To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he intends taking following the escape of six remand prisoners from the remand centre at Crownhill police station, Plymouth, on 29 May.

Responsibility for the security of police facilities used to hold remand prisoners lies with the chief officer of police concerned. I understand that the Devon and Cornwall constabulary is enquiring into the circumstances of the escape and reviewing the relevant security arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will describe what action he proposes to take to combat crime in north Yorkshire.

[pursuant to his reply, 14 May 1992 c. 730]: In answering the hon. Member's supplementary question to the above question, I passed on information which I now know to have been inaccurate. The average annual rate of increase in recorded crime in the North Yorkshire police area between 1974 and 1979 was 1·5 per cent. and between 1979 and 1991 7·8 per cent. I apologise to the hon. Member for any inconvenience caused by the earlier inaccurate information.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) how many unemployed people were disqualified for unemployment benefit and for what periods, under each paragraph of section 20(1) of the Social Security Act 1975, in the area covered by the Newport, Gwent unemployment benefit office in the week commencing 8 June; and if she will place this information in the Library;(2) what information is available to her, and from what sources, as to the lengths of periods of disqualification for unemployment benefit imposed under section 20(1) of the Social Security Act 1975.

Questions on operational matters in the Employment Service Executive Agency are the responsibility of the agency's chief executive, to whom I have referred this question for reply.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what plans her Department has to submit films on (a) well-being at work, (b) safety at work, (c) control of air pollution at work or (d) the control of noise and vibrations at work, for the European video film festival on safety, hygiene and health protection at work sponsored by the European Commission, to be held in Thessaloniki in October.

We expect that the United Kingdom film and video industry will be well represented at the European video film festival.The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has written to more than 250 film and video producers in the United Kingdom who are known to have made health and safety videos which may be eligible for entry to the film festival.HSE will also select suitable videos made by its own film unit and videos commissioned from outside producers for submission to the European Commission by the 19 June deadline.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will publish a table setting out the budget allocations to each TEC for each block of their expenditure for 1992–93.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood (Ms. Short) on 19 May 1992, Official Report, column 134.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what engagements she is planning to have with her European counterparts in the next three weeks.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment will be meeting European Community employment ministers at the Social Affairs Council on 24 June. Before the Council, she plans to met a number of her counterparts.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what decisions he has made on the recommendations of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art in its recent report; and if he will make a statement on the proposal for the introduction of a very restricted list of heritage objects which could be prohibited from export.

I share the view, expressed by almost all who made representations on the report, that the disadvantages of listing far outweigh the advantages. Listing would represent a diminution in the rights of owners to dispose of their property as they saw fit. And prohibition upon the export of outstanding heritage items would distort the market value, both for outstanding items and others. Therefore, I have firmly decided against the committee's recommendation, made most reluctantly, to list works of art.The protection of the heritage is one of my prime concerns. There are, however, ways of achieving that aim other than listing, such as the scheme for acceptances in lieu of tax. The recent acquisitions of the paintings "Portrait of a lady with a squirrel and a starling" by Holbein and "The Old Horse Guards, London from St. James's Park" by Canaletto demonstrate the role that both the private and public sectors can play. I have assumed responsibility for the controls on licensing the export of works of art, formerly undertaken by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade, with effect from 1 June 1992. I am considering the committee's other largely procedural recommendations.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will give an estimate for the total expenditure by his Department on press and public relations in 1992–93.

Estimated expenditure by the Department of National Heritage on press and public relations for 1992–93 is likely to be in the region of £250,000 for running costs, and £500,000 on staffing costs.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if the Buildings at Risk Trust has, directly or indirectly, received public funds from his Department; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 2 June 1992]: The Buildings at Risk Trust has been offered a grant of £12,975 for 1992–93 towards the costs of running its Buildings at Risk Advisory Service. This grant was offered under the Department of the Environment's special grants programme, the heritage element of which is now the responsibility of my Department. No grant has yet been claimed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will estimate the number of schools sports grounds that have been sold by local education authorities each year since 1979.

The information which the hon. Member requests is unavailable, since local education authorities are not required to inform the Department of disposals of surplus land and buildings. However, the DES included a specific sum of £0·5 million in the Sports Council's grant-in-aid for 1991–92 for the preparation of a register of recreational land to monitor gains and losses in playing fields. The register is due for completion by June 1993.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what process of appeal there is against the Minister's decision to close a school, when new or corrected information becomes available.

There is no statutory process of appeal. It is open to a party with an interest in the matter to challenge a decision in the courts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will list the average number of hours per week devoted to physical education in secondary schools for each year since 1981.

This information is not collected centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what educational criteria he is using to determine applications from schools for grant-maintained status;(2) what financial criteria he is using to determine applications for grant-maintained status.

My right hon. Friend determines each application for grant-maintained status on its merits, taking account of individual schools' circumstances. His main concern is that all grant maintained schools should be viable in both educational and financial terms.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many applications from religious schools for voluntary-aided status over the last three years have been (a) granted and (b) refused; and if he will list the religious denomination of each such application, and of each application which is currently being considered.

The following table gives the information requested. (This excludes schools formed by the amalgamation of existing voluntary schools but includes applications for new voluntary aided schools where no independent school already existed.) There are no applications made within the last three years that are currently under consideration but following a judicial review my right hon. Friend is currently reconsidering an application made prior to June 1989 for the establishment of a Muslim voluntary-aided school.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will list the criteria he applies when considering applications from religious schools for voluntary-aided status; and what changes or modifications have been made in those criteria over the past three years.

In reaching a decision, my right hon. Friend takes account of a number of factors, including:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will take steps to quantify the increase of time devoted by voluntary governors of primary and secondary schools respectively consequent on (a) increased responsibilities arising from local management of schools and (b) further requirements of time on governors of grant maintained secondary schools.

A survey carried out by the National Foundation for Educational Research in 1990 found that the average amount of time spent by governors on their duties was 10 hours a term rising to 20 hours for heads and 30 for chairmen. There was no substantial difference between primary and secondary school governors, and it is not evident that more governor time is necessarily needed in a grant-maintained school.I pay tribute to the many parents, teachers, and others who voluntarily give of their time to run their local schools.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps are being taken by his Department to tackle the imbalance between women and men in promotional posts and at levels of senior management in both the teaching and lecturing professions.

Employers should be fully aware of the existing statutory requirements governing gender issues in employment. It is not for the Department to seek to influence the choices they may make in appointments to senior management posts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in developing measures to control vehicle speeds through villages; and if he will make a statement.

Since the announcement last July that the Department was to take action jointly with the County Surveyors' Society, a working group has been established on which the Scottish Office and the Welsh Office are also represented. The group has met several times, and has produced an interim report. A number of schemes have been identified in villages on trunk and county roads across England, Wales, and Scotland on which a variety of traffic calming and related measures are to be introduced to constrain vehicle speeds. These schemes will be monitored through the summer and autumn. The results will be evaluated, and will feed into a final report from the working group which I am expecting early next year. This work will provide the basis for detailed guidance to highway authorities on the measures which prove most effective.A leaflet has been produced describing the main features of the working group's deliberations and its interim report. This has been deposited in the Library, and copies are available on request from the Department's traffic policy division.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the research undertaken into the risk of fire in the channel tunnel will be placed before the House.

Many of the tests and studies relating to the risk of fire in the tunnel shuttle trains are being undertaken by Eurotunnel; publication of the results of any of that work is a matter for the company but the safety authority proposes to publish a general commentary on the work. It will not be possible to publish the commentary until the tests and studies have been completed; this will occur next year at a later stage of commissioning.In addition, Eurotunnel has commissioned a study of the overall safety of the tunnel system. The safety authority has employed consultants to review Eurotunnel's work and proposes, next year, to issue a report on the outcome.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out his proposals for the privatisation of the principal trust ports and municipal airports in the United Kingdom.

Under the Ports Act 1991 four trust ports, Clyde, Forth, Medway and Tees and Hartlepool, have already successfully sought privatisation and a fifth, the Port of London Authority, has sold its commercial docks at Tilbury into the private sector. My right hon. Friend believes that the proper place for the major trust ports is in the private sector and he hopes that more of them will bring themselves forward for privatisation. He recognises however that the circumstances of the individual trust ports vary greatly. Before compelling a port to privatise itself under the powers in the Ports Act which will become available to him in July of next year he will consider its circumstances very carefully.As regards municipal airports I refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Hazel Grove (Sir T. Arnold) on 18 May 1992,

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what studies he has undertaken of the safety issues raised by the towed sonar/seismic survey being undertaken off the Needles in view of the congestion in these waters at this time of year from yachts and pleasure craft;(2) if he will undertake a special survey into the safety aspects of the towed seismic survey being undertaken off the Needles in respect of the congestion of these waters at the present time of year.

Ships engaged in seismic surveys are required to show the signals prescribed in the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea which indicate they are restricted in their ability to manoeuvre. Special surveys are undertaken if a need is clearly identified, but no approach has been made in respect of seismic surveys off the Needles.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the progress being made by the French authorities for the broadcast of NAVTEX information in English.

The international language for NAVTEX broadcasts is English. I understand that the French authorities have recently begun to issue NAVTEX broadcasts from Brest in English, but warnings broadcast by the French elsewhere in the English channel are not available through NAVTEX. However, the Hydrographic Office monitor these French broadcasts and arrange for them to be re-issued in English by NAVTEX where appropriate.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give a breakdown of his Department's expenditure by the smallest geographic unit possible.

The latest estimates of general Government expenditure on transport by territory and region are given in appendix E of "Public Expenditure Analyses to 1994–95: Statistical Supplement to the Autumn Statement", Cm. 1920.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many payments have been made by the Deposit Protection Board to depositors of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International in terms of (a) numbers and (b) value.

I understand that up to close of business on 28 May 1992 payments have been made by the Deposit Protection Board to some 450 depositors of BCCI, involving total protection payments of some £1·6 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a further statement on the Deposit Protection Board and payments to former depositors of BCCI.

The amount which the Deposit Protection Scheme will pay out to former depositors of BCCI will depend on how many depositors make valid claims under the scheme. The Deposit Protection Board is anxious to make payments as soon as practicable, in line with its statutory duty.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date the first payment was made under the Deposit Protection Board to former depositors of BCCI.

I understand that the Deposit Protection Board made the first payments to former depositors of BCCI on 16 April 1992.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many applications have been made to the Deposit Protection Board for compensation by former depositors of BCCI.

I understand that, as at close of business on 28 May 1992, some 15,000 applications for compensation have been made to the Deposit Protection Board by former depositors of BCCI.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what evaluation Her Majesty's customs and waterguard service has made of the use of airborne radar surveillance to counter drug smuggling and illegal immigration; and if he will list the aircraft available to Her Majesty's customs for these duties.

Her Majesty's Customs in association with other Government Departments carry out target-based and routine aerial surveillance over land, territorial and international waters. A procurement exercise is being evaluated to establish a managed aerial surveillance service uniquely for the Department using the best of modern technology including radar.For security reasons, it is not the practice to identify specific aircraft used.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list his quoted shareholdings together with their value and the percentage of the issued share capital owned by Her Majesty's Government.

The table shows the ordinary shares held by the Government, their market valuation and the percentage of the issued share capital that they represent.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what contingency plans he has made to deposit funds in Europe if public borrowing exceeds the limit set by the Maastricht treaty.

There is no need for such contingency plans. The Maastricht treaty does not set a limit on public borrowing. A member state would have to be judged to be running an "excessive" budget deficit for sanctions to be imposed, and such sanctions will not apply until stage 3 of economic and monetary union, and then only as a last resort. Although the United Kingdom has no obligation to move to stage 3, the Government's policies are designed to avoid running deficits that might be judged excessive.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his policy towards the proposal advanced in April by the treasurer of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, that the United Kingdom write-off debts inherited by countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States from the former Soviet Union in exchange for the provision to the United Kingdom of recoverable nuclear materials.

The safety of nuclear materials in the republics of the former Soviet Union is a key concern, as is the whole process of economic adjustment in those republics, including the servicing of debts. The United Kingdom is working closely with other Governments and international institutions on these issues. Linking the two issues, which raise widely differing concerns, would not be helpful.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what advice he has received from the European Commission about the levying of value added tax on food, electricity and children's clothing; what proposals the Commission has made concerning the jurisdiction of the European Court in this matter; and if he will make a statement.

None. All the United Kingdom's current zero rates are guaranteed by the Sixth VAT Directive which can be amended only by unanimous agreement of all member states.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimated (a) contribution to the European Community by the United Kingdom and (b) receipts from the European Community to the United Kingdom in each of the five last years for which figures are available.

[holding answer 21 May 1992]: Information concerning United Kingdom contributions to and receipts from the Community Budget for the years 1987–91 is set out in the following table. The figure for receipts covers public sector receipts only: the Commission does not provide member states with details of payments made directly to the private sector.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what printing contracts the company Hunterprint had or has outstanding with HMSO; and if he will give the dates and details of the nature and subject matter of the printed material for each contract.

The hon. Gentleman's question falls within the scope of the policy announced in Cm 1263: arrangements have therefore been made for the Controller and Chief Executive of HMSO to respond direct. Copies of the letter will be placed in the House Library and with the Public Information Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make further funds available towards the costs of non-governmental organisation projects in Vietnam.

In May 1990, we committed £1 million to help finance non-government organisations' development projects in the two provinces to which the majority of the boat people return. This money has now been fully allocated to 18 projects which are having a positive local impact. I have now decided to commit a further £1 million towards the cost of further NGO projects in areas to which the majority of migrants will be returning. This new tranche will be focused on job creation projects and projects which have a direct effect on the economic well-being of the communities. This £1 million will be additional to expenditure in Vietnam under the joint funding scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what commitments to increase overseas development aid will be made by the United Kingdom to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development.

The Government are willing to provide new and additional resources to the replenishment of the global environment facility, if other donors also do so. The GEF will help finance actions by developing countries, related particularly to climate change and biodiversity, which have benefits globally but which would not be justified in terms of their national benefits alone.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what help he proposes to give to the second phase of the special programme for Africa which was set up by the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Hazel Grove (Sir T. Arnold) on 13 May at column. 141.

To ask the Prime Minister if he has any plans to further consider awarding compensation to veterans of British nuclear tests and, or their families; and if he will make a statement.

The Government will consider sympathetically a claim for compensation on behalf of any ex-service man who can be shown to have suffered ill health from exposure to ionising radiation as a result of duties in connection with the nuclear test programme. An expert study conducted in 1988 by the National Radiological Protection Board conceded that the overall incidence of death and malignant disease among British nuclear test veterans has been no worse than for people who were not involved in the tests. A further report from the NRPB on more recent data on mortality and cancer evidence is expected later this year.

To ask the Prime Minister when he received the proposals from the United Nations for a meeting between representatives of the United Kingdom and Libyan Governments to discuss security issues relating to the supply of arms to the Provisional IRA; what will be the areas of discussion at the meeting on 9 June; and if he will explain the manner in which these arrangements were made public.

The United Nations Secretary-General told us on 14 May that the Libyan Foreign Minister had written to him offering to meet our long-standing request for information on Libya's connections with the Provisional IRA. We have agreed to a meeting under UN auspices in Geneva on 9 June at which this information can be handed over. There will be no discussion at the meeting. In response to press inquiries, the Secretary-General's spokesman in New York confirmed on 1 June that this meeting would take place.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will take steps to ensure that the outcome of meetings of the Council of Ministers of the European Communities held between 13 March and 6 May are reported in the usual way, in cases where such action has not yet been taken.

I have asked my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to write to the hon. Member and to place a copy of his letter in the Libraries of both Houses.

To ask the Prime Minister what communications Her Majesty's Government have received from the Government of Libya relating to two persons allegedly connected with the Lockerbie bombing of Pan Am 103.

We have had various approaches from Libyans and intermediaries over the Lockerbie bombing. None of these amounts to Libyan compliance with UN Security Council resolutions 731 and 748.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans he has to establish a sustainable development commission in the United Kingdom in conjunction with the United Nations.The Prime Minister: I have no such plans.

To ask the Prime Minister when he next expects to meet President Bush; and what matters he proposes to discuss.

I shall meet President Bush at Camp David this weekend. I expect to discuss a wide range of subjects with him.

To ask the Prime Minister what proposals on transfers of military spending to environmental investment will be put forward by the United Kingdom at the United Nations conference on environment and development.

There are no plans to put forward any such proposal.

To ask the Prime Minister what attempts have been made to minimise the use of official cars by the United Kingdom delegation to the United Nations conference on environment and development in Rio de Janeiro this month.

We have made it a priority to limit the use of official cars at the Earth summit in Rio.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will set out details of the critical representations made to Her Majesty's Government since 31 May on the United Kingdom's policies and proposals for the United Nations conference on environment and development in Rio de Janeiro; and what response he has made to the respective criticisms.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave the hon. Member for Ceredigion and Pembroke, North (Mr. Dafis) on 2 June 1992 at column 392.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish figures similar to those in his Department's tax/benefit model table, including the various component figures, showing net weekly spending power for a married couple with one child aged 16 years where (a) both parents are unemployed and the child is at school, (b) one parent takes up employment in May 1992 for four hours a day, five days a week at rates of pay of (i) £2 per hour, (ii) £2.50 per hour and (iii) £3 per hour, and the child is at school and (c) the parent remains in employment as at (b) but the child leaves school and is unable to gain a youth training place, after family credit entitlement of 26 weeks has elapsed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the latest annual figures for the London borough of Lambeth for the number of claims for (a) housing benefit, (b) income support and (c) family credit; and what those figures were one year ago and two years ago.

The administration of income support and family credit is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available, and copies will be placed in the Library and the Public Information Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will reassess the benefit needs of persons aged 16 and 17 years living with parents on benefit; and if he will make a statement.

Those 16 and 17-year-olds living with parents on benefit, and not in full-time education, employment or training, may in certain circumstances be eligible for income support under the severe hardship provision. When assessing any claim so made, full account is taken of parents' circumstances.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people in England and Wales are paying their water rates via deduction from social security.

At the end of February 1992 there were 116,890 income support recipients with deductions for

The information requested is in the tables. All assumptions used are as those in the published tax/benefit model tables. Each family is assumed to live in council property appropriate to its size and to pay estimated average rent and community charge.It should be noted that the results in the tables cannot reflect, except by chance, the actual circumstances of particular people and cannot claim to be representative of the population at large. The tables use illustrative rents and do not, therefore, reflect the full range of housing costs which people may face.water charges. This figure is based on statistics collected by the Benefits Agency's management information system at the end of February 1992. The figure is provisional and may be subject to amendment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps he has taken in the past 12 months to find out to what extent income support claimants were in arrears with their mortgage payments, and what information has become available to his Department, centrally or locally, as a result.

All income support claimants with mortgages have been sent a form, which they were required to have completed and returned by their lenders, giving information about their mortgage account. If the account is in arrears, the total arrears and details of payments made in the last three months are entered on the form. The completed forms are kept with the claimant's case papers for use in calculating and paying the mortgage interest element of income support. The information on the forms is not collated centrally or locally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many and what percentage of income support claimants in the South Gwent and Islwyn district with mortgage liabilities were in arrears with their mortgage payments, in total and by ranges of amounts of arrears and numbers of monthly instalments unpaid, at the latest date for which figures are available.

I understand from Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency that the information is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people face a marginal tax/benefit withdrawal rate of 70 per cent. or more; and how many of them are in receipt of family credit.

In 1992–93, it is projected that 490,000 heads of benefit units receiving income-related benefits, where at least one partner works 16 hours a week or more, face marginal deduction rates of 70 per cent. or over. It is estimated that 375,000 of them would receive family credit.Projections are based on three years pooled family expenditure survey data uprated to 1992–93 prices, taxes and benefit levels. They do not take into account disability working allowance, or transitional protection associated with the change in the family credit/income support hours rule.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether there has been any change in the cash limited expenditure of his Department for 1992–93.

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class XIV vote 3 (housing benefit administration and community charge benefit administration, payments into the social fund in respect of discretionary expenditure and other grants) will be increased by £13,981,000 from £351,991,000 to £365,972,000. This revision takes account of an increase in the grant-in-aid to the Independent Living Fund (£13,981,000) to enable it to continue to help severely disabled persons to live independently. The increase will be charged to the reserve and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will erect warning signs near Queensferry roundabout warning lorry drivers of the low railway bridge at Shotton; and if he will make a statement.

This is a county road matter and one for Clwyd county council to consider as the local highway authority.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of overall industrial output in Wales is accounted for by the defence industry.

The information required is not available centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total number of (a) male and (b) female primary and secondary school teachers; and how many (i) male and (ii) female headteachers there are in each sector in Wales.

The information requested is contained in the publication entitled "Statistics of Education in Wales: Schools—No. 5 1991", section 5, tables 5.06–5.08, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to ensure that all lists of candidates for public appointments in Wales contain equal numbers of men and women.

All public appointments are made on the basis of aptitude and merit. In addition to those overriding criteria, other factors are taken into account.I have agreed an action plan designed to increase the proportion of public appointments held by women. As part of this, officials are required to include at least two women in the shortlist of candidates.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total number of managers in Wales; and how many of them are women.

It is estimated from the 1991 labour force survey that there were 162,000 managers and administrators in Wales; of these 43,000 were women.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement concerning the provision of bilingual health promotion material by his Department to district health authorities in Wales.

Most of the health promotion materials used in Wales are produced by the Health Promotion Authority for Wales. Wherever possible, the authority published this material in Welsh or bilingual form.When the Department arranges the publication of its own posters it always ensures that they are either in bilingual format or are available in English and Welsh.This Department does distribute English-only posters which are produced by the Department of Health. We are currently examining means by which these can be translated, printed and made available in the Welsh language.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total number of (a) men and (b) women amongst the ranks of (i) senior lecturers and (ii) professors in further and higher education in Wales.

Information about the number of full-time staff in higher education, voluntary colleges and in higher and further education institutions maintained by local education authorities in 1990–91 is given in the following table together with information for the University of Wales which has been shown separately. Lecturers are categorised differently in the two groups, all categories of teaching staff are thus shown in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what were the total numbers of (a) male and (b) female pupils studying (i) computer science, (ii) physics, (iii) maths, (iv) biology, (v) music and (vi) drama up to (1) GCSE level or (2) A-Level in Wales in the last year for which figures are available.

Information on the number of pupils studying particular subjects is available from the 1989 secondary school staffing survey and is shown in the following table.Information for males and females separately is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish, for each day between 16 March and 9 April, all the official visits he undertook, indicating for each day the places he visited, the times he visited, the mode of transport he used and the total cost of all these visits.

During the recent general election campaign, the three Welsh Office Ministers retained all of their Welsh Office responsibilities. In a political capacity, I visited every constituency in Wales between 19 March and 9 April 1992. I also undertook three official engagements, listed in the table, travelling by car at no expense to the Welsh Office.OFFICIAL ENGAGEMENTS

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether it is his intention that the county council elections, due to be held in Wales in 1993, shall proceed as planned.

I have been approached by both local authority associations in Wales to consider the cancellation of the county council elections due in 1993. No decision on this has yet been taken.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the findings of the Marine Conservation Society's survey of the dog whelk population.

This survey is funded by the Department of the Environment and four annual reports have been received to date. The latest indicates that the effects of tributyl tin are still widespread around the United Kingdom coast, but suggests that there are indications that some populations are beginning to recover.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to publish his findings on the connection between tributyl tin and the decline of the dog whelk.

Government-funded research on the effects of TBT on dog whelks has been carried out by the Plymouth marine laboratory, the Scottish Office Agriculture and Fisheries Department and the Marine Conservation Society. Contractors are encouraged to publish their results in the open scientific literature; so far more than 30 such reports have been produced.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those areas where the dog whelk colonies are (a) on the increase and (b) in decline.

The dog whelk is the species showing the greatest sensitivity to TBT in United Kingdom waters. Despite gradual improvements in water quality since TBT-based paints were banned for use on small boats and fish farming equipment in 1987, dog whelks have not yet shown significant increases in population density. However, there is some evidence of limited improvement of breeding capacity at sites in Scotland (monitored by the Scottish Office Agriculture and Fisheries Department), on the south coast, including the Isle of Wight (monitored by Plymouth marine laboratory) and more generally around the United Kingdom coast (at sites surveyed by the Marine Conservation Society).

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate his Department has made of the likely effect on the level of benzene discharges as a result of increased use of recyclable plastic in vehicle production.

No estimation has been made. The most significant sources of benzene are car exhausts and fuel evaporation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action he will take to ensure that the current discharge of krypton to the atmosphere by the British Nuclear Fuels Limited reprocessing plant at Sellafield is stopped; and if he will make a statement.

Aerial discharges, including krypton, are subject to strict limits and conditions in the certificate of authorisation under the Radioactive Substances Act 1960. The limits are set to ensure no member of the public receives a radiation dose as a result of these discharges in excess of the recommended safety levels.Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution, in conjunction with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food are currently considering an application made by BNFL for the revision of this authorisation, I would not wish to pre-empt their deliberations nor the statutory public consultative process at this time.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment under what circumstances it is permissible for mains water supplies to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes (a) under glass, (b) for market gardening and (c) for conventional agriculture, respectively; and under what statutory rule or guidance water authorities may issue licences for use of ground and surface water, respectively, for purposes (b) and (c).

The supply of mains water to customers is entirely a matter for water undertakers. Under section 55 of the Water Industry Act 1991 they must supply water to any non-domestic premises unless doing so would be unreasonbly expensive or would affect their duty to supply water to domestic premises. A mains supply to non-domestic premises may be used for any purpose unless specifically prohibited by the provisions of a drought order.Licences for the abstraction of ground or surface water are issued by the National Rivers Authority, using the Water Resources (Licences) Regulations 1965 in conjunction with section 38 of the Water Resources Act 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a list of all those regulations that an individual has to comply with in order to arrange to be buried on land owned by that individual.

No such regulations are necessary, but any individual considering such action should consult his local authority about a possible risk to public health. He should also comply with the Registration of Burials Act 1864.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he intends to take, during the United Kingdom presidency of the European Community, to ensure that the best possible safeguards for the welfare of animals kept in zoos are included in the EC proposal for a directive laying down the minimum standards for such animals.

The Government will continue to play an active and constructive role in the negotiations on the draft Zoos Directive with the intention of maintaining the high standards of care and accommodation already being set by zoos in this country under the Zoo Licensing Act 1981, and encouraging similar standards throughout the Community.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he has to meet the Council of Mortgage Lenders regarding assistance for householders whose outstanding mortgage debt exceeds the value of their houses; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friends the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Secretary of State for the Environment, the Secretary of State for Social Security and the Secretary of State for Wales met mortgage lenders on 2 June to review progress on the package of measures agreed between the Government and the Council of Mortgage Lenders in December to reduce the number of repossessions. It was agreed that lenders should continue to look at the whole range of options available for addressing this problem, including formal mortgage to rent schemes, shared equity arrangements and more generous repayment terms. These measures will help those householders who are in arrears with their mortgage repayments.For their part, the Government have enacted legislation for the direct payment to lenders of the mortgage interest element of income support, and has suspended until 19 August this year the requirement for stamp duty on transactions up to £250,000.The Council of Mortgage Lenders estimates that the measures taken since December will save some 55,000 repossessions this year: 40,000 as a result of new procedures for dealing with arrears cases; and 15,000 as a result of the direct payment to lenders of the mortgage interest element of income support.The combined effect of the measures taken by the Government and lenders will be to reduce the number of repossessions in 1992 and restore confidence to the housing market. Householders whose outstanding mortgage debt exceeds the value of their house will benefit from these measures, and from a revival of the housing market.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what statistics he has on the number of households in each region where the mortgage debt outstanding exceeds the value of the house.

The only information readily available relates to house purchases by first-time buyers. This has been published by the Council of Mortgage Lenders in the June issue of its newsletter, "Mortgage Monthly", which is held in the House of Commons Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the proposals put forward by the United Kingdom on (a) reducing fossil fuel use, (b) nuclear power, (c) minimising and management of hazardous wastes and (d) protecting biodiversity at the United Nations conference on environment and development.

The Government have played a full part in the negotiations on the climate change and biodiversity conventions, and supports the agenda 21 chapters on environmentally sound management of radioactive and hazardous wastes.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate the Government have made of the rate of extinction of endangered species if the biodiversity treaty is not signed.

We do not yet have the technology or knowledge to estimate precisely the rate of species extinction, but some estimates suggest that there may be as many as 50 million species on earth of which, if present trends continue, up to one third could become extinct by 2025.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those countries which have agreed to sign the treaty on biodiversity at the Earth summit and those which have not.

The convention on biological diversity will be open for signature from 5 June. We cannot speculate as to which countries will sign the convention, although we hope that the United Kingdom will be able to sign.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the composition of the British delegation to the Earth summit in Rio de Janeiro with particular reference to the numbers representing local government.

The United Kingdom delegation will consist of the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for the Environment, the Minister for Overseas Development, myself, and 30 officials from the Department of the Environment, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Overseas Development Agency, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Forestry Commission and from our diplomatic posts in Brazil. There are two local government representatives among the 12 observers who will form part of the United Kingdom delegation. The other observers represent environment and development groups, science, business, youth and trade unions.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the urban programme allocations to each urban programme authority for 1992–93.

Initial allocations to the urban programme authorities for 1992–93 were announced by my predecessor on 16 January 1992. Details are set out in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is Her Majesty's Government's strategy to reduce concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

The United Kingdom supports the ultimate objective of the framework convention on climate change which is to achieve stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. The commitments in the convention on limiting greenhouse gas emissions would be an important first step towards this objective.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he will publish the results of the national materials exposure programme; how many times the acid deposition building effects review group has met since the publication of its 1989 report; when the group will produce its next report; and if he will make a statement.

The acid deposition building effects review group last met in September 1991. There are no plans at this stage to produce a second report.Results of the national materials exposure programme will be published in the July 1992 edition of the scientific journal

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what evaluation he has made of the United Nations estimated figure of £125 billion per year needed to implement the agenda 21 proposals following the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development.

The costs of implementing agenda 21 are indicative estimates prepared by the UNCED secretariat. These have not been considered by Governments. Additional financial help from developed countries will be needed, but the costs will depend on individual countries' circumstances and how they decide to implement the activities presented in agenda 21. The Government have argued that the resources from agenda 21 must come from resetting national spending priorities and from mainstream aid.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment who will occupy the buildings at Vauxhall Cross and Thames house, Millbank, which are respectively under construction or being refurbished.

The Vauxhall Cross building is intended for occupation by the secret intelligence service. The building at Thames house, Millbank is intended principally for occupation by the security service.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in what circumstances questions by hon. Members seeking statistical information relating to services or benefits for which a next steps agency is responsible are (a) answered by Ministers and (b) referred to the agency's chief executive; and what assessment he has made of the consistency in the practice followed.

The Government's policy on answering questions on agency matters was most recently set out in the Government's reply to the Treasury and Civil Service Committee's 1991 report on the next steps initiative (Cm 1761), which said:

"In normal circumstances the source of the reply should follow the allocation of responsibilities as between the Secretary of State and the Chief Executive in the Agency's framework document; but in all cases the decision on who will respond rests with the Minister. The Government believes this is right and in accordance with important wider considerations about Ministerial accountability to Parliament. In time, as the system beds down, the Government expects that the cases which have given rise to concern will become fewer with any variations in practice kept to a minimum. The Governmennt will continue to keep the situation under review."

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence is available to the Department on the rate of hospital admissions of patients suffering from respiratory illnesses in the Greenwich health authority area by comparison with other health authority areas in London and in the south-east of England in the past two years.

This information is not collected centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what initiatives she has to extend compulsory competitive tendering for hospital portering services; and what studies she has carried out of the costs and benefits involved.

The Government's proposals to extend competitive tendering and other forms of market testing in the National Health Service were set out in the White Paper "Competing for Quality" published last November, a copy of which is available in the Library. The indications from the many health authorites who have market tested their portering services as a local initiative are that it leads to better specification of service, lower costs, and more flexible deployment of staff.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects to make public comments on the findings of the Tomlinson report on the future of the national health service management structure in London.

Sir Bernard and his team are keeping my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Health and Education and myself fully informed as the inquiry progresses. We shall decide how and when a public announcement of their advice should be made when that advice has been formally presented.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the key business targets for the Medicines Control Agency for 1992–93.

I have today placed in the Library a copy of the 1992–93 key business targets for the Medicines Control Agency.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many representations she has received about Birmingham city council's use of the Children Act 1989.

Four letters have been received about the Children Act and its provisions for regulating day care services for young children.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her latest estimate of the number of social workers approved under the Mental Health Act 1983.

This information is not held centrally. Approval of social workers under the Mental Health Act 1983 is the responsibility of local authority social services departments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many representations were made to her Department between 1985 and 1989 about the alleged failure of a certain consultant psychiatrist, whose name has been supplied to her, to comply with the requirements of part IV of the Mental Health Act 1983 in treating patients at Dorset house, Broadmoor special hospital; what was the nature of the alleged failures in compliance; what assessment was made of the validity of these representations; and what action was taken to ensure that all patients treated at Dorset house received the legal protection to which they were entitled under the Act;(2) what assessment was made by the Mental Health Act Commission of the alleged failure of a certain consultant psychiatrist, whose name has been supplied to her, to comply with part IV of the Mental Health Act 1983 in treating patients at Dorset house, Broadmoor special hospital between 1985 and 1989;(3) what were the circumstances and terms of the agreement under which a certain consultant psychiatrist, whose name has been supplied to her, ceased to be employed at Broadmoor hospital; what is his current employment; and what responsibilities this includes for persons detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 and treated under part IV of that Act.

The consultant concerned took early retirement from Broadmoor hospital in December 1989. I cannot comment on representations or allegations about an individual employee or on the terms of any settlement which may have been agreed with that employee. His responsibilities in any subsequent national health service employment would be a matter for the employing body. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is required by section 120(1) of the Mental Health Act 1983 to keep under review the exercise of the powers and the discharge of the duties conferred or imposed by the Act relating to the detention of patients or to patients liable to be detained under the Act. This function is performed on my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's behalf by the Mental Health Act Commission as required by section 121(2) of the Act. Throughout the period from 1985 to 1989 Dorset house was visited regularly by members of the Commission. Their findings were reported to the Department which considered them and took action as necessary (from 1 October 1989 this became the direct responsibility of the newly-established Special Hospitals Service Authority).

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will establish a forum of residential care organisations to develop policy on residential care.

We shall be giving careful consideration to all the recommendations contained in Lady Howe's report on residential care which are relevant to the Department.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the closure of Mapperley hospital.

The closure of Mapperley hospital is a matter for the district health authority. The hon. Member can obtain a detailed report by writing to the district chairman.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the Department's priorities are for the United Kingdom presidency of the EC.

We will seek to increase intergovernmental co-operation on public health issues and take forward specific measures within the Health Council to promote health and to prevent disease.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dental surgeries offered treatment within the national health service in 1979, 1983, 1987 and 1992.