To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration he has given to the provisions of interim compensation payments to those service personnel who were held captive by the Iraqi Government after the invasion of Kuwait; and if he will make a statement.

It has been the policy of successive Governments that payments should not be made from public funds to claimants against a foreign Government in anticipation of the payment of compensation from that Government.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has about the provision of interim compensation payments to foreign service personnel who were held captive by the Iraqi Government after the invasion of Kuwait; and if he will make a statement.

I am not aware of any foreign Government who have made interim compensation payments.

To ask the Prime Minister how many individuals have written to him since his statement of 8 March proposing themselves as recipients of honours.

Over 1,600 names have been put forward to the honours nominations unit since I made my statement to the House on changes to the honours system. Based on a check of a sample of the nominations, it is likely that about a dozen are self-nominations.

To ask the Prime Minister how many staff were employed at No. 10 Downing street to administer the honours system in 1992: and what increase in their number is planned.

[holding answer 15 April 1993]: The honours section in 10 Downing street consisted of six staff in 1992. Numbers will be kept under review in the normal way to reflect changes in the work load.

To ask the Prime Minister what Government tasks are currently carried out by Sir John Cuckney.

Sir John Cuckney is currently chairman of the Maxwell Pensioners Trust and adviser to the Department of Social Security's Maxwell pensions unit. Both appointments were made by the Secretary of State for Social Security. In addition, Sir John serves as a trustee of the Royal Air Force museum, an appointment made by the Secretary of State for Defence.

To ask the Prime Minister when he next plans to visit Pakistan.

I am keen to take up an invitation from the Pakistan Prime Minister to visit Pakistan, and will do so when time permits.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will introduce legislation to prevent the use of bank loans from offshore tax havens to political parties in the United Kingdom.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to him on 18 March, at column 357.

To ask the Prime Minister how many letters he has received concerning compensation for the victims of BCCI.

I have received numerous representations.

To ask the Prime Minister what Government Departments hold bank accounts with the Royal Bank of Scotland; and which of those accounts are at Drummonds branch.

No central records are maintained showing which Departments use which banks. Government Departments may use the services of clearing banks without reference to the Treasury when the arrangements offer good value for money.

To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he has had with the Indian High Commissioner following the bomb blasts in Bombay in March.

I expressed my personal sympathy to the Indian high commissioner as soon as I heard of the explosions and loss of life in Bombay, and also sent messages to the Indian Prime Minister and the Governor of Bombay conveying condolences and offering practical help.

To ask the Prime Minister what plans he has to lift restrictions governing the use of private capital by local authorities, laid down in the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

We have no such plans. However, it is already open to local authorities to enter into partnerships with the private sector and draw upon private finance.

To ask the Prime Minister when he now expects to meet Mr. Salman Rushdie.

I expect to meet Mr. Rushdie shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if it remains his policy to conduct English tests for 14-year-olds following decisions by teachers about boycotts.

Yes. The English tests for 14-year-olds to be conducted this summer are the product of three years of trials in schools, involving hundreds of teachers and thousands of pupils. It is the statutory duty of head teachers to implement them, and the professional and contractual duty of teachers to carry them out.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps have been taken since 1986 to improve educational standards and opportunities for the Bangladeshi population in Britain.

Successive educational reforms since 1986, including the Education Bill now before Parliament, have been designed to raise standards and improve opportunities for all pupils, whatever their ethnic or cultural background. As they take effect, Bangladeshi pupils are sharing in the benefit. Grants paid to local authorities under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966 are supporting projects designed to meet the particular educational needs of Bangladeshi pupils, including English language support.Bengali may now be studied in schools in fulfilment of the national curriculum requirement that all pupils aged 11 to 16 must study a modern foreign language. Funding has been provided through GEST—grants for education support and training—for three projects specifically for Bangladeshi pupils. Bangladeshi community groups are also benefiting from the ethnic minority grant introduced in April 1992 to give ethnic minorities equal access to training and enterprise opportunities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list those local authorities in Wales which have no local plan.

The following local planning authorities have no adopted local plans.

• Alyn and Deeside District Council
• Carmarthen District Council
• Ceredigion District Council
• Glyndwr District Council
• Montgomeryshire District Council
• Neath Borough Council
• Preseli Pembrokeshire District Council
• Rhuddlan Borough Council
• South Pembrokeshire District Council
• Taff-Ely Borough Council

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to his answer of 19 March, Official Report, column 438, if he will give comparable figures for the cost of administering legal aid in Scotland through the local legal aid committees in each of the five years prior to the establishment of the Scottish Legal Aid Board in 1987; and if he will make a statement.

Unlike the Scottish Legal Aid Board, the former Law Society legal aid central committee and the local legal aid committees dealt only with the merits of civil legal applications. The committees did not undertake assessments of the means of applicants for civil legal aid, which were assessed by DHSS and latterly the Scottish Office. Nor did they have any responsibility for summary criminal legal aid applications, which were dealt with by the courts. Comparable administrative cost figures are therefore not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what industrial grants or support have been paid to Saztec Europe Ltd., Ardrossan.

[holding answer 15 April 1993]: Saztec Europe Ltd., formerly Saztec Scotland Ltd., received assistance in 1986 under the now terminated regional development grants scheme. This scheme offered automatic grants if the applicant met the appropriate criteria.The conditions attaching to the grant were met.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she now expects to make a statement on the Warner report.

The responses to the consultation exercise are being considered. I hope to announce the Government's response to the report next month.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will make a statement on her policy on the use in the NHS of post-marketing surveillance trials by drugs companies;(2) if she will list the drugs used by the NHS in post-marketing surveillance trials in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.

Post-marketing surveillance studies are the responsibility of pharmaceutical companies and not the NHS or the Department of Health. These studies are designed to gain information on the safety of medicines in everyday clinical practice and therefore could not be done without the involvement of the NHS. Voluntary guidelines on the conduct of company-sponsored PMS studies have been in force since 1988. Under these guidelines, companies are requested to provide information on these studies to the Medicines Control Agency. The MCA has reviewed PMS studies conducted under the guidelines and their findings were published in the British Medical Journal inJune 1992. In the light of these findings, the guidelines are now being reviewed.Information supplied by companies to the MCA is considered confidential under section 118 of the Medicines Act 1968. A list of individual drugs on which PMS studies are being conducted cannot therefore be published by the Department of Health.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines have been issued in relation to the prescribing of Zoladex by (a) hospital consultants and (b) general practitioners; and what proposals she has for further actions on this front.

Prescribing information on Zoladex is available to all doctors in the British National Formulary, which the Department issues free of charge to all prescribers, and in the data sheet for this product, which is produced by the manufacturer and authorised by the licensing authority. This information is applicable to both hospital consultants and general practitioners. There are no plans at present to issue additional guidelines on Zoladex, but, as with all medicines, its safety is monitored by the Medicines Control Agency.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) whether he proposes to carry out further research on the toxicological data on comfrey, with a view to determining a level of safe use; and if he will make a statement;(2) what pyrrolizidine alkaloids are found in comfrey; and if he will indicate which of these is of proven toxicity.

I have been asked to reply.Common comfrey (symphytum officinale) and Russian comfrey (symphytum X uplandicum) are believed to be the varieties commonly used in herbal food supplements. The following pirrolizidine alkaloids have been identified and reported in the scientific literature as being present in either common or Russian comfrey or in both.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer under which vote sub-head the proceeds of the sale of the former NIE generating stations were accounted for.

Northern Ireland estimates 1992–93, Department of Economic Development, vote 4.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what matters in regard to investment in environmental protection were discussed and decided at the G-7 meeting of Finance Ministers in Tokyo on 14–15 April.

Nuclear safety in Russia and dumping of radioactive waste at sea were discussed at the meeting. The meeting reaffirmed the commitment of the G7 to the full and timely implementation of the multilateral programme of action to improve nuclear safety in Russia agreed at the Munich summit.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many letters he has received concerning compensation for the victims of BCCI.

The Treasury has received some 800 letters about BCCI since the bank was closed. It would be possible to identify how many of these were about compensation only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will update, to take account of the 1993 Budget, the information on tax changes contained in his answer to the hon. Member for Bradford, West (Mr. Madden) of 29 June 1992, Official Report, column 380.

Latest estimates of the annual change in income tax liability resulting from the changes in tax rates, allowances and thresholds announced in the 1993 Budget are in the table. The 1978–79 income tax regime has been indexed to 1993–94 levels by reference to the statutory formula, and allowing for independent taxation.For the purposes of these calculations the indexed regime of 1978–79 is applied directly to the income base of 1993–94. In practice, retention of the regime indexed as appropriate, for the intervening years would have led to changes in the income base.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what reports have been produced by the Northern Ireland court service with regard to the operation of the legal aid scheme in Northern Ireland; and if he will place these reports in the Library.

No reports have been produced by the Northern Ireland court service with regard to the operation of the legal aid scheme in Northern Ireland. Such reports are produced annually by the Law Society of Northern Ireland and are referred to the Lord Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Legal Aid in Northern Ireland for consideration and advice pursuant to article 23(3) of the Legal Aid, Advice and Assistance (Northern Ireland) Order 1981. These reports and the Lord Chancellor's advisory committee reports are placed in the Library.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what progress has been made by the Northern Ireland court service in consolidating Northern Ireland's legal aid regulations; and what has been the reason for the time taken in consolidating these regulations.

Considerable progress has been made by the Northern Ireland court service in preparation of the regulations which will revise the Legal Aid (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1965. This exercise, which is at an advanced stage, involves primarily a consolidation of existing provisions, but the opportunity is also being taken to improve and modernise the regulations in some respects. The exercise has been held in abeyance pending the resolution of a number of points of detail. It is expected that these will be resolved within the next month, and that it will be possible to bring forward the new regulations later this year.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, whether he intends to set up a Legal Aid Board for Northern Ireland.

In the light of the establishment of independent legal aid boards for England and Wales and Scotland, the Lord Chancellor has been reviewing the arrangements for the administration of legal aid in Northern Ireland with the aim of effecting improvements to the present system. One of the options for consideration is the establishment of an independent legal aid board. There have already been preliminary discussions with the Law Society of Northern Ireland and it is expected that these will continue. Following the completion of the review, the Lord Chancellor will bring forward proposals.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what plans he has to extend to Northern Ireland the research he has commissioned into the operation of legal aid in respect of eligibility, the green form scheme and advice and assistance at police stations.

The Legal Aid Board in England and Wales has commissioned research which has touched on these subjects, but no research has been commissioned recently on them by the Lord Chancellor's Department. As a general principle, the Lord Chancellor's Department would consider extending any research it commissioned to Northern Ireland.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he will publish the research undertaken by the Northern Ireland court service into advice at police stations; what other research has been undertaken or funded by the Northern Ireland court service into legal aid and legal advice and assistance; and when this research will be published.

The results of a survey undertaken by the Northern Ireland court service into legal advice and assistance at police stations, have been forwarded to interested parties, but there are no plans to publish the results of this survey. No other research has been undertaken or funded by the Northern Ireland court service into legal aid and legal advice and assistance.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will make a statement on the steps taken to co-ordinate the Northern Ireland court service research schedule on legal aid with his Department's research programme.

The Lord Chancellor's Department and the Northern Ireland court service will continue to liaise closely in respect of any research on legal aid.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what proportion of the population in Northern Ireland is currently eligible for legal aid and legal assistance; what proportion of these is eligible (a) with a financial contribution and (b) without a financial contribution; what proportion of the Northern Ireland population will be eligible for legal aid and advice and assistance under the new legal aid regulations laid down by his Department; and what proportion of these is eligible (i) with a financial contribution and (ii) without a financial contribution.

Estimates of eligibility that have been made are based on family expenditure survey data and relate to households. The proportion of households currently eligible for civil legal aid, is likely to be somewhere between 50 and 55 per cent. in England and Wales. Only a small proportion of Northern Ireland households are included in the family expenditure survey. However, Northern Ireland household incomes are estimated to be 82 per cent. of the incomes in England and Wales. It is therefore estimated that somewhere between at least 60 and 65 per cent of households in Northern Ireland are currently eligible for civil legal aid. As a result of the distribution of incomes in Northern Ireland, the effect of the introduction of the new regulations will be a small decrease in the proportion of households eligible for legal aid. It is estimated that this reduction will be in the region of two percentage points.The proportion of households eligible for legal advice and assistance will be virtually unchanged under the new regulations, although more will be required to make a contribution.Information regarding the proportion of the population that is currently eligible for legal aid and legal assistance with a contribution and the proportion that will be so eligible under the new legal aid regulations, is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. In 1991–92, of those persons granted civil legal aid, 89 per cent. were eligible with no contribution. The comparative figures for legal advice and assistance and assistance by way of representation were 97 per cent. and 89 per cent. respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which prisons currently in use will be market tested during the next three financial years.

No decisions have yet been made.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish a table to show for as many years for which the information is conveniently available the number of persons sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of (a) police officers, (b) prison officers, (c) military personnel and (d) civilians who have been in each year released from prison; whether the life sentence had a minimum recommendation imposed by the court which was not fully served; and in which cases there was a terrorist involvement.

The available information for 1981 to 1991 is shown in the table. Murderers of military personnel cannot be separately identified nor is the minimum recommendation of the court recorded centrally. There was no known terrorist involvement by any of the life sentence prisoners released during 1981 to 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Immigration and Nationality Department solicits information on individual cases from local authorities without the express consent of the individual.

There are various circumstances in which the Immigration and Nationality Department may ask local authorities for information about an individual. It is not always appropriate to seek to express consent of the person concerned.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Immigration and Nationality Department receives information on individuals from the Department of Social Security passed on without the individual's express consent.

Yes. Liaison between the Departments may be necessary in particular cases and it is not always appropriate to seek the express consent of the individuals concerned.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has to improve police training and to produce guidelines for police forces on child abduction.

It is for individual chief officers of police to determine what action should be taken to investigate offences under the Child Abduction Act 1984 and to decide what training is required. My right hon. and learned Friend is aware of the recent report of the parliamentary working party on child abduction and is ready to consider any proposals for amending the existing guidelines.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the criteria used by the Home Office to evaluate outside tenders for Home Office tasks which are the subject of market testing exercises.

Evaluation criteria will be contained, where appropriate, in the EC Journal notice advertising the relevant market tests, or in the invitation to tender documents.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether Home Office unions and staff associations have been consulted on the method and content of market testing exercises since January 1992.

Yes, on both a formal and an informal basis.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the total cost of all Home Office market testing exercises to date.

The total cost of the Home Office market testing programme, including consultancies, since November 1991 has been approximately £1,036,000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what would be the security implications of contracting out the emergency planning college; and what safeguards would be introduced.

We are not aware of any security consideration which would prevent the contracting out of the work of the emergency planning college. Whether safeguards would be necessary is something which would be considered in any contracting-out study.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current immigration status of Donald Treshman; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Treshman left the United Kingdom voluntarily on 14 April. In accordance with the directions given by the Home Secretary on 26 March, he is now excluded from the United Kingdom on the ground that his presence is not conducive to the public good. Before he left Mr. Treshman appealed against the decision to deport him; that appeal will now proceed in his absence.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what instructions he has issued to United Kingdom immigration authorities to exclude from entry to the United Kingdom Mr. Tom Metzger, an American citizen; and if he will make a statement.

My right hon. and learned Friend is awaiting information about Mr. Metzger's background, to enable him to consider whether to exclude him from the United Kingdom on the grounds that his presence would not be conducive to the public good. In the meantime immigration officers at ports of entry have been instructed not to admit him without reference.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to extend privatisation of the court escort service to London; and if he will make a statement.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has for the further contracting out of prison escort services.

I refer the hon. Members to the reply given to the hon. Member for Westminster, North (Sir J. Wheeler) on 16 February, column 139.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the terms of the contract with Group 4 for prison escort duties; what monitorings carried out of whether the contract is being adhered to; and if he will make a statement.

Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the cost to the Exchequer for police time in pursuing prisoners who have escaped or have been wrongfully released by Group 4 Security.

Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the prisoners who have escaped or been wrongfully released by Group 4 Security since they began escort duties; and if he will make a statement.

Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will conduct an inquiry into the escape and wrongful release of prisoners entrusted to Group 4 Security.

The director-general has on his own initiative conducted such an inquiry.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the deposit for a candidate in a General Election was last set; what is the current figure; and what plans he has to increase the sum.

The deposit for a candidate at a parliamentary election was set at £500 in 1985. I have no plans to increase this sum.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 30 March, Official Report, column 113, if he is now in a position to state when it is likely that the post of chief executive or director to the successor body to the United Kingdom Immigrants Advisory Service will be duly advertised.

This is a matter for the planning group established by my right hon. and learned Friend, but I understand that the post of director will be advertised shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the two recent incidents which involved an assault on a police officer at the Wolds remand centre.

Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what training is being provided for custody officers at HMP Blakenhurst; and who is providing that training.

Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the Prison Service. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what were the names and positions of those who requested the investigation into Astra plc.

The inspectors were appointed following an application of the company, made by letter dated 27 June 1990, signed by the chairman, Mr. Roy Barber.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what has been the cost of his Department's inquiry into Astra plc. to date.

A total of £2,170,000, inclusive of VAT.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what indemnities Her Majesty's Government have offered British Coal for any court costs incurred through legal action by the trustees of the British Coal staff superannuation scheme; if he will detail the full extent of past and present indemnities offered to British Coal; and if he will publish the external legal advice and the terms and conditions upon which any indemnity was offered.

No indemnity has been given or offered to British Coal for such legal costs.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what proposals his Department has made to British Coal in relation to using part of the surplus in its pension scheme to meet the cost of additional contributions to its staff superannuation scheme in respect of early pensions and pensions for redundant miners.

My Department has made no such proposals. It has, however, because of its responsibilities for the proper use of public funds, asked British Coal to explore the possibility of applying its share of the surplus to the staff superannuation scheme in discharge of its obligation to meet the cost of additional contributions to that scheme. The corporation intends to seek a court direction before taking any final decision.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what plans he has to reform company law to prevent overseas companies that are operating in the United Kingdom with the same names as existing United Kingdom companies from abusing their matching identity.

All overseas companies opening a branch or place of business in the United Kingdom are required to register with the Registrar of Companies. If the corporate name of such an overseas company is the same as, or too like, an existing name on the Great Britain register, section 694 of the Companies Act 1985 already gives the Secretary of State power to serve notice requiring the overseas company to cease using that name in Great Britain within two months. There are similar powers in Northern Ireland.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what plans he has to reform company law to tackle fraud by corporate directorships held in the name of a company registered abroad and to prevent such companies avoiding punishment under United Kingdom law.

None. Where fraud has been committed in the United Kingdom, existing legislation enables proceedings to be commenced against a company and the directors involved, even where these are overseas companies. There is also a number of bilateral and other arrangements with overseas regulators which provide for assistance with inquiries into offences involving directors and companies located overseas. Provisions in the new Criminal Justice Bill will make it easier to prosecute persons—whether companies or individuals—involved in cases of international fraud.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) when the decision was made to locate his Department's east midlands regional development organisation in Nottingham;(2) whether he will reconsider his decision to locate the east midlands regional development organisation in Nottingham rather than in Leicester.

[holding answer 14 April 1993]: The decision was made on 25 March when my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade made a statement on the conclusions of the Government's coal review. The new east midlands regional development organisation is not part of my Department, but will be supported in part by a grant in aid linked to the performance of specific inward investment promotion activities on behalf of the Invest in Britain Bureau.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the average price of one tonne of British potatoes in (a) 1975, (b) 1985 and (c) 1993; at what average price potatoes were sold to the public in the same years; and if he will also provide the figures at 1991–92 constant prices.

The following tables give information in respect of 1975 and 1985. Information about 1993 is not yet available so I have supplied figures for 1992.

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received during recent months on the pricing policies of food retailers in the United Kingdom.

I received from time to time representations from members of the public about retail prices of a wide range of foodstuffs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish the projected admissions to residential and nursing homes in the various districts of the Eastern health and social services board for the years 1993–94, 1994–95 and 1995–96; and if he will make a statement.

The information requested is not available. In Northern Ireland as a whole, based on the numbers used in the calculation of the sum transferred from the social security system to the health and personal social services budget, it was estimated that in each of the years in question the number of claimants expected to enter independent homes would grow by 2,135 per annum. From 1 April 1993, the number of actual admissions to residential and nursing home care will be determined by the outcome of the assessment of need which boards will be required to carry out on individuals.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish the number of people in care in independent homes in the area of the Northern Ireland Eastern health and social services board on which the budget for community care will be calculated from 1 April; and if he will make a statement.

The projected number of people in independent care homes in the Eastern board area at 1 April is not available. However, the number of people expected to enter independent homes in Northern Ireland as a whole under the previous arrangements was projected to grow by 2,135 per annum. In 1993–94, £29·5 million, including £24·63 million transferred from social security, has been allocated to the four boards in Northern Ireland on the basis of the capitation formula giving the Eastern board additional community care resources of £12 million. The deployment of these funds together with the existing community care resources is for the board to take forward through its purchasing plans.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people in care in independent homes in the area of the Northern Ireland Eastern health and social services board will qualify for preserved rights under the community care reforms.

All those in care in independent homes in the Eastern health and social services board area on 31 March 1993 have a preserved right to claim the higher rates of income support under the community care reforms.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were recorded as in care in independent homes in Northern Ireland by the Eastern health and social services board on 31 March.

A provisional total of 5,932 beds were available in independent homes in the Eastern board area at 31 March 1993. It is not known how many of these beds were occupied. Prior to 1 April the majority of residents made private arrangements for admission to these homes and the Eastern board does not have a record of their numbers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what system was used to obtain the projected number of people in care in independent sector homes in the area of the Eastern health and social services board as at 1 April; and if he will make a statement.

Projections of the number of people in care in independent sector homes were made for the purposes of the transfer of resources from social security and therefore reflected numbers of demands in social security districts and not individual board areas. These projections were derived from numbers collected from two surveys of all income support claimants and updated by computerised scans of resident numbers in independent homes. Projections do not include residents who were not relying on income support for help with the cost of their accommodation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what department will make the necessary assessments under the community care reforms for people applying for residential and nursing home care in Northern Ireland.

Health and social services boards, through their units of management, are responsible for carrying out an assessment of need for any individual living within their area who requires community care services, including residential care and nursing home accommodation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans the health and social services boards in Northern Ireland have to meet the needs of those people admitted to community care from 1 April for all the costs of care required to be covered where the applicant is on income support.

Each board, through its units of management, is responsible for assessing the needs of individuals living within its area who require community care services. The costs of providing the necessary community care services will be met by boards. Where this includes residential or nursing home accommodation boards will seek to recover the cost from the person according to his ability to pay, irrespective of whether income support is in payment. Boards must, however, ensure that individual residents are left with at least an amount equivalent to the personal expenses element of income support payable to those in registered independent sector homes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many patients, in each of the health board areas, have been waiting for cardiac surgery for more than (a) one year, (b) two years, (c) three years and (d) four years.

The information is not available in the precise form requested. The numbers waiting for cardiac surgery as recorded by board of residence at the end of February 1993 are as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many patients were offered cardiac surgery outside the Province in 1992; and of those offered, how many refused.

The information is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, I can say that some 230 patients have been treated in Great Britain during the last 18 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to his answer of 8 December, to the hon. Member for Londonderry, East (Mr. Ross) Official Report, column 601–02, how much additional money will be made available for heart operations in the financial year 1993–94; and how it will be allocated between the four health boards.

A total of £1·62 million additional money will be made available for cardiac surgery-in 1993–94. This will be divided among the four health and social security boards as follows:

• Eastern—£1,011,348
• Northern—£283,458
• Southern—£189,318
• Western—£ 135,876

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment has been carried out of the quality of clinical care in Northern Ireland hospitals; and if he will publish the results.

Clinical care is constantly being assessed by clinicians. Arising from the NHS reforms additional funds have been made available to boards to assist in the process of audit and the Department has centrally funded various medical audit projects. A regional audit advisory committee and area audit advisory committees in each board are all required to produce annual reports which are presented to the Minister. There are no plans to publish these.In addition Northern Ireland has been an active participant in national studies such as the confidential inquiry into maternal deaths and the confidential inquiry into perioperative deaths. These inquiries are conducted in a formal way and are published widely.Northern Ireland is also participating fully in the confidential inquiry into stillbirths and deaths in infancy. It is a rolling programme and will be published annually.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what steps have been taken since 1986 to improve employment and training opportunities for the Bangladeshi population in Britain.

The Employment Department is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity in all its employment and training programmes. This policy is implemented through the race relations advisory service (RREAS), which helps to improve opportunities for all ethnic minority groups, and training and enterprise councils (TECs). TECs have a contractual obligation to ensure equality of opportunity in all their activities.The Employment Act 1989 encouraged wider use of positive action training both in training providers and employers. The RREAS helps by publicising what the special provisions allow and encouraging employers to use them.The Government recognise that those with little English language or low levels of literacy skills will face significant barriers to getting the skills and qualifications to help them get jobs. Those with such needs are eligible to start training for work, the main programme for unemployed adults, without having to be unemployed for six months.TECs are uniquely placed to work with local communities and all relevant agencies to help address specific needs and overcome barriers. Since their launch in 1989, some TECs have developed provision specifically for local Bangladeshi communities, and others provide a wide range of support for all ethnic minority groups, to which members from Bangladeshi communities have equal access. The ethnic minority grant, administered by the Home Office, has been successful in providing TECs with extra help in overcoming language or cultural barriers in particular.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she intends to introduce legislation to ban advertisements for job vacancies which place an age bar.

Employers who refuse to consider people purely because of their age miss out on the skills, experience and commitment which older people can bring to a job. Banning age limits in job advertisements, however, would do nothing to prevent discrimination occurring later on at the interview or selection stages. The way forward is to persuade employers who discriminate that it is in their own best interests to treat everyone on their merits, regardless of age.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's policy towards Iran as long as the death sentence on a British citizen living in the United Kingdom is not withdrawn.

We remain greatly concerned by the continuing failure of the Iranian authorities to repudiate the incitement to murder Mr. Rushdie and the bounty on him offered by an Iranian organisation. This failure inevitably prevents the establishment of full and friendly relations with Iran.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will discuss the safety aspects of staffing levels at railway stations with the chairman of British Rail.

The Secretary of State regularly meets the BR chairman and board members to discuss a wide range of matters relating to the railways, including the safety and security of the travelling public. Staffing levels at railway stations are a matter for the board.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what support the Government are giving to encourage the transfer of freight traffic from the roads to the railways.

I recently announced three important new measures to boost the prospects for rail freight. These provided for improvements to the existing freight facilities grant scheme; the introduction of a new grant scheme to assist with Railtrack's charges; and the publication of a paper on the potential for weight incentives for lorries used in combined transport.These measures taken together with privatisation, open access, and substantial investment in channel tunnel services, will provide the best prospects for encouraging more freight traffic to the railways.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport to what extent performance levels on the west coast main line are affected by the age of the infrastructure and the age of the rolling stock.

I recognise that the age of equipment on particular lines can affect performance. That said, British Rail intends to start work soon on renewing the infrastructure on the west coast main line. The precise timing will be decided later in the spring when British Rail has finalised its spending plans. New stock for the line is, as I announced earlier, one of two options under consideration for the planned £150 million leasing facility announced at the time of the autumn statement.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations the British Government have made to European institutions with a view to securing financial support for investment in the west coast main line.

The west coast main line is included in the outline plan for the European high speed train network. The Commission has requested further information on such projects. The Commission is at present assessing the likely demand for the proposed networks fund rather than inviting bids for funds.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the economic potential of the west coast main line to carry intercontinental freight and passenger services via the channel tunnel.

It would be for British Rail, not the Department, to make such an assessment. British Rail's current assessment underlies their proposals for international freight and passenger services using the west coast main line.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he last met the chairman of British Rail to discuss services on the west coast main line.

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport regularly meets the chairman of British Rail to discuss a variety of railway issues.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received regarding deregulation of bus services in London.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Islington, North (Mr. Corbyn) earlier today.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many working hours he estimates were lost in 1992 due to motorway repairs.

All motorway repairs are planned so as to keep delays to a minimum.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to develop improvements to the feeder routes into the A40 in the Northolt and Ealing area; and if he will make a statement.

This is a matter for the London borough of Ealing which has responsibility for the roads in question.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consideration he has given to improving rail links between the west midlands and the continent.

British Rail is investing over 1·4 billion in rolling stock and infrastructure for their channel tunnel services. Projects particularly benefiting the west midlands include the upgrading of the existing freight terminal at Birmingham. This will enable high-quality rail freight services to operate from the region to the continent and allow goods to transfer from road to rail. British Rail is also investing in rolling stock to provide a direct day service for passengers linking Manchester, Birmingham, Stockport and Crewe to both Paris and Brussels and a passenger night service via Lancaster, Preston and Crewe to those cities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures his Department will take to facilitate travel by the disabled in London.

My Department's disability unit works closely with the unit for disabled passengers at London Transport in promoting a wide range of accessible mainstream and specialist transport services.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his current estimate of the annual cost of traffic congestion on London's roads.

No single figure can be quoted because there is no generally accepted norm against which any measure of congestion can be compared. However, it is an aim of the Department's expenditure and policies to reduce congestion and make the best possible use of available road space.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will consider a compulsory pilotage scheme in the Minches.

I refer the hon. Member to my reply on 17 March, Official Report, column 262.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the most recent figures for progress towards the aim of reducing the numbers of road accidents between the years 1985 and 2000.

The aim is to reduce road accident casualties by one third by the year 2000, compared with the annual average for 1981–85. The provisional figures for 1992 show that fatalities are down by 24 per cent., serious injuries by 34 per cent. and all casualties by 3 per cent. on the target baseline.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has for further investment in road and rail links in the north Nottinghamshire coalfield.

Central Government investment for road infrastructure proposals in north Nottinghamshire ranges from direct investment in motorway and all-purpose trunk road improvement schemes, such as widening the M1 and A1, to possible support through transport supplementary grant for local highway improvements. Assistance towards the construction of Bosford and Balwell stations on stage 1 of the Robin Hood rail line has also been given.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received about the franchising of Great Western main line passenger services.

We have so far received four expressions of interest in a franchise for the Great Western main line inter-city services. As promised in our consultation document, we are treating all expressions of interest as strictly confidential.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much capital was spent on rolling stock at British Rail in (a) 1979 and (b) 1992.

In 1991–92 prices expenditure on rolling stock by British Rail in 1979 was £226 million and in 1991–92 was £331 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many road schemes in North Yorkshire were approved for 1993–94 and their costs; and which schemes are under consideration for construction in 1994–95.

Two major trunk road schemes have been approved to start construction in 1993–94. A contract has just been let for one and construction works are about to start. Together they are currently estimated to cost over £80 million.Two trunk road schemes may start construction in 1994–95 at an estimated cost of over £14 million subject to the completion of statutory procedures and the availability of funds.Thirty-seven smaller trunk road improvement schemes are programmed to start in 1993–94 costing about £1 million overall and a similar number is under consideration for 1994–95, costing about £1·5 million.My right hon. Friend is supporting six major local authority schemes in North Yorkshire in 1993–94, costing nearly £48 million.Support for local authority schemes for a start of construction in 1994–95 will be considered after North Yorkshire county council submits its transport policies and programme bid in July.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the working party on helicopter sites in London will report.

The Secretary of State hopes to receive the report of the London heliport study working group in late summer, and to publish the report as soon as possible thereafter.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what evidence he has that the experimental 20 mph zones are reducing accidents; and whether he will make a statement.

Preliminary indications are that 20 mph zones reduce casualties by well in excess of 50 per cent. There have also been small reductions on surrounding roads. It is particularly pleasing that they seem to be especially effective in reducing accidents to children.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to increase the number of low floor buses for use by people with disabilities.

Decisions on the purchase of buses are a matter for the commercial judgment of bus operators. However, the Government wish the merits of low-floor buses to be fully assessed. I have therefore allocated resources for a trial of such vehicles in North Tyneside. London Transport have also decided to purchase 68 low-floor buses at a cost of £8 million, the first of which will come into service shortly. Both these schemes will be monitored and the results made widely available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff in his Department have responsibility for implementing climate change policies arising out of Agenda 21.

Agenda 21 raises a wide range of environmental policies which fall within the responsibility of many of the Department's divisions. It is not therefore possible to specify the precise number of staff concerned with this issue. Work on implementing policies arising out of agenda 21 is co-ordinated by the transport policy unit.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the security of the conditions under which the royal mails are conveyed by train; and if he will make a statement.

This is an operational matter for the British Railways Board and the Post Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many incidents involving theft of mail bags from trains have occurred in each of the past five years.