To ask the Attorney-General what consideration is being given to bringing charges of perjury against civil servants who gave evidence in the Matrix Churchill case.

As a result of the submission to the Crown prosecution service by Her Majesty's Commissioners of Customs and Excise, of papers touching upon evidence given at the trial of three employees of Matrix Churchill, a police investigation is currently being carried out. Any decision as to the prosecution of an individual or individuals, arising out of evidence given at that trial, will be made by the Director of Public Prosecutions at the conclusion of the police investigation, and after she has had the opportunity of studying the findings of that investigation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received over the need for agreed local structure plans to be amended, and future structure plans to be drafted, so as to allow for the effects of the recession in the south of England on the likely growth of the working population there; and if he will make a statement.

None, but I would expect such representations to be made to county councils. There is a statutory requirement for them to prepare structure plans that take account of economic and social considerations, and to keep all matters under review that may be expected to affect the development of their areas or the planning of development there.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much derelict land grant expenditure there has been in the Metropolitan borough of Walsall council district in each year since 1984.

Derelict land grant expenditure in the metropolitan borough of Walsall council district since 1984 is as follows:

	Expenditure (£)
1984–85	1,416,000
1985–86	1,339,000
1986–87	3,026,566
1987–88	3,117,492
1988–89	3,474,318

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many new homes will be provided by Walsall metropolitan borough authority in 1993–94; what is the total provision from central funds which will be received by the authority in support of capital expenditure on housing; and what capital expenditure he expects the authority to incur next year.

The level of local authority housing capital expenditure in Walsall in 1993–94 is a matter for the borough council to decide in the light of the available resources. The authority's proposed programme for housing capital expenditure in 1993–94, included in their housing investment programme—HIP—submission, indicates no expenditure on new housebuilding by the council. Walsall's HIP allocation for 1993–94 is £10,474,000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the amounts spent by (a) local authorities and (b) other organisations preparing bids for urban programme funding for 1993–94.

It is not our practice to make such estimates. The work will have informed authorities? consideration of what projects to put forward for support from the urban partnership fund; and what to support from their own usable capital receipts.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will place in the Library copies of all letters and other material sent out by his Department during 1992 dealing with bids for urban programme funding for 1993–94.

No. This material could be assembled only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will break down the extra spending power that he forecasts the urban programme authorities will have as a result of the relaxation of the rules governing the use of capital receipts, by authority;(2) if he will make a statement on how he calculated the figure of £500 million as the extra amount that the urban programme authorities would raise as a result of the relaxation of the rules regarding capital receipts.

We estimate that authorities will have £1·75 billion of extra usable capital receipts as a result of the relaxation in receipts rules based on authorities forecasts of their receipts in 1992–93. Historically, the urban authorities have had about 30 per cent. of the national total of usable receipts. If this proportion applied to the extra usable receipts, it would provide the urban authorities with about £0.5 billion of extra usable receipts. We have not made any estimates of these receipts at the level of individual local authorities. Local authorities have provided their own forecasts of the receipts they expect to receive during 1992–93 and this information is in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total amount of private sector funding given to schemes supported by the urban programme in the current and last three years.

The information is available for three years only, as follows:

Private sector funding of urban programme projects
Year	£ million
1990–91	35·4
1991–92	22·2
1992–93	42·4

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total number of jobs that have been created and preserved by the urban programme since its inception.

The urban programme has created and preserved 230,990 jobs between 1985–86, the first year for which information is available, and 1991–92.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many representations he has received (a) in favour of an (b) against his decision not to consider bids for urban programme funding for 1993–94.

My Department will be supporting in 1993–94 substantial urban programme—UP—commitments amounting to £156 million and considering bids for support for new projects from the £20 million uncommitted UP resources which form the urban partnership fund.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much of the urban programme funding planned for 1992–93 related to on-going commitments; and how much was to be made available for new bids.

We expect around two-thirds of the urban programme resources allocated to local authorities in any year to relate to continuing commitments, with the balance for new projects.

To ask the Secretary of state for the Environment how many schemes supported by the urban programme he has visited.

Department of the Environment Ministers visit the urban priority authorities on a regular basis and have been pleased to see a wide range of schemes supported by the urban programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will state the planned urban block expenditure for 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95 and 1995–96 by his Department, together with the figures in real terms, allowing for projected inflation, and the percentage increase/decrease each year.

The planned urban block expenditure figures for 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95 and 1995–96 are shown in the table; these incorporate the autumn statement changes, including the increase of over £90 million in the resources planned for 1993–94.The planned expenditure figures, converted into real terms using latest GDP deflator figures, are in the table, along with the percentage year on year increase/decrease:

£ million
	11992–93	1993–94	1994–95	1995–96
Urban Block planned expenditure	1,017	955	820	806
Planned expenditure expressed in real term figures	1,017	929	773	739
Percentage increase/decrease	—	-8·6	-16·7	-4·4
1Provision based on winter supplementary estimates.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the total EC funding received by schemes supported by the urban programme in the current and last three years.

European Community funding of local authorities? urban programme schemes is as follows:

Year	£ million (rounded)
1990–91	9
1991–92	26
1 1992–93	11

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many (a) jobs, (b) training places and (c) schemes are currently supported by the urban programme in each of the urban programme authorities; and what was the allocation for 1992–93 for each of the authorities.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to my reply to his question on Wednesday 13 January, Official Report, column 656. It is not our policy to publish output data for each individual authority under the urban programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what his response has been to the representations made by the Merseyside fire and civil defence authority for a review of its standard spending assessment for 1993–94; and if he will make a statement.

I met a delegation from the Merseyside fire and civil defence authority on 12 January to hear their representations on our proposals for the 1993–94 revenue support grant settlement. We shall carefully consider their representations before taking decisions on the settlement.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what his response has been to the letter sent to him on 17 December 1992 by Liverpool city council in respect of additional funds to provide for the refurbishment of houses; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. and learned Friend has asked his officials at the Merseyside task force to reply direct.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what discussions have taken place about the establishment of an EC environment inspectorate within the European Commission; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 11 January 1993]: All member states attended a meeting of national experts chaired by the Commission in March 1992 to discuss issues relating to the enforcement of EC environmental legislation, including the establishment of a network of enforcement agencies and the possible creation of an audit-type inspectorate. Subsequently, the Government have continued to press the Commission to bring forward proposals, as originally suggested by the United Kingdom, for a Community body to audit the application of EC environmental legislation, and has secured growing support from other member states for this idea. We will continue to argue its merits.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what is the organisational structure of the press facility provided to the royal household by the Central Office of Information; and what is its remit;(2) what was the cost in 1991–92, and what is the provision for 1992–93, of the press facilities provided to the royal household by the Central Office of Information; how many personnel are involved and in what capacities: and how much of the expenditure relates to salaries and staff costs;(3) who recruits the personnel who make up the press facility supplied to the royal household by the Central Office of Information; to whom they are accountable; and what is their relationship to the head of the Government press service.

Responsibility for the subject of these questions has been delegated to the chief executive of the Central Office of Information. I have asked him to write to the?s right hon. Gentleman direct.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what were the average amounts of capital employed excluding land, on livestock farms within the less-favoured areas at the most recent convenient date.

The 1992 edition of "Farm Incomes in the United Kingdom" contains estimates based on sample surveys of the level of assets employed on livestock farms in the less-favoured areas. The following table shows the average value of total assets, excluding land and buildings, on LFA livestock farms in 1990–91.

	£?000 per farm
England	102·2
Wales	92·1
Scotland	105·4
Northern Ireland	57·7

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what were the average farm incomes for livestock farms in the less-favoured areas for each of the last five years up to 1992, using the notional figures which his Department have used of increases of 29 per cent. for last year and 16 per cent. for this year, split between severely disadvantaged and disadvantaged areas.

Estimates, based on sample surveys, of the levels of nominal net farm incomes on the various types of livestock farm in the less-favoured areas for the past three years are contained in table 14 of the data prepared for the 1992 autumn review of the economic conditions in the hills and uplands, a copy of which has been deposited in the Library of the House.Year by year comparisons can best be made by reference to results from a constant sample of farms. The following table shows indices of net farm income for each year from 1986–87 to 1992–93 and estimated income levels for the latest available constant sample.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the rate of the hill livestock compensatory allowance to be paid on eligible sheep in the disadvantaged areas within the less favoured areas of the United Kingdom.

I am pleased to announce that following the green pound devaluation with effect from 1 January 1993 the headage payment rate for eligible ewes in disadvantaged areas has been increased by 41p to £2.86 per ewe. A statutory instrument will shortly be laid before Parliament giving effect to the proposed new headage rates that will apply under the 1993 scheme. Payment of claims will start as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what percentage of students in higher education left their courses before completion and sought employment in (a) 1982 and (b) 1992.

Destinations of students who leave courses before completion are not collected. Details of leavers in the old universities are given in table 10 of "University Management Statistics and Performance Indicators", 1992 edition, a copy of which is in the Library. Available data for the former polytechnics and colleges are shown in DFE statistical bulletin 9/92, which is also in the Library. The next departmental report will also contain a table of estimated wastage rates; it shows wastage at 13.1 per cent. in 1982–83 and 15·3 per cent. in 1990–91.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many candidates in 1990, 1991 and 1992, in the Southern examining group area, had their grades altered due to a year-on-year change in standards of more than 3 per cent.; and if he will make a statement.

New GCSE awarding procedures were introduced by the Southern examining group in 1992. To ensure that these did not result in a change in standards, awarding officers' judgments were reconsidered in those cases where there was a significant change in the proportions of candidates achieving particular grades. The awarding officers' judgments were endorsed in all but two subjects; in these, 329 grades out of 19,374–1·7 per cent. —were revised. These procedures were not in operation in 1990 and 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidelines his Department has issued to examining groups on changes to GCSE statistical standards; and if he will make a statement.

The Department has given no guidelines to the examining groups on this or any other matter relating to the conduct of school examinations. My right hon. Friend will, however, shortly publish a mandatory code of practice which all groups will be required to follow as a condition of his continuing approval of GCSE qualifications.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) when the Schools Examinations and Assessment Council gave permission for examination groups to move from full criterion referencing to norm referencing; and if he will make a statement;(2) what was the original timetable for GCSE grades to be fully criteria referenced; when it was revised; and if he will make a statement.

The national trend in the development of school examinations has been in the opposite direction to that implied by the hon. Member's questions. The introduction of the GCSE in 1988 marked a move to a more criterion-referenced examination system. The alignment of the GCSE with national curriculum requirements progressively from 1994 will mark a further move in that direction, since assessment in each of the foundation subjects will be related to clearly defined statements of attainment. The timetable for this alignment has not been altered: it will begin in summer 1994 with English, mathematics and science.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make a statement about the future of teacher education units and the tutors involved in them in existing higher education institutions.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool, South (Mr. Hawkins) on 17 November 1992, Official Report, column 123.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will make a statement on the commissioning of Touche Ross by the Welsh Development Agency as part of the team of consultants working on the Operation Wizard exercise;(2) if he will make a statement on the commissioning of consultants Outram Cullinan and Co., Villiers street, London WC2, as part of the Operation Wizard exercise;(3) what ministerial approval was given for expenditure by the Welsh Development Agency on merchant banking consultancy advice on a wholesale or retail management buy-out of WDA operations in 1989–90; what consultations were undertaken; and what guidelines were set for the Operation Wizard exercise.

[holding answer 13 January 1993]: The then Secretary of State considered possible options for the future of the WDA's functions in 1988 and 1989. This consideration included professional advice commissioned by the agency on a range of options for increasing private sector involvement. It was decided that the WDA's range of functions should remain unchanged subject to regular review from time to time under the cycle of financial management and policy reviews.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what measures he will take to improve the dental health of pupils in the schools of Wales.

It is the responsibility of health authorities, in conjunction with family health services authorities, to procure adequate dental health services for their area based on their assessment of local need.The Welsh Office has circulated an "Oral Health Gain Protocol for Wales" which should assist health authorities in this process.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list in order of dental health the health districts of Wales according to United Kingdom dental surveys; and if he will make a statement.

The decannial United Kingdom child and adult dental health surveys do not provide data in the form requested.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many (a) Welsh medium schools and (b) English medium schools have been (i) opened and (ii) closed since 1979; and if he will make a statement.

The Department does not collect information in the form requested. The provision of both Welsh and English medium schools is the responsibility of the local education authority.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what initiatives he will take to improve health education in Wales (a) overall and (b) in respect of dental health.

(a) The Health Promotion Authority for Wales has published a series of strategic documents entitled "Plans for Action". The latest document in this series, published in July 1992, presents specific health targets, many seeking improved lifestyles and enabling progress to be measured against the extensive health surveys undertaken throughout Wales.Under the new GP contract health promotion arrangements, GPs are required by their terms of service to provide health promotion advice to their patients. New arrangements from 1 July 1993 will ensure that their advice will be delivered within a framework of national and local priorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what policy initiatives he will take concerning the needs of dyslexic children in the schools of Wales; and what is his policy concerning dyslexic children in Wales.

It is the responsibility of local education authorities to identify, assess and make appropriate provision for children with special educational needs, including those who are dyslexic. The Welsh Office supports expenditure by local education authorities for the training of designated teachers of special educational needs in ordinary schools and the initial training of educational psychologists, both of which can help children with dyslexia.Our proposals in the Education Bill to provide new rights and improve the assessment and statementing process will be of benefit to all children with special needs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the texts by English language Welsh authors proposed for particular study by 14-year-olds in schools; and if he will make a statement.

The first statutory assessments of 14-year-olds in the subject of English, planned for June 1993, will include a test of reading against prescribed texts.A booklet for study by 14-year-old pupils who are at levels 3 to 4 of the national curriculum was announced in November 1992. Based on books which are widely available in secondary schools, the list includes "Illustrated Poetry Broadsheets: Poetry from Wales" which is a thematic collection of poetry by Welsh authors. The wider recommended anthology for all abilities was announced on 4 January 1993 and includes extracts from Dylan Thomas's "A Child's Christmas in Wales" and R. S. Thomas's "Cynddylan on a Tractor".The booklists were drawn up by the School Examinations and Assessment Council in consultation with the Curriculum Council for Wales and the National Curriculum Council. The texts are suitably demanding for pupils of this age, and reflect the requirements of the reading attainment target in English.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if the Lord Advocate will direct that a fatal accident inquiry be held into the death of Mr. Thomas Adleigh of 27 Glencairn road, Paisley.

The death of Mr. Adleigh was reported by Strathclyde police to the procurator fiscal, Paisley who has sought further information as to the circumstances. A decision on whether a fatal accident inquiry will be held into Mr. Adleigh's death will be taken at the conclusion of the procurator fiscal's inquiries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on non-domestic rates for 1993–94.

Continuing our policy of reducing Scottish business rate poundages to the level of the English national non-domestic rate, Scottish businesses will pay £68 million less in rates next year than they otherwise would have done. This is a poundage reduction of over 7 per cent. in real terms and an actual reduction in cash terms of 4 per cent.The total reduction, due to the Government?s policy and our earlier decision to limit increases in poundages to no more than inflation from 1989–90 onwards, is now at least £400 million.

	1992–93 Poundages P	1993–94 Pre-NNDR Reduction P	1993–94 Poundages P	1993–94 Poundages at Ratepayer Level P	Reduction to Ratepayer P
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth	9·6	9·9	7·1	53·8	4·4
Cumnock and Doon Valley	10·0	10·4	7·5	54·2	4·5
Cunninghame	12·2	12·6	9·3	56·0	4·9
Dumbarton	11·2	11·6	8·5	55·2	4·7
East Kilbride	8·2	8·5	5·9	52·6	4·2
Eastwood	5·4	5·6	3·6	50·3	3·6
Glasgow City	16·6	17·2	13·0	59·7	5·8
Hamilton	10·6	11·0	8·0	54·7	4·6
Inverclyde	9·3	9·6	6·9	53·6	4·3
Kilmarnock and Loudoun	9·6	9·9	7·1	53·8	4·4
Kyle and Carrick	10·0	10·4	7·5	54·2	4·5
Monklands	10·6	11·0	8·0	54·7	4·6
Motherwell	9·6	9·9	7·1	53·8	4·4
Renfrew	10·6	11·0	8·0	54·7	4·6
Strathkelvin	9·3	9·6	6·9	53·6	4·3
Angus	8·2	8·5	6·4	50·0	3·6
Dundee City	13·4	13·9	10·8	54·4	4·6
Perth and Kinross	8·6	8·9	6·7	50·3	3·7
Orkney	40·2	41·6	41·6	41·6	0·0
Shetland	40·2	41·6	41·6	41·6	0·0
Western Isles	55·1	57·0	52·8	52·8	4·2

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage when he expects to set up the inquiry to assess the adequacy of fire protection measures at the royal palaces; and if he will make a statement.

I am pleased to announce that Sir Alan Bailey, former permanent secretary to the Department of Transport, has agreed to chair the inquiry. The other members are Mr. Donald Insall, architect and planning consultant and principal of Donald W. Insall and Associates and Mr. Philip Kilshaw, former deputy senior fire safety inspector in Her Majesty's fire service inspectorate. The terms of reference of the inquiry are:

"In the light of the Windsor Castle fire to assess the adequacy of fire protection measures for the royal palaces and residences for which I have a financial responsibility, and to report to me."

The inquiry group has already started work and I hope that it will be able to report within three to four months. The report will be published. I shall make a further statement when I have considered the report.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if there have been any items accepted in lieu of tax or, allocated since his last announcement on 3 December 1992.

Since my announcement on 3 December, Official Report, column 325, I am pleased to inform the House of the acceptance of two offers in lieu of tax. The offers are of chattels from Sheringham Hall, which will satisfy £119,119 tax, and a Charles I silver gilt standing cup and cover, which will satisfy £199,401 tax. The chattels will be allocated to the National Trust; no decision has yet been made on the allocation of the cup.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received concerning United States policy towards Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

None in recent months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent changes have been made to the scope of the missile technology control regime; and if he will make a statement.

In the light of concerns about the proliferation of biological and chemical weapons, members of the missile technology control regime agreed, in July 1992, to extend the scope of the regime to cover delivery systems for such weapons, as well as those for nuclear weapons. Technical discussions on details of the changes have now been concluded and members formally adopted the revised guidelines on 7 January 1993. These changes will further strengthen international efforts to combat missile proliferation and to frustrate attempts to deploy weapons of mass destruction. We shall continue to urge all states who are not members of the regime to adopt similar responsible policies on missile exports. A copy of the new guidelines will be placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report a statement of forthcoming business in the European Community's Council of Ministers.

The following meetings are planned:

18 January: Economic and Finance Council

18–19 January: Agriculture Council

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the number and percentage of people leaving youth training in 1991 in (a) Walsall and (b) west midlands, who were without full-time employment after (i) six months, (ii) nine months and (iii) 12 months.

Of those young people leaving youth training providers during 1991 53 per cent. in the Walsall training and enterprise council area and 51 per cent. in west midlands were not in full-time employment six months after leaving. Twenty-three per cent. described themselves as unemployed; the rest as in part-time work, on another training programme, or on a full-time course at a college or training centre or doing something else. No information is collected about trainee activity after nine and 12 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what assessment she has made of experience outwith the United Kingdom on legislation governing the conditions under which solvent-based paints can be used and the circumstances under which they can be applied; and if she will review the United Kingdom legislation in the light of the assessment.

No assessment has been made of experience outside the United Kingdom on legislation governing the use of solvent-based paints. However, the dangers presented by these products are under regular review, both within the United Kingdom by the Health and Safety Executive and within the European Community through expert working groups involving representatives from all member states. In the United Kingdom, the use of solvent-based paints at work is subject to the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1988. Specific guidance published by the HSE recommends the substitution of solvent-based paints by less harmful substances, such as water-based paints.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what plans her Department has to extend the range of services offered by jobcentres to the unemployed; and if she will make a statement;(2) what are the rules by which jobcentre managers accept advertisements for services to the unemployed; and if she will make a statement;(3) what plans her Department has to give jobcentre managers greater discretion on acceptance of advertisements for services to the unemployed; and if she will make a statement.

Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is his latest estimate in percentage and absolute terms of unemployment among black adults in England and Wales.

Results from the labour force survey show that in summer—June to August—1992 there were an estimated 102,000 black people aged 16 and over, in England and Wales, who were unemployed on the international agreed International Labour Organisation definition. The International Labour Organisation unemployment rate for the group was 25 per cent.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what action has been taken or is envisaged by the Health and Safety Executive to restrict or prohibit the use of modular system cradles coupled by drop pins on construction sites.

The Health and Safety Executive has alerted users of any suspended access equipment on which drop nose pins link together sections of cradles, to the need for thorough examination and maintenance before such equipment is used.The Health and Safety Executive has also met representatives of the Suspended Access Equipment Manufacturers Association and the National Association of Scaffolding Contractors. It was agreed that such cradles should be designed so that failure of a key component should not lead to total failure of the whole suspended access platform and that the training and competence of those who install and use them is important. The Health and Safety Executive has successfully advocated that these points be incorporated into the relevant British Standard codes of practice and is updating its own guidance on precautions essential for the safe use of suspended access equipment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the legal effect of the statement in leaflet IS 26 that a person aged 16 or 17 years has a right to the offer of a youth training place; and what remedy is available if such an offer is not made.

The statement reflects the Government's guarantee of the offer of a suitable youth training place to young people aged 16 and 17 who are not in full-time education or a job and are seeking training. The Department contracts with training and enterprise councils for the delivery of the guarantee at local level and various remedies are available to my right hon. Friend if training and enterprise councils fail to deliver the guarantee. The contract requires training and enterprise councils to record and investigate any complaint made directly by or on behalf of a person in the guarantee group to the effect that the guarantee has not been discharged in respect of that person. Training and enterprise councils are required to use best endeavours to remedy any complaint which is upheld or, if a remedy is not available, to notify my right hon. Friend in writing.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the capability of the Hokum helicopter.

While we have a reasonable appreciation of the capabilities of all helicopters, including the Hokum, which might be used in the anti-armour role, a full assessment of the Hokum's capabilities will only be undertaken if it is offered in the forthcoming attack helicopter competition.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the capability of the Apache helicopter.

While we have a reasonable appreciation of the capabilities of all helicopters, including the Apache, which might be used in the anti-armour role, a full assessment of the Apache's capabilities will only be undertaken if it is offered in the forthcoming attack helicopter competition.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria have been regarded as relevant in judging eligibility and in making distributions to beneficiaries from the Gulf Trust fund or the relevant service benevolent funds.

The deed of the trust for the Gulf Trust prescribes that moneys must be used to meet the financial needs of the beneficiaries and for the relief of sickness, distress and any other physical or mental disability, arising from the involvement of the armed forces in military or other operations relating to or in connection with the Gulf conflict. Potential beneficiaries are limited to members of the armed forces involved in the Gulf conflict; civilian personnel attached to or accompanying the armed forces in the Gulf conflict; and their respective dependants. The support which the service benevolent funds provide can thus cover a wide range of areas and will vary from case to case, in accordance with individual need.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the range of needs which have been judged eligible, and have been met, by distribution from the Gulf Trust fund through the service benevolent funds.

The support that the service benevolent funds provide can cover a wide range of areas within the terms of the trust deeds and charity law. It is not the practice of the funds to release details of how they have dealt with individual cases.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give the latest figure of distributions made by the service benevolent funds, specifying the figures for the three individual funds, from moneys passed to them from the Gulf Trust fund.

The information requested is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give the latest available figure of the sums donated by members of the public to the Gulf Trust fund; what total sums, and under what apportionment, have been passed on to the three service benevolent funds from the Gulf Trust fund; and on what basis the apportionments have been calculated.

As at 31 December 1992, a total of £3,008,051 had been donated to the Gulf Trust fund. No block allocation of funds has been passed by the united services trustee to the service benevolent funds. The benevolent funds are meeting claims arising from the Gulf conflict by payments made to them as necessary by the Gulf Trust fund. The amount of money allocated to each of the service benevolent funds will be announced when the Gulf Trust is wound up.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans for the future use or disposal of the RAF Church Fenton headquarters buildings and residential accommodation have been made, following recent decisions about the RAF's future use and requirements of the landing facilities there.

The airfield at RAF Church Fenton is designated as a relief landing ground for RAF Linton on Ouse and this requirement will exist for the foreseeable future. The married quarters are to be retained for service use. The majority of the technical site, however, including the headquarters buildings is scheduled for disposal.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is the total number of self-employed businesses in the north-east for each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

The available information for the northern region—Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Cumbria, Durham and Cleveland—based on the labour force survey, is given in the table.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Sunderland, South on 14 December, Official Report, column 27, what discussions he has had with the Vietnamese Government with a view to recovering outstanding trade debts.

The Export Credits Guarantee Department has attempted to negotiate the settlement of trade debts owed by Vietnam on which ECGD has paid claims. These negotiations have proved fruitless. The Vietnamese Government have now signalled their intention to regularise their payments position with their creditors and to seek a formal restructuring of the official debt under the auspices of the Paris club.

VAT registrations and deregistrations in Northern region
	Registrations (000?s)	Deregistrations (000?s)	Net change (000?s)
1987	7·3	6·2	1·1
1988	8·3	6·7	1·7
1989	9·1	6·8	2·4
1990	8·3	6·7	1·6
1991	6·9	6·8	0·1

These figures reflect the success of the Government?s Policies in encouraging enterprise and new business formation within the region.

Self-employed in Northern region
	(000's)
1983	91
1984	92
1985	104
1986	105
1987	108
1988	113
1989	110
1990	115
1991	115
1992	114

These figures underline the success of the Government's policy in encouraging the growth of the enterprise culture and self-employment within the region.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what discussions he has had with (a) Nottinghamshire county council, (b) the European Commission and (c) any other bodies on the question of the compatibility of state aid to the nuclear industry with EC treaty provisions; and if he will make a statement.

The Government are aware that Nottinghamshire county council has made representations to the European Commission concerning the Commission's decision in March 1990 not to raise objections to the provision of state aids to the nuclear industry. It is for the Commission to respond to these representations as it deems appropriate.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is his curent target in megawatts for wind power electricity.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is the net number of new businesses in the north-east for each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

The available information for the northern region—Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Cumbria, Durham and Cleveland—based on VAT data, is given in the table. During the period 1987 to 1991 the number of businesses registered for VAT in the northern region increased by 6,800.

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Ceredigion and Pembroke, North (Mr. Dafis) on 16 November, Official Report, column 69.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he will respond to the fourth report of the Select Committee on Energy on renewable energy; and if he will make a statement.

The Government's response to the Energy Select Committee report on renewable energy was announced to the House on 16 July 1992, Official Report, column 997.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 17 December 1992, Official Report, column 479, when he received the report by the renewable energy advisory group; and if he will make a statement.

The report by the Renewable Energy Advisory Group was received by the President's office on 24 November 1992. Its printing was then expedited to make it available to Members before the Christmas recess.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will state the value of imports, exports and trade balance in manufactured goods with the rest of the OECD countries, in total, and by individual country, in (a) 1970, (b) 1979 and (c) for each year since 1979; and if he will make a statement.

Information for 1979 and 1991 is given in the table. Information for 1970 and each year from 1980 to 1990 could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the United Kingdom share of the world trade in manufactures in (a) 1962, (b) 1970 and (c) for each year since 1979 to the present; and if he will make a statement.

The figures requested are shown its the table.

United Kingdom value share of exports of manufactures from the MMC1 to the World.
Year	Per cent.
1962	15·5
1970	10·6
1979	9·1
1980	9·6
1981	8·5
1982	8·4
1983	7·9
1984	7·5
1985	7·8
1986	7·6
1987	8·1
1988	8·3
1989	8·2
1990	8·6
1991	8·5
1 Main Manufacturing Countries.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps are being taken to extend the term of the existing redundancy agreement for miners following the High Court judgment preventing the immediate closure of pits; and whether he will make a statement.

None. British Coal's redundancy terms are a matter for British Coal. It would, however, seem reasonable for the corporation not to determine its redundancy arrangements from 1 April 1993 until at least the outcome of the coal review is known.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what response he has made to the submission to him from Birmingham city council on the impact of coal industry restructuring.

I have seen and considered the paper, a copy of which was handed to me by my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Edgbaston (Dame J. Knight). We are taking its contents into account along with the other submissions we have received in the context of the coal review.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what plans he has to repeal or amend section 46 of the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946.

[holding answer 11 January 1993]: I am considering British Coal's suggestion that this provision be repealed, along with all the other evidence to the coal review. We shall shortly publish a White Paper setting out the results of that review.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he has received the first annual reports on audit regulation of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants and the Association of Authorised Public Accountants as recognised supervisory bodies under Part II of the Companies Act 1989; and if he will make a statement.

I have now received the first annual reports of these two associations on their activities as recognised supervisory bodies for the regulation of

Title	1989–90 £	1990–91 £	1991–92 £	1992–931£	Total £
Dairy Farm, Belfast	140,411·00	2,294,559·92	2,467,744·28	40,601·58	4,943,316·78
North Howard Street, Belfast	145,962·67	1,505,163·58	1,771,311·17	998,451·68	4,420,889·10
Ashton Street, Belfast	65,442·69	315,463·54	637,434·64	4,365·05	1,022,695·92
Bryson Street, Belfast	—	—	613,745·30	317,898·25	931,643·55
Shantallow Village, Londonderry	—	—	1,099,774·66	1,784,814·94	2,884,589·60
Inner City Trust Heritage Centre, Londonderry	—	—	—	625,000·00	625,000·00
Community Enterprise Centre, Creggan, Londonderry	—	—	—	15,692·59	15,692·59
1 To date.

Costs are generally shared equally between the International Fund for Ireland and the Department of the Environment (NI).

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish a table to show the sums expended on the Community regeneration initiative special project in each year to date; on which projects they were spent; and what were the sources of the funds, showing in each case the amounts or as much of such information as is readily available to him.

The sums expended on CRISP in each year to date and the projects where the money was spent are as follows:

CRISP town	1990–91	1991–92	1992–931
Coalisland
Cornmill	12,557·39	330,079·28	486,445·41
Fireclay Works	—	11,213·11	319,805·28
Weaving Factory	153,529·75	113,894·65	9,300·53
Carrickmore
Milestone Centre	8·480·14	171,795·47	1,010,739·55
Garrison
Gillaroo Court	—	21,531·29	25,669·47
Plumbridge	—	6,171·05	17,564·20
Pettigo
Environmental Improvements	—	14,675·88	227·86

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish a table to show the sums expended under the Community economic regeneration scheme in each year to date and detailing the projects supported and the sources of the funds, showing in each case the amounts, or as much of such information as is readily available to him.

The sums expended on the Community economic regeneration scheme in each year to date and the details of the projects supported are as follows:

CRISP town	1990–91	1991–92	1992–931
Miscellaneous	—	442·50	—
Derrygonnelly
Environmental Improvements	4,838·22	5,230·93	—
Creamery Complex	—	5,578·07	51,597·82
Newtownhamilton
Core Project	—	2,038·15	2,394·05
Belcoo
Environmental Improvements	—	4,731·79	17,347·78
Core Project	—	753·82	34·49
Dromore, County Tyrone
Environmental Improvements	—	22,566·78	44,636·90
Workspace Units	2,921·45	7,448·65	110,350·78
Cullyhanna
Core Project	—	236·54	3,311·03
Portaferry
Brewery Yard	—	14,363·87	55,721·85
Downpatrick
Core Project	—	555·42	3,220·00
Castlewellan Core Project	—	14,597·81	5,828·44
Crossmaglen
Core Project	—	—	8,237·37
Drumquin
Core Project	—	—	6,254·31

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much of the regional rate paid by ratepayers in Northern Ireland is charged for water services, including sewage disposal.

[holding answer 11 January 1993]: Although the regional rate is based on expenditure by central Government in Northern Ireland on services which in Great Britain would be undertaken by local authorities, it is essentially a general charge and the proceeds are not allocated to the component services. However, since 1991–92 arrangements have been made to appropriate in aid of water services, including sewage disposal, the relevant share of regional rate income to facilitate transition to commercial accounting procedures. In 1992–93 the share of the regional rate appropriated in aid of these services is equivalent to poundage of 65·63 p.

To ask the Prime Minister what are his objectives for 1993.

Among the Government's objectives for 1993 are continuing to work for economic growth and recovery and to encourage British industry to take advantage of the great opportunities offered by the single market; reducing the burden of regulations on business; pressing ahead with our reforms of education and health so that there will be more grant-maintained schools and more GP fund holders; continuing to drive for a return to basics in our schools and to give parents more information about how their children are doing; extending home ownership; making further progress with privatisation and contracting out; strengthening and modernising our police force and cracking down on juvenile offenders in particular; continuing our reforms as part of the citizens charter programme to give more power to those who use our public services; bringing forward proposals to develop a network of voluntary help in local communities; defending Britain's interests in Europe and the world.

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral statement in answer to the hon. Member for Linlithgow, of 14 December, Official Report, column 34, what was the result of his inquiries relating to Telecom's arrangements for incoming calls at the Meadowbank stadium for journalists attending the Edinburgh summit.

I wrote to the hon. Member on 16 December setting out the telecommunications arrangements at the European Council media centre.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the peerages created since 30 November 1990, together with the dates on which the holders were introduced.

The information is as follows:

Peers created under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876
	Created	Introduced
Lord Browne-Wilkinson (a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary)	1 October 1991	15 October 1991
Lord Mustill (a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary)	10 January 1992	11 March 1992
Lord Slynn (a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary)	11 March 1992	11 March 1992
Lord Woolf (a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary)	1 October 1992	1 November 1992
Peers created under the Life Peers Act 1958
Lord Waddington	4 December 1990	4 December 1990
Lord Sterling of Plaistow	17 January 1991	23 January 1991
Lord White of Hull	25 January 1991	29 January 1991
Lord Runcie	1 February 1991	26 February 1991
Lord Pallumbo	4 February 1991	12 February 1991
Lord Griffiths of Fforestfach	5 February 1991	20 February 1991