To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has in respect of those who (a) advertise and (b) publish advertisements for Revenge Agency Services.

I am not aware of this organisation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police forces have transferred responsibility for school crossing patrol services to either local authorities or local education authorities.

Information in the form requested is not available but we understand from a recent survey that about 10 police forces in England and Wales provide school crossing patrol services on behalf of local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what considerations led him to refuse to give consent over a byelaw on the consumption of intoxicating liquor in public places in Leamington Spa.

My right hon. and learned Friend has not refused to give consent to the byelaw. Home Office officials wrote to Warwick district council on 29 November seeking some additional necessary information to enable the byelaw application to be further considered.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has for giving effect to the recent High Court judgment on disclosure of evidence in alleged cases of miscarriage of justice; and if he will make a statement.

I am considering what action to take in the light of this judgment.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make a statement on the further safer cities projects to be established in Wales.

I am pleased to announce that we are setting up two further safer cities projects in Wales to bring the total to three. These will be established in Cardiff and Rhyl early next year to add to the one already running in Merthyr Tydfil. A total of 32 areas have now been selected for projects under phase 2 of the safer cities programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he intends to take to ensure that parents who murder their children and refuse to give evidence against each other are brought to justice.

[holding answer 28 November 19941]: The courts will impose a life sentence on any person convicted of murder. But a court will not convict if there is no evidence to link a particular person to the murder. Nor, in the absence of any other evidence, will a court convict a defendant on the basis of his silence alone. The Royal Commission on Criminal Justice considered the issue of inferences from silence, but did not recommend any changes to the principle against self-incrimination.

to ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the management allowances payments made to general practitioner fund-holding practices arid practices preparing to be fundholders (a) by wave and (b) in total for each (i) family health service agency arid (ii) region.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend the then Minister for Health gave him on 26 January at column 300. The available figures for 1993–94 will be placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the total loss to public funds of maladministration of Wessex, West Midlands and Trent regional health authorities.

The 57th report of the Public Accounts Committee contained an estimate that some £10 million was lost on the management of the former regionally managed services organisation of West Midlands regional health authority. It has also been estimated that some £20 million of expenditure on the regional information systems plan has not resulted in benefits to patients in the former Wessex region. In the case of Trent RHA, the district auditor issued a report to the authority about the transfer of services to the private sector between 1988 and 1992, in which he stated that there was no reliable method of determining the difference between what the authority had spent and what would have been spent if competitive tenders had been sought.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make it her policy to ensure a choice between single sex and mixed wards for all patients of NHS hospitals; and if she will make a statement.

It is for individual hospitals to decide in the light of local conditions whether, and if so in what circumstances, mixed sex wards should be used. A new standard in the revised and expanded patients charter to be issued in the new year will expect patients to be told in advance if they are to be treated in mixed sex wards. This will allow them to raise any objections with the hospital which will, where possible, take account of their views.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the number of (a) regional health authorities, (b) health authorities, (c) family health service authorities and (d) health trusts at 30 September.

The numbers of authorities and trusts at 30 September 1994 were:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will instruct health authorities and NHS trusts to take urgent steps to reduce the number of managers and increase the number of nursing and care staff; and if she will make a statement.

No. General and senior managers represent only 2.6 per cent. of the NHS work force compared with 50.3 per cent. for nurses. Between 1983 and 1993 the number of qualified nurses increased by 8.3 per cent. and in 1993 there were additionally about 28,000 Project 2000 learners who are not included in the figures.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will ensure the availability of free national health service dentistry to all who require it; and if she will make a statement.

Family health service authorities report that there are no patients for whom national health service dental treatment cannot be arranged. There are extensive arrangements for exemption from and remission of NHS dental charges. The Green Paper, "Improving NHS Dentistry", makes clear that we have no plans to change these arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes to legislation are necessary to enable her to dismiss health authority chiefs who fail to deal properly with patients' complaints.

Chief executives are employees of health authorities and, as such, can be dismissed only by them. Primary legislation would, therefore, be required to enable my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to have such power of dismissal.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what limitation exists on the total number of hours that ambulance drivers can be called upon to work in any 24-hour period.

Ambulance drivers are subject to the United Kingdom legislation on drivers' hours.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will reconsider the decision not to provide pen needles to diabetics on NHS prescription.

We have no plans to do so.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will institute an inquiry into the role of Wandsworth council in the investigation of alleged rapes of children in its care.

The only such allegation of which we are aware, which relates to an alleged incident in 1984 is currently being considered by the local government ombudsman. If the hon. Member has knowledge of any other cases, he should refer them to the appropriate authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action she has taken to avoid deaths of children due to the administration of prednisolone.

The Medicines Control Agency and Committee on Safety of Medicines have investigated the issue of the effect of corticosteroids, such as prednisolone, on the body's defence system and in particular the association of severe or fatal chickenpox. Their findings and recommendations were published in the bulletin, "Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance", which was sent to all doctors and pharmacists in February 1994. Doctors were also reminded of this issue in the Chief Medical Officer's update in May 1994. Copies of the documents were placed in the Library.The Medicines Control Agency has also requested that all pharmaceutical companies producing corticosteroids administered by mouth or injection include further warnings and precautions in their product information, and introduce patient information leaflets. This action is expected to be completed in the near future.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to introduce into the patients charter rights as to the holding of open inquiries.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the pension entitlement of Mr. James Rawson the former chairman of Burnley Health Care NHS trust.

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what occasions since 1979 civil servants in her Department have been asked to draft speeches of a constituency nature for use in a Minister's own constituency.

None. Civil servants may provide briefing of a factual nature for Ministers on matters relating to their own Departments. In addition, Ministers in preparing for a constituency speech can draw on material produced by their Department during the normal course of business.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease there are currently diagnosed in the United Kingdom; and what representations she has received regarding the link with pre-1985 infertility treatment.

One hundred and fifty nine definite or probable cases of Creutzfeldt-jacob disease in the United Kingdom have been reported to the CJD surveillance unit, Edinburgh over the four-year period May 1990 to April 1994. No cases have been reported where there is a link with infertility treatment.On 1 September 1993 the Department established a helpline for women who had been treated for infertility with human derived pituitary gonadotrophin—a treatment no longer given, but which may be associated with the risk of developing CJD. Since 1 September 1993 we have received 15 letters on the subject from hon. Members on behalf of their constituents.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS hospitals had private bed units; and what was the number of beds in each, in 1990–91 and 1993–94, respectively.

These are local matters about which the Department does not collect information.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she intends to issue further guidance to local authorities on the registration of child minders; and if she will make a statement.

The Department has today issued local authority circular (94)23, "The Children Act 1989: Registration of Child Minders", which clarifies current guidance on the use of physical punishment by child minders. Copies of the circular have been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will include in the Environment Agencies Bill provisions for the reform of the sites of special scientific interest system.

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all countries who have (a) signed and (b) ratified the European charter of self-government, giving individual dates for each country of signature and ratification.

The information requested, relating to the European charter of local self-government, is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all the parish, town and community councils which have made representations to the Government regarding the Energy Conservation Bill.

During 1994 the Government have received letters from about 500 members of the public and local councils concerning this Bill, and a larger number on energy efficiency generally. Detailed analysis could be carried out only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list for each of the separate water companies established since privatisation and for each (a) month and (b) year since the companies were privatised, (i) the total number of disconnections carried out by each company and (ii) the percentage of customers of each company this total represents.

The Director General of Water services publishes data on disconnections twice a year, by water company area, for both domestic and non-domestic customers. Information about the numbers of disconnections in the six months to 30 September 1994 showing, for domestic disconnections, the rate per 10,000 households billed, together with numbers of disconnections in each year since 1989–90, was published in an Ofwat news release on 15 November. Copies of this and earlier Ofwat news releases containing similar information are in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment by what date he expects to reply to the letter concerning future options for water charging sent to him on 30 September 1994 by the Water Services Association and Water Companies Association; what plans he has for announcing the contents of his reply; if he will place a copy of his reply in the Libraries of both Houses; and if he will make a statement.

The letter from the associations setting out their views on future methods of charging for water is still being considered. A reply will be sent in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list (a) all areas of activity currently undertaken by the National Rivers Authority to which the duty of the National Rivers Authority to further conservation apply and (b) any specific such areas of activity or specific activities to which this duty will not apply under his current plans for an environment agency for England and Wales;(2) if he will publish the exact wording of the clause which he intends to introduce into the Environment Agency Bill to carry forward the current duty of the National Rivers Authority to further conservation; whether this new duty will apply across the full and complete scope of activities of the proposed environment agency for England and Wales; and if he will list all duties which he currently envisages being carried out by the environment agency for England and Wales to which this new duty will not apply.

As I advised the House on 18 November, I wish there to be no doubt about the conservation and sustainable development role of the agency; I am providing a clear duty for the agency not simply to consider conservation issues in relation to all the agency's functions, but to further conservation as appropriate.The Environment Bill, presented for first reading in another place on 1 December, sets out the conservation duties of the proposed environment agency in clauses 6 and 7.The conservation duties of the National Rivers Authority are set out in clauses 2 and 16 of the Water Resources Act 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, what arrangements he proposes to make for the costs of local government reorganisation in 1995–96.

In his statement yesterday, my right hon. Friend announced that provision of £50 million has been made for the transitional costs of local government reorganisation in 1995–96.Following extensive consultation with local authorities on draft proposals, I am today issuing the details of arrangements under which reorganised authorities will be able to apply for additional resources, in the form of supplementary credit approvals, to cover reorganisation costs in 1995–96. Copies have been placed in the Library.Invitations will be issued next week to authorities in the Isle of Wight, Cleveland, Avon, North Yorkshire and Humberside to submit applications under the scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether a change is to be made to the scheme of fees and charges for integrated pollution control operated by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution.

A minor change to the HMIP integrated pollution control fees and charges scheme 1994–95 is to take effect retrospectively from 1 June 1994. It introduces a provisional application fee of nil for a number of processes included under IPC by the Environmental Protection (Prescribed Processes and Substances) Regulations, pending further consultation on possible amendment to those regulations.Copies of the amendment to the scheme are being placed in the Library of both Houses.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will give the number of cases of rape heard by (a) male and (b) female judges each year since 1990.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish the number of referrals from general practitioners to ophthalmology out-patients clinics for 1990–91 and 1991–92.

The number of referrals to NHS hospital out-patient departments for the specialty of ophthalmology was as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has for extending cable network franchising in Wales.

Today, the Independent Television Commission is preparing to advertise new franchises for much of south Wales early next year. Franchises for north Wales will follow.The ITC will consider further franchises as soon as it receives expressions of interest.I want the whole of Wales to benefit from the broad band communication revolution and look forward to expressions of interest from companies.

To ask the Prime Minister what matters in regard to nuclear proliferation were discussed during his meeting with his Pakistani counterpart on 28 November.

Non-proliferation was not raised in my meeting, but my right hon. Friend, the Foreign Secretary, discussed non-proliferation in south Asia with the Pakistani Prime Minister when he called on her on 30 November 1994.

To ask the Prime Minister upon what grounds the grant of an honour may be withdrawn; and in which cases this has happened since 1979.

The statutes of most orders of knighthood and the royal warrants of decorations and medals include provision for the Queen to "cancel and annul" appointments and awards. Cancellation is considered in cases where retention of the appointment or award would bring the honours system into disrepute. There are no set guidelines for cancellations, which are considered on a case-by-case basis.Since 1979, the

To ask the Prime Minister how many Conservative hon. Members have received knighthoods since 1979.

One hundred and fifteen Conservative hon. Members have received knighthoods since 1979.

To ask the Prime Minister which rules cover former Ministers who wish to take appointments in the private sector; and what plans he has to reconsider such rules.

Guidance is contained in paragraph 105 of "Question of Procedure for Ministers". This matter is within the terms of reference of the Nolan committee and I will consider the guidance in the light of any recommendations that it may make.

To ask the Prime Minister what documentary evidence is available to Her Majesty's Government to support the belief that the bomb which destroyed Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie was dispatched from Luqa airport, Malta.

My noble and learned Friend the Lord Advocate is satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to establish the allegations made in the criminal charges against the two Libyans accused, which include the allegation that the bomb was introduced on to an aircraft at Luqa airport, Malta. However, he cannot give details of that evidence while criminal proceedings are pending.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the total amount of discretionary rates relief given to Scottish sports clubs in the current year; and if he will make a statement.

[holding answer 1 December 1994]: Provisional figures provided by regional and islands authorities indicate that the total amount of discretionary rates relief given to Scottish sports clubs in 1994–95 will be £3.464 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give the latest cost of using detective agencies in connection with road building schemes in the last five financial years; and what has been the cost in respect of each scheme.

This is an operational matter for the Highways Agency. The cost to date, encompassing the last five financial years, is £563,450. The expenditure an individual schemes is as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has yet received either (a) an oral or (b) a written agreement from any City of London institution that it will support the privatisation of Railtrack; and if he will make a statement.

Marketing of shares in Railtrack has not yet commenced and expressions of interest from investors have not been sought.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those items of expenditure and receipts, included under the heading "UR/EPs" in the table accompanying his Department's press notice No. 457, issued on 29 November, which are not included under the heading "Union Railways" in table 1.1 in his Department's Transport Report 1994, Cm 2506, and vice versa.

The external finance for UR/EPs set out in the table accompanying the Department's press notice No. 457 now includes provision for European Passenger Services Ltd. EPSL became a separate Government-owned company in May 1994, before which it was part of British Rail.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will update the figure in tables 1.1 and 5.1 of his Department's Transport Report 1994, Cm 2506, to take account of the revised expenditure totals outlined in his Department's press notice, No. 457, issued on 29 November; and if he will show the revised figures alongside the original figures;(2) if he will update the figures in tables 5.3 and 5.4 of his Department's Transport Report 1994, Cm 2506; and if he will add columns for 1995–96 plans to these updated tables, to take account of the revised expenditure totals outlined in his Department's press notice No. 457, issued on 29 November.

The Transport Report 1995 will contain details of the expenditure plans announced in press notice No. 457 on 29 November.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those items of expenditure and receipts, included under the heading "other railway related" in table 1.1 in his Department's Transport Report 1994, Cm 2506; and under what heading these items appear in the table accompanying his Department's press notice No. 457, issued on 29 November.

Those items of expenditure included in table 1.1 of the Transport Report 1994 under the heading "other railway related "are listed in table 5.1. These items are included in the table accompanying the Department's press notice No. 457 under the heading, "other departmental programmes and services".

To ask the Attorney-General what plans he has to disband the Crown Prosecution Service and put the provision of prosecution solicitors out to competitive tender and provide for payment by results.

As I announced to the House on 27 April 1994, Official Report, column 234, all my departments are considering the question of prior options and the possibility of agency status. In line with general Government policy, these questions involve consideration of privatisation, contracting out and market testing, but no decisions have yet been made. An inter-departmental group of officials including representatives of the Home Office, the Lord Chancellor's Department, the Treasury and the Office of Public Service and Science are at present examining these options and the possibility of agency status in respect of both the Crown Prosecution Service and the Serious Fraud Office.I expect the group to report to me around the end of the year and that I should then consult ministerial colleagues with the intention of reaching decisions in the earlier part of next year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he will estimate the cost of the proposed reorganisation and reduction in number of district benefit offices in Wales;(2) whether in the proposed reorganisation of the Benefits Agency in Wales

The structure and operation of the Benefits Agency in Wales are matters 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 factors led the Benefits Agency to give notice to Property Holdings that it intends to vacate all the offices it presently occupies in Clwyd.

The structure and operation of the Benefits Agency in Wales are matters 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 (1) how many parents with care in receipt of income support at each child support agency reporting centre have received reduced maintenance payments as a result of changes to the maintenance arrangements which came into force on 7 February 1994;(2) how many parents with care not in receipt of benefit at each Child Support Agency reporting centre have received reduced maintenance payments as a result of changes to the maintenance arrangements which came into force on 7 February 1994;(3) how many parents with care in receipt of family credit at each Child Support Agency reporting centre have received reduced maintenance payments as a result of changes to the maintenance arrangements which came into force on 7 February 1994;(4) what is the average reduction in child maintenance payments made as a result of the changes to the maintenance arrangements which came into force on 7 February 1994.

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for Miss Ann Chant, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many maintenance application forms have been returned to each Child Support Agency area reporting centre to date (a) from parents with care in receipt of income support, (b) from parents with care in receipt of family credit, (c) from parents with care in receipt of disability working allowance and (d) from parents with care not on benefit;(2) how many non-custodial parents at each Child Support Agency reporting centre have

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for Miss Ann Chant, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many parents with care at each Child Support Agency reporting centre have (a) had a reduced benefit direction served against them and (b) suffered a benefit penalty.

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for Miss Ann Chant, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many non-custodial parents at each Child Support Agency reporting centre have (a) had deductions made from income support, (b) had wage arrestments made against them and (c) actually had their wages arrested.

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for Miss Ann Chant, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the average maintenance payment at each Child Support Agency reporting centre.

The administration of Child Support Agency is a matter for Miss Ann Chant, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many pension awards have been made in recognition of disablement resulting from exposure to mustard gas during national service.

War pensions are payable for any disablement that is due to service in the armed forces, including national service. However, information relating to awards—if any—arising from exposure to mustard gas during national service is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether, in seeking the agreement of members of the panel on assessment of incapacity to publication of their names as mentioned in his answer of 3 November, Official Report, column 1377, he informed them of the statements made by the Minister for Social Security and Disabled People (a) in a written answer on 20 January 1994, Official Report, column 802, that the report on the proposed medical test would include the membership of the panel and (b) to Standing Committee E on 1 February 1994, that their names would be publicly available.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 25 November, Official Report, column 421

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what has been the total training budget in each of the last 10 years in (a) cash terms and (b) real terms;(2) what was the total amount spent on training in each of the last 10 years; and what that figure represents per unemployed person.

The table shows expenditure on the Department's training and education programmes:

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the amount spent on training by

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment which consultants have been engaged by the prior options review group; at what cost; and when they will report.

As part of the review, and following a competitive tendering process, Ernst and Young were commissioned to carry out a detailed examination of the potential and existing external markets in relation to the delivery of the services under review. They reported their findings on 28 October 1994. The cost for this research is commercial in confidence.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many permanent staff employed by the

The information requested is shown in the table:

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many weeks training were (a) offered and (b) undertaken in respect of (1) employment training, and (2) youth training by training and enterprise councils in Lincolnshire and Humberside in the last year for which figures were available; what element of this was provided by (i) a further education college, (ii) any other public sector college, (iii) an outside training provider and (iv) an employer, or prospective employer.

The information requested on training weeks offered and undertaken is shown in the table and relates to 1993–94. Information on training providers is not available.Employment Service covering the parliamentary constituency of Lewisham, Deptford have been instructed to take unpaid leave or work shorter hours; for what reasons; and if he is able to estimate the impact on the time taken to process applications and appeals.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many casual staff are currently employed by the Employment Service covering the parliamentary constituency of Lewisham, Deptford; and what intention there is to cut back on their numbers before the end of the financial year otherwise than to replace them with permanent staff.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what targets Remploy has been set in its 1994–95 annual performance agreement.

I have written to the chairman of Remploy approving the 1994–95 annual performance agreement between the Department and the Company. This agreement covers the year from 1 April 1994. It has been negotiated by the chief executive of the Employment Service, on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment. The targets are:

the average number of disabled people employed by Remploy Ltd. will be at least 8,900;

of which no more than 7,450 on average must be employed in factories;

at least 74 disabled employees will move from Remploy factories to Interwork having been employed there for at least one year, or from Interwork or factories to open employment;

the unit cost of Interwork should be no more than the supported employment voluntary maximum grant or £4,420;

Remploy Ltd. will keep within a unit cost target or operating deficit per disabled worker of £9,650;

Choices programme to be in place in at least 50 factories by the end of March 1995.

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what plans he has to help the long-term unemployed find work.

[holding answer 29 November 1994]: Next year we shall continue to offer unemployed people some 1.5 million opportunities of help. For long-term unemployed people we aim to provide the individual advice and support they need to get back to work as quickly as possible.Through regular Restart interviews we encourage them to search for jobs actively. Jobclub and the job interview scheme help them find jobs, and present their abilities to employers effectively. Jobplan workshops and Restart courses provide opportunities for self-assessment, confidence building, and action planning. Training for work and Community Action offer them chances to learn new skills, refresh old ones, gain work experience and enhance their job skills.On Tuesday, my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer set out our plans to develop our help to ensure that it is targeted on those who need it most—in particular, the long-term unemployed. We are focusing training for work more sharply on getting people into work. We are extending Community Action and work trials over the next three years. Following successful pilots, jobfinders grant will be available nationally. So too will Workwise and 1–2–1, providing intensive job search help for 18 to 24 year olds out of work for a year or more. New Jobmatch pilots are to be developed and Workstart pilots will be extended.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what plans he has to change the share of the fossil fuel levy allocation to renewable sources of energy.

I expect payments from the fossil fuel levy to renewable generators to increase during the 1990s, as more renewable electricity generation projects are commissioned under the non-fossil fuel obligation.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what are the current levels of trade in electricity with France; and what are the projected future levels.

Statistics on United Kingdom electricity trade with France are regularly published in "Energy Trends", table 24, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. A description of how trade across the interconnector was expected to develop in the foreseeable future was given in the Government's Coal Review White Paper, Cm 2235, at paragraphs 7.100 to 7.101.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report's rejection of the plans of the Daily Mail Company to acquire the seven Nottingham-based titles of T. Bailey Forman Ltd.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Smith) on 29 November, Official Report, columns 569–70.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade how much funding has been provided to TECs for small and medium-sized businesses in the current financial year and the coming financial year; and if he will make a statement.

My Department is providing £32.7 million to TECs for enterprise activity by small and medium-sized businesses in the current financial year. A further £6 million is being provided to TECs for the diagnostic and consultancy service delivered by Business Links. My Department is also providing funding totalling £18.7 million for providing a range of advisory services in Business Links and for helping to establish the Business Link network which will mainly assist small and medium sized businesses.I have not yet finalised my budgets for 1995–96 but I expect to do so shortly and I will provide a further answer at that time.In addition to DTI funding, other Government Departments, notably the Employment Department provide TECs with funds which they may use to support small and medium sized businesses.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what his Department is doing to encourage the development by manufacturers of radio sets capable of receiving the BBC's DAB broadcasts, to be launched in 1995; and if he will make a statement.

On 16 February 1993, Official Report, column 134, my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade announced to the House the setting up of a national forum to co-ordinate and promote the plans for the introduction of DAB in the UK. Participants of the forum included broadcasters, equipment manufacturers, retailers, service providers and other interested parties. They have made considerable progress over the intervening months.One of the forum's working groups is concerned with consumer equipment for receiving DAB broadcasts. It currently numbers all of the major UK market players, including far Eastern inward investors, in its membership.At least five of these have indicated their intentions to manufacture products in the UK once DAB chipsets become available. Another far eastern company that does not currently manufacturer in the UK has expressed a desire to develop a DAB receiver in the UK.At the present time, however, there is a lack of DAB chipsets in commercial quantities and at commercial prices. Some UK companies have formed a club to develop a UK source of DAB chipsets to alleviate this.Officials in my Department are giving strong encouragement to these activities.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he expects to make a further announcement on the EC package travel directive.

I expect to publish revised guidance notes to the Package Travel Regulations 1992, which implement the Package Travel Directive in UK law, within the next few weeks.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will publish a table showing the number of meetings held, the secretarial and advisory arrangements, the budgeted and actual expenditure and the subjects of any reports and submissions produced by the Standards Quality and Measurement Advisory Committee in each of the last three years.

Secretarial support for the Standards, Quality and Measurement Advisory Committee has been provided by officials from the national measurement system policy unit, a section within the technology and innovation policy division of the Department.Advisory arrangements were covered within the terms of reference for the committee. The terms of reference for the committee were:

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he has taken to reassess his Department's policy announcement on 31 March 1994 on the future funding for wave energy, Official Report, columns 1009–10, following the subsequent decision of the European Commission to fund the wave power device designed by Queen's university, Belfast.

The Government's strategy for the development of new and renewable energy in the United Kingdom was published on 31 March 1994 as Energy Paper No. 62, copies of which are in the Libraries of both Houses. Resources will be concentrated on key technologies with good prospects of commercial application in the coming decades—such as solar, energy from coppice and waste, wind and fuel cells. The existing work on wave energy will be completed, but no further commitments undertaken, as this technology has limited potential to contribute commercially to energy supplies in the next few decades. A watching brief on wave energy developments, including the work of Queen's university, Belfast, will be maintained. The progress of the programme and the prospects for the technologies are regularly reviewed.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he now expects the regional packages and former collieries owned by British Coal to be transferred to the private sector.

Subject to further detailed negotiation, the Department aims to complete the sales by the end of the year.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement regarding the Minister for Trade's recent visit to India as part of the Indo-British partnership technology week.

The technology week, which was led by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Trade, involved a reports and submissions produced by the committee over the last three financial years.series of seminars and exhibitions in Calcutta, New Delhi, Bombay and Madras. The trade mission was the largest of its kind to date.Organised under the Indo-British partnership initiative, in which the private sector works closely with my Department, the mission was designed to demonstrate United Kingdom technological capability across a number of industrial sectors. These include infrastructure, power, electronics, food processing, design and telecommunications.Using Concorde, itself an example of British technology, to fly more than 80 business men to the four major business centres in India enabled the mission to secure considerable additional local publicity.I am pleased to say that more than half the business group were small to medium-sized companies, many of them visiting this undoubtedly expanding market for the first time.During a highly successful week a significant number of business transactions were completed, as the summary shows. Other business deals are expected to develop in the future. Further events are planned for next year and beyond.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on progress in discussions with the preferred bidders for the regional coal companies in the privatisation of the mining business of British Coal.

Discussions with each of the preferred bidders—RJB Mining plc, Celtic Energy Limited and Mining (Scotland) Limited—are on course to be concluded this month.Each of the bids has been subject to a detailed process of clarification and negotiation since preferred bidders were announced on 12 October.The Government have agreed with RJB, subject to contract, that RJB will acquire the English Coal Company and Thorne and Ellington collieries for £815 million; £698.1 million would be payable at completion, with the balance payable, with interest, in instalments over the three following years.The Government have agreed with Mining (Scotland) Limited, subject to contract, that Mining (Scotland) Limited will acquire the Scottish Coal Company for £39.4 million and an additional consideration, which may amount to up to £10 million, mainly for increased levels of coal stocks.In both cases, the bid price has been adjusted as envisaged in the information memorandum. The adjustments reflect developments since tenders were submitted in September 1994 or information which was not available to bidders at the time. In the case of RJB, the bulk of the adjustments relate to changes in expected levels of coal stocks, and liabilities disclosed after bids were submitted. RJB's bid price following these adjustments still clearly represents best value for money. This is also the case for Mining (Scotland) Limited.The Department will shortly lay minutes before the House describing certain limited warranties and indemnities which it proposes to give to RJB and Mining (Scotland) Limited. The question of possible warranties and indemnities is also under discussion with Celtic Energy Limited.The acquisition price for all three preferred bidders would also be subject to technical adjustments following completion to take account of differences between the value of certain assets and liabilities as estimated at signature of the acquisition agreement and the corresponding value to be established as at completion.Discussions are continuing with Celtic Energy Limited.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what discussions took place with Mothercare in 1989 and 1990 over the results of its tests into cot mattresses containing toxic substances and the reasons for them replacing such mattresses at that time.

[holding answer 25 November 1994]: No such tests were made known to the Department during 1989 and 1990. The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988, as amended, do not specify the use of fire retardants. The regulations are made in terms of a series of ignition resistance tests for different furniture components and manufacturers can meet the required standards for mattresses safely in a number of ways.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations he received from industry about the adverse affects on children from the use of fire retardant chemicals in nursery furniture prior to the introduction of the legislation.

[holding answer 25 November 1994]: My Department consulted industry and other interested organisations when making the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 and full consideration was given to the use of fire retardant chemicals in nursery furniture. The risk to young children of being killed or injured in fires involving nursery furniture outweighed the possibility of skin irritations to some babies, cited by industry, from contact with fire retardant chemicals. This took into account the variety of options available to industry to meet the match resistance requirements. Not all fabrics need the application of chemicals to make thern match resistant.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what were the reasons for his 1989 decision to (a) exempt baby nests from the provisions of the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 and (b) not exempt nursery furniture coverings from the provisions of the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988.

[holding answer 25 November 1994]: Baby nests were exempted from the requirements of the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988, as amended, because of the need for them to be made of permeable materials to avoid the risk of suffocation because of the purpose of their design. Nursery furniture coverings were not exempted from fire safety protection because there is no attendant risk of suffocation.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) of the bills currently awaiting payment in his Department how many are over the advised payment date by (a) up to one month, (b) up to two months, (c) up to three months, (d) up to six months and (e) over six months respectively;(2) how many of the bills paid by his Department during the last month for which figures are available were paid within

[holding answer 1 December 1994]: The information is not available in the form requested. The survey of my Department's payment performance for the 1994 Trade and Industry expenditure plans report based on a sample of payments made in October 1993 stated that 90 per cent. of bills were paid either in accordance with agreed contractual conditions or, where no such contractual conditions existed, within 30 days of receipt of goods or services or the presentation of a valid invoice. A further 7 per cent. were paid within 60 days of receipt of goods or services or the presentation of a valid invoice.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the net United Kingdom contribution to the European Community in 1992; and what he estimates it will be in 1994.

The United Kingdom's net contribution to the European Community in 1992–93 was £2,167 million and the Government's latest estimate of our net contribution for 1994–95 is £2,446 million.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes are being considered in the deployment of officers involved in anti-smuggling activities as a result of Her Majesty's Customs and Excise fundamental expenditure review.

Changes resulting from the Customs fundamental expenditure review are consistent with the department's existing anti-smuggling strategy and will enable Customs to play a key role in the Government's anti-drugs strategy. Customs effectiveness will not be diminished.FER changes mean that Customs will allocate its anti-smuggling resources more effectively. There will be a focusing of static staff on areas of greatest risk. For other locations, anti-smuggling effort will be grouped together in task forces which will ensure a fast and flexible response to specific threats as well as providing high-profile deterrence. There will be a greater emphasis placed on quality results in terms of seizures and the impact that the department has on organised criminals. There will be a strengthening of the department's intelligence organisation, raising its profile and improving national co-ordination—indeed, some of the reductions in posts which result from the deployment of task forces in certain locations will be recycled into this areas.It is too early to indicate what the implications will be at particular locations. Decisions about the deployment of Customs staff will be taken by operational managers in consultation with the centre.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish the estimates given by every other EEC Government to its own people of (a) their increase in EEC budget contributions consequent on the Edinburgh agreement, (b) the payments/gains per capita and (c) whether they will be in surplus or deficit.

So far as we have been able to ascertain, of other member states, only Germany has made public estimates of the impact of the Edinburgh agreement on its EC budget contribution.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if it is his policy that the new rules in respect of capital gains tax reinvestment relief include all capital gains for reinvestment in the existing three year period.

Relaxations to the rules for re-investment relief will take effect from 29 November. As before, companies will still have to meet the other qualifying conditions for three years. Full details of the proposals will be found in the Finance Bill, which is due to be published early in January.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how he plans that the abolition of the restrictions in respect of capital gains tax reinvestment relief announced in the Budget be made to apply only to disposals on or after Budget day.

Relaxation of the restrictions will affect only the activities of qualifying companies, and not individual investors in those companies. These changes take effect from 29 November. Full details of the proposals will be contained in the Finance bill, which is due to be published early in January.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the accident involving a Tornado aircraft at Royal Air Force Cottesmore on 3 August.

The incident involved an Italian air force Tornado based at RAF Cottesmore, which was on this occasion being flown by a German air force instructor pilot and a German air force navigator. After a normal approach to landing with the undercarriage down and locked, the Tornado sank on to the runway with its undercarriage fully retracted. It came to rest on the runway and both crew emerged without injury.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the circumstances of the accident to Tornado F.3 ZG751 during 1993; and what is the current status of the aircraft.

Tornado F3 aircraft ZG751 has not been involved in any accidents since it entered service. It is currently in service with No. 11 group of the RAF. The only Tornado F3 aircraft to be involved in an accident in 1993 was ZE858. A copy of the accident summary for this aircraft is in the Library of the House.