To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what plans his Department has for the United Kingdom's forthcoming presidency of Audiovisual Eureka.

The United Kingdom presidency of Audiovisual Eureka will run from 1 July 1994 to 30 June 1995.Our objectives for the presidency will be to enhance and give priority to those aspects of Audiovisual Eureka which complement other European initiatives aimed at strengthening the European audiovisual industry. We shall place particular emphasis on those which foster practical co-operation between western European countries and the countries of central and eastern Europe. We shall also aim to promote the use of new technologies for the production of films and programmes; and we shall seek to promote audiovisual technology transfer between east and west.A central part of the United Kingdom presidency work programme will be to oversee an independent evaluation of Audiovisual Eureka as part of a thorough review of its effectiveness, and to ensure that any recommendations arising from the review are implemented.I shall be inviting Ministers of the 32 participating countries, as well as the European Commission and Council of Europe, to attend a meeting in London on 16 June 1995 to mark the culmination of our presidency.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he has reached his final decision on applications received from Premier League and first division football clubs for an extension to the Government's 1 August all-seater deadline.

I have. On 26 May, in answer to a written parliamentary question from my hon. Friend the Member for Wyre Forest (Mr. Coombs), columns 227–29, I announced that I had considered applications made by 11 clubs, and having taken into account the recommendations made by the Football Licensing Authority, formed a preliminary view. I also set out the criteria against which each application had been assessed.

"Clubs seeking an extension in order to relocate to a new ground are expected to produce clear evidence that such an extension would be for a strictly limited period and that the club could realistically complete its relocation within a reasonable and definite time scale.

Clubs applying for an extension in order to redevelop their existing grounds are expected to show why their circumstances are wholly exceptional, why the reasons for the delay could not reasonably have been foreseen and why they could not be attributed to the actions or inaction of the club."

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what projects to improve the care and education of Romania's children are being supported through the Poland and Hungary assistance for economic restructuring—PHARE—programme of the European Union; and how British organisations are contributing.

A wide range of projects to improve the care and education of children in Romania are being supported under the PHARE programme. They include: in health care, particularly maternal and infant health services; the rehabilitation of orphanages and the training of personnel; the establishment—in concert with the Romanian Government—of a national policy for the protection of children; and the development of strategies to prevent the institutionalisation of vulnerable groups of children.

European Commission data on contracts awarded under PHARE are not broken down by recipient country. Between 1990 and 1993, 125 contracts were awarded to British organisations working in the areas of non governmental organisations, social adjustment, humanitarian aid, science and techonology, health and public administration.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has received about deaths occurring in Omo valley district in southern Ethiopia because of transport difficulties in reaching famine victims; and what the Government and the European Union are doing to overcome these difficulties.

We are in touch with the Ethiopian Relief and Rehabilitation Commission—RRC—about the situation. There are no official figures for deaths from drought and famine. The terrain in much of the region is mountainous with poor or non-existent roads. Road and air access is difficult; ox carts are often the only means of transporting supplies.

The RRC is planning to carry out a helicopter survey of the remoter areas of the region to assess accurately needs and access routes. We are prepared to help with the survey and with implementing its recommendations.

Since January, we have committed 45,000 tonnes of bilateral food aid to Ethiopia. The EU has committed 264,000 tonnes. We have also provided about £191,000 for seeds and tools and therapeutic feeding centres throughout the Omo region.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what overseas aid Her Majesty's Government are currently providing to Pakistan; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 23 June 1994]: Gross British bilateral aid to Pakistan for 1992–93—the latest year for which figures are available—was £34·483 million. This consisted of £18·619 million under the ODA's bilateral country programme, £12·676 million in Commonwealth Development Corporation investments and £3·188 million in other aid, including debt relief and drug related assistance.Recent initiatives include projects in primary education and health, family planning and participatory urban and rural development. Other main sectors covered are land development and irrigation, energy and water and sanitation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he makes of the percentage of mahogany exported from Brazil to the United Kingdom which has been obtained illegally in Brazil.

We have no reliable means of assessing whether or not timber entering the United Kingdom has come from an illegal source in its country of origin. The legality of timber extraction is a matter for the authorities in the country in which it takes place.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the 20 Prison Service establishments to which the largest number of those found guilty of offences in respect of non-payment of debt were committed in the latest period of 12 months for which there is information, specifying in addition how many of these offenders were sentenced for non-payment of (a) television licences and (b) community charge.

The available information is given in the tables separately for the non-criminal offences of non-payment of debt and also for non-payment of fine for using a television without a licence.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals his Department has to make it an offence to employ an illegal immigrant.

At present, although it is an offence knowingly to harbour an illegal entrant or an overstayer, there is no general requirement on employers to satisfy themselves as to the immigration status of their employees. The immigration service already gives priority to detecting those working here illegally and taking subsequent action to curtail their stay or remove them from the United Kingdom. The Government keep the law in this area under review and expect employers to behave responsibly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many racial incidents were recorded by each police force in England and Wales in 1993.

This information is now collected on a financial year basis. The figures for 1993–94 are given: these have been collected by the same means as figures published for earlier periods, and they are comparable. I will be considering further the arrangements which are in place for collecting and publishing such figures in future in the light of the recent report by the Home Affairs Select Committee on racial attacks and harassment—HC 71–1.

Reported racial incidents April 1993–March 1994
	Number
Avon and Somerset	159
Bedfordshire	60
Cambridge	100
Cheshire	98
City of London	1
Cleveland	50
Cumbria	17
Derbyshire	221
Devon and Cornwall	14
Dorset	25
Durham	32
Dyfed-Powys	0
Essex	133
Gloucestershire	28
Greater Manchester	658
Gwent	21
Hampshire	212
Hertfordshire	117
Humberside	79
Kent	160
Lancashire	262
Leicestershire	315
Lincolnshire	4
Merseyside	155
Norfolk	33
North Wales	2
North Yorkshire	22
Northamptonshire	102
Northumbria	405
Nottinghamshire	264
South Wales	400
South Yorkshire	106
Staffordshire	117
Suffolk	73
Surrey	79
Sussex	214
Thames Valley	166
Warwickshire	87
West Mercia	100
West Midlands	487
West Yorkshire	244
Wiltshire	51
Provincial total	5,873
Metropolitan total	3,889
England and Wales total	9,762

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the circumstances of the departure from office of the Deputy Bailiff and Lieutenant Bailiff of the island of Jersey.

Appointment as Deputy Bailiff of Jersey is by the Crown, on advice from the Home Secretary in his capacity as the Privy Councillor with special responsibility for Jersey. A Deputy Bailiff may depart from office on the expiry of the period of appointment, or on appointment to other office, or by resignation, or by removal by the Crown acting on advice.The Bailiff of Jersey of the day may appoint for a purpose ad hoc, or permanently, one or more lieutenant bailiffs. Permanent appointees may resign from office, or be removed from it by the bailiff; otherwise, their appointments end with the departure from office of the Bailiff who appointed them.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were allowed to take part in an assisted prison visits scheme during 1993; and what was the total amount of funding paid under this scheme for such visits.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were (a) killed and (b) injured in incidents involving firearms in each year since 1983.

The information requested is published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", copies of which can be found in the Library—latest edition, 1992, Cm 2410, table 3.8. Figures for 1993 are not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when arrangements are to be made to issue Mrs. Karamat Bi—Ref.: TH/2964/93—through the British high commission in Islamabad with a visa to visit the United Kingdom following her appeal against refusal to grant being upheld in Leeds on 15 December 1993; and if he will make a statement.

A copy of the adjudicator's determination was sent to the entry clearance officer in Islamabad on 6 January. Inquiries are being made into the present position, and the hon. Member will be informed as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many males remanded in custody in 1993 spent (a) up to one week, (b) one to two weeks, (c) two to four weeks, (d) four to eight weeks, (e) eight weeks to three months, (f) three to six months, (g) six months to 12 months and (h) over 12 months in prison before their court case was concluded;(2) how many females remanded in custody in 1993 spent

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

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the regions of the United Kingdom that have received European regional development funding in each of the last three years; and what was the amount of the funding to each region.

The last programme period for the European regional development fund ran for five years,

ERDF Allocations 1989 to 1993 Objectives 1,2 and 5b
£ million 1994 prices	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1989–93
Objective 1
Northern Ireland	53	63	64	95	93	369
Objective 2
North East England	35	44	41	59	60	240
East England	54	68	63	91	92	368
West Midlands	40	51	47	68	69	276
North West England	47	59	55	79	81	321
West Cumbria	2	2	2	3	3	13
West Scotland	46	59	54	79	80	318
East Scotland	15	19	18	25	26	103
South Wales	23	29	27	39	40	158
North East Wales	7	9	8	12	12	47
Total Objective 2	269	340	315	456	463	1,844
Objective 5b
South West England	8	20	16	12	10	66
Rural Wales	11	29	24	17	15	95
Highlands and Islands	10	27	22	16	14	89
Dumfries and Galloway	1	3	3	2	2	11
Total Objective 5b	30	80	65	46	40	261
Miscellaneous	—	—	—	4	6	10

To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what are the sources of his Department's data on the importation of Brazilian mahogany into the United Kingdom;(2) if he will list the Brazilian companies from which mahogany was imported into the United Kingdom during 1993;(3) which United Kingdom companies imported mahogany during 1993 from the

There are no official sources for information on the importation of Brazilian mahogany into the United Kingdom. The information has not been available since 1992 because the United Kingdom trade classification no longer separately identifies mahogany from several other non-coniferous woods.Information on United Kingdom importing companies and Brazilian exporting companies is not available.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action he intends to take in order to ensure that illegally felled mahogany from Brazil does not enter the United Kingdom.

The Government have no reliable or practical way of identifying Brazilian mahogany which has come from an illegal source. Nor is there any legitimate way in which the United Kingdom could adopt a national ban on the import of such products. Primary responsibility for ensuring that harvesting and export is carried out lawfully must rest with the Brazilian Government.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will publish the latest figures showing the volume of correspondence from hon. Members to Ministers and agency chief executives, the targets set for reply and the percentage of replies sent within target.

The 1993 figures are set out in the table. The table also sets out figures showing ministerial correspondence in 1992 first published on 23 March 1993, Official Report, columns 550–54.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what key targets have been set for the Recruitment and Assessment Services Agency for the current financial year.

I have set the following targets for Recruitment and Assessment Services for 1994–95:

1. Financial break-even in accruals terms;

2. A 2 per cent. increase in efficiency over 1993–94 performance;

3. evaluation ratings of 96 per cent. of RAS customers satisfied with the service they have received, and 75 per cent. of these giving "more than satisfied" or "highly satisfied" assessments.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many contracts and for what total sum were let out by his Department or agencies for which it is responsible to (a) Coopers and Lybrand, (b) KPMG Peat Marwick, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) Price Waterhouse, (e) Arthur Andersen, (f) Touche Ross, (g) Grant Thornton, (h) Robson Rhodes and (i) Pannell Kerr Forster for (i) privatisation, (ii) market testing, (iii) management advice, (iv) accounting, (v) audit, (vi) consultancy and (vii) any other services in 1980 to 1983, 1984 to 1987, 1988 to 1991 and 1992 to 1993.

The information for the periods 1980 to 1983 and 1984 to 1987 is not available, and the information requested for the periods 1988 to 1991 and 1992 to 1993 broken down in the format could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education when the architects and building branch of his Department will make its recommendation on the St. Paul's primary school nursery class building in Hammersmith.

A letter giving full approval to the building project was despatched to the local education authority on 25 May 1994, with a request to forward a copy of the letter to the school governors.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what advice he has given to the Higher Education Funding Council for England regarding efficiency gains from (a) teaching and (b) research funding; and if he will make a statement.

The spending plans announced in last year's Budget imply annual efficiency gains in the HEFCE sector of 4 per cent. in 1994–95 and 1995–96 and 3 per cent. in 1996–97. Separately, we have asked the HEFCE to maintain broadly the current proportional split between funds for teaching and research, and it will monitor the impact of these arrangements.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about the consequences for the taxation of insurance activities of the coming into force of the European Community's third life insurance directive—92/96/EEC—and third non-life insurance directive—92/49/EEC.

The third life and non-life insurance directives come into force on 1 July 1994. They are an important part of measures being taken to create a single market in financial services throughout the European Union. One effect of the directives is that insurance companies whose head office is in another member state of the European Union will not be subject to regulation and supervision by the Department of Trade and Industry under the Insurance Companies Act 1982. This will have the effect of taking these companies outside the tax rules which apply to insurance companies because those tax rules are based on provisions of the Insurance Companies Act which will no longer apply to them.

As a result, we shall be introducing legislation in the next Finance Bill to change the definition of insurance company to ensure that all companies operating in the United Kingdom remain within the special tax rules for insurance companies. We shall also be amending provisions which give relief from tax where there is a transfer of insurance business sanctioned by a court in the United Kingdom so that they also apply where there is a transfer of United Kingdom insurance business sanctioned by the regulatory authorities in another member state.

We will also introduce measures to prevent a loss of tax where there is a transfer of insurance business to a transferee who does not carry on that business in the United Kingdom so as to be within the charge to tax.

Subject to their approval by Parliament, these measures will take effect from 1 July 1994, the date on which the third insurance directives come into force.

I also wish to make it clear that, contrary to some reports, the coming into force of the third life assurance directive will of itself have no effect on the taxation of gains from life assurance policies. At my request, the Inland Revenue is currently conducting a review of life assurance taxation in the light of single market developments and this includes the taxation of policy holders. The Government will decide in due course in the light of that review whether changes to the taxation of gains from life assurance policies are necessary. Meanwhile, the existing rules on policyholder taxation remain in force, and the Inland Revenue will continue to certify policies as "qualifying policies" where they meet the conditions laid down in the legislation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what conditions are being sought by the Greek Government for the lifting of its embargo on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia; and what his response is to these proposed conditions.

The Greek Government's decision to close Salonika to Macedonian trade was in reaction to a long-running dispute about the flag, name, symbols and constitution of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. We consider the Greek action to be unjustified and support the decision of the European Commission to refer the case to the European Court of Justice.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress is being made in lifting Greece's unilateral sanctions on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

Greece still refuses to reopen Salonika to Macedonian trade. On 14 June, the European Court of Justice heard the Commission's request for interim measures, pending the hearing of the substantive case against Greece. The court's decision is expected shortly. We continue to make clear to the Greek Government that their action is unjustified, and that it should be reversed without precondition.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what armed activity is taking place in Burundi; and what action is being taken by the United Nations to prevent the Rwandan war from spreading to Burundi.

We have had no reports of armed activity in Burundi. The special representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Ould Abdullah, heads a small good offices mission in Bujumbura which has been successful in promoting stability in the country.There are also 47 Organisation of African Unity observers stationed in Burundi in a confidence-building capacity. This mission has the full support of the UN.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many member states of the European Union have totally independent military nuclear weapons.

Two—the United Kingdom and France. The United Kingdom's nuclear forces are assigned to NATO but remain at all times under the control of the British Government.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the United Nations Security Council last considered Liberia; and what are the latest reports to the United Nations on the progress of its mission there.

The Security Council met in late May 1994 to discuss the Secretary-General's report on Liberia of 18 May 1994. The Council President issued a statement on Liberia on behalf of the Security Council on 23 May 1994. Copies of both the statement and the report have been placed in the House Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what problems exist with the financing of the United Nations supported peace initiative in Liberia; and which countries have proposed to withdraw.

The United Nations status of contributions reports shows that at 30 April 1994, of the $39.8 million assessed on member states for the United Nations observer mission in Liberia—UNOMIL—for the period 22 September 1993 to 21 March 1994, unpaid assessments amounted to $24·6 million.The United Nations Secretary-General reported on 18 April that as of 31 March, voluntary contributions to the trust fund for the implementation of the Contonou accord amounted to $15.16 million, from the Governments of Denmark, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. At the time of the Secretary-General's report, expenditure authorised from the trust fund totalled $11·7 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what subjects he has sought to bring to the attention of the Greek Government for discussion during their period as holders of the presidency of the European Union; and if he will make a statement.

We have had discussions on a full range of European and international issues with the Greek Government during their presidency of the Council of the European Union.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will instruct appropriate United Kingdom diplomatic staff in Brazil to discuss with representatives of the Nucleus for Indigenous Rights the issue of the mahogany trade between Brazil and the United Kingdom.

Our embassy in Brasilia is instructed to continue its close contacts with the Nucleus for Indigenous Rights on various issues, including mahogany.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security during the first year of the child support scheme how many parents with care previously in receipt of income support ceased to be eligible as a result of receipt of child maintenance.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security in respect of those parents who have ceased to receive income support as a result of receiving child support during the first year of the scheme, in how many cases their resulting income has been (a) up to £5, (b) up to £10, (c) up to £15 and (d) up to £20 per week above income support level.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many contracts, and for what total sum were let out by his Department or agencies for which it is responsible to (a) Coopers and Lybrand, (b) KPMG Peat Marwick, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) Price Waterhouse, (e) Authur Andersen, (f) Touche Ross, (g) Grant Thornton, (h) Robson Rhodes and (i) Pannell Kerr Forster for (i) privatisation, (ii) market testing, (iii) management advice, (iv) accounting, (v) audit, (vi) consultancy and (vii) any other services in 1980 to 1983, 1984 to 1987, 1988 to 1991 and 1992 to 1993.

The information is not available in the form requested. Such information as is available follows:

Firm	Number of contracts	Total value (£)
1986–87
Coopers and Lybrand	1	5,635·00
KPMG Peat Marwick	0	0
Ernst and Young	2	60,145·00
Price Waterhouse	3	112,971·00
Arthur Andersen	0	0
Touche Ross	1	75,306·00
Grant Thornton	1	15,836·00
Robson Rhodes	0	0
Pannell Kerr Forster	0	0
1987–88
Coopers and Lybrand	3	319,006·00
KPMG Peat Marwick	0	0
Ernst and Young	1	10,459·00
Price Waterhouse	2	42,720·00
Arthur Andersen	0	0
Touche Ross	3	59,601·00
Grant Thornton	1	270·00
Robson Rhodes	0	0
Pannell Kerr Forster	0	0
1988–89
Coppers and Lybrand	3	37,341·00
KPMG Peat Marwick	2	10,235·00
Ernst and Young	0	0
Price Waterhouse	2	51,037·00
Arthur Andersen	1	10,000·00
Touche ross	4	258,948·00
Grant Thornton	0	0
Robson Rhodes	0	0
Pannell Kerr Forster	0	0
1989–90
Coopers and Lybrand	4	262,571·00
KPMG Peat Marwick	2	59,891·00
Ernst and Young	1	14,909·00
Price Waterhouse	6	1,137,894·00
Arthur Andersen	0	0
Touche Ross	3	314,210·00
Grant Thornton	0	0
Robson Rhodes	0	0
Pannell Kerr Forster	0	0
1990–91
Coopers and Lybrand	5	288,365·00
KPMG Peat Marwick	4	723,280·00
Ernst and Young	5	442,365·00
Price Waterhouse	10	3,587,350·00
Arthur Andersen	0	0
Touche Ross	7	709,104·00
Grant Thornton	0	0
Robson Rhodes	0	0
Parnell Kerr Forster	0	0
1991–92
Coopers and Lybrand	1	47,290·00
KPMG Peat Marwick	6	136,292·00
Ernst and Young	3	139,502·00
Price Waterhouse	11	952,994·00
Arthur Andersen	0	0
Touche Ross	3	78,294·00
Grant Thornton	0	0
Robson Rhodes	0	0

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many income support applicants were refused benefit on grounds of (a) partners' earnings and (b) partners in receipt of family credit in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

The information requested is not routinely collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects the research by the social policy research unit on the assessment of self-employed earnings in family credit to be published.

The report "Measuring Low Incomes: Self-Employment and Family Credit" by the social policy research unit at the university of York was published on 3 February and copies were placed in the Library.In addition, I have today placed in the Library copies of the consultation document on the report. We have circulated it to a wide range of interested bodies and have asked for comments by 31 August.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether (a) the Benefits Agency or (b) the Employment Service will implement the new job seeker's allowance; and if he will make a statement.

I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's reply of Tuesday 21 June at column 87.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what action he intends to take in relation to the habitual residency test; and if he will make a statement:(2) when the Social Security Advisory Committee reported to him in relation to the proposed habitual residency test; what was the committee's conclusion or main recommendation in this matter; and if he will place a copy of the report in the Library;(3) what parliamentary action is required to implement the habitual residency test in relation to social security payments.

We are still considering the introduction of a habitual residence test in the income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit schemes. The report from the Social Security Advisory Committee and the Government's response will be published at the same time.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many representations he has received to date concerning the habitual residency test; how many have been (a) broadly favourable and (b) broadly unfavourable.

No separate count has been kept of representations received on this matter.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) when the new Benefits Agency premises in Johnstone town centre are scheduled to open; where these will be located; how many staff will be transferred to this location; from where they will be transferred; how many additional jobs will be created at what grade; what new or enhanced services will be available to clients from these new premises; and if he will make a statement;(2) what is the total contract value of the new Benefits Agency office in Paisley; when he expects the office to be operational; when he expects the office to be officially opened; and if he will make a statement.

The opening of new Benefits Agency offices in Johnstone and Paisley is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the current number of recipients of (a) income support, (b) invalidity benefit and (c) retirement pension in the Doncaster and Mexborough areas; and what were the figures (i) 12 months and (ii) 24 months ago.

This is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how often the chief executive of the Highways Agency has met representatives from the private sector to discuss the possibility of market testing, contracting out or privatising work currently undertaken by the agency; and what were the names of the companies involved and the dates of the meetings.

These questions relate to operational matters of the Highways Agency. I have asked the chief executive, Mr. Lawrie Haynes, to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what has been the total cost to date of the employment of the Bray's detective agency to gather information on Twyford Down protesters; and from which subheads of which votes these funds were taken.

This question relates to operational matters of the Highways Agency. I have asked the chief executive, Mr. Lawrie Haynes, to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations his Department has had with environmental groups about individual road schemes.

This question relates to the operational matters of the Highways Agency. I have asked the chief executive, Mr. Lawrie Haynes, to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many contracts and for what total sum were let out by his Department or agencies for which it is responsible to (a) Coopers and Lybrand, (b) KPMG Peat Marwick, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) Price Waterhouse, (e) Arthur Andersen, (f) Touche Ross, (g) Grant Thornton, (h) Robson Rhodes and (i) Pannell Kerr Forster for (i) privatisation, (ii) market testing, (iii) management advice, (iv) accounting, (v) audit, (vi) consultancy and (vii) any other services in 1980 to 1983, 1984 to 1987, 1988 to 1991 and 1992 to 1993.

The information requested cannot be obtained except at disproportionate cost for contracts let before 1989. Those let in the period 1989 to 1993 are shown in the table.(a)

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to request MARPOL—the marine pollution convention—to give special area status against oil pollution for the North sea.

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North (Mr. Walley) on 10 February 1994, Official Report, column 471.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list for the last financial year the total salary costs plus bonuses for each of his agency chief executives and his Permanent Secretary.

Information on agency chief executives' salaries was set out in the answer I gave the hon. Lady on 21 March, Official Report, column 103. Details of chief executives' total remuneration including bonuses in 1993–94 will be published in the annual report for each agency. The salary of the Permanent Secretary was £90,148 per annum with effect from 1 April 1993.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what evidence he has of changes in the severity of road accident injuries resulting from the use of bull bars on road vehicles.

We have no direct evidence. Impact tests using an instrumented child-size headform on a bull bar have shown that the severity of an impact on a bull bar appears significantly more than on a flexible bonnet. We have, therefore, taken steps to identify accidents where a pedestrian has been struck by a vehicle fitted with a bull bar with a view to determining whether bull bars are, in fact, causing increased injuries.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the numbers of road traffic accidents in each year since 1983 involving at least one motor vehicle driver who had been previously advised by a medical practitioner that they were not medically fit to drive; and how many involved (a) serious injuries and (b) fatalities.

This information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) when he intends to issue the safeguarding direction for the route of the new channel tunnel rail link at Pepper Hill in the borough of Gravesham;(2) when he intends to issue the safeguarding directions for the route of the new channel tunnel rail link at Ashford in Kent.