To ask the Attorney-General if he will take action under section 3 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 to confiscate copies of the book published by Arrow Books of which the hon. Member for Shoreham has given him details.

It is the police rather than the Crown prosecution service who initiate proceedings under section 3 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 by the obtaining and execution of a search warrant. The Crown prosecution service would, however, expect to be consulted in advance of such action and would not endorse any such application in respect of the book in question in view of its decision not to institute proceedings under section 2 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959.

To ask the Attorney-General what consideration the Director of Public Prosecutions has given to prosecuting Mr. David Irving under the Race Relations Act 1976 over the organisation of revisionist seminars describing the holocaust as a liberal myth.

The Director of Public Prosecutions is not currently giving consideration to any proceedings against David Irving. Anyone who has evidence giving reasonable grounds to believe that an offence has been committed should report it to the police.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Indonesian military personnel have recently been awarded Foreign and Commonwealth Office scholarships awards schemes to study at the Royal College of Military Science at Shrivenham, Swindon.

Two Indonesian military officers are currently at the Royal College of Military Science at Shrivenham on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office scholarships award scheme. One student was at the college last year on the same basis; a further student is expected to attend the college in the next academic year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will cancel the invitations issued to Mr. Kustanto Widiatmoko, Mr. Akmad Buldan and Mr. Minulyo Suprato to attend the Royal College of Military Science at Shrivenham under his Department's scholarships and awards scheme, in view of Indonesia's human rights record.

Only one of the three Indonesians named —Mr. Widiatmoko—is to attend a course at the Royal College of Military Science, Shrivenham. The other two are to undertake studies at Nottingham university and at the Cranfield Institute of Technology, Bedford. There are no plans to cancel these scholarships awards. We do not believe that the cancellation of this form of educational assistance would help the human rights situation in Indonesia.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the outcome of the first meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe in Budapest, between 3 and 6 July.

I welcome the addition of a parliamentary dimension to the CSCE process, and in particular the adoption by the parliamentary assembly of declarations in favour of strengthening CSCE institutions. I agree with the assembly that respect for CSCE values, including parliamentary democracy and human rights, should be translated into every day practice, and that CSCE should seek to prevent and resolve conflicts both within and between states.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list the names of each of the organisations and individuals who have sent responses to the White Paper on a national lottery; and if he will make a statement on the timetable for completing his consultation process.

A total of 224 respondents were listed on 6 July, Official Report, columns 23–26, most of whom submitted their comments to the Home Office before 1 June. In addition, the Department of National Heritage has now received seven further communications from organisations and individuals. These are from the Continental On-Line Lottery and Totalisator Advisors; Nairn district council; Northern Arts; the Sports Council for Northern Ireland; the United Kingdom Lottery Company Limited; the Victoria and Albert museum; and the hon. Member. This brings the total to 231. Over the next few months we will continue discussions with key respondents. Legislation will be brought forward in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what proposals he has for reviewing press self-regulation.

When the report of the Committee on Privacy and Related Matters was published in June 1990, the then Home Secretary said that the Government would review the effectiveness of press self-regulation once the new Press Complaints Commission which the committee recommended be established had been in operation for 18 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will outline the priorities for future action of the green Minister in his Department (a) over the next year and (b) over this Parliament; and if he will make a statement.

Over the next 12 months, I shall continue to follow up commitments in the White Paper Cm 1200 "This Common Inheritance" and its successor Cm 1655 "The First Year Report". I shall also be contributing to the second anniversary White Paper in the autumn. By the end of 1992 my Department will have developed an environmental housekeeping strategy for the management of its accommodation and purchasing, and over the next year and beyond I shall continue to ensure that environmental concerns shape the policy and work of my Department whenever appropriate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total value of marine theft of United Kingdom vessels stolen in United Kingdom territorial waters for the last five years; and if he will tabulate.

The requested information is not collected centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation so that charges of (a) indecent assault. (b) assault occasioning actual bodily harm and (c) procurement of sex with a woman by false pretences, may be brought against a person who is an HIV/AIDS carrier who wilfully infects others; and if he will make a statement.

We have no current plans to introduce such legislation. There are difficulties both of principle and of practice in bringing this type of behaviour within the scope of the criminal law. The issue is, however, being kept under review and we will he taking into account the precedents in other countries before reaching a final view.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will refer to the Court of Appeal the conviction of Martin Foran, presently at Her Majesty's prison, Millers Park, following the receipt of the letter from the Crown prosecution service of 28 May, 11NN 158212 Foran, relating to non-disclosure of evidence during his application for leave to appeal.

We are considering, in the light of further representations from solicitors for Mr. Foran, including the letter to them of 28 May from the Crown prosecution service, whether there are any grounds to justify intervention in the case. I will write to my hon. Friend as soon as consideration of the representations is complete.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number of police officers in Wales relieved of duty because of criminal misconduct in (a) 1991, (b) 1990 and (c) 1989; and if he will make a statement.

The table gives total numbers of officers suspended from duty pending investigation of a criminal allegation, in respect of each of the four Welsh constabularies in the years in question. The figures in brackets denote the number of officers who were convicted of a criminal offence in those years. Any conviction of an officer who has been suspended from duty may take place in a year subsequent to that of his suspension.

	1989	1990	1991
Dyfed-Powys	0 (0)	3 (1)	0 (0)
Gwent	6 (0)	3 (1)	4 (1)
North Wales	3 (1)	1 (0)	4 (1)
South Wales	8 (6)	9 (3)	14 (1)
Total	17 (7)	16 (5)	22 (3)

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current backlog in dealing with referral cases at each of the immigration centres.

The information requested is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total number of passengers detained overnight under Immigration Act powers during 1991 by nationality.

[holding answer 3 July 1992]: The information requested is given in the table.

Passengers1 detained overnight or longer in 1991, by nationality
Geographical region and nationality2	Number of persons
All nationalities	8,016
European Community	35

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his reply of 18 May, Official Report, column 10, when he expects to make an announcement or decision on his study of the report submitted to his predecessor, the right hon. Member for Mole Valley (Mr. Baker), by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis on the case of Derek Bentley.

This report is receiving careful consideration together with other material which has been submitted more recently, including a letter and dossier received on 1 June from solicitors acting for Miss Iris Bentley. My right hon. and learned Friend will decide as soon as possible whether any action on his part would be appropriate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much public money has been made available to victim support organisations in the mid-Essex area in each of the last three available years.

Home Office funding of local victim support schemes is channelled through the National Association of Victim Support Schemes, and is allocated by the Victim Support local funding panel on which the Home Office has observer status. There is one local victim support scheme in the mid-Essex area, the Chelmsford and Braintree scheme. Home Office funding allocated to that scheme amounted to £14,484 in 1990–91, £15,788 in 1991–92, and is planned to amount to £26,208 in the current financial year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many deportation orders he has signed in each month in 1992.

The information is as follows:

	Number
January	62
February	49
March	74
April	109
May	77
June	85

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy on deporting foreign nationals whose families reside in this country and who have no means of support in their own country.

Deportation will normally be the proper course where a person subject to immigration control overstays a permitted leave, breaches a condition attached to it or engages in serious criminal or other activity against the public interest. Each case is considered on its merits having full regard to all known compassionate circumstances including age, character, domestic circumstances, length of residence in and strength of ties with the United Kingdom. The effect of deportation on a person's family in the United Kingdom and the situation he or she will face on return are factors to be taken into account.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will publish a statement of the annual objectives of the prison service and of the resources provided for it.

I am placing in the Library a copy of the "Statement of Objectives and Resources for HM Prison Service, 1992–93", which is being issued today.The statement forms the "compact" between Ministers and the Director General of the prison service recommended by Lord Justice Woolf. It sets out the prison service's purpose and goals, the planning assumptions and resources for 1992–93 and the service's objectives, targets and performance indicators.It was announced in March 1992 that it was intended that the prison service should become an executive agency on 1 April 1993. The framework document and corporate and business plans for the agency will succeed the present statement from 1993–94 onwards.

To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will list the substantive reports from the departmental Select Committees in the 1987 Parliament which have not been debated, or referred to on the Order Paper as relevant to a debate.

I regret that this information is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Lord President of the Council when he intends to publish the Top Salaries Review Body's report on the office costs allowance and the Government's response to it.

I have today placed copies of the TSRB's report in the Vote Office.

To ask the Chairman of the Accommodation and Works Committee what percentage of the floor space of 7 Millbank is to be used for House of Commons purposes; and if he will make a statement on the reasons for not leasing the whole building.

In response to the recommendation of the Services Committee that alternative accommodation should be provided for the occupants of St. Stephen's house, which has to be demolished as part of the works for the Jubilee line extension, the Secretary of State for the Environment took a lease on the basement, ground, first and second floors. Based on the figures provided by the landlord's agents, these floors represent some 50 per cent. of the total space available. Following the Parliamentary Corporate Bodies Act 1992, the lease has been transferred to the House authorities. The accommodation will become available during the summer recess.I understand that, in addition, the Department leased the third floor of 7 Millbank for use by the House of Lords.It is a matter for the Accommodation and Works Committee to consider against progress on the next phase of the new parliamentary building, whether further space should be taken in 7 Millbank or any of the other available buildings in the area.

To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, as representing the House of Commons Commission, what extra costs were incurred as a result of the Standing Committee considering the Finance Bill sitting after the House adjourned on 16 June, 23 June and 30 June.

The calculation of detailed and meaningful statistics in relation to extra costs incurred as a result of any specific late night sitting is complex and cannot begin until all claims for extra payment are received. However, the Finance Office will write to the hon. Member as soon as it is able to provide this information.

To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, as representing the House of Commons Commission, whether he will make arrangements for a fax machine to be installed at 1 Parliament street for the use of hon. Members with rooms in that building.

The provision of facsimile machines for Members was examined by the Accommodation and Administration Sub-Committee to the Services Committee in May 1988. It was resolved that centralised facsimile machine facilities in the House would be inappropriate and that the provision of these machines should be the responsibility of hon. Members. I understand that some 332 hon. Members now have individual facsimile machines. Any proposal to review these arrangements would have to be considered by the Administration Committee.

To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, as representing the House of Commons Commission if the Commission will make it a requirement of the continuation of Thomas Cook Ltd.'s operation of the Transport Office that the company will exchange Scottish and Northern Ireland notes on the same basis as it exchanges Bank of England notes.

It has never been the policy of the Transport Office in the House to impose a charge for the exchange of Scottish or Northern Ireland bank notes, or to charge for transactions settled in those notes.I am advised that within the United Kingdom no charge has been made by Thomas Cook for transactions made in these notes, except at Heathrow and Glasgow airports where, until recently, a commission was charged. That practice was terminated on 1 July.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the environmental projects currently funded by the Overseas Development Administration in Guyana.

The ODA is currently funding two projects in this field. These are:

• (a) Research project on the major problems of the regeneration of Greenheart timber. Funded through Imperial College. Cost to the ODA: £200,000 over three years.
• (b) Support for the Commonwealth Programme for Sustainable Tropical Forestry. ODA commitment approximately £180,000, to meet the costs of the Phase 1 preparatory work programme, carried out by the Natural Resources Institute.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's position on the loan by the World bank to Malawi for construction of the Malawi V project; and what human rights considerations were taken into account when reaching this decision.

The Malawi power V project was approved by the World Bank's executive board on 17 June. The United Kingdom judges all world bank loans on their economic and technical merits, in line with the provision of the bank's article of agreement. The proceedings of the World bank board on individual projects are confidential.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects to reply to the letter dated 21 June from a constituent of the hon. Member for Brent, East, the name and address of whom have been supplied to him; and what is the Government's commitment in the citizens charter about the length of time members of the public should expect to wait for a reply from the Government.

The Secretary of State for the Environment is responsible for the matter on which the hon. Member's constituent wrote to me. The hon. Member's constituent will therefore receive a reply from officials at the Department of the Environment. That is normal practice where a correspondent raises matters with a Minister which do not relate to that Minister's responsibilities.I understand that my right hon. and learned Friend's officials will reply to the hon. Member's constituent by Friday, 10 July.The citizens charter calls for all public services to set standards for response times to correspondence. These should be appropriate both to local circumstances and to the needs of their clients.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 9 July.

I have been asked to reply.My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister is on his way to Helsinki to attend the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement 'on the Top Salaries Review Body report.

The Review Body on Top Salaries —TSRB—has submitted to me the report of its fundamental review of the pay of the posts within their remit groups. These comprise about 1,290 members of the judiciary, 660 senior civil servants, and 190 senior officers in the armed forces. The TSRB last carried out a fundamental review in 1985. I am grateful for the work which it has done on this further review.The recommendations would add 19·7 per cent. to the pay bill for the remit groups, at a cost of £27·6 million. The Government understand the reasons which underlie these recommendations, which relate to senior people whose work it relies upon and greatly values, but believe that on this occasion there are also wider considerations which they must take into account. The rate of increase in average earnings is now at the lowest level for 25 years, and pay settlements in the private sector are running at around 4 per cent. The economy is moving to a low rate of inflation as the essential basis for resumed and sustained growth. Against this background the Government have decided to moderate the proposed increases.The increase from 1 April this year will therefore be limited to 4 per cent. The main new rates of pay for 1992–93 are set out in the table. A further 3 per cent. will be paid from 1 April 1993 and a final stage of 2·8 per cent. from 1 April 1994, in addition to whatever annual increase may be decided for those years. The total increase will, therefore, be about half of the recommended level.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the position of the United Kingdom in the league table of growth of employment among the Group of Seven countries in 1992 and 1993.

The Government do not publish forecasts of employment growth.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has to require Oxfam and other charity shops to introduce VAT on their operations.

We have no such proposals. Agreement has been reached with other member states that the United Kingdom's existing social VAT zero rates, including those specifically designed to benefit charities and charity shops, can be maintained at least until the end of 1996 without prejudice to their future thereafter.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with his EC counterparts on the EC budget proposals; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. Friend has regular discussions with his EC counterparts on the future financing of the Community, most recently at the ECOFIN Council on 9 June, at which a majority of member states indicated that they found the Commission's proposals excessive.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the prospects for recovery in the housing market.

As was said in this year's Financial Statement and Budget Report, any recovery in the housing market during 1992 is likely to be slow.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment the Government have made of the impact on Government revenues of any increase in unemployment.

The projections of revenues in the Financial Statement and Budget Report take account of all relevant factors.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received concerning stamp duty.

We have received a number of representations that the temporary increase in the threshold for stamp duty should run for a longer period. I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bexleyheath (Mr. Townsend) earlier today.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the location of the proposed European central bank.

I have nothing to add to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's report on the discussions at Lisbon on 29 June, Official Report, column 588.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about the level of manufacturing output over the last three years.

Manufacturing output fell by about 6¾ per cent. between 1989 and the first quarter of 1992, following a rise of over 30 per cent. between 1981 and 1989.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has any plans to bring the calculation of the public sector borrowing requirement into line with European practice.

There is no standard European practice nor any internationally-agreed guidelines for the definition of the public sector borrowing requirement.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the public sector borrowing requirement as a percentage of gross domestic product for each EC country since 1989.

Comparable data for the public sector borrowing requirement in each Community country are not available. The following data are for general Government net borrowing as a percentage of GDP.

General government net borrowing as a percentage of GDP
	1989	1990	1991
Belgium	6·5	5·3	6·2
Denmark	0·5	1·4	2·0
Germany (West)	-0·2	1·9	3·1

	1989	1990	1991
Greece	18·3	19·6	16·5
Spain	2·8	4·0	4·4
France	1·2	1·6	1·7
Ireland	2·2	2·6	2·3
Italy	9·9	11·0	10·2
Luxembourg	-5·5	-5·6	-2·5
Netherlands	5·2	5·3	3·9
Portugal	3·4	5·8	6·4
United Kingdom	-1·2	0·8	2·0

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to apply VAT to second-hand goods.

The sixth VAT directive requires tax to be charged on the full selling price of all goods and services unless otherwise relieved. Although there is no general relief for second-hand goods, there are special schemes for certain of these goods and works of art, antiques and collectors' items under which tax is charged only on the seller's margin.The draft EC seventh VAT directive, which requires unanimity for its adoption, proposes a harmonised scheme which will in general extend this relief to other second-hand goods. The Government have taken the representations that they have received fully into account in establishing their negotiating position.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were the assumptions underlying his oral statement of 22 January 1992, Official Report, column 323, that there remain good grounds for believing that the recovery will become fairly established in the course of 1992.

I spelt out the reasons underlying my statement of 22 January 1992 at the time—Official Report, column 323. The forces making for recovery are still in place. These include low inflation, reduced interest rates, rising real earnings, improved personal and corporate financial positions, higher consumer and business confidence, and renewed productivity growth. So I continue to believe that growth will become firmly established in the course of 1992.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has for a realignment of currencies within the exchange rate mechanism.

None.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about the balance of payments.

United Kingdom exports are at record levels.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the proportion of income currently paid in tax by average income families in the west midlands.

The information is not available.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many applications the Bank of England as now received for compensation under the deposit protection scheme from former depositors of Bank of Credit and Commerce International; if he will list the amount claimed in monetary bands; how many claims are still with the liquidators of BCCI; and what is the current backlog at (a) the Bank of England, and (b) the liquidators.

By 1 July 1992 the Deposit Protection Board had received some 15,600 claims for compensation under the deposit protection scheme from former depositors of BCCI. The board does not maintain an analysis of these claims by monetary bands. On that date approximately 2,900 of these claims had been settled; another 1,800 were in the process of being settled and further clarification was being sought from depositors on another 500 claims. The remaining claim forms are currently awaiting clearance by the liquidators, once proof of debt forms have been received.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received concerning the Bank of Credit and Commerce International from (a) hon. Members and (b) members of the public.

My Treasury colleagues and I have received some 17 letters on BCCI from hon. Members this year and some further 50 from members of the public.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight (Mr. Field) on 5 June, Official Report, column 652, if he will list all those other concerns or undertakings which operate under public sector management.

Sections four and six of the "Statistical Supplement to the 1991 Autumn Statement"—Cm 1920 —give details of the nationalised industries and other public corporations.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has during the EC presidency to call for a study of the avoidance of VAT luxury rates by hoteliers in the EC member states.

I have no such plans. It would be for the Commission to propose such a study if it is required.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list those EC member states where local government, or its equivalent, can recoup VAT.

Article 4(5) of the EC sixth VAT directive allows member states not to treat local authorities as taxable persons in respect of those activities in which they engage as public authorities.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will reconsider his decision to tax hospital car service volunteer drivers' mileage allowances; and if he will make a statement.

The position in law is that motor mileage allowances paid to individuals, whether employees or volunteer drivers, who use a car on health service business are liable to income tax if, and only if, the allowances exceed the costs of running and maintaining the car for health service driving and so result in a profit.While I am very much aware of the important and valuable service provided by volunteer drivers, I am not persuaded that there is a case for amending the law to exempt them from tax on any profits on their mileage allowances. But, as the hon. Member may be aware, it has been decided to phase in the arrangements which were introduced last year for collecting tax on these allowances. For the period from 6 October 1991 to 5 April 1993 only one quarter of the profit element will be taxed; for the tax year 1993–94, one half of the profit will be taxed; and for the tax year 1994–95 three quarters of the profit will be taxed. Tax will not be payable on the full amount of the profit element until 1995–96.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the exchange rate.

The Government remain firmly committed to sterling's membership of the ERM and to its moving in due course to the narrow band at the current central rate of DM2·95.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a further statement on his policy regarding interest rates.

Interest rates will continue to be set to keep sterling within its ERM band and to bear down on inflation.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Prime Minister's oral answer to the right hon. Member for Islwyn (Mr. Kinnock) of 30 June, Official Report, column 709, if he will make it his policy that so much of the content of the IMRO report as is to be published under Her Majesty's Government's auspices is published before 16 July.

The Securities and Investment BoardSIB—has today published the summary of conclusions and findings of IMRO's review of its regulation of Maxwell companies—including Bishopsgate Investment Management Ltd.—BIM—and London and Bishopsgate International Investment Management plc—LBI. The SIB is also publishing its assessment of its own and IMRO's performance in this affair and the action both the SIB and IMRO are taking to rectify the shortcomings identified. The SIB's assessment concludes that there were serious deficiencies in the supervision by IMRO of BIM and LBI. I am placing a copy of the SIB's statement in the Library of the House.The Maxwell affair was wholly exceptional—the vast majority of pension funds have served their members well. Moreover, the IMRO review covers a relatively limited part of the Maxwell story. Under the Financial Services Act, IMRO's role in supervising pension funds was to regulate and authorise pension fund managers. IMRO was not, and is not, responsible for ensuring that pension fund trustees respect their wider obligations under trust law. Moreover, effective regulation must in the final analysis involve the active co-operation of the private sector, including professional advisers, financial institutions and others, all of whom have their own responsibilities.None the less, in the Government's view the shortcomings identified in the SIB's assessment are of very serious concern. The SIB and IMRO are undertaking a number of actions, detailed in the SIB's assessment, to ensure more effective regulation in future.IMRO's performance also raises questions about the SIB's monitoring of IMRO and its general oversight of the self-regulatory organisations under the Financial Services Act. I have, therefore, asked Andrew Large, the SIB's new chairman, to conduct his own review of how the SIB carries out its regulatory responsibilities.I have also discussed with the chairman of the SIB the need to strengthen the implementation in practice of regulatory standards. I am confident that he fully appreciates the urgency and importance of his task and I have asked him to keep me closely in touch with progress on the further work, reviews and improvements that are now in hand.I have also looked into the recent allegations that IMRO warned the Government that it could not do its job properly because of problems over the relationship between the Financial Services Act regime and trust law. Neither the SIB nor I have found any evidence to substantiate these allegations. IMRO and the SIB made representations to the DTI over a number of years about the legal uncertainty they believed was created by the interaction of the Financial Services Act and trust law. However, there was no suggestion that this uncertainty posed a threat to investor protection. And the SIB's conclusion is that neither legal uncertainties created by the relationship between the Financial Services Act and trust law nor the existence of IMRO's special occupational pensions scheme regime made any material difference to IMRO's regulation of the Maxwell pension fund companies.No regulator and no system of regulation can guarantee that all fraud will be prevented or identified. But the Government are determined that all the lessons of the Maxwell affair, in its many aspects, must be learned and implemented. I will be assessing in detail over the coming months the effectiveness of the steps already taken by the SIB and IMRO, the additional action now proposed, and the outcome of the SIB's further reviews. I shall then report back to the House.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list those EC member states who pay their local government employees, or the equivalent, index linked inflation-proofed pensions.

I have been asked to reply.In the United Kingdom, index linked pensions are available to former local government employees who have contributed to public service pensions schemes. Information is not available on a comparable basis for other EC member states.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department whether he has any proposal to increase judicial and other county court manpower and improve equipment and county court premises following the increase in the limit of the county court jurisdiction in Northern Ireland.

The Lord Chancellor has announced his intention to increase the current financial limits on the general civil jurisdiction of the county courts in Northern Ireland. This will initially be achieved by an increase to £10,000—from £5,000—in November 1992, with a further increase to £15,000 in September 1993. In determining the new jurisdictional levels, the Lord Chancellor has given careful consideration to the ability of the county courts to cope with any increased workload resulting from the increase and is satisfied that the county courts have sufficient capacity and resources to cope with the increased volume of business. At the same time, the Lord Chancellor recognises the need to continue to keep the position under review to ensure that the county court system in Northern Ireland is adequately resourced and equipped.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what proposals he has for a general reform of county court rules in Northern Ireland; and when he expects such a review to be completed.

The regulation of the procedures in the county courts in Northern Ireland is a matter for the County Court Rules Committee established under article 46 of the County Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1980. The Lord Chancellor is aware, however, that the rules committee intends to carry out a wide ranging review of county court procedure to determine ways in which the current arrangements might be improved.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department whether he proposes to replace the present periodic county court sittings in Northern Ireland with a system of continuous sitting along the lines current in the Northern Ireland High Court.

The present arrangements for periodic sittings of the county court in Northern Ireland have generally worked in a satisfactory manner. The Lord Chancellor is conscious, however, that a system of continuous sittings may have some advantages and will wish to explore alternative methods of entry and listing of county court actions. Accordingly the Lord Chancellor's officials in Northern Ireland will be examining, in consultation with the County Court Rules Committee and interested parties in Northern Ireland, the possibility of introducing a continuous listings system.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (1) whether he will introduce automatic discovery and disclosure of medical reports in personal injury actions in the county court in Northern Ireland;(2) whether he intends to introduce into the county court in Northern Ireland a procedure for summary judgment analogous to order 14 procedure in the High Court in Northern Ireland.

The revision of county court procedures in Northern Ireland is primarily the responsibility of the rules committee established under article 46 of the County Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1980. It is understood that further consideration of the present procedures on discovery of documents, exchange of medical and other expert evidence, and procedures for obtaining summary judgment will form part of the rules committee's review referred to in my earlier answer.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many different types of originating process exist in the county court in Northern Ireland; and what proposals there are to reduce the number thereof.

'There are currently three basic means of initiating proceedings in the county courts in Northern Ireland; by civil bill, by petition and by notice of application. There are, however, five types of civil bill—ordinary, equity, ejectment, default and summary civil bills. As explained in previous answers, the forms of originating process to be employed in the county courts are determined by the County Court Rules Committee. It may be that some reduction in the number of types of originating process will be effected by the rules committee as a result of the wider review of county court procedures mentioned in the answer to an earlier question.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will introduce a scheme of compensation for legal costs incurred in abortive appeal hearings where the court service or Government Departments are responsible for delays.

The Department is prepared to consider claims for compensation where loss is sustained through maladministration by court officers in matters for which the Lord Chancellor is responsible.Where loss is sustained as a result of the actions of one of the parties or of another Government Department it is open to the party who has sustained the loss to apply for an order for costs in cases where it is appropriate to do so.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps he is taking to provide compensation to Mr. Mohammed Khan in respect of abortive costs incurred in an immigration appeal hearing on 20 December 1991.

I regret that I cannot consider payment of compensation in this case as there was no mistake or failing by the immigration appellate authorities.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will set out those matters in regard to the Public Record Office for which he will in future answer parliamentary questions by referring the matter to the Keeper, following the establishment of the Public Record Office as an executive agency.

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 Lord Chancellor will be following this policy with regard to the Public Record Office. Copies of the Public Record Office's framework document have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how much notice is given to expert witnesses attending cases at the Crown court.

It is the responsibility of the prosecution and defence, and not the court, to notify witnesses of the date their attendance is required. The period of notice differs from case to case according to the circumstances of the case. However, those responsible for listing in the Crown court are aware of the difficulties faced by expert witnesses and, wherever possible, seek to give the parties as much notice of trial dates as they are able. Fixed dates for trial are often requested in cases involving expert witnesses, and such requests are acceded to wherever practicable.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 10 June, Official Report, columns 187–88 what publicity there has been for S.I. No. 1013 (1980) to the heating and ventilation industry, owners of non-residential buildings and trades unions; what inspections are carried out to ensure compliance with statutory instrument; and if he will make a statement.

Reference to the statutory maximum legal heating limit of 19 C is included in the EEO's publication "Energy Efficiency in Buildings (Offices)." No inspections are carried out to ensure compliance with SI No. 1013. The Energy Efficiency Office encourages consumers to take cost-effective energy efficiency measures by providing independent and authoritative advice through a range of initiatives and programmes.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all contracts to advise his Department within the last two years let by single tender action; and if he will make a statement.

Consultant(s)	Subject of consultancy
Financial year 1990–91
Action Resource Centre	Private sector secondments to City Action Teams
Almondhall Computer Staff	Business model: Planning Inspectorate
BDO Binder Hamlyn	Grant Redemption Fund
BIS Applied Systems	North Sea database
Burgess Cyril	Review of HQ scientists and specialist professional and technical officers
Chapman Hendy	Waltham Forest Housing Action Trust
Ekotheipi Electrical Associates Ltd.	Development and production of MK.2 universal motor speed controller
Electoral Reform Society	Hull shadow Housing Action Trust
Ernst and Young	Local authority and housing association management and maintenance grant
Forman L.	Index to office instructions and staff handbook
Geary N. R.	Safety of manufacturing processes
Gibson Dr.	Meadowell Estate
Griffiths K. F.	Housing Topics
Hanlon Computer Systems	Inter-departmental urban database
Hance Dr.	Fate and behaviour of pesticides
Healey and Baker	Disposal of New Town assets
Hull City Council	Housing Action Trust team
Imperial War Museum	Staff inspection of the Royal Armouries
Infologistix	Translation service; software evaluation
ISMa Consultants	Computer risk analysis
Kermon Management Consultants	Network infrastructure project
Kidd Susan	Loose-leaf commercially produced reference works
Kidson Impey	Local authority waste disposal companies
Kings College, London	Design improvement controlled experiment
KPMG Peat Marwick Mclintock	Management accounting systems
Laboratory of the Government Chemist	Analysis of sludge/effluence
Land and Urban Analysis	Employment densities
Linierman Prof.	Performance measures
Logica	Technical assurance: local authority statistics
McHugh, E.	Enterprise and employment
Mindworks	Financial monitoring system
MORI	Barriers against uptake of unleaded petrol
Otitoju, F.	Training of ethnic minority staff
P. A. Consulting	Neighbourhood renewal manual

The following contracts are recorded as having been let to consultants by single tender action in the last two financial years:

Consultant(s)	Subject of consultancy
PA Consulting System	Security review of INFORM
Peter Peregrinus Ltd.	Register of research
Phillips D.	Air pollution management
PIC Services	Southwark Housing Action Trust
Price Waterhouse	Performance measures
Rechem	Analysis of emission-incinerator
Safe Neighbourhood Unit	Estate Action
Signal UK	Database archiving for Private Office
Softlab	SSADM training: Planning Inspectorate
Tuffin, Ferraby and Taylor	Works and maintenance services
Waste Management Industry Training and Advisory Board	Certificate of technical competence
Watson Hawksley	Technical audits of water companies (Phase 2)
Financial year 1991–92
Aspinwall & Co.	Special hazardous wastes
Brennan, Mrs.	Library bibliographies
CICA	Disc general assembly representation
Gibbs Environmental Sciences	Landfill levy
Green Alliance	Comparative study of five national environmental plans
Institute of Waste Management	Review of waste management paper
Knox Associates	Co-disposal in the United Kingdom
KPMG	Small combustion plants directive
London Waste Regulation Authority	Review of waste management paper
McCarthy, Kevin	United Kingdom European Community Presidency Conference
Middlesex	Air pollutants factsheets
National Association of Waste Disposal Contractors	Review of waste management papers
National Economic Development Office	Construction research
Nottingham Polytechnic	Statistical basis for landfill sampling
Offline Computer Services	Computerised record-keeping and report-generating
PA Consulting	Criteria for award of eco-labels to washing machines and dishwashers
Parry, Professor	IPCC working group

The Department's policy is to appoint consultants by single tender where they have unique experience or expertise relevant to the subject matter, or —exceptionally—where there is overriding urgency to let a contract without a tender process.

To ask the secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the number of reported breaches of trees preservations orders for each year since 1982; and if he will make a statement.

It is a criminal offence under section 102 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 to contravene a tree preservation order. The number of prosecutions for each year since 1982 are as follows:

	Number
1982	42
1983	54
1984	71
1985	20
1986	56
1987	44
1988	57

	Number
1989	72
1990	55

Statistics are not yet available for the situation post–1990 where similar provisions are contained in section 210 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the operating companies for services provided by each county and district authority, together with the number of directors appointed by each authority, their percentage voting power and the amount of equity retained by each authority in each company.

Such information is not held centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many households in the United Kingdom qualify for grant aid under the home energy efficiency scheme; how many houses have been improved under the scheme since its inception; and if he will give a breakdown for Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

In order to be eligible for a grant under the Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (HEES), an applicant or his or her spouse must be in receipt of one of five passportable benefits: housing benefit, income support, family credit, community charge benefit and disability working allowance. In addition, his or her property must meet certain criteria concerning existing levels of insulation and receipt of a grant for similar work under previous schemes. Data on numbers of households eligible are not available.Since the inception of the scheme on 1 January 1991, 208,055 homes have benefited from HEES grant; of these 155,776 were in England, 39,949 in Scotland and 12,330 in Wales. The scheme does not operate in Northern Ireland.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many houses in the network installer area which contains the constituency of Banff and Buchan have been improved under the home energy efficiency scheme since the scheme's inception.

Within the network installer area which contains the hon. Member's constituency, 2,950 homes have benefited from HEES grant since 1 January 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list by local authority area the proportions of local authority finance derived from revenue support grant, specific grant, non-domestic rate income and poll tax for 1992–93.

I am arranging for the available information to be placed in the Library of the House, together with the amount of revenue support grant, special grants, and redistributed non-domestic rate income paid per adult to each authority.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) whether he has received any advice from the Bank of England on the practice of share lending by local authority superannuation funds;(2) if he will amend the superannuation regulations relating to the pension funds of local authorities in order to clarify the vires of share lending.

Share lending is among the issues relating to investments under the local government superannuation scheme which are the subject of regular discussions between my Department, the local authority associations and other interested parties, including the Bank of England.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to make available additional resources to public analyst laboratories to support their accreditation under the national measurement accreditation service—NAMAS—quality control scheme and to assist in the implementation of the in-service training required under NAMAS.

All analytical laboratories should have systems for ensuring the quality of their results. The Government have recognised this by encouraging the setting up of NAMAS. It is not for the Government to subside any additional costs to laboratories of NAMAS accreditation. Such costs should be recovered in charges to their customers who benefit in terms of the quality and the reliability of the analyses carried out for them.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to revise the structure of the regional aggregates working parties to include representation by elected members of mineral planning authorities and third-party interests.

I will consider membership of the regional aggregates working parties when the present review of mineral planning guidance note 6 is complete.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a summary of the views expressed to his Department on the national aggregates demand forecasts by the regional aggregates working parties in the regional commentaries.

A summary of the views expressed by the regional aggregates working parties will be made available when the revised draft guidelines are published for public consultation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what new national forecasts of aggregates demand have been prepared for his Department since the publication of the document "Guidelines for Aggregates Provision in England and Wales Review of MPG6"; whether they will be circulated to the regional aggregates working parties for comment; whether they will be published for public comment; and whether they will be used in the preparation of a revised mineral planning guidance note 6.

New forecasts of aggregates demand have not yet been finalised by the independent consultants. I shall consider whether they should be circulated when they are available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations were made to him by the regional aggregates working parties on the environmental implications of the national aggregates demand forecast published by his Department.