To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the future of Eurocontrol.

I believe that Eurocontrol has an increasingly important role as the key organisation in Europe for co-ordinating the planning of air traffic management and related research and development, and the collection of enroute air navigation charges. In particular, Eurocontrol will continue to be responsible for building and operating the central flow management unit; for the management of the European air traffic control harmonisation and integration programme, which is likely to be expanded shortly to include air traffic control systems at airports; and for the operation of the European co-ordination team to identify measures to improve air traffic control capacity in the short term.Eurocontrol will be opening negotiations on an agreement on strengthened co-operation with the EC Commission. It will also be considering whether its convention is appropriate to meet its future needs.Twelve states have signed the Eurocontrol convention to date, and 15 states are members of the Eurocontrol route charges system. A number of other states attend Eurocontrol meetings as observers. Transport Ministers of the European Civil Aviation Conference have encouraged those member states which have not yet applied for membership of Eurocontrol to do so at the earliest opportunity.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action he is taking to improve co-ordination and the work of Eurocontrol and the European Commission in respect of a pan-European air traffic control system, in order to avoid duplication.

As the result of a United Kingdom proposal at the meeting of the permanent commission of Eurocontrol on 3 December 1991, Eurocontrol, in co-operation with both the EC Commission and member states of the European Civil Aviation Conference, will formulate an outline plan for the future air traffic management system of its member states. This initiative provides a valuable opportunity to avoid duplication of work. During the forthcoming United Kingdom presidency of the EC the Government will encourage the Commission to support fully Eurocontrol's work on the future system by providing increased support for research and trials.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the European air traffic control harmonisation and inspection programme; and what is the financial contribution by member states.

Following a United Kingdom initiative, Transport Ministers of the member states of the European Civil Aviation Conference agreed in April 1990 a strategy under the title of the European air traffic control harmonisation and integration programme, and invited Eurocontrol to manage the programme. The first phase of this strategy, which has just been completed on time, consisted of a comprehensive assessment of the present arrangements for air traffic control in Europe. The second and third phases will comprise programme development and acquisition and implementation of new equipment. The final phase will consider the air traffic management system needed in the longer term.On 17 March my right hon. and learned Friend will be chairing a meeting in London of Transport Ministers of ECAC member states, to consider further measures to reduce flight delays and cope with growth in air traffic. We expect the meeting to reach agreement on a major extension of the current strategy for air traffic control.The programme's management costs are met by Eurocontrol, who estimate that these will be 5·8 million ecu per annum for 1992 onwards. Investment in the equipment necessary to implement the programme will be made by the participating ECAC member states.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the work being done by the Atlas study group on air traffic control in Europe, and on the costs incurred and how they are funded.

The Atlas study is being carried out for the EC Commission. Its objective is to define and provide specifications for the creation of a single unified air traffic management system for European airspace. I understand that the cost of the study, which will be fully met by the Commission, is likely to be some 7·5 million ecu.

To ask the Secretary of State for transport if he will give a breakdown of British Rail's funding in 1990–91 and an estimate on the same basis for the current year.

The information requested is as follows.

British Rail sources of funds
£ million cash
	1990–91	1991–921
Requirements
Investment	850	1,125
Operating losses	350	575
Interest	50	75
Total	1,250	1,775
Sources
Borrowing	375	600
PSO grants	600	900
Level crossing grants	25	25
PTE Grants	100	125
Asset sales	125	75
Working capital	25	50
Total	1,250	1,775
1 Estimate.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will be consulting on proposals to revise the criteria for setting speed limits.

We have today begun consultation on proposals to make more flexible the criteria used for setting speed limits. The new criteria put greater weight on the local environment and should result in speed limits more closely reflecting local conditions. Copies of the consultation document have been placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether, on his visit to Hong Kong in November 1988, the then Secretary of State took part in party political activities in addition to official duties.

The then Secretary of State's schedule does not indicate that he took part in any such activities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the result of his monitoring of current initiatives to tackle the stockpiles of used tyres; whether he proposes to introduce tyre recycling targets; and if he will make a statement.

A survey of licensed and unlicensed tyre dumps is now being conducted by a consultant on behalf of the Departments of the Environment and of Energy. It is hoped that results, which will be available later this year, will give a clearer indication of what action needs to be taken. No plans for tyre recycling targets exist at present but the United Kingdom is participating in a working group organised by the European Commission as a part of its priority waste stream exercise to examine the issue in a harmonised European manner.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the sources of referral to housing associations and the percentages that these nominations take up of housing associations stock for (a) the whole of England and Wales, (b) the north-east region and (c) Greater London.

The latest available information relates to housing association lettings made in the first nine months of 1991:

Percentage of lettings
	England	1North	Greater London
Source of referral
Local authority nomination	35	30	46
Statutory agency	2	1	1

	England	1North	Greater London
Voluntary agency	3	1	9
Direct application	35	50	11
Mobility scheme	1	2—	2
Within the housing association	19	15	25
Other housing association	1	2—	2
Other	4	3	4
Total	100	100	100

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what appraisal he has made of transport needs to and within each of the national parks.

None. The appraisal of transport needs to and within the national parks falls to my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Transport and to the relevant local and highway authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what were the number of complaints regarding excessive noise made to local authorities in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Information is not available in the form requested. The Institution of Environmental Health Officers monitors the number of noise complaints received under the statutory nuisance procedures and records the number of remedies informally achieved or prosecutions carried out. This information appears in the "Digest of Environmental Protection and Water Statistics"—No. 13 of 1990—a copy of which has been placed in the Library. The statistics do not define "excessive noise".

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many members of the public have made and are making use of the anti-litter provisions of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

The most recent information on intended or actual prosecutions was given in my answer to the hon. Member for Southwark and Bermondsey (Mr. Hughes) on Friday 8 November 1991, Official Report, column 305. The Tidy Britain Group, which receives grant in aid from my Department, is undertaking further surveys of local authorities to monitor the implementation of part IV of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. We await the results of its latest survey.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to publish the results of Aston business school's survey of parish councils.

We have today published Aston business school's report entitled "Parish and Town Councils in England: A Survey". Copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. A survey of the report has been sent to all the parish and town councils which took part in the research.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment at what stage of the planning process his Department is consulted over new bypasses.

In the cases of trunk road bypasses, the Department of Transport would invariably consult my Department at the earliest stages of developing route proposals.Where the bypass is a proposal of the local highway authority, it should be subject to the statutory development plan procedures, and shown in the structure and local plan for the area. This is made clear in PPG 12, "Development Plans and Regional Guidance", published on 10 February 1992. My Department must be consulted at each stage in the process leading to the adoption of the plan. The Secretary of State intends to make a direction shortly, to ensure that he is notified of any local highway authority road scheme which has not been subject to local plan procedures, or is in conflict with the development plan.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list by date created, firm and number of jobs, the jobs established by the Bristol development corporation.

[holding answer 11 February 1992]: This information is not available in the form requested. The corporation's estimate of total employment in the Bristol urban development area, based upon consultants' surveys, was 14,000 jobs in January 1989 and 18,000 jobs at March 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he considered the application by the West Yorkshire transport museum for city grant; whether it has been approved; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 12 February 1991]: An application for city grant was received on 9 January and is currently under appraisal. A decision on the application will be made as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will declare the whole of Stretton Magna park in Leicestershire a conservation area to protect the local flora and fauna.

I am advised by English Nature that this area does not meet the criteria necessary for it to be notified by it as a site of special scientific interest. I understand that the area contains a number of species that are protected in their own right under the provisions of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what further steps he is taking to prevent the removal of hedges from farmland.

[holding answer 2 December 1991]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on Tuesday 3 December 1991, Official Report, column 79.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the expenditure and achievements of his Department in north Yorkshire during 1991; and what was the comparable position between June 1979 and May 1980.

[holding answer 11 February 1992]: The main expenditure of the Department in north Yorkshire is through the revenue support grant system. In 1991–92, the total external support for local councils in north Yorkshire is just over £260 million. In addition the Department has allocated over £12·6 million to local housing authorities in north Yorkshire to support capital programmes expected to total about £24 million this year. The Department also provided revenue support for housing, funding for an estate action scheme of £2·75 million and energy efficiency schemes. Substantial sums are also available from the Housing Corporation funded directly by the Department. Comparable figures for 1979 are not readily available.

To ask the Attorney-General what data information systems the Lord Chancellor's Department has (a) agreed and (b) been consulted about with a view to taking part in; what are the criteria for inclusion in such systems; whether they will be linked to (i) the police national computer and (ii) other computer systems; what data protection provisions apply to them; and if he will make a statement.

The Lord Chancellor's Department is currently developing and installing a computerised case management system for Crown court offices. No direct links from this system to other systems are planned, but data on court appearances currently provided to the Home Office on paper will in future be produced on magnetic media.Other systems still in the planning stage are for a computerised database of statute law, and case management and accounting systems for the county courts, companies courts, and bankruptcy court.All computer systems within the Lord Chancellor's Department comply fully with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1984, as will all future systems.

To ask the Attorney-General what data information systems his Department has (a) agreed and (b) been consulted about with a view to taking part in; what are the criteria for inclusion in such systems; whether they will be linked to (i) the police national computer and (ii) other computer systems; what data protection provisions apply to them; and if he will make a statement.

The legal secretariat to the Law Officers operates a file-tracking system, but does not participate in external data information systems and has not been consulted with a view to such participation. There are no plans for any link with the police national computer or with any other computer system.The Treasury Solicitor's department operates personnel, case-tracking and billing systems and has use of the LEXIS external data information system. There are no plans to link any of these systems to the police national computer or any other computer system.The Crown prosecution services operates personnel, finance and a number of case-tracking systems. It has also agreed a new standard case-tracking system which is under development. The Crown prosecution service has subscribed to the LEXIS legal data base for a trial period. The criteria for inclusion in information systems are that the data should be necessary for operational, administrative or management purposes. The Crown prosecution service has no plans to link to the police national computer, but is discussing with other criminal justice agencies the possible automated exchange of the case data already passed in paper form for essential operational purposes.The Serious Fraud Office operates personnel, case-tracking and document-controlled systems. There are no plans to link the systems to the police national computer or to any other external computer system.The systems operated by each Department comply with the Data Protection Act 1984 and each Department is registered with the Data Protection Registrar.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will give the figures for county court orders for mortgage repossessions for 1990 and 1991, including the percentage increase, according to (a) standard economic region and (b) county.

The figures for the number of repossessions are not collected. The only information available on mortgage possessions is the number of actions entered and orders made in each county court. The table gives the information for 1990 and 1991 for each county and standard economic region and shows the respective percentage increases. These figures do not indicate how many houses have been repossessed through the courts as not all of the orders made will have resulted in the execution of warrants of possession. At this stage the 1991 figures are provisional and therefore liable to revision in the future.

County Court mortgage possession actions entered
	1990	1991	Percentage change
Cleveland	1,149	1,578	37·3
Cumbria	700	965	37·9
Durham	1,165	1,661	42·6
Northumberland	219	413	88·6
Tyne and Wear	1,710	2,300	34·5
North	4,943	6,917	39·9
Humberside	2,422	3,006	24·1
North Yorkshire	1,030	1,430	38·8
South Yorkshire	2,513	3,375	34·3
West Yorkshire	4,469	6,335	41·8
Yorkshire and Humberside	10,434	14,146	35·6

	1990	1991	Percentage change
Derbyshire	1,589	2,276	43·2
Leicestershire	2,098	2,569	22·4
Lincolnshire	1,466	1,869	27·5
Northamptonshire	2,603	2,991	14·9
Nottinghamshire	3,280	3,763	14·7
East Midlands	11,036	13,468	22·0
Cambridgeshire	2,443	2,650	8·5
Norfolk	1,631	1,829	12·1
Suffolk	1,484	1,758	18·5
East Anglia	5,558	6,237	12·2
Bedfordshire	2,089	2,930	40·3
Berkshire	3,284	3,789	15·4
Buckinghamshire	2,429	3,002	23·6
Essex	5,520	6,401	16·0
Greater London	29,291	35,416	20·9
Hampshire	5,026	6,801	35·3
Hertfordshire	2,304	3,076	33·5
Isle of Wight	319	408	27·9
Kent	6,273	7,727	23·2
Oxfordshire	1,154	1,528	32·4
Surrey	2,024	2,673	32·1
Sussex	5,251	6,275	19·5
South East	64,964	80,026	23·2
Avon	2,393	3,459	44·5
Cornwall	1,165	1,749	50·1
Devon	2,927	4,061	38·7
Dorset	2,248	2,716	20·8
Gloucestershire	1,050	1,379	31·3
Somerset	808	1,199	48·4
Wiltshire	1,618	2,131	31·7
South West	12,209	16,694	36·7
Herefordshire and Worcestershire	1,480	2,152	45·4
Salop	897	1,309	45·9
Staffordshire	2,505	3,224	28·7
Warwickshire	1,605	1,809	12·7
West Midlands	7,109	9,199	29·4
West Midlands	13,596	17,693	30·1
Cheshire	1,842	2,696	46·4
Greater Manchester	6,211	9,444	52·1
Lancashire	3,504	4,841	38·2
Merseyside	3,417	4,403	28·9
North West	14,974	21,384	42·8
Clwyd	689	1,054	53·0
Dyfed	706	983	39·2
Gwent	1,419	1,686	18·8
Gwynedd	720	807	12·1
Mid Glamorgan	1,820	2,388	31·2
Powys	91	229	151·6
South Glamorgan	1,198	1,626	35·7
West Glamorgan	993	1,462	47·2
Wales	7,636	10,235	34·0

County court mortgage possession suspended orders
	1990	1991	Percentage change
Cleveland	414	758	83·1
Cumbria	359	487	35·7
Durham	430	906	110·7
Northumberland	66	150	127·3
Tyne and Wear	728	1,067	46·6

	1990	1991	Percentage change
North	1,997	3,368	68·7
Humberside	605	1,330	119·8
North Yorkshire	287	447	55·7
South Yorkshire	840	1,208	43·8
West Yorkshire	1,270	2,118	66·8
Yorkshire and Humberside	3,002	5,103	70·0
Derbyshire	512	883	72·5
Leicestershire	917	948	3·4
Lincolnshire	532	557	4·7
Northamptonshire	802	893	11·3
Nottinghamshire	847	1,199	41·6
East Midlands	3,610	4,480	24·1
Cambridgeshire	558	695	24·6
Norfolk	441	754	71·0
Suffolk	421	542	28·7
East Anglia	1,420	1,991	40·2
Bedfordshire	720	1,034	43·6
Berkshire	793	1,497	88·8
Buckinghamshire	492	1,425	189·6
Essex	1,179	1,989	68·7
Greater London	12,076	12,842	6·3
Hampshire	2,291	3,431	49·8
Hertfordshire	711	961	35·2
Isle of Wight	156	221	41·7
Kent	2,027	3,061	51·0
Oxfordshire	436	476	9·2
Surrey	511	1,083	111·9
Sussex	1,796	2,045	13·9
South East	23,188	30,065	29·7
Avon	642	1,292	101·2
Cornwall	414	814	96·6
Devon	683	1,270	85·9
Dorset	605	697	15·2
Gloucestershire	378	463	22·5
Somerset	165	395	139·4
Wiltshire	519	855	64·7
South West	3,406	5,786	69·9
Herefordshire and Worcestershire	416	615	47·8
Salop	324	622	92·0
Staffordshire	725	1,341	85·0
Warwickshire	530	826	55·8
West Midlands	2,461	3,071	24·8
West Midlands	4,456	6,475	45·3
Cheshire	775	1,073	38·5
Greater Manchester	2,136	3,590	68·1
Lancashire	1,121	1,735	54·8
Merseyside	1,297	1,714	32·2
North West	5,329	8,112	52·2
Clwyd	221	388	75·6
Dyfed	270	328	21·5
Gwent	401	533	32·9
Gwynedd	338	313	-7·4
Mid Glamorgan	593	779	31·4
Powys	32	65	103·1
South Glamorgan	357	577	61·6
West Glamorgan	170	474	178·8
Wales	2,382	3,457	45·1

County Court mortgage possession orders made
	1990	1991	Percentage change
Cleveland	410	589	43·7
Cumbria	176	258	46·6
Durham	297	598	101·3
Northumberland	91	111	22·0
Tyne and Wear	575	636	10·6
North	1,549	2,192	41·5
Humberside	891	1,400	57·1
North Yorkshire	335	558	66·6
South Yorkshire	750	1,220	62·7
West Yorkshire	1,816	2,563	41·1
Yorkshire and Humberside	3,792	5,741	51·4
Derbyshire	645	845	31·0
Leicestershire	694	984	41·8
Lincolnshire	581	797	37·2
Northamptonshire	905	1,233	36·2
Nottinghamshire	1,003	1,365	36·1
East Midlands	3,828	5,224	36·5
Cambridgeshire	987	1,273	29·0
Norfolk	684	921	34·6
Suffolk	628	866	37·9
East Anglia	2,299	3,060	33·1
Bedfordshire	821	1,163	41·7
Berkshire	1,325	1,401	5·7
Buckinghamshire	1,225	1,240	1·2
Essex	2,289	2,864	25·1
Greater London	11,146	14,312	28·4
Hampshire	2,306	2,697	17·0
Hertfordshire	1,214	1,359	11·9
Isle of Wight	121	220	81·8
Kent	2,804	3,171	13·1
Oxfordshire	393	756	92·4
Surrey	782	1,111	42·1
Sussex	2,142	2,579	20·4
South East	26,568	32,873	23·7
Avon	839	1,258	49·9
Cornwall	442	681	54·1
Devon	1,341	1,707	27·3
Dorset	897	1,055	17·6
Gloucestershire	295	423	43·4
Somerset	250	452	80·8
Wiltshire	748	892	19·3
South West	4,812	6,468	34·4
Herefordshire and Worcestershire	566	994	75·6
Salop	295	488	65·4
Staffordshire	898	1,364	51·9
Warwickshire	661	759	14·8
West Midlands	2,162	3,335	54·3
West Midlands	4,582	6,940	51·5
Cheshire	497	947	90·5
Greater Manchester	2,005	2,976	48·4
Lancashire	1,168	1,940	66·1
Merseyside	1,038	1,449	39·6
North West	4,708	7,312	55·3
Clwyd	172	365	112·2
Dyfed	201	502	149·8
Gwent	521	645	23·8
Gwynedd	249	311	24·9
Mid Glamorgan	577	846	46·6

	1990	1991	Percentage change
Powys	26	76	192·3
South Glamorgan	417	681	63·3
West Glamorgan	417	532	27·6
Wales	2,580	3,958	53·4

To ask the Attorney-General (1) if he will arrange for decisions by the Crown prosecution service as to whether or not criminal proceedings are to be brought to be communicated to any police officer under investigation as quickly as possible;(2) in how many cases the Crown prosecution service has received files for consideration in connection with the West Yorkshire police inquiry into the West Midlands serious crime squad;(3) when he expects the Crown prosecution service to have reached a decision in all cases submitted to it as a result of the West Yorkshire police inquiry into the West Midlands serious crime squad;(4) in how many cases the Crown prosecution service has decided whether criminal proceedings are to be brought against any police officer under investigation arising from the West Yorkshire police inquiry into the West Midlands crime squad.

To ask the Attorney-General when he received the West Yorkshire police report on the West Midlands serious crimes squad; and when he expects to reach a decision.

Between 16 March 1990 and 16 October 1991 the Crown prosecution service has received from the West Yorkshire metropolitan police a total of 73 files relating respectively to complaints about individual officers and investigations unto practices of the West Midlands serious crime squad. Consideration of these cases is well advanced, but a final decision will not be taken in any particular case until it has also been reviewed in the context of the cumulative evidence available from all the cases under consideration.It is not at present possible to say when final decisions will be taken, but this will be as soon as possible and it is hoped in the near future. In accordance with normal practice in this type of case, the decisions will be communicated to individual officers by a senior officer and not directly by the Crown prosecution service.

To ask the Attorney-General what action the Lord Chancellor proposes to take in relation to the lack of regulation over some private bailiffs who enforce judgments and orders by the seizure and sale of property.

The right of a creditor to seize and sell a debtor's property to enforce a judgment or order is an important remedy which requires a difficult balance to be struck between the interests of creditors and debtors. This is not easy to achieve, whether enforcement be by sheriffs, county court bailiffs, certificated bailiffs, or other private bailiffs. My noble and learned Friend is currently conducting a review of the organisation and management of these civil enforcement agents and he hopes to publish a consultation paper later this year. The terms of reference of the review are, to consider:

(a) whether changes should be made to the organisation and management of agents involved in the civil enforcement process;

(b) the part which the state should play in the organisation and management of enforcement agents;

(c) the ways in which any changes to the organisation and management of enforcement agents could be achieved;

(d) whether any changes to the law governing the work of enforcement agents are necessary or desirable.

My noble and learned Friend envisages a three-month consultation period during which he hopes to obtain a wide spectrum of views. Any changes the Government decide to make as a result of the review are likely to involve legislation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many 15-year-old boys and girls in prison received a punishment for a disciplinary offence in 1990 and in 1991; and for what offences they were punished.

The age of prisoners punished for a disciplinary offence was not recorded centrally up to 1990. Such information will be available for 1991 but the data will not be complete until the second half of this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many 15-year-old prisoners have been held in police or court cells in 1991; and in which ones they have been held.

Information on the total number and location of 15-year-old prisoners held in police cells is not collected centrally. When a 15-year-old prisoner is received into police cells the police inform the local liaison governor and priority arrangements are set in hand for the prisoner to be transferred immediately to a prison service establishment.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in which prisons 15-year-old girls were held in 1990 and in 1991.

According to the records held centrally, 11 girls aged 15 were received into prison service establishments in England and Wales in 1990 and all were held only under sentence. They were initially received into Holloway prison, New Hall prison or young offender institution or Risley prison or remand centre. One girl was recorded as having been held subsequently in Askham Grange prison but information about all such transfers was not retained centrally. Data for 1991 are not yet complete.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many 15-year-old girls were received into prison in each year of the past decade; for what offences they were convicted, and how long were the prison sentences.

The number of 15-year-old females received under sentence is published annually in "Prison Statistics England and Wales"—table 3.10 of the volume for 1989, Cm. 1221—copies of which are in the Library.

Females aged 15 received under sentence: by offence, 1981–1990
Persons
Offence	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Violence against the person	6	2	11	7	8	8	9	7	3	—
Sexual offences	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Burglary	4	9	10	11	7	3	5	2	—	1
Robbery	2	2	2	4	4	3	2	4	3	4
Theft and handling	6	3	4	10	7	4	4	10	4	—
Fraud and forgery	—	—	1	1	2	—	—	—	—	—
Drugs offences	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Other	—	—	3	4	4	—	3	3	5	2
Not recorded	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	4
All Offences	18	16	31	37	32	18	23	26	15	11

Females aged 15 received under sentence: by length of sentence, 1981–1990
Persons
Length of sentence	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
Up to 3 months	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	—	—
Over 3 months up to 6 months	—	—	19	35	24	15	17	19	10	5
Over 6 months up to 12 months	—	—	6	2	5	1	6	4	2	3
Over 12 months up to 3 years	1	—	—	—	3	2	—	1	3	1
Over 3 years	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	—	2
Borstal training	17	16	6	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
All sentences	18	16	31	37	32	18	23	26	15	11

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women prisoners were held in police or court cells during 1991; where they were held; and for how long.

The average number of women prisoners held in police cells throughout 1991 was two. At various points during the year women prisoners were held in police cells by the Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside, Metropolitan, Staffordshire, Surry and West Midlands police forces. It is not possible from the information available to say how long individual prisoners were held.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who is responsible for ensuring that the correct medication as prescribed by the doctor is given to a night prisoner held in a police cell.

Paragraph 9·5 of code of practice C issued under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 provides that where a detained person is required to take or apply any medication in compliance with medical directions, the custody officer is responsible for its safekeeping and for ensuring that he is given the opportunity to take or apply it at the appropriate time.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has on the number of deaths of drivers and pedestrians caused by cars taken without the owner's consent in each year since 1980.

The information is not available centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken to obtain the views of interested parties on the subject of a national lottery since 17 January; and if he will make a statement.

We are considering carefully how best to consult interested parties about the issues raised by a national lottery; an annoucement will be made as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many refugees were accepted from Yugoslavia in each of the years 1989, 1990 and 1991.

The information is given in the table. At end-January 1992, around 430 asylum applications by Yugoslav nationals, mainly made in the last three months of 1991, were still under consideration.

Grants1of asylum in the United Kingdom to Yugoslav nationals
	Grants of asylum
1989	—
1990	1
2 31991	1
1Excluding dependants.
2 Information for 1991 may understate because of delays in recording: information for October to December is not yet available.
3 January to September.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to ensure that prospective importers of heroin—diamorphine—keep standards of transport security and site security equal to those maintained by the current United Kingdom supplier.

No decision has yet been taken to license the commercial importation of diamorphine. A precondition for the grant of any licence to deal in diamorphine is that the drugs inspectorate is satisfied on the arrangements proposed by the prospective licensee for transport and site security.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions in each of the last 10 years his Department has been notified by the registrar general that a proposed marriage is purely one of convenience.

Statistics of such notifications are not maintained.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were (a) prosecuted for begging, (b) convicted of begging, (c) prosecuted for sleeping rough and (d) convicted of sleeping rough in the Metropolitan police district in 1990 and 1991.

Information for 1989 and 1990, which is provisional, is given in the table. 1991 data are not yet available.

Number of persons prosecuted and convicted for offences of begging and sleeping out under the Vagrancy Act 1824 in the metropolitan police district 1989 and 19901
	Begging		Sleeping out
	Prosecutions	Convictions	Prosecutions	Convictions
Metropolitan police district
1989	1,251	1,188	12	10
11990	1,445	1,308	12	11
City of London
1989	5	5	—	—
11990	3	3	1	1
1Provisional.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will discuss with chief constables the need for DNA samples to be taken from all those convicted of violent crimes; if he will maintain a national register of such DNA information; and if he will make a statement.

There are practical, legal and ethical issues in the collection of samples for DNA profiling and in the development of a national DNA database. My right hon. Friend has asked the Royal Commission on criminal justice to consider this subject and we await its recommendations.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests have been made under the Vagrancy Act 1824 in Wales in each of the last five years.

Information on the number of people who are arrested is not collected centrally. The data given in the table relate to the number of persons prosecuted and convicted for offences under the Vagrancy Act 1824 in Wales from 1986 to 1990, information for which is provisional.

Number of persons prosecuted and convicted of offences under the Vagrancy Act 1824 in Wales—1986 to 19901
Year	Prosecutions	Convictions
1986	114	82
1987	96	72
1988	127	88
1989	88	65
19901	111	77
1 Provisional.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will give consideration to deferring his determination of the proposed new parliamentary constituencies for Hampshire until such time as the Local Government Commission has brought forward its recommendations for the future structure of local government in Hampshire.

No. A general review of all parliamentary constituencies in England is currently being undertaken by the Boundary Commission, which is under a statutory duty to make a report to my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary within the time scale laid down in the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986. As part of that review process, the commission publishes provisional recommendations—in the case of parliamentary constituencies in Hampshire, these were published on 6 February—and then considers any resulting representations, together with the outcome of any local inquiry which it may hold, when making its final report. My right hon. Friend will consider that report when it is submitted.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, on his visit to Hong Kong in March 1990, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State took part in party political activities in addition to official duties.

During my visit to Hong Kong I had a number of official engagements and meetings. I also had a private engagement with representatives from Conservatives Abroad.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date he received the letter from the Hillsborough Family Support Group sent to him on 22 October 1991; and when he expects to reply.

The letter from the Hillsborough Family Support Group was received in my office on 23 October 1991. A reply has now been sent by my officials. I apologise to the group for the delay in replying.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent investigations he has undertaken into the current operation of credit reference agencies; and what information came out of those investigations.

The operation of credit reference agencies is a matter for the Director General of Fair Trading and the Data Protection Registrar. I understand that they keep this matter under review.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received on the operation of credit reference agencies; and what response he has made.

I have received 15 written representations on the operation of credit reference agencies since the beginning of 1991. Enforcement of the law bearing on the operation of credit reference agencies is a matter for the Data Protection Registrar, the data protection tribunal and the Director General of Fair Trading.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the expenditure and achievements of his Department in north Yorkshire during 1991; and what was the comparable position between June 1979 and May 1980.

[holding answer 11 February 1992]: The readily available information is as follows. The Home Office pays specific grant on a proportion of the county council's expenditure on the police, magistrates courts and probation services and on civil defence. The proportion varies according to the service. My Department also pays grant under section 1I of the Local Government Act 1966 to enable the county council to employ additional staff to meet the special needs of local communities of Commonwealth origins. Information on the payment of these grants, and on Home Office expenditure on Her Majesty's prison service establishments in north Yorkshire, and on the emergency planning college at Easingwold, is as follows.

Specific grant paid in respect of expenditure in financial year
£000s
	1979–80	1991–921
Police2	8,322	28,869
Magistrates courts3	6	2,478
Probation3	6	2,185
Civil Defence4	6	368
Section 115	0	16
1Estimated.
2Rate of Grant: 50 per cent. in 1979–80, 51 per cent. in 1991–92
3 Rate of Grant: 80 per cent.
4 Rate of Grant: mainly 100 per cent.
5Rate of Grant: 75 per cent.
6 Not available.

Net operating costs of the two prison service establishments in north Yorkshire in 1990–91: £6·169 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what new measures he plans to introduce to combat the importation of illegal drugs into the United Kingdom.

I have been asked to reply.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise is the Department with the primary responsibility for combating the importation of illegal drugs into the United Kingdom. The Department is engaged in a number of initiatives both at home and on the international scene.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise chairs the mutual assistance group 1992 on customs co-operation within the European Community which is working towards greater co-operation and the strengthening of the external border of the Community. An important feature is the sharing of intelligence and arrangements are in hand to implement a computerised intelligence system—to be known as the customs information system—early in 1992. A new protocol to the Naples convention is also under discussion with the aim of improving co-operation between customs administrations in criminal matters covering such areas as cross border surveillance and controlled deliveries.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise is also participating in plans for the new European drugs unit, which will help to co-ordinate the intelligence resources of law enforcement agencies across the European Community. The Department, with its wide experience in anti-smuggling work, will be fully represented in the new agency alongside the police.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise, in conjunction with the Customs Co-operation Council, is taking a leading role in an international initiative to promote co-operation between customs authorities and international carriers. A major objective is to secure advance information about suspect persons or consignments, so as to enable customs to target its anti-drugs operations more effectively. Through the ratification of the 1988 Vienna convention on drugs, Customs and Excise is also engaged in developing international working arrangements under the Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 1990 for the boarding of vessels in international waters and under the same legislation has also implemented, in July 1991, the arrangements for the seizure of cash suspected of being the proceeds from, or for use in, drug smuggling.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise is also about to increase its capability in aerial surveillance and is co-operating in extended international surveillance exercises. It is extending its network of drugs liaison officers overseas and is actively pursuing its training programme for overseas customs and drugs law enforcement officials. The programme is targeted primarily at drug source and drug transit countries.Her Majesty's Customs and Excise is also alive to the dangers of the illicit trade in the precursor chemicals used to manufacture drugs. The United Kingdom has been to the fore in encouraging the development of effective measures to counter this trade and we are currently working with our EC partners on a revised regulation to ensure consistent and effective action across the Community.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether, on his visit to Hong Kong in September 1988, the Minister of State took part in party-political activities in addition to official duties.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Chester (Sir. P. Morrison) met fellow Conservatives in the margins of official duties on his visit to Hong Kong in September 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether, on his visit to Hong Kong in June 1988, he took part in party political activities in addition to official duties.

Table 1: Coal imports by port of entry, 1979 to 1991 Value of imports
£ million
Port of entry	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991
Immingham	3	4	0	1	0	13	32	47	22	31	47	85	112
London (including Tilbury)	16	37	15	18	34	12	72	20	22	31	34	80	101
Port Talbot	20	20	36	49	36	91	90	63	69	65	87	112	93
Middlesbrough	28	36	41	29	27	63	113	103	86	79	96	104	95
Medway	7	24	10	11	12	6	32	29	23	24	29	41	79
Greenock	0	12	19	22	36	46	85	47	41	35	38	37	39
Liverpool	12	30	16	—	1	2	17	6	6	1	13	36	35
Belfast	1	3	6	7	9	32	37	13	10	12	14	21	23
Cardiff	4	12	0	—	0	0	5	11	9	13	9	17	20
Swansea	0	0	0	0	0	0	—	0	0	4	7	6	16
Hull	—	—	—	—	0	0	1	1	1	—	2	4	14
Trent	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	34	17	15	14	12	11
Other ports	46	36	16	46	60	228	195	69	63	107	78	52	66
Total	138	215	158	182	215	493	678	443	368	418	469	605	703

Table 2: Coal imports by country of origin, 1979 to 1991 Value of imports
£ million
Country	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991
U.S.A1	35	106	72	81	48	160	166	139	105	148	183	255	290
Australia1	60	77	57	45	85	84	253	149	115	106	89	152	171
Colombia1	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	2	12	21	34	44	71
South Africa	1	3	4	3	3	16	39	12	7	12	14	14	26
Canada	0	0	—	0	—	6	19	16	12	16	26	38	26

My right hon. Friend the Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Parkinson) did not take part in any political activities on his visit to Hong Kong in June 1988.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what discussions he has had with the Major Energy Users Council relating to electricity prices; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend and I met representatives of the Major Energy Users Council—MEUC—on 12 February to discuss electricity prices for large consumers, and listened carefully and sympathetically to their concerns. My right hon. Friend asked the MEUC to provide detailed information about past and present electricity prices for MEUC members, on an individual site or company basis, as well as about other options to reduce energy costs which companies may have investigated, such as on-site generation or energy efficiency measures. It agreed to do so. Although my right hon. Friend and I fully appreciate the concerns of the MEUC about the levels of its electricity prices, it was made clear to it that the Government would not provide public subsidies. The Government remain fully confident that they have set in place adequate safeguards to protect the interests of all consumers in the electricity market.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will give by year for each year from 1979 the value of coal imported (a) in cash and (b) in real terms into the United Kingdom showing in his answer (i) the port the coal was unloaded at and (ii) the country of origin of the coal.

[holding answer 4 February 1992]: The figures for coal imports, including the costs of insurance and freight, are shown in the tables:

To ask the Minister for the Arts when the shelving at the British Library development at St. Pancras will be in usable condition; and when he expects the official opening to take place.

Problems have been experienced with the mechanical movement and paint treatment of the basement bookshelving. A solution to the mechanical problem has been factory tested and the British Library is carrying out its own tests in the basements at St. Pancras. Tests on the paint, however, have shown there may be inadequate paint protection in places. A number of options are under discussion with the contractor concerned. Until the outcome of these discussions is known it is not possible to say when the library can start to move its collections into the new building. The bookshelves are a small, albeit important, part of the overall project. The rest of the project is essentially unaffected by the bookshelving and is still progressing within the cash budget set for it in 1988. An announcement about the official opening will be made as soon as uncertainties have been resolved.

To ask the Minister for the Arts whether on his visit to Hong Kong in September 1990, the then Minister took part in party political activities in addition to official duties.

The visit to Hong Kong in October 1990 of my predecessor, my right hon. and learned Friend the present Chief Secretary to the Treasury, involved official duties only.

To ask the Minister for the Arts what funding he proposes to make available for the European arts festival to mark the United Kingdom's presidency of the European Community in the second half of 1992; and if he will make a statement.

We will be making £6 million available for the European arts festival over the two financial years 1991–92 and 1992–93.Parliamentary approval for this new service in the current financial year will be sought in a supplementary estimate for the Office of Arts and Libraries vote—class XII, vote 2. Pending that approval, urgent expenditure estimated at £100,000 will be met by repayable advances from the Contingencies Fund.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he last met representatives of the Child Poverty Action Group to discuss the effects of the Government's economic policy on child poverty.

My right hon. Friend last met representatives of the CPAG in June 1990.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the increase in share ownership in Yorkshire as a result of denationalisation.

The number of adults owning shares in the Yorkshire and Humberside region has increased by over 50 per cent. since 1987. The privatisations of nationalised industries have played a significant role in introducing the benefits of share ownership to an increasing proportion of the public.