The system of statutory water quality objectives will help ensure that a real and sustained improvement in water quality is achieved.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the protection of sites of special scientific interest in the United Kingdom.

The appropriate territorial conservation agencies are continuing the good work of the Nature Conservancy Council in notifying sites of special scientific interest. As at 31 March 1991 the Nature Conservancy Council had notified a total of 5,671 SSSIs covering 1.8 million hectares—8 per cent. of Great Britain. The additional safeguards for SSSIs announced by the Government in September 1991 came into effect on 2 January 1992.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list the level of grant per head of population for each of the standard economic regions and in Greater London in the financial years 1980–81, 1983–84, 1986–87, 1989–90 for (a) rate support grant, (b) housing revenue subsidy, (c) total specific and supplementary grants and (d) urban programme;

The available information has been placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment at what date an application was made by Her Majesty's Government to the Commission of the European Community for permission to establish the existing enterprise zone in the London boroughs of Newham and Tower Hamlets; and if he will list the article(s) of the treaty of Rome which require applications to be made to a Member of the European Commission for the establishment of additional zones in the United Kingdom.

Under article 93(2) of the EC treaty, the Commission may require member states to alter or abolish existing or proposed systems of aid.The Government wrote on 26 March 1980 to inform the European Commission, as required by article 93(3), of their intention to set up a number of enterprise zones including one comprising parts of the London boroughs of Newham and Tower Hamlets. The Commission raised no objections.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what targets his Department has set for home insulation; and what progress has been made towards meeting these targets.

The Government's aim of upgrading the Building Regulations standard for energy efficiency of new buildings by 20 per cent. was achieved though the revised regulations which came into force in 1990. We are now reviewing the scope for further strengthening of the standard. The green house demonstration programme for existing council housing requires a 25 per cent. increase in energy efficiency in participating schemes. I anticipate that by the end of 1994 all programme schemes will have met this target. The Department does not set central targets for other insulation programmes carried out by local authorities and housing associations.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he will publish the national programme for limiting carbon dioxide emissions to which he committed the United Kingdom at the joint session of EC environment and energy councils on 13 December; and if he will use his powers under section 3(5)(a) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to make a plan for establishing limits for the total amount of carbon dioxide which may be released into the environment in any period in the United Kingdom.

The environment White Paper, "This Common Inheritance" (Cm 1200) set out the Government's strategy and a first tranche of measures towards Britain's conditional target of returning CO₂ emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2005. The first year report—Cm 1655—sets out progress with this strategy. My right hon. Friend has no plans at present to use his Environmental Protection Act 1990 powers to make a plan for establishing limits for carbon dioxide emissions.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 13 January, Official Report, columns 422–23, if he will specify which decisions listed in the answer were on application by (a) British Coal and (b) private companies; and if he will give the corresponding figures for appeal refusals.

The information requested is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he next intends to meet the chairman of the Housing Corporation.

My hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning meets the chairman of the Housing Corporation from time to time to discuss various corporation matters.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made to expand the number of housing co-operatives and other tenant-led initiatives.

On local authority estates, 30 tenant management co-operatives and estate management boards have been established since last April, compared with 15 in the previous year, while a further 100 groups are exploring or developing a management option.There are 265 ownership co-operatives registered with the Housing Corporation compared with 255 three years ago. In addition, there are now 60 tenant management co-operatives in the housing association stock.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total amount of money that Bedfordshire county council has raised since 1979 by way of (a) land sales and (b) sale of buildings; of that amount what is the county council allowed to spend; and if he will make a statement.

The capital receipts raised by Bedfordshire from the sale of fixed assets in each year since 1984–85 are as follows. Information is not available for years prior to 1984–85. It is not possible to identify land sales separately from sale of buildings.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total amount of money that the four district councils within the county of Bedfordshire have raised since 1979 by (a) sale of council houses and (b) land sales; of that amount how much each authority is currently allowed to spend; and if he will make a statement.

The reported total discounted sale values of dwellings, and the value of land sold between April 1979 and September 1991 is as follows. Actual cash receipts from sales of dwellings in any year will depend on the extent to which sales were financed by loans from these authorities. The table also shows the reported amounts of unspent housing capital receipts at 1 April 1991 which were available to spend after making the required provision for debt repayment. In addition authorities can spend 25 per cent. of most housing capital receipts received in 1991–92.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will take steps to arrange that interest is paid when repaying sums which have been taken which are in excess of the final agreed figures for the uniform business rate.

Regulations providing for the payment of interest where an overpayment of non-domestic rates has occurred due to an alteration of a rating list came into force in October 1990. Interest is paid for each financial year at a rate one per cent. below bank base rate a s at 15 March prior to the start of that year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he will take to ensure that the reform of local government structure embodies the principle of subsidiarity.

The proposed local government commission will be required to recommend the structural changes it thinks desirable having regard to the need to reflect the identities and interests of local communities and to secure effective and convenient local government.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment to what extent Wolverhampton has benefited from Estate Action.

Up to this year the Council has received £11.695 million of estate action support for 10 schemes. I look forward to continuing this support in future years and a further £6.729 million has already been earmarked for the next three years.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the revision of planning policy guidance note 7 will be published; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State and the Secretary of State for Wales have today published a revised planning policy guidance note 7, entitled "The Countryside and the Rural Economy". This replaces the first edition of PPG 7, published in 1988.We are grateful to the many bodies and individuals who responded to the consultation draft of the new PPG. Lists of their submissions are being placed in the Library of the House, where copies will be available on request.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to ensure that a programme for reducing total annual emissions from large combustion plants is being implemented in all EC countries.

[holding answer 21 January 1992]: Enforcement of the large combustion plants directive in other member states is a matter for the European Commission, but the Government take every opportunity to stress the importance of other member states' matching the United Kingdom's performance in implementing this and other environmental directives. Our proposal for a Community "audit-type" inspectorate to ensure effective compliance with European environmental legislation would help to achieve improved and consistent standards throughout the Community.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the capital receipts held on deposit from the sale of council housing to those whose homes they are for each council in Wales, for each year since 1979; for what reason it has not been decided to make provision for these moneys to be returned to the ratepayers/chargepayers; and what interest has accrued in each year to each of those councils.

Under the arrangements brought into effect on 1 April 1990 by part IV of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989, local authorities are required to set aside a proportion of their capital receipts—the "reserved part"—as prudent financial provision for credit liabilities. The balance—the "usable part"—is available for any capital purpose. Authorities must also repay at least a prescribed minimum amount of debt from revenue each year.Authorities are not, however, required to redeem debt from the reserved part immediately. The timing of debt redemption from capital receipts is left to each authority to decide in its own circumstances.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proportion of publicly owned works of art is available for viewing by the public; what steps have been taken to maximise income for the arts by renting out works of art when that would not impair public viewing; and if he will make a statement.

The Secretary of State has direct responsibility only for works of art in the ownership of Cadw Welsh Historic Monuments, of which 97 per cent. are available for public view. Information on items owned by non-departmental public bodies in Wales is not held centrally.There are no plans for a scheme of the kind suggested.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will implement a campaign to educate pregnant women and their health carers in Wales about toxoplasmosis and its prevention;(2) which health authorities in Wales provide information on infectious disease during pregnancy to pregnant women; which health authorities provide specific information about the prevention of toxoplasmosis to pregnant women; which health authorities in Wales routinely test pregnant women for toxoplasmosis; and which test pregnant women on demand for toxoplasmosis.

The Department issued in October 1991 the leaflet "While you are Pregnant: Safe eating and how to avoid infection from food and animals".

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the average amount allocated per household for maintenance work on council houses in each district council in Wales for each year since 1988; and what are the estimated allocations per council household for 1992–93.

The information requested is set out in the table.These are the allowances set for subsidy purposes only. It is for authorities to set their own spending levels in their particular circumstances. The basis for calculating the allowances was changed in 1990–91 and further refined for 1991–92 and 1992–93. The figures for years before 1990-91 are not comparable with the later years.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what were the average council house rent charges per household in each district council area in Wales for each year from 1988 onwards; and what are the estimated levels for 1992.

The information requested is set out in the table for 1988–89 to 1991–92. Authorities are in the process of setting their rents for 1992–93.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much has been paid by each district council to his Department in uniform business rate; how much was redistributed to each district council in the last financial year; and if he will publish estimated figures for 1992–93.

The contributions of district councils in Wales to the non-domestic rate pool in 1990–91 and 1991–92, together with the entitlement of each district and county authority from the pool for those years are set out in the table. Details for 1992–93 are not yet available. Contributions by district authorities in respect of 1990–91 will be adjusted shortly to take account of certified outturn figures.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was allocated for each district council in Wales in other services capital receipts budgets in each year from 1988; and what are the estimated allocations for 1991–92.

Prior to 1990–91 the capital receipts of individual local authorities were not taken into account in the distribution of capital resources. For each district council, the non-housing services capital receipts taken into account in setting its basic credit approvals are given as follows for 1990–91 and 1991–92. These figures reflect only a portion of the resources which authorities have at their disposal for financing capital expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what information he has as to how many second homes there are in (a) each parliamentary constituency in Wales and (b) each district authority area; and what proportion of the housing stock is represented by second homes in each instance.

Estimates of the number of second homes alone are not available. However estimates of the number of second/holiday homes are available for each parliamentary constituency and each district in Wales from the 1981 census of population and the Welsh inter-censal survey, 1986 respectively. These figures are given in the tables:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what evaluation has been undertaken by his Department on the potential impact of the European Community large combustion plant directive on energy production in Wales.