To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received in support of the retention of Montgomeryshire as a principal local authority.

Since publication of the White Paper on local government in Wales, we have received more than 280 letters, more than 4,300 pre-printed leaflets and a petition carrying 16 signatures in favour of a Montgomeryshire unitary authority.

Will the Minister join me in congratulating the Standing Committee considering the Local Government (Wales) Bill, which voted by a significant majority to give unitary status to Montgomeryshire—

Order. The hon. Gentleman is referring to a Standing Committee that has not yet reported to the House. I am sure that he knows that, until a Committee has reported, we do not discuss its proceedings on the Floor of the House.

Will the Minister respond to press reports that there is now a significant majority of opinion among relevant hon. Members on both sides of the House in favour of the retention of Montgomeryshire as a unitary authority together with the other two parts of the county of Powys? Will he ensure that that opinion is sustained as the majority opinion of the House at later stages when the matter is considered? Those involved can then plan, on the basis of unitary status, to give the best of services to the people of that historic and significant county in the centre of Wales.

My right hon. Friends and I remain convinced that the Bill provides the best arrangements for local government in Wales, particularly for Powys and for Montgomeryshire. There will be much more decision making by local councillors in Montgomeryshire than at present, and that will be a better arrangement. Of course, we will reflect further before Report.

Is my hon. Friend prepared to consider further the issue of financial autonomy, which causes much concern in the county of Montgomeryshire and also in the two counties that I represent, Breconshire and Radnorshire? Will he tell members of the Committee whether he is prepared to address the issues in an open-minded way?

We have already addressed the issues in an open-minded way, and the proposals for the shire committees—especially for Montgomeryshire, Radnorshire and Breconshire—represent a far better arrangement than exists at present. The authorities would be provided with a block grant, probably on the basis of a standard spending assessment-style arrangement, in respect of 100 per cent. of their finances. That is the best way forward.

It is a pity that the Secretary of State, who has responsibility for these matters, is not answering these questions, because this is important. Any proposals that the Under-Secretary may have for strengthening financial devolution will cause considerable resentment, particularly in the boroughs, and any gain that he gets from devolution in Montgomery will be more than offset by opposition elsewhere. May I press the hon. Gentleman on the point about Montgomeryshire? A substantial majority of Welsh Members of all parties represented in the House are of the opinion that the proposals for Powys are wrong. If the majority view is that Montgomeryshire, Breconshire and Radnorshire should remain as unitary authorities, will the Under-Secretary accept the wishes of Welsh Members of Parliament?

I do not think that the hon. Gentleman is factually right in his claim about the majority of all political parties wanting to go down the road that he suggests. The financial and other arrangements that we propose are far better and they are there for every part of Wales. Other parts of Wales besides the three historic counties of Powys could well choose to avail themselves of the arrangements for decentralisation that we are building in. The new arrangements will come to be regarded as much superior throughout Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the level of unemployment in Wales at the latest available date; and what was the percentage unemployment rate.

Seasonally adjusted, the number of claimants unemployed in Wales in March 1994 was 125,300, representing a rate of 9.9 per cent. of the work force.

Has the Minister considered the proposed closure of the Compton Webb factory in Newport, which for more than 40 years has made uniforms for the military and other public services? Why do the Government continue to give orders to that firm, given that its production is increasingly being transferred to north Africa while our people are being put on social security? Does it have something to do with the fact that the parent company, Coats Viyella, is a regular contributor to Tory party funds?

Of course not. The Ministry of Defence awards contracts on the basis of good value for money. Like the hon. Gentleman, I hope that we can make more things in Wales and meet more of the MOD's requirements. I note that the hon. Gentleman did not mention the fact that unemployment was down 5,751 in the 12 months to March 1994 or the major assistance that his area receives from the urban programme, in Welsh Development Agency cash and from the special development scheme. We are keen to promote more business in his area. I hope that he will work with us because around Wales we are having great success in generating the jobs people want. It is about time that Opposition Members welcomed that.

Will my right hon. Friend confirm that inward investment is the key to driving down unemployment in this area of the country and that the Government's policies of providing deregulation, low inflation and low interest rates are attracting inward investment? Will he continue those policies?

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. What a successful year—another successful year—Wales has had. Provisional figures for 1993–94 show £190 million of investment from the rest of the United Kingdom, £356 million from north America, £130 million from the far east and £88 million from the rest of Europe. That brought about 14,000 new and safeguarded jobs to Wales. We need much more such investment and we shall continue to promote it actively. We also want more home-grown jobs. That is also a central policy which the Government are pursuing.

Is the Secretary of State aware that this afternoon the management of the Pembrokeshire NHS trust will inform 55 members of its staff that they are redundant and that it will seek another 45 redundancies over a short period? Does he accept what that management says—that the cause of those redundancies is the fact that the Welsh Office has not funded the 2.9 per cent. pay rise that nurses and doctors rightly received? Will he investigate the particular circumstances that have caused those 100 jobs to be lost in Pembrokeshire and the likely impact on other trusts and health authorities throughout Wales of the Welsh Office refusing to pay for the 2.9 per cent. pay rise?

I do not accept the reason; it was not underfunding of the pay rise. I believe that there will be redundancies and reductions in posts at that trust. I believe that they will be in administrative and managerial posts, not in medical care posts, as the hon. Gentleman insinuates. I believe that the redundancies are unique to that trust and are not spreading to other trusts. That implies that the redundancies are to do with the management of that trust. I am sorry that some people will lose their jobs. It is important that it is done in a way that does not damage medical care. That is the clear message that I send to all trusts around Wales. We want the maximum amount of money spent on patient care, which is what I believe the Pembrokeshire trust is trying to do.

Is the Secretary of State aware that—in addition to the devastating news about the job losses in Pembrokeshire—130 men at the Avesta steelworks in my constituency are to lose their jobs, which will be dispersed to Sheffield and Sweden? What advice will he personally give to my constituents and those made jobless in Pembrokeshire today, who now face either the dole or work in lower-paid, often part-time, jobs?

Once again, the Opposition are concentrating on the bad news and not looking at the fact that we are generating more jobs than we are losing. Of course I am sad for the hon. Gentleman's constituents, but there is a process of change under way that no Government in the world can stop: fashions and demands change. It is important that we carry on succeeding for Wales and promoting Wales. Why does not the hon. Gentleman mention TRW Steering Systems, which announced today 400 new safeguarded jobs at its plant, with a £10 million investment? Why does not he mention the good news from Betws colliery, where a management buy-out is going ahead to bring back 90 jobs? Why does not he mention the Calsonic research and development project, which I was able to initiate two weeks ago? That is people backing Wales and giving Wales the jobs that it needs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he is taking to promote the private rented housing market.

The opportunities provided by the Housing Act 1988, together with Welsh Office support, have already achieved an 18 per cent. increase in private rented housing between 1990 and 1992.

Is my hon. Friend aware that private rented housing makes a much greater contribution to housing need in most other countries than it does in Britain? Does he welcome the Opposition's somewhat belated recognition of the fact that that sector badly needs a boost?

I very much agree with my hon. Friend. The Opposition's recognition always seems to be belated; my hon. Friend could have described it as a death-bed repentance. The difference between the two parties is that there is a recognition of reality on the Conservative Benches, but a lack of it on the Opposition Benches.

Will the Minister nip in the bud any idea that housing association grant should be made available to private developers and landlords? Does he accept that that would be a misuse of public funds and would lead to increased rents in what we term social housing, where rent levels are already causing concern to Tai Cymru?

I cannot accept such a blinkered approach to housing. We should remain open to all possibilities for making the greatest use of taxpayers' money to achieve the greatest provision of social housing. The hon. Gentleman might care to reflect warmly on what has already been achieved. Since the inception of Housing for Wales, there has been a 100,000 increase in provision.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the importance to the Welsh economy of the United Kingdom's membership of the European Community.

The United Kingdom's membership of the European Community has given Wales access to a market of more than 346 million consumers and has enhanced Wales's attractiveness to inward investors looking for a base within the Community. In the past five years' almost 400 inward investment projects from overseas have been recorded in Wales, forecasting the creation or safeguarding of more than 41,000 jobs and representing a capital investment of more than £3 billion.

Why should the people of Wales be denied the rights to consultation, employment protection and equality between men and women, as enshrined in the social chapter and adopted by our 11 partners in the European Union? Why do the Government condemn the British work force to second-rate terms of employment?

Our exemption from the social chapter, which was negotiated by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, is most important to the Welsh economy. The imposition of the social chapter would cause unemployment. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has said, what the Welsh economy needs is more inward investment to provide more jobs. Wales has done well in that respect in the past and will do so in the future.

My right hon. Friend has dealt with the importance of inward investment. How much assistance is Wales obtaining from the European Union structural funds? Can he give us an indication of the importance of that assistance?

I am glad to assure my hon. Friend that we have done well under the new structural funds. As he knows, industrial south Wales has objective 2 status and can expect £146 million between 1994 and 1996. Rural Wales has secured objective 5b status and can expect £143 million over the same period.

Does the Minister nevertheless agree that the evidence given to the Select Committee on Trade and Industry—that low wages do not make an economy competitive—is exceptionally important to Wales, as we are so dependent on multinational companies with headquarters in mainland Europe? Does he also agree with observations that formed part of the evidence to the Committee—that there are weaknesses in basic literacy and numeracy in Wales, with German school children aged 15 two years ahead of our children in mathematics? We cannot go on relying on low wages or we will be condemning our workers to permanent pauperdom in Tory sweatshops.

But the hon. Gentleman will know that many factories are in Wales precisely because it is the best place in the European Community for them to invest. The fact that our wages are low compared to those in the United Kingdom and Europe is certainly taken into account in decisions about the location of factories and investments from overseas. Many countries in Europe envy us because production costs in Wales are lower than theirs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received from fanning unions on the implications of general agreement on tariffs and trade reforms for the future of agriculture in Wales.

My right hon. Friend and I are aware of the assessment of the implications of the GATT agreement published by the National Farmers Union, but have not received any direct representations on the matter.

Does the Minister accept that GATT is about free trade and that the future of Welsh farming is about getting Welsh products into markets without any discrimination? In those circumstances, will he make it clear to our German colleagues that there is no evidence to show that any beef from Wales has entered the markets affected by BSE? Indeed, the safeguards that we have put in place prevent that from happening. If the Germans persist in going down that road, will the Welsh Office initiate legal action over unfair trade practice?

The hon. Gentleman will know that my right hon. Friend the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and others have pointed that out to the German Government on more than one occasion. Of course, GATT is intended to facilitate the promotion of free trade, and we are likely to do rather well under the agreement in Wales. Welsh lamb is already doing well: one quarter of the lamb exported from this country is Welsh lamb.

Does my right hon. Friend agree that the prosperity of Welsh agriculture is dependent on the prosperity of its customers? Does he also agree that the GATT agreement will lead to greater prosperity in the world, the United Kingdom and Wales and that it is therefore good for Welsh agriculture?

I fully agree. That is why the GATT agreement was so important for this country: it is designed to increase world trade, and we will benefit from it. In Wales, we stand to gain, and we certainly do not share the NFU's somewhat gloomy view of the prospects. We share the Commission's view, which is far brighter.

This question may be about GATT and agriculture, but has the Welsh Office studied the effect of GATT on Welsh manufacturing industry, bearing in mind that wages in the far east are much lower—

Order. The right hon. Gentleman has admitted that his remarks are barely related to the question, which concerns farming and the future of agriculture. Can he do any better?

The Minister mentioned the fact that customers are very important. If Welsh manufacturing industry is destroyed by GATT, there will be no one around to buy the Welsh lamb to which he referred. So —in view of the importance of Welsh manufacturing industry to Welsh agriculture—what studies has the Welsh Office carried out into the effects of GATT on Welsh manufacturing, bearing in mind the difference in wage levels in industry in Wales and the far east?

We certainly stand to gain from the GATT agreement, as I said. The right hon. Gentleman will know that that is why the agreement was negotiated and why it was so important for us and for other countries. Any analysis of prospects is inevitably complex because it involves certain anticipations and assumptions about the course of world trade prices in coming years.

I think that the Minister understands that there is widespread apprehension in the Welsh farming community about the GATT agreement signed last week and about future common agricultural policy reform. Does the right hon. Gentleman accept that strong environmental and social, as well as economic, reasons exist for maintaining Welsh agriculture? Does he accept that the decline in the traditional family farm and the numbers of young people entering Welsh agriculture are symptoms of the failure of his Government's policy?

We do, indeed, take advantage of every opportunity afforded to us by the special standing of the Welsh Office and the fact that we are responsible for agriculture, the economy and the environment. It is very much in our own interests and in our mind to devise a secure, long-term future for agriculture, involving support for the environment. The hon. Gentleman will be aware that that is why we established the Countryside Council for Wales and why we are involved in agri-environmental support. He will also be aware that the hill livestock compensatory allowance and so on exist not simply to offer agricultural support, but for the well-being of the environment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many representations he has received from people and organisations in the communities of Ewenny, Saint Bride's Major and Wick in favour of his proposals to put them in the proposed Vale of Glamorgan unitary authority.

Five since the White Paper, besides representations from the Vale defence committee.

Does the Minister accept that the fact that there were five responses in favour as compared with more than 100 against, and that 75 per cent. of the residents of the three communities responded to an electoral ballot in which about 85 per cent. said that they wanted to stay with Bridgend, should be enough to persuade the Government to accept the premise of their own White Paper about taking local wishes into account? Does the Minister therefore accept that the three communities of Ewenny, Saint Bride's Major and Wick should be allowed, even at this late stage, to have their overwhelming demands to stay with the Bridgend unitary authority met?

I would also mention that we have had substantial representations from the Vale of Glamorgan borough council, Colwinston community council, Llandough community council and Penllyn—essentially, the other members of the family, who are looking forward to being joined by those three communities. The communities will not lose any facilities and I believe will feel at home in a more sympathetic authority that is much more in tune with rural communities.

Does my hon. Friend acknowledge that there is considerable support for the Government's proposals in the Vale of Glamorgan and that the Vale of Glamorgan will warmly welcome those three communities? In the light of the comparative records of the different unitary authorities, it is likely that those three communities will benefit from significantly lower council tax charges under a Vale unitary authority.

My hon. Friend is right about the warm response for those three communities from the Vale of Glamorgan. He is probably also absolutely right when he says that, in future, the residents of those communities will enjoy a lower council tax.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was paid in respect of their duties to board members of non-departmental public bodies appointed by him in 1992–93.

Board members received £703,934 in 1992–93.

I thank the Secretary of State for that answer. That figure will undoubtedly rise. Will the right hon. Gentleman be happy for an increasing number of people to be paid for as part of the unelected state when the money could be diverted to provide democratic control of the services in question? Several people are now earning in excess of £50,000 to £60,000. Is the Secretary of State happy with that?

The hon. Gentleman's attack has backfired on him. I welcome the fact that the Labour party is campaigning, in its new guise, for fewer quangos, but I find that about as credible as the Welsh rugby team saying that they are now teetotal. The Labour party has never opposed quangos in its life—and has usually recommended the establishment of many more. I also reject the idea that the Labour party is putting around that it is my aim to have more people on quango boards than elected councillors. That is quite untrue. It also shows how much scorn the Labour party has for community councils. It has ignored 730 of those as well as miscalculating the figures so as to try to suggest that there are or will soon be more quango members than there are elected councillors. That is also quite untrue.

Is my right hon. Friend aware that, in spite of the clamour on the Opposition Benches against quangos, the Labour party has never once voted against the establishing of a new quango and neither has it indicated that, in the unlikely event of a Labour Government ever being formed, it would wish to abolish any quangos?

I think that my hon. Friend is right and I look forward to the proposals to abolish quangos. I hope that the hon. Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Davies) will send me a little list because we might be able to find that we can do business across the Floor of the House.

Does the Secretary of State realise that the Conservative party in north Wales has sunk into fourth place in the race for the European election? In spite of that, does he deplore, as I do, the political statements being made by the chairman of the Gwynedd area health authority, who has suddenly come out in his true colours? Is not it disgraceful that the only qualification that he had to do that job was his affiliation to the party?

I deny that latter charge and on the former point I look forward to the real poll, because we often find that polls are extremely misleading.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total level of public expenditure on housing in Wales in 1994–95.

Government provision for Welsh housing programmes for 1994–95 is set at £634.9 million, an increase of £27 million over the plans for 1993–94.

Can my right hon. Friend inform the House of the proportion of the overall housing budget that is accounted for by housing benefit? Is he happy with that proportion and the growing proportion that goes towards housing benefit? What steps can be taken to ensure that more goes towards new housing provision rather than creating a situation in which many people on low wages find that they may well be priced out of housing association dwellings?

The best way of tackling that problem is to encourage more jobs and higher incomes because they lift people out of housing benefit. On the supply side, obviously the right answer is to do what the Government are doing, which is to promote actively more housing schemes in suitable places, so that there is sufficient supply to meet the requirements for new family formation. The figures that I gave were figures for the amount of money available for those prime housing programmes of new build and improvement.

Does the right hon. Gentleman recollect that I have presented to his Department a series of petitions calling for investment in aging housing stock? Will he therefore give a generous extra allocation to Alyn and Deeside district council, to enable it to modernise a series of aging council estates? Does he also realise that in cold weather many bedrooms are not habitable for young children, and that young mothers in my constituency are asking for central heating and new windows so that their homes may be fit to live in?

Of course I want to see decent homes and I want to encourage councils to maintain and improve their stock, just as I wish to see a high-quality stock in the private sector and among the housing associations. As the hon. Gentleman knows, we work out the amounts of money by a formula that tries to take into account the requirements of each council and I, like him, am impatient to get on with the work. Many homes in Wales have been improved in the past 15 years. More homes need improvement and my hon. Friend can rest assured that money will be made available.

Can the Minister tell me how those people in Wales who are unemployed or in low-paid part-time non-union jobs can purchase a home to start their family life?

Some will be able to through the low-cost housing for sale programme that I am currently beefing up along with the housing institutions that operate in conjunction with the Welsh Office. It is the best form of tenure. It is so much better for people to reach retirement owning their home, knowing that they do not have to meet an increasing rent bill out of their pension and, wherever possible, we encourage them to buy, because that is true social housing. Where that is not possible, we will ensure that there is subsidised housing for rent available or decent housing for rent with housing benefit.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was spent per pupil in primary schools in Wales in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what was the figure for 1978–79, at constant prices.

In 1992–93, current expenditure per pupil in primary schools in Wales was £1,590. The equivalent constant price figure for 1978–79 was £1,067. That is an increase of a massive 49 per cent. in real spending per pupil.

Does my right hon. Friend agree that those figures show an impressive increase in expenditure for primary school pupils in Wales? Is he satisfied that that increased expenditure is reflected in an improvement in standards?

My right hon. Friend is right to say that it is a big increase. It reflects generous increases in teachers' wages and decent educational provision in our primary schools. Like him, I want even higher standards, and I am not happy that 28 per cent. of seven-year-olds in primary schools in Wales are achieving only level 1 in arithmetic whereas they should be achieving level 2, which is the right standard for seven-year-olds. That means that we are still letting too many seven-year-olds down and I have asked inspectors to pay attention to teaching methods, to see what succeeds and what does not so that we can spread best practice more widely.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the number of visitors to Wales in 1993; and what was the estimated level of expenditure by them.

Figures for 1993 are not yet available, but the most recent figures show that, for Wales as a whole, the volume of domestic business in 1992 amounted to 8.3 million trips by United Kingdom holidaymakers, just over 40 million overnight stays and a total value of £930 million. The volume and value of overseas tourism in 1991 amounted to 0.62 million trips, 4.8 million overnight stays and a total value of £128 million. In addition, day visits accounted for 0.32 million trips with a value of £229 million.

I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for that information. But when will the 1993 figures be available, given that the last of the 1993 visitors must have gone home by now? Does my right hon. Friend agree that the number of visitors from outside the United Kingdom is of the greatest importance to Welsh tourism? What steps is the Welsh tourist board taking to increase the number of overseas visitors?

I am sure that my hon. Friend agrees that the figures that I gave were somewhat detailed. The figures for 1993 will also be detailed and they therefore take a bit of gathering and analysis. On overseas visitors, the tourist board's overseas marketing strategy has identified some 10 countries to be targeted and, once that has happened, we hope that the number of overseas visitors to Wales will increase by about 8 per cent. per annum in the next three years. We shall spend more next year than we spent this year on attracting visitors from overseas.

Does the Minister think that visitors to Wales will be encouraged by the sighting of a stinking asphalt cording plant on Little Garth in the Taff's Well gorge, where most people who go up into the valleys of south Wales start their journeys? Will he do what he can in the Welsh Office to help local authorities to overturn the old development orders that chain them to allowing companies like Redlands to put those unnecessary plants in those beautiful places?

I understand that that matter is being considered by Mid-Glamorgan, which is the planning authority. When I last went up the Taff valley, I looked carefully at the surroundings and I found them most attractive, despite some of the industrial development in the area.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement about the effect of the weather upon the 1994 lambing season in upland Wales.

It is too soon to assess the overall effect of this winter's weather on the lambing season. Lambing is still in progress on many upland farms where the most recent spell of warmer, drier weather should have eased some of the problems.

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his answer. Given the terrible weather of late March and early April, will he keep an open mind? If it can be shown that this year's losses were higher than could reasonably have been expected—taking into account business risk—will he then consider the possibility of special weather aid payments?

That is why we have special payments—particularly for upland farmers, who must contend with special problems. Those difficulties are taken into account in the autumn review, after we have considered exactly how problems such as the current ones involving lambing have affected farm incomes.

To ask the Attorney-General when he next plans to visit Northern Cyprus to discuss extradition.

My right hon. and learned Friend has no such plans.

Is it not about time that the Government put some serious pressure on the Denktash regime in northern Cyprus, directly and through Turkey, to secure Mr. Asil Nadir's extradition back to this country—or is it true to say that the £440,000 that Mr. Nadir gave the Conservative party is now reaping its rewards?

The Department of Trade and Industry drew that question to the attention of the Serious Fraud Office at the beginning of its inquiry. Having considered all the issues, the SFO decided to focus its attention on the frauds that are at present before the court.

Does not the law of extradition allow any fugitive from justice to surrender voluntarily? In this case, should not every encouragement be given to Asil Nadir —who is currently besmirching the fine island of Cyprus and its fine people—to come back voluntarily and stand trial?

I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. The trial was fixed for last autumn, and Mr. Nadir did not attend; we are anxious that he should make an early return and stand trial.

Can the Minister tell us whether the Tory party has handed back Asil Nadir's £440,000 gift to anyone?

The hon. Gentleman must have been distracted: I answered that question a few moments ago.

To ask the Attorney-General what steps are being taken to improve the effectiveness of the Serious Fraud Office.

The Serious Fraud Office keeps its working procedures under review with a stocktaking after each case. The Government are also considering important recommendations by the Royal Commission on criminal justice, including the case for more detailed advance disclosure by the defence.

Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that, where possible, defence counsel should give a clear indication of their line of defence at the beginning of trials, in their opening statements, so that juries do not have to wait many months to find out?

My hon. Friend has picked up an important point, which was made by the royal commission itself: once the defendant knows precisely what case he must meet, it is right that he should give a sufficient indication of his defence so that the jury knows at the outset what issues are to be tried and to be decided by it, rather than having to wait for many weeks—sometimes months—to find out.

Does the Attorney-General agree that the problem with the Serious Fraud Office has always been the over-complicated indictments that it prefers? Should it not simplify those indictments, and go for the simple, main criteria of criminality?

The problem that is always faced in such complex cases is to prefer the right charges so as to focus on the true criminality without either over-complicating the issue or so narrowing the focus that justice cannot be done. The Serious Fraud Office has made great improvements in recent years in this matter, as its conviction record shows.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement about the use of public interest immunity certificates.

Public interest immunity certificates play an important part in the common law system whereby the courts determine the balance between competing public interests.

If Lord Justice Scott finds that the Attorney-General was wrong to advise Ministers to use public interest immunity certificates in the Matrix Churchill case, will the Attorney-General resign?

Lord Justice Scott's consideration of these matters involved a serious consideration of common law, on which there is a great deal of judicial authority. For a serious and thoughtful consideration of the matter, I recommend that the hon. Lady reads carefully the evidence before the inquiry, which she will find illuminating.

Will my right hon. and learned Friend tell the House on how many occasions in recent years a judge has had to decide which documents that are the subject of a public interest immunity certificate should be disclosed to the defence? Was it on each and every occasion?

Without any doubt, I can tell my hon. Friend that on every occasion when a judge in a criminal case has to decide whether documents that are the subject of a public interest immunity certificate should be disclosed, the judge will read the documents, consider them carefully and then decide. The notion that the system is designed to suppress documents is completely inaccurate.

Will the Attorney-General answer the question that he felt unable to answer earlier? Why was the special nature of the certificate given by the President of the Board of Trade not drawn to the attention of the judge or defence counsel? What steps is he taking to ensure that that sort of lapse does not occur again? The Chancellor of the Exchequer said that he would resign if he was criticised by the Scott inquiry. How many of the Ministers who gave evidence to the inquiry share the Chancellor's view?

The hon. Gentleman is misinformed. The special nature of the certificates signed by the President of the Board of Trade was expressly drawn to the attention of the judge by counsel—it leapt from the page. Nobody reading that specially designed certificate who had any understanding of the subject of public interest immunity could fail to realise that it was a special certificate designed to leave the decision on whether the documents should be disclosed to the defence to the judge.

Pending the report of the Scott inquiry, what arrangements has the Attorney-General made to strengthen his position when he has to advise his colleagues so that we do not experience problems in the interim?

I had the benefit of the advice of junior counsel to the Treasury, now a High Court judge, and a leading Queen's counsel, then the chairman of the Criminal Bar Association. My advice was given with great care and with the best possible backing.

To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the case of the late Mr. Anthony Alliss.

Two persons charged with the murder of Anthony Alliss were acquitted on the direction of the trial judge at Bristol Crown court on 24 June 1991. After causing extensive inquiries to be made into the conduct of the prosecution, I am entirely satisfied that it was conducted to a high standard.

I appreciate that my hon. and learned Friend cannot comment in detail on individual cases, but he will understand that, in this particular case, we have a body, an unfinished case and therefore no conviction. In the light of those circumstances, one must understand the feelings of the family involved. Will my hon. and learned Friend please try to ensure, however, that those circumstances do not occur again?

I congratulate my hon. Friend on the assiduous way in which he has pursued his constituent's interests in this case, but the trial was conducted by a High Court judge and the Crown was represented by a very experienced leader on the western circuit. After the judge had heard all the evidence, he concluded that it was not fit for the jury to consider. In a case of that sort, that is the end of the matter.

To ask the Attorney-General what methods are available to alter the law and procedures for overcoming public interest immunity.

The law and procedures relating to public interest immunity are continually being developed by the courts. It is also open to Parliament to legislate on the subject.

Can my right hon. and learned Friend recollect any suggestion from the media or any Opposition party in the past two or three years for a change in the law or the procedures of public interest immunity certificates? If he cannot recollect any such suggestion—I certainly cannot—does not he think that they are merely trying to exploit a situation in which the law has been laid down by judges in court and duly followed?

My hon. Friend is entirely right to say that the law in this sphere is the common law laid down by the high judiciary in the courts. I cannot recall any constructive observation from the Opposition at all.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Overseas Development Administration has taken to improve dialogue with non-governmental organisations.

The Overseas Development Administration recently helped establish a new network known as the British Non-Governmental Organisations for Development, or by the acronym BOND. We expect this to be an effective mechanism for non-governmental organisations to share information with the Government on how to improve the impact of overseas aid.

Does my hon. Friend accept the grateful thanks of the Corona Society whose members recently accompanied me to see Baroness Chalker and who do an excellent job in many countries? Will my hon. Friend explain to the House how he sees the joint funding scheme helping those organisations which work in very difficult parts of the world?

Yes, I am happy to confirm what my hon. Friend says. She is also absolutely right to say that the joint funding scheme is extremely well thought of in the Overseas Development Administration. It has nearly doubled in the past five years and in the current year we plan to increase its funding by 14 per cent.

But has the Minister spoken to the non-governmental organisations Oxfam and Action Aid about the murder of their workers in Rwanda where 100,000 people have been slaughtered in the past two weeks? Why has Britain, which is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, agreed as part of the unanimous decision to reduce the number of peacekeeping troops in Rwanda from 2,700 to 270? Is there one level of compassion for our European friends in Bosnia and another for black Africans?

Every non-governmental organisation employee in Rwanda who wished to be evacuated has been. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary is about to answer the next question on precisely that subject.

That is indeed another question, and we shall now move on to it.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures he will take to facilitate humanitarian relief to the victims of the conflicts in Rwanda and Burundi.

Since February 1993, we have provided £12 million of emergency aid to Rwanda and Burundi, including our share of European Community assistance. In the past week, we have committed some £820,000 through British non-governmental organisations for those suffering in the present conflict.

That is all very well, but, as my party's Front-Bench spokesman just asked, as the United Nations security force is doing absolutely nothing but is, in fact, withdrawing from an area that requires its assistance, when will the Government put pressure on the United Nations to bring back its troops to prevent further slaughter?

I am not sure how either hon. Gentleman supposes that maintaining a United Nations force on the original scale will help assuage those horrors. Have not they read the report by the Secretary-General on which the Security Council acted? The Security Council concluded, on the advice of the Secretary-General, that it was no longer possible for that United Nation force to carry out its mandate in the form expected. Therefore, as happened some months ago in Angola in a slightly similar situation, it was decided to run down the force. I can assure the hon. Gentleman that there is no magic in keeping troops there if there is nothing useful that they can do.

Will my right hon. Friend do everything that he can to assist the Organisation of African Unity in what has to be in the end a negotiated settlement—preferably negotiated by Rwanda's neighbours? One attempt has been made already to bring the parties together. Will we offer all our experience and assistance to enable that process to begin?

Indeed, the initiative here is with the President of Tanzania. He called for a peace conference on Rwanda in Arusha on Saturday, but it did not take place in the form intended. He is renewing his efforts, and that must be right. The effort must be to bring an end to the fighting. That cannot be achieved, as has been proved, by the United Nations force on the ground. There must be an end to the fighting; in the meanwhile, we shall do all that we can to relieve the human suffering. That is what the Community is doing.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to provide aid to reduce the burden of Ugandan debt.

We have provided more than £93 million in balance of payments support for Uganda's economic recovery programme since 1987, which has helped to ease the debt-servicing burden. We have also forgiven all Uganda's old aid debt to the United Kingdom.

Does my hon. Friend agree that his answer provides further evidence of Britain's excellent record on aid and debt relief to the poorest nations, such as Uganda? Does he also agree that for countries, such as Uganda, which face serious debts to multilateral institutions, similarly enlightened attitudes will be required from other countries, especially Japan?

My hon. Friend is right. The Prime Minister was responsible for the Trinidad terms which have given enormous relief to many countries, including Uganda. We very much hope that Japan will join any Paris club consensus for improving the existing terms. I should add that Japan implements the existing Trinidad terms with other creditors and has made clear that it has a commitment to help developing countries.

Given that Uganda is one of the five poorest countries in the world, how is it logical and justifiable that over the next five years, Uganda will be repaying £200 million to the International Monetary Fund, one of the richest institutions in the world? How can that be justified? If it cannot be justified, what can we do about it?

The fact is that Uganda is projected, over the years 1993–94 to 1995–96, to receive US $744 million from the World bank's special programme for Africa.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress he is making in making the European Fund for Development more effective.

We are working with the European Commission to improve the effectiveness of EC development expenditure, with some success so far. In the mid-term review of Lomé IV, we are seeking changes that will also improve effectiveness, notably by directing funds more to those countries that can make best use of them.

Is not it true that the bank is now paying more in overheads than it is disbursing? My right hon. Friend made vigorous representations at the bank board's recent meeting against that practice. When does he expect delivery of the European development fund programmes to exceed expenditure on overheads?

I think that my hon. Friend and I are on slightly different tracks. I am answering a question about the European fund for development. I think that my hon. Friend is asking me about the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. I shall have to answer his question on the running costs of the EBRD at greater leisure.

I call Mr. Enright. Can he get it right? The question concerns the European fund for development.

On the European development fund, does the Foreign Secretary agree that it is a very good instrument for converting emergency aid into long-term aid? I think especially of Mozambique. The moment that it gets off the front pages, people stop considering long-term needs. The EDF is well geared to satisfy those needs. I hope that the Government are working along those lines.

It is certainly true that the EDF shares many of the objectives of our bilateral aid programme. I am very struck by the increase in our commitment to the EDF; it was more than £440 million in 1992–93. It is a very large part of our multilateral aid which, as the hon. Gentleman knows, is growing as a proportion of the total. We need to be sure—surer than I am at the moment—that the priorities and effectiveness of the EDF are as great as those in our bilateral aid programme. That is why the mid-term review of Lomé IV is so important.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Overseas Development Administration ensures that all aid projects are assessed for their environmental sustainability.

All projects are subject to environmental assessment according to the guidelines and procedures set out in the Overseas Development Administration manual of environmental appraisal.

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. Will he give the House an assurance that the ODA will always undertake an environmental sustainability assessment before making a decision on an especial aid project and that, when that has taken place, the decision will be taken with due regard to all factors, including economic factors and the quality of the programme under consideration?

Yes. Sustainable development is a central aim of the aid programme in all that it does. Environmental impact assessments are always conducted before any aid project is undertaken. Indeed, I should also add that many aid projects are designed to improve the environment. For example, forestry conservation and management projects improve the environment.