To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many appeals to the social security commissioner against decisions of social security appeal tribunals have taken over 12 months to resolve; what percentage this represents of the total; and what is the average length of time taken.

As of 31 December 1993, the average waiting time between an appeal against a social security appeal tribunal's decision and its determination by a social security commissioner was 433 days. The further information requested is not collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will make a statement regarding the banning of a deaf person from sitting on a jury at King's Lynn Crown court in January.

Section 10 of the Juries Act 1974 provides that if it appears to a member of the court staff that there is doubt as to the capacity of a person who attends for jury service to serve effectively, on the grounds of physical disability, the person may be brought before a judge. The judge shall then determine whether or not the person should serve as a juror and, if not, shall discharge the summons. That procedure was followed in the case of a juror at King's Lynn. I cannot comment on the judge's decision to discharge the summons.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will make it his policy to exclude the company which the Government select to build the channel tunnel rail link from claiming tax relief on trading losses without taking account of the value of the written off debt of European Passenger Services Ltd. when it is incorporated within the new company.

The company which builds the channel tunnel rail link will be subject to the same taxation rules that apply to any other company in the private sector. The Government have no wish to interfere with those rules.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review arrangements for disabled people's parking bays; and if he will consider extending the powers of local authorities to prevent parking across ramps to homes where access is required for disabled people's vehicles, other than cars.

Local authorities already have wide powers to create disabled people's parking bays and I am not aware of any suggestion that these powers are inadequate and need to be reviewed.The Road Traffic Act 1991 contains provision which enable most non-endorsable parking offences, including the unauthorised use of disabled people's parking bays, to be decriminalised and enforced by local authorities. The expectation is that such arrangements will lead to higher levels of enforcement. They are already being introduced in London and they will be made available shortly to local authorities elsewhere.Parking across ramps provided for disabled people can amount to obstructing the highway — which is an offence, even in streets where parking is not otherwise prohibited. Enforcement is a matter for the police.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much he paid the corporate finance section of KPMG for advice on the future of the Transport Research Laboratory.

A total of £91,826·26 inclusive of VAT.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which tenderers for the work of advising him on the future of the Transport Research Laboratory were individuals or groups with expertise in commissioning or completing casualty reduction, environmental, structural or mechanical research.

All tenderers were free to structure teams as they judged best able to undertake the contract, KPMG Peat Marwick assembled a team which embraced a range of skills, including transport and research specialisms.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish the terms of reference and correspondence with the corporate finance section of KPMG on the future of the Transport Research Laboratory.

I am placing copies of the terms of reference for the study in the Library. These terms of reference were the subject of consultation with the trade unions.Exchanges between the Department and the contracted consultants during the course of such studies necessarily take place in confidence because they involve a range of sensitive issues which may be commercially confidential. It would not be appropriate to make such exchanges public.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he gave instructions that the corporate finance section of KPMG should advise on (a) whether it would be possible or (b) whether it would be sensible to have a clean break between the Transport Research Laboratory and his Department;(2) for what reasons he advocates a clean break between the Transport Research Laboratory and his Department.

KPMG Peat Marwick's work was guided by the terms of reference for the study. The desirability of a clean break was identified by the consultants in light of the Government's wider policy for securing the complete transfer to the private sector of functions that need not be undertaken in the public sector, along with associated assets.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the competitive advantage of the corporate finance section over other sections, and the competitive advantage of KPMG over other consultancies, in respect of the future of the Transport Research Laboratory.

KPMG Peat Marwick was appointed following a competitive process involving a written submission and a subsequent interview. They were judged best able to achieve the requirements of the study set out in the terms of reference. It was their decision to manage the work from their corporate finance section.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what has been the total number of (a) valid objections to and (b) indications of support received by his Department for the proposed M62 relief road.

So far, over 17,500 representations have been received. Most are opposed to the proposals. The figure includes an element of duplication.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what effects his recently announced intention of accelerating the approvals procedure for new roads will have on the M62 relief road.

Last August my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport announced a package of measures aimed at cutting the time it takes to prepare and build new roads and bypasses. A major element is the setting up of the Highways Agency which is to take on responsibility for the management and delivery of the roads programme on the 1 April. This does not mean that the rights of those opposed to the M62 relief road will be changed. Progress on this scheme will depend on its meeting objectives, the proper clearance of the approval procedures, and the availability of funds.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guarantees have been provided for the operational telecommunications requirements of British Rail and successor companies following the transfer of British Rail Telecommunications to the private sector.

Discussions are taking place between BRT and Railtrack with a view to agreeing contractual arrangements to protect requirements for operational telecommunications for the railway.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to amend the law to permit lollipop ladies to assist pre-school children across roads.

None. Sections 26 and 28 of the Road Traffic Act 1984 empower school crossing patrols to stop traffic at places where

"children cross roads on their way to or from school, or from one part of a school to another".

The words "children" and "school" are not defined. The interpretation of the law is a matter for the courts, but it would seem that the legislation would not prevent school crossing partrols from escorting children to or from an educational institution that provides education or instruction to children of no pre-determined minimum age. This would include a nursery school or play group. It is, however, for appropriate authorities to decide their own policy in this matter, consulting their own legal advisers as necessary.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of coaches registered in other European countries checked by the Vehicle Inspectorate at the weighbridge on the A2 at Broughton in the latest convenient period exceeded 17 tonnes.

Of those coaches registered in other European countries and check-weighed at Broughton, 18 per cent. were found to be overloaded by more than 5 per cent., or 1 tonne, whichever was the lesser. The figures, which are for the period 1 January to 31 December 1993, include those vehicles with a maximum permitted weight of more than 17 tonnes. Information on European vehicles weighed and found to be less than 5 per cent. overweight cannot be disaggregated from the data.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he is proposing to continue negotiations with the United States Government on the liberalisation of air services between the two countries, following the announcement by British Airways in respect of its plans for further investment in USAir.

I have this week made proposals to the United States Government on how we should take forward our discussions on air services following British Airways' announcement. Although the outcome of USAir's restructuring may well influence the shape of the new agreement, I have said that in my view talks should certainly continue on the framework of a new agreement —on which excellent progress has already been made. I have also said that I remain open to an interim limited exchange of new rights to maintain the momentum of the talks; and have suggested that there should be an exchange of views on the economic significance of the code sharing rights granted to United Kingdom carriers under the 1991 agreement, whose renewal is due to be confirmed by the United States Government on 17 March.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish a full list of all organisations to which his Department sent and from which it has received responses regarding the consultation paper on proposed railway drink and drugs legislation, together with the addresses of each such organisation.

[holding answer 18 January 1994]: My Department issued 42 copies of the consultation paper to transport operators, passenger transport executives, trade unions, the police, magistrates and the medical profession, and we received 27 responses. It is not our practice to identify those organisations or individuals who respond to consultation exercises.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what estimate he has made of the cost of continuing family credit and disability working allowance towards an individual's SERPS entitlement in the years (a) 2000, (b) 2010, (c) 2025 and (d) 2035;(2) what estimate he has made of the

The Government Actuary's Department project that expenditure will graually build up to about £0·1 billion in 2035. This figure must be treated with caution as it is based on current family credit and disability working allowance caseloads and does not allow for any future growth in the take-up of these benefits.Modelling of the costs of this measure does not track the cumulative effect on individuals over time and so it is not possible to provide an estimate of numbers of beneficiaries. Most families and disabled people who receive family credit/disability working allowance—approximately 0·5 million at present—should be helped by this measure.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the cost of extending home responsibilities protection to SERPS entitlements in the years (a) 2000, (b) 2010, (c) 2025 and (d) 2035.

The Government Actuary's Department estimates the cost of extending home responsibilities protection to SERPS as about £0·5 billion in 2010, rising to about £1·5 billion in 2035.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the use of freephone and freepost facilities currently being operated by his Department; how much these facilities are costing; for what purposes these facilities are being used; and how much his Department has spent on operating freephone and freepost facilities in each financial year since its establishment on a separate Department.

This Department offers the following services by way of freephone:

Freeline 0800 666555 —The freeline social security telephone service gives general advice and information on the full range of Social Security benefits and covers all aspects of an enquiry, regardless of the circumstances. Its aim is to provide a confidential, speedy and expert advice service without access to any benefit files.

It originally started as a series of regional initiatives and became a national service in 1984 with 40 staff.

There are 10 freeline centres based at: Sutton; Ilford; Cambridge; Birmingham; Bootle; Nottingham; Leeds; Edinburgh; Cardiff and Newcastle, with an 11th Freeline centre due to be opened this year in Preston.

Ethnic freeline—Punjabi 0800 521360, Urdu 0800 289188 and Cantonese 0800 252451—services giving general advice and information on social security benefits in these languages;

Welsh freeline—0800 289011—a service giving general advice and information on social security benefits in Welsh;

Family credit freeline—0800 500222—a service is available 24 hours per day, to order information packs on family credit;

The benefit enquiry line—0800 882200—introduced in June 1991—a service giving advice and information to people with disabilities and to those caring for them. Extended in April 1993 to provide a form completion service for invalid care allowance, severe disablement allowance, disability living allowance, attendance allowance and disability working allowance.

Social security advice line for employers (SSALE)—0800 393539—introduced in August 1993—a service for employers which gives general advice and information on NI contributions, statutory sick pay and maternity pay.

Itsa service help desk—introduced in late 1988—provides advice and help to users in DSS agencies, DSS or DH headquarters staff on approximately 250 systems ranging from the mainframe based operational strategy systems to small server based systems.

This Department uses freepost to a very limited extent mainly in advertising campaigns aimed at increasing the knowledge of the general public, for example, council tax benefits, or alerting them to changes in their liabilities and rights under the law. We offer an extensive business reply service—pre-printed addressed labels—which enables our customers to reply free of charge. Business reply envelopes are issued to our customers to facilitate the return of information or where a reply is essential to our business needs.Costings for freephone and freepost are not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the range of rents paid by those receiving housing benefit in each local authority area.

The latest available information is in the table.

Eligible rent (£/week)1
Region3	2Minimum	2Maximum
South East (excluding London)	3·50	165·53
London	2·50	431·22
North (including Cumbria)	3·00	173·87
Wales	1·00	100·00
Scotland	2·00	250·87
Yorkshire and Humberside	0·78	214·17
East Midlands	3·25	271·20
East Anglia	3·32	187·62
South West	0·75	130·52
West Midlands	1·29	168·70
North West (excluding Cumbria)	3·00	325·00
National	0·75	431·22

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many agency chief executives in his Department are currently paid more than £82,925, excluding performance-related bonuses; and whether such chief executives were recruited directly to their present post from outside the civil service.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many child maintenance assessments have been completed to date.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by Ros Hepplewhite, the chief executive of the Child Support Agency to my right hon. Friend the Member for Mid Sussex (Mr. Renton) on 8 March.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to outsource the service delivery directorate of his Department; what consultations have taken place with the employees who will be affected; and what analysis has been made of the benefits in terms of service and savings to be achieved from any such change.

On 31 January 1994, the chief executive of the Information Technology Services Agency announced proposals to transfer the bulk of day-to-day computer and output handling operations to the private sector with effect from April 1995.A programme of meetings was held immediately at which the chief executive, Ian Magee, explained to all ITSA staff the proposals. There have been further meetings to enable employees to discuss the outsourcing with senior management.Information suggests that significant improvements in value for money and services to ITSA's customers can be achieved by transferring this work to the well-developed market that now exists for this type of work.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when the last transfer to Northern Ireland of a prisoner was carried out; how many prisoners who

Number of offences of homicide in which firearms were reported to have been used 1985—1992
	Cleveland		Durham		Northumbria		England and Wales
Year	Shotgun	Other firearm	Shotgun	Other firearm	Shotgun	Other firearm	Shotgun	Other firearm
1985	—	—	1	—	2	—	29	16
1986	—	—	1	—	—	—	37	14
1987	—	—	1	—	1	1	43	34
1988	—	—	—	—	—	—	27	9
1989	—	—	—	—	1	—	26	19
1990	—	—	—	1	1	1	33	27
1991	—	1	—	1	—	1	32	23
1992	2	—	—	1	2	1	25	31

No information is available centrally on whether firearms used in offences are licensed or not. Figures for 1993 are not yet available.

An interdepartmental review of the transfer of prisoners between United Kingdom jurisdictions was announced to Parliament on 4 June 1991. The recommendations of the review were accepted and reported to Parliament on 23 November 1992.During this period 35 prisoners were transferred to Northern Ireland. Since the announcement of the outcome of the review 65 prisoners have applied for transfer to Northern Ireland; 11 prisoners, including some who applied for transfer before the conclusion of the review, have been transferred to Northern Ireland. The last such transfer took place on 20 January. Fifty-eight requests by prisoners to transfer to Northern Ireland remain to be determined.Two prisoners temporarily transferred to Northern Ireland challenged the basis of their transfer by application for judicial review. These applications were dismissed by the High Court in Belfast at the end of last year. It has been necessary to give further consideration to the legal implications of these challenges before determining the outstanding requests. We expect to make decisions on these cases shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were killed in crimes involving (a) shotguns, (b) licensed firearms and (c) unlicensed firearms in (i) the north-east of England and (ii) the United Kingdom for each year since 1985.

The available information is contained in the following table:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will answer the letters of 2 December 1993, February 1994 and telephone calls from the hon. Member for Lewisham, East on the subject of unsolicited advertising of pornographic video material.

I wrote to the hon. Member on 9 March 1994.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when he intends to publish the rules under which the proposed new regime for criminal injury compensation is to operate;(2) if he will now place in the Library a copy of the draft regulations for the operation of the amended criminal injury compensation scheme.

The publication of the detailed rules of the tariff scheme which comes into force on 1 April 1994, was anounced on 9 March, column 224. Copies of the text of the rules and the accompanying guide, which explains to claimants how the new scheme works and the criteria adopted for deciding applications, have been placed in the Vote Office and the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what were the costs of policing the Grand National in 1990, 1991 and 1992.

I will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to commission a survey comparable to the British crime survey, to examine the occurrence of racial attacks and racial harassment.

I have no plans to commission a separate survey. The 1992 British crime survey involved some 10,000. households, and had a boosted sample of about 1,700 ethnic minority respondents. This produced a sufficiently large sample to compare rates and patterns of criminal victimisation between these groups and the white majority.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce new legal measures aimed at combating racial violence, racial discrimination or racial harassment.

The Government are considering recommendations for legislative change made by the Commission for Racial Equality in its second review of the Race Relations Act 1976; we will be looking carefully at the recommendations of the Home Affairs Committee inquiry into racial attacks and harassment.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to require chief constables to publish annual clear-up rates for racial incidents as compared with other offences in each division.

As part of the package of core performance indicators for the police, introduced in April 1993, each force will publish annual data on the total number of reported racial incidents in the force area, and the percentage of these in which further investigative action was undertaken. My right hon. and learned Friend has no plans to require the police to publish clear-up rates for racial incidents since in many instances the matters reported may not be ones for the police, but for other agencies, and may not involve criminal offences.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to provide additional resources to enable the establishment of local multi-agency panels aimed at combating racism.

Many local multi-agency groups are already in existence to combat racial attacks and harassment. The racial attacks group, as part of its work programme, will be seeking to inform itself of the number of multi-agency groups that have been established locally, and to learn from their experience. The allocation of resources to support these groups must be a matter for local agencies in the light of local priorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to investigate possible links between the activities of extremist organisations and incidences of racially motivated attacks.

The investigation of racially motivated attacks, and of organisations which might pose a threat to public order, is the responsibility of the police. There is no evidence to suggest that the role of extremist groups in racial attacks is anything but a very minor one.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to recommend that in cases where race is an issue, the defence or prosecution be able to propose and the judge be empowered to direct, that the composition of the jury includes some ethnic minority representation.

The Royal Commission on Criminal Justice recommended that, where compelling reasons are advanced, it should be possible for the defence or the prosecution to apply to the judge for the selection of a jury containing up to three people from ethnic minorities. This recommendation raises serious questions of both principle and practicality and the Government have yet to reach a conclusion on it.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to announce his determination under section 1 of the Horserace Betting Levy Act 1969 of the horserace betting levy scheme beginning on 1 April.

I have today sent the following letter to the chairman of the Horserace Betting Levy Board and written similarly to the chairman of the Bookmakers Committee. A copy of the scheme has been placed in the Library of the House. The letter reads:

Following the Levy Board's and the Bookmakers' Committee's failure to agree the scheme for the 33rd Levy period last October, the scheme fell to be determined by me.

I have now reached my decision and I enclose a copy of the Scheme which I have determined.

The main feature is that the cash and credit rates remain unchanged. In other words, the scheme rolls over from 1993–94 with indexation of the other elements in the Scheme.

In reaching my decision I have taken into account the submissions made to me by the Government-appointed members of the Levy Board and by the Bookmakers' Committee, together with other submissions, including those from the British Horseracing Board, on which the Board members and the Committee were afforded the opportunity to comment.

The cash yield from the Scheme will depend on the leviable betting turnover. I have taken as my starting point an estimated £4,358 million in 1993–94. It seems unlikely that there will be no growth in turnover in 1994–95. Representations have been made in regard to the possible adverse effect of the National Lottery on betting turnover, but I doubt whether the National Lottery will have a significant effect in 1994–95.

In all the circumstances, my view is that the needs of racing justify a yield in the range of £50 million-£53 million and that such a yield is within the capacity of bookmakers to pay.

It is a long accepted principle that I should take into consideration bookmakers' capacity to pay I have given careful consideration to the arguments put to me in this regard. The scheme which I have determined does not increase the cash or credit rates payable by the bookmakers. This reflects my view that an increase in rates is not necessary to meet racing's current needs nor could it be justified. Furthermore, the first slice of turnover on which a fixed fee is charged has been increased in line with inflation.

The bookmakers have put forward arguments for a reduction in the cash rate. I am not convinced that in the present circumstances any such reduction is justified.

In reaching this view on the cash rate, I have had regard to the bookmakers' contention that falling profitability is a factor which should be taken into account in determining their capacity to pay the Levy. I am not convinced that the position has been reached where any erosion of profit margins is such that it impacts significantly on the bookmakers' capacity to pay the Levy. My attention has been drawn to the structure of the scheme whereby the larger bookmakers are, in affect, subsidising the smaller concerns with detrimental effects on the profits to be made from additional turnover. However, the way the scheme is structured in order to benefit the smaller bookmakers is a matter of choice by the Bookmakers' Committee. Nor am I convinced that the overall effect of the Scheme is such that there would be a real effect on capacity to pay the Levy at unchanged rates in the coming year.

I have been asked whether falling profit margins are a matter which should be taken into consideration in setting the Levy. I could not accept the argument that it is completely irrelevant to the question of "capacity to pay". On the other hand, the fact that some bookmakers may not recover the costs of the Levy in full from punters is not an argument in itself for reducing cash rates. The levy is a liability on the bookmaker, and it is up to him how he chooses to meet that obligation. In my view, however, it is reasonable to expect the Horserace Betting Levy Board, in discussing future schemes, to have regard to the likely effect of the Levy, amongst other factors, on the ability of bookmakers to manage their businesses effectively.

As a matter of general principal, it seems to me very much more preferable that disputes over the Levy should be settled without reference to me. There are matters which most intimately concern the horseracing industry and bookmakers and should, given goodwill, be capable of resolution between them. I should be greatly concerned about any tendency for requests for my determination of the levy to become the norm rather than the exception. Were this to happen, I should want seriously to consider alternative proposals for settling Levy disputes.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy that no species of octopus other than octopus vulgaris should be used for scientific procedures in Great Britain which might cause pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm.

[holding answer 8 March 1994]: No. The Animal Procedures Committee considered in 1993 whether cephalopods were sufficiently sentient to justify extension to them of the protection for laboratory animals provided by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. My right hon. and learned Friend accepted the majority view of the committee that octopus vulgaris alone might meet this test.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much his Department's computer-aided facilities management systems cost; from whom they were purchased; how many person hours were required to commission them; what the estimated and actual saving has been from their operation; and to what extent the use of such systems accounts for the apparent rise in theft noted in his answer to the hon. and learned Member for Fife, North-East (Mr. Campbell) of 17 February, Official Report, column 973.

My Department does not operate computer-aided facilities management systems as such, although, as in other parts of the Department, computers are used by those employed in facilties management as part of their day-to-day work. There is no reason to suppose any link between this and the number of thefts from the Department.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action he has taken to encourage other Government Departments to economise in the use of fuel; and with what results.

Energy management in individual Government Departments is a matter for the Ministers responsible for those Departments. My Department provides information on good practice and monitors the progress of Departments towards the target of improving energy efficiency by 15 per cent. over the five years to 1995–96. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State also reviews progress at meetings of Green Ministers, which he chairs. Results for 1992–93 were given in answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) on 20 October 1993, Official Report, columns 256–59, and updated energy expenditure information was provided in answer to the hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Smith) on 20 January 1994, Official Report, columns 829–30.Advice and guidance is made available to all Departments through regular meetings and correspondence and through technical literature, videos and seminars. Current initiatives include encouraging Departments to take advantage of opportunities for using contract energy management and to examine the scope for combined heat and power.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has of (a) previous land use, (b) contaminants present, (c) clean-up work completed and (d) health risks present regarding the site of his Department's offices at Marsham street; and how he came by this information.

Before the existing buildings were constructed in the 1960s, the site was occupied by a mixture of domestic and commercial users, the largest of which was a coal gas works. Consultants have advised that the site's previous use as a gas works may have led to some soil contamination. However, much of the contamination in the soil is likely to have been removed when the deep basements of the current building were evacuated. The building fabric itself protects the current occupants from any risks of contamination. This information is based on advice from consultants looking at the planning and development potential of the 2 Marsham street site.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to lay regulations to give force to the new right to manage for local authority tenants.

I have today laid before Parliament the Housing (Right to Manage) Regulations 1994 which will come into force on 1 April. The regulations implement our citizens charter commitment to give local authority tenants' organisations a statutory right to manage their own homes.Seventy-four tenant management organisations are already managing their own housing under the present voluntary arrangements, and reaping the benefits of greater cost control, local accountability and responsive services. The right to manage will put those benefits within the grasp of any properly constituted and representative tenants' organisation. I expect to see many more TMOs managing their housing over the next few years.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans the Government have to require local authorities to provide better information on their housing management performance to tenants.

I am pleased to announce that today the Department has issued to all local housing authorities a revised "Reports to Tenants Determination" together with an explanatory circular. This determination sets out the information that local authorities must provide to their tenants each year on their housing management performance. I am placing copies in the Library.The publication of the new determination follows a review of the existing reports to tenants regime, in consultation with the local authority associations and others, in the light of recent research on the operation of the regime since the first reports were published in 1991. I hope that the new reports will be more relevant to tenants' needs. This citizens charter initiative will help tenants to judge how well their council is managing its housing stock on the basis of reports written in clear and simple language.From 1994–95 authorities will be required to report on housing stock, allocations, management costs, rents and repairs. Authorities will be encouraged to set targets for their performance to set the required information on the broader context of their housing strategies, current and future, and to provide information broken down to estate level as far as possible.

'To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to bring forward proposals for statutory time limits within which local authorities must answer standard inquiries by home buyers; and if he will make a statement.

My Department has today published proposals for new statutory arrangements for local authorities' handling of search inquiries made by people buying and selling property. These proposals are set out in a consultation paper entitled "A Statutory Scheme for Local Authority Land Searches", copies of which have been placed in the Library. The proposed new arrangements include new powers for local autorities to provide a one-stop service on standard search inquiries, a duty on local authorities to respond to these inquiries within 10 working days, and refunds of some or all of the fee if the local authority fails to respond within the time limit.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress there has been on the review of the arrangements for dealing with contaminated land which was announced on 24 March 1993; and if he will make a statement.

I have been asked to reply.I have today issued on wide circulation our proposals for the clean up and control of contaminated land. The consultation paper recognises that liability for past pollution is complicated and there are no easy solutions.Interested organisations and individuals have provided helpful views which have been useful in identifying the key issues and options. The consultation paper gives all interested parties an opportunity to comment on the preliminary conclusions.The consultation paper makes clear our support for a "suitable for use" approach to dealing with contaminated land. This means that contaminated land should be treated to deal with unacceptable actual or perceived threats to health, safety or the environment, taking into account the actual or intended use of the site. Where practicable, it should be kept in, or brought back into, beneficial use. This will help us to minimise pressures on greenfield sites.The consultation paper invites comments by 26 May, and any views expressed will be taken into account before final conclusions are reached. I have placed a copy in the Libraries of the House. A parallel, but separate, consultation exercise is already under way in England and Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list, in 1993–94 prices and cash terms, the total amount spent from public funds on training for Scotland in each year since 1989–90, the expected outturn in 1993–94 and the plans for 1994–95.

[holding answer 10 March 1994]: Training expenditure in Scotland was not recorded separately in the years prior to 1991–92. Since then, resources have been made available as part of the grant-in-aid of Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to support the training programmes administered by these bodies. The following table provides details:

£ million
	Cash	1993–94 prices
1991–92	227·985	244·431
1992–93	218·122	225·211
11993–94	204·420	204·420
21994·95	207·486	199·506
1 Estimated.
2 Plans.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to close Cornton Vale prison and disperse its prisoners to local, mixed prisons; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 9 March 1994]: Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Scottish Prison Service under its chief executive, Mr. E. W. Frizzell. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information in the form of oral testimony or written submission his Department has provided to the scientific panel established by the United States Defence Department to investigate the Desert Storm syndrome effects on allied service men who served in the Gulf war.

My Department has been invited to provide information to two of the scientific panels established by the United States authorities to investigate the alleged Desert Storm syndrome. One is the defence science board task force on Gulf war health effects and the other the committee to review the health consequences of service during the Persian Gulf war.My Department has provided both oral and written information confirming that there were no detections of chemical agents during the Gulf conflict and no evidence that British troops were exposed to such agents.A written note on United Kingdom experience of the alleged Desert Storm syndrome was also provided to the committee which confirms our previously announced findings that there is no clinical evidence that members of the British armed forces are suffering from any unexplained medical condition peculiar to their service in the Gulf.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will send the hon. Member for Don Valley a copy of the report on the results of the F15E noise trial when it becomes available.

I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 9 February, Official Report, column 357.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what provisions exist at present for the welfare advice and counselling of members of the armed services dismissed as a result of their homosexuality; what plans he has to improve such provision; and what discussions he has held with the organisation Rank Outsiders about this issue.

Service personnel awaiting administrative discharge or dismissal as a result of their homosexuality may continue to avail themselves of the welfare facilities provided for members of the armed forces. My Department has not held any discussions with the organisation Rank Outsiders but wrote early last year in response to two letters from Rank Outsiders.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he intends to bring forward proposals for changes to the armed services regulations to enshrine the commitment no longer to prosecute members of the forces on grounds of their homosexuality.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 1 December, Official Report, column 610.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Wallsend (Mr. Byers) on 3 March, Official Report, column 873, if representatives of foreign Governments have been consulted as part of the planned appointment of the head of the United Defence Export Services Organisation.

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ground crew there were attached to 9 Squadron of the RAF in (a) 1980, (b) 1985 and (c) 1990; and what is planned for 1995.

The information for 1980 and 1985 is not available in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The integral ground crew establishment for 9 Squadron as at 1 April 1990 was 154 posts. The forecast for 1 April 1995 is 134.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 4 March, Official Report, column 943, if he will state the reasons for the decision to increase the number of the mortar-locating troops by an additional 10 personnel; and if he will make a statement.

The increase was made to increase the troop's operational effectiveness.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many pupils have been expelled from secondary schools for drug abuse in each of the last 10 years.

Figures for each of the last 10 years are not available. Information on permanent exclusions from maintained schools in England was collected by the Department over a two-year period, starting with summer term 1990, under the national exclusions reporting system. Eighty-one exclusions in year one and 179 in year two were reported to relate at least partly to drug or solvent misuse. These figures were not disaggregated between primary and secondary schools.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to collate and publish on a regular basis the figures on exclusion from school.

The Department monitored permanent exclusions at maintained schools over a two-year period starting with summer term 1990 under the national exclusions reporting system to inform the review of the operation of exclusion procedures under the Education (No. 2) Act 1986. Following that review, the Education Act 1993 made significant changes to the law on exclusions which come into effect in September 1994. In the light of experience of the operation of the new procedures the Secretary of State will consider whether any further monitoring of permanent exclusions is necessary.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his Department is doing to encourage schools to use the exclusion of pupils as a last resort rather than a routine sanction.

	1	2	3	4
1992–93	Percentage of total local authority expenditure on education	Percentage of total local authority expenditure on education less mandatory awards	Percentage of education expenditure on administration and other non-school expenditure	Percentage of education expenditure allocated to schools
Avon	59·9	52·9	26·2	73·8
Bedfordshire	62·2	55·9	23·3	76·7
Berkshire	57·4	51·2	25·9	74·1
Buckinghamshire	62·7	54·5	29·5	70·5
Cambridgeshire	62·2	54·8	25·1	74·9
Cheshire	62·9	54·7	28·4	71·6
Cleveland	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Cornwall	58·8	51·4	28·2	71·8
Cumbria	57·3	53·0	26·5	73·5
Derbyshire	62·6	56·6	25·3	74·7
Devon	57·5	49·8	28·6	71·4
Dorset	57·5	50·0	31·6	68·4
Durham	61·7	56·4	24·4	75·6
East Sussex	56·4	49·0	26·5	73·5
Essex	59·3	53·1	24·3	75·7
Gloucestershire	59·0	51·0	30·9	69·1
Hampshire	62·7	55·5	26·8	73·2
Hereford and Worcester	61·5	53·6	26·5	73·5
Hertfordshire	65·3	56·9	28·0	72·0
Humberside	58·7	53·7	22·8	77·2
Isle of Wight	59·7	53·1	29·3	70·7
Kent	54·9	48·3	24·8	75·2

A draft circular on exclusions was issued for consultation recently as part of the "Pupils with Problems" package. It makes clear that exclusion should be used sparingly and always as a last resort in response to serious breaches of a school's behaviour policy or of the criminal law. The final version of the circular will be issued in May to all schools.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the advice given to parents whose children face exclusion from school.

None. This is a matter for individual LEAs and schools in the light of the requirements of the Education (No. 2) Act 1986. Many schools and LEAs issue leaflets to parents explaining the exclusion process and their rights.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to give excluded pupils the right to appeal against their exclusion.

Pupils—or parents, if the pupil is under 18 —already have a right of appeal under the Education (No. 2) Act 1986 against permanent exclusion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will publish a table giving the percentage of current expenditure being devoted to education for each shire county in England, both before and after mandatory student awards; what percentage of the education expenditure is spent on education administration and other non-school expenditure; and what percentage is allocated to the schools, for each shire county.

The provisional figures for 1992–93 for the shire counties are as shown in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what was the unit cost per pupil in each London local education authority for 1992–93 for (a) nursery/primary and (b) secondary pupils.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to the right hon. Member for Doncaster, Central (Sir H. Walker) on Wednesday 9 March, Official Report, columns 238–40.

Table A: Schools and pupils in the shire counties in England Maintained primary schools
	1	2	3	4	5	6
LEA	Total number schools	Total number GM schools	Per cent. GMS in LEA	Total number pupils	Total number GM pupils	Per cent. GM pupils
Isles of Scilly	4	0	0·0	174	0	0·0
Avon	369	0	0·0	79,059	0	0·0
Bedfordshire	218	3	1·4	42,138	708	1·7
Berkshire	273	7	2·6	60,613	2,371	3·9
Buckinghamshire	287	6	2·1	61,601	2,262	3·7
Cambridgeshire	264	6	2·3	58,427	1,912	3·3
Cheshire	446	3	0·7	88,694	418	0·5
Cleveland	203	0	0	65,058	0	0·0
Cornwall	248	0	0·0	40,128	0	0·0
Cumbria	309	10	3·2	42,663	1,628	3·8
Derbyshire	450	7	1·6	84,037	1,775	2·1
Devon	440	1	0·2	79,424	285	0·4
Dorset	201	1	0·5	44,782	415	0·9
Durham	297	0	0·0	55,779	0	0·0
East Sussex	218	0	0·0	50,300	0	0·0
Essex	580	55	9·5	122,010	14,287	11·7
Gloucestershire	262	5	1·9	42,887	1,366	3·2
Hampshire	579	13	2·2	129,822	3,927	3·0
Hereford and Worcester	288	0	0·0	47,895	0	0·0
Hertfordshire	433	5	1·2	82,844	908	1·1
Humberside	353	2	0·6	84,426	335	0·4
Isle of Wight	46	0	0·0	7,232	0	0·0
Kent	572	15	2·6	126,005	4,227	3·4

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the numbers and percentages of (a) schools and (b) children at (i) primary and (ii) secondary levels who are in grant-maintained establishments for each shire county in England, both inclusive and exclusive of those in the private sector.

The tables show numbers and percentages of grant-maintained schools and pupils in such schools in the 40 shire local education authorities.