To ask the Secretary of State for the environment, pursuant to his answer of 30 November 1995, Official Report, column 802, if he will take into account the potential economic benefits and costs to environmental technology manufacturers with special reference to lost business and damage to international competitiveness in the four year revision of all chief inspectors' guidance notes and process guidance notes in addition to following developments in technology and techniques for preventing or reducing pollution; and what mechanisms will be put in place to ensure that such account is taken. [7734]

The benefits referred to in my reply of 30 November 1995, Official Report, column 802, should continue to arise because of the progressive nature of part I of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, as reflected in the regular reviews of the guidance notes. The continued supply of information on available pollution control techniques by manufacturers will be valuable in this regard. However, the legislation does not allow for the economic benefits and costs to environmental technology manufacturers to be part of the judgment in deciding conditions to be included in authorisations of the processes regulated.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement regarding the United Kingdom's progress in achieving sustainability under agenda 21 of the UN conference on environment and development. [7715]

We last reported on progress towards achieving sustainable development in "This Common Inheritance: UK Annual Report 1995", published in March of this year. We intend to publish the next such report in March 1996.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the consultation paper on greater competition in the water industry is due to be published. [7589]

My right hon. Friend proposes to publish a consultation paper in the near future.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what further action he intends to take to assist home owners facing repossession who are in difficulties with their mortgage payments. [7699]

Home owners will continue to benefit from Government action to secure sustainable economic growth, increased employment opportunities, low inflation, low interest rates and low mortgage payments. This will help ensure that fewer people have difficulty meeting their mortgage payments and that those in arrears are more likely to be able to pay them off.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he will designate the south Pennine moors as a special protection area under EC directive 79/409/EEC; and if he will make a statement. [7673]

The south Pennine moors is now a priority site among some 24 proposals for special protection areas that are currently with the Department. Officials are considering the results of consultations with other Government Departments, and owners and occupiers. In the meantime, planning policy guidance note 9—on nature conservation—requires local planning authorities to treat potential special protection areas in the same way as classified sites.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will require North West Water and Yorkshire Water to provide assurances regarding the safety and stability of Pennine reservoirs with earth dams, following the exceptional weather conditions; and if he will make a statement. [7671]

Water companies are responsible for the safety of all earth dams they own or operate under all weather conditions. The structural safety and stability of large raised reservoirs and dams are safeguarded through the operation of the Reservoirs Act 1975. Under the Act, water companies have to employ civil engineers who provide ongoing supervision with reports on safety at least once a year, and expert inspecting engineers who make a detailed safety assessment at least once every 10 years. Where this is judged necessary, the supervising engineer may call for a detailed safety assessment at any time.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 12 December 1995, Official Report, column 588, on what grounds the water company projections of water balances for the periodic review are judged to be commercially confidential. [7556]

Information on water balances was supplied to the Director General of Water Services by water companies as part of a package provided on a commercially confidential basis for the purposes of the periodic review. However, I understand that the director general will be asking the companies if they would be content for information included about individual leakage targets to be made public.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many persons were registered as homeless in the north-west region for each year since 1992. [7700]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 20 December 1995, Official Report, column 1235.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to introduce statutory guidelines for the protection of urban trees associated with the laying of cables. [7714]

Voluntary guidelines, published by the National Joint Utilities Group, have been in place since April 1995. We are considering comments received from local authorities across the country as part of our review of the guidelines six months after their implementation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made in planting the national forest; and what steps he is taking to involve local communities in the project. [7708]

The National Forest Company was established in April 1995 to implement the strategy for the forest. Six hundred hectares have been planted since the inception of the project in 1991. A further 224 hectares has been committed to planting through round 1 of the national forest tender scheme, introduced in 1995. The company encourages community involvement in all its work, and has established a local authority advisory group and a community projects working group to help develop community action.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will take steps to ensure that the water companies comply with the recommendations of the National Rivers Authority regarding water conservation in the event of below average winter rainfall. [7672]

It is the responsibility of all water undertakers to manage and maintain an efficient and economical system of water supply in accordance with operating licences granted by the Director General of Water Services. The National Rivers Authority report "Measures to Safeguard Public Water Supplies" concluded that all water companies are now following strategies to conserve resources to safeguard supplies for next summer. The authority will keep the position under review and will provide further advice as necessary.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to promote water conservation; and if he will make a statement. [7930]

The Water Industry Act 1991 places water undertakers under a duty to develop and maintain an efficient and economical system of water supply and additionally places them under a duty to promote water conservation among their customers. Water conservation is also promoted through the water byelaws and through the Government's environmental technology best practice programme. The review of lessons to be learnt from the drought, announced on 1 September, includes consideration of patterns of demand and approaches to demand management.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the asset management plans produced by each water company at the time of privatisation. [7557]

No. The water companies' asset management plans contain commercially confidential information.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the latest estimate of the savings in carbon dioxide emissions which the Energy Saving Trust will deliver up to 2000. [8023]

The Energy Saving Trust's established programme of activities is expected to save about 0.3 million tonnes of carbon. Targets will be set as further schemes are developed. They will contribute to further savings, but these cannot yet be quantified. The trust is developing a range of pump-priming schemes. These will have an immediate impact on carbon dioxide emissions and, by encouraging changes in behaviour and in energy efficiency markets, should lead to further savings in the long term.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment which are the 10 London boroughs with the highest number of households in temporary accommodation; and in each case what is the number of households thus placed. [7939]

The 10 London boroughs reporting the highest numbers of households in temporary accommodation under the homelessness provisions of the Housing Act 1985 at the end of March 1995, the latest date for which figures are available for all boroughs, were as follows:

London borough—number of households in temporary accommodation
	Number
Hackney	3,707
Haringey	2,666
Newham	2,126
Brent	1,894
Lambeth	1,045
Hillingdon	1,002
Redbridge	994
Croydon	993
Enfield	932
Hammersmith and Fulham	865

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment which are the 10 local authorities (i) in England and (ii) in London with the highest number of housing voids; and in each case what is (a) the total stock of the authority and (b) the number of management voids. [7947]

Figures for the 10 local authorities reporting the highest numbers of their own dwellings as vacant on 1 April 1995 are listed, for England and London, together with numbers of their total stock and management vacants:

	Stock	Total vacants	Management vacants
(a) England
Liverpool	48,685	4,377	787
Hackney	39,560	3,894	1,180
Lambeth	43,068	2,176	1,114
Sheffield	71,696	2,046	1,153
Leeds	78,142	2,018	1,133
Birmingham	99,816	1,899	1,443
Manchester	83,406	1,660	1,211
Newcastle upon Tyne	39,224	1,634	1,067
Tower Hamlets	37,578	1,562	609
Islington	37,045	1,483	692
(b) London
Hackney	39,560	3,894	1,180
Lambeth	43,068	2,176	1,114
Tower Hamlets	37,578	1,562	609
Islington	37,045	1,483	692
Southwark	54,266	1,129	418
Lewisham	35,095	1,051	498
Greenwich	32,297	795	535
Newham	25,818	735	517
Camden	29,789	543	304
Redbridge	6,761	515	248

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment for what percentage of the coal burn at Castle Cement, Clitheroe, secondary liquid fuel is permitted to be used as a substitute. [7943]

The company has agreed with Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution to replace no more than 50 per cent. of the thermal input from burning coal with energy from secondary liquid fuel.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Enviornment how many people have complained to Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution alleging ill effects from the burning of Cemfuel by Castle Cement at Clitheroe; and how many have been examined by a qualified toxicologist. [7949]

In the past 21 months HMIP has received approximately 440 complaints concerning Castle Cement, some of which allege ill effects. This does not include a number of complaints passed to my Department by the local Members of Parliament. My Department is not aware of anybody being examined by a qualified toxicologist.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Enviornment what consideration he has given to suspending the burning of Cemfuel at Castle Cement at Clitheroe pending an evaluation by the Department of Health on possible health risks. [7945]

Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution has sought advice from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, East Lancashire health authority and the Department of Health, and is satisfied that there does not appear to be any evidence that the use of Cemfuel is any more harmful to health than the use of coal.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Enviornment what is the annual tonnage limit for secondary liquid fuel burned at Castle Cement, Clitheroe. [7942]

The annual tonnage of fuel burned is limited by the design of the kilns to approximately 70,000 tonnes per year. Fifty per cent. of the thermal input can be replaced by secondary liquid fuel, but the actual amount burned is limited by the supply available to about 40,000 tonnes per year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what emission limits to air are in force at Castle Cement, Clitheroe, for (a) heavy metals, class I, II or III, (b) hydrogen fluoride, (c) hydrogen chloride, (d) sulphur dioxide, (e) nitrogen oxides and (f) carbon monoxide. [8046]

Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution will use the experience it has now gained about the use of substitute liquid fuel in the manufacture of cement, to set limits for these substances at Castle Cement, Clitheroe should it decide to allow the continued burning of Cemfuel at Clitheroe.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) when he expects to publish the regulations to implement the EU directive on packaging and packaging waste; [7759](2) when he expects to announce the principles underlying the regulations to implement the European Union directive on packaging and packaging waste. [7757]

I am very pleased that representatives of the packaging industry were able to agree last month a proposal for a form of legal obligation to implement the recovery and recycling targets of the EC directive on packaging and packaging waste, 94/62/EC. This proposal was set out by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in reply to a question on 19 December 1995, Official Report, columns 1104–5. The Government will now need to consider and decide on the best form of legal obligation, taking account of all the relevant considerations. We hope to make an announcement on this shortly and to prepare draft regulations to implement the directive in order to issue them for consultation as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will ask the National Rivers Authority to report to him regarding the preparation by the water companies of contingency plans to safeguard water supplies in the event that below average rainfall continues for (a) a further 18 months and (b) longer. [7929]

At the commission of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, the National Rivers Authority published on 18 December 1995 a report on measures to safeguard public water supplies. This report reviews water companies' strategies to conserve supplies in the event that below average rainfall continues into 1996 and confirms that the NRA will continue to keep the developing situation under review.My right hon. Friend announced on 1 September a longer-term review of the lessons to be learnt from this summer's drought. The review will include the frequency assumptions for drought, progress with making supply systems flexible enough to cope with local shortage, and the implications of climate change.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what elements of the CO₂ emission reduction programme outlined in "Climate Change: the UK Programme" are (a) delivering greater savings and (b) delivering less savings than initially expected. [7959]

Key changes in expectations since publication of the UK climate change programme include greater savings from the energy supply and transport sectors, which more than outweigh reduced expectations from the Energy Saving Trust and VAT on domestic fuel and power. Further details are set out in "Climate Change—the UK Programme: Progress Report on Carbon Dioxide Emissions", published on 14 December 1995.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the most recent figures for United Kingdom annual CO₂ emissions. [7957]

UK annual carbon dioxide emissions expressed as million tonnes of carbon are estimated to have been 158, 160, 155, 151 and 149 for the years 1990 to 1994 respectively. These figures were published in December 1995 in "Climate Change—the UK Programme: Progress Report on Carbon Dioxide Emissions". The 1994 estimate is provisional.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the work of the European wildlife division in respect of its provision for bona fide collectors of moths and butterflies. [8234]

Where species of butterfly or moth are endangered and subject to sales controls, the European wildlife division is responsible for the issue of sales licences. The performance target for issuing such licences is that 80 per cent. should be issued within 15 working days. The performance against this target is reviewed formally as part of the Department's annual review of resource needs. No specific complaints have been received in relation to the issue of sales licences.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from the construction industry regarding the private finance initiative. [8263]

Ministers meet the construction industry regularly to discuss a wide variety of topics including the private finance initiative. On 12 October the industry submitted a helpful paper to the Government on the operation of the initiative. A copy of this paper has been placed in the Library of the House. My right hon. Friend and ministerial colleagues discussed this with the industry in November. Subsequently, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury issued an action plan for the PFI which responded to a number of industry's points. A copy of this has also been placed in the Library of the House. The Government are continuing their dialogue on the PFI with representative bodies from the construction industry.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will ensure that a firm of independent consultants carry out and complete an environmental assessment on both sides of the lower Derwent valley on the effects of coal mining, before permission is granted for any initial bore exploratory tunnels in that region; and if he will make a statement. [8429]

No. It is for the mineral planning authority in the first instance to decide whether they require an environmental assessment for this particular planning application. Environmental assessment is required for development which would be likely to have significant effects on the environment. My Department does not consider that the proposal for exploratory tunnels in the Derwent valley area would have such an effect.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the outcome of the Environment Council on 18 December 1995. [8967]

Together with my noble Friend the Earl of Lindsay, I represented the UK at the Environment Council in Brussels on 18 December.Common positions were reached on a directive amending directive 85/337 on environmental impact assessment and on a directive amending the emission standards for light vans with effect from October this year. In both cases, earlier concerns expressed by the United Kingdom about these proposals were met by revised proposals which were acceptable.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the future of the Acess Committee for England. [3010]

I have been asked to reply.I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave her on Monday 18 December 1995,

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce a compensation scheme for loss of earnings and hardship for remand prisoners who are acquitted. [3522]

Such a case would not fall within the statutory provision for compensation for miscarriages of justice. However, in accordance with the policy set out by my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr. Hurd) on 29 November 1995, columns 691–92, we are prepared to pay compensation on an ex gratia basis to people who have spent a period in custody, following a conviction or charge, where we are satisfied that this has resulted from serious public default by a member of a police force or of some other public authority, or where there are other exceptional circumstances.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many crimes were recorded in each London borough by the Metropolitan police within each category of crime in the year to June 1995; how many incidents of theft or unauthorised taking of a motor vehicle and of theft from a motor vehicle were recorded in each borough; how many of the burglaries recorded in each borough were in a dwelling; and how many were in another building. [7439]

The information requested is contained in tables provided by the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis, copies of which are available in the Library.

:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of those people arrested for drug offences in each of the last three years were (a) cautioned, (b) fined and (c) convicted; and of those convicted how many were given (i) community service sentences and (ii) terms of imprisonment. [7713]

As detailed information on arrests is not collected centrally prosecution data have been included in the table.

Number of persons cautioned, prosecuted at magistrates' courts and found guilty at all courts for indictable drug offences by result 1992–1994
England and Wales
	1992	1993	1994
Cautions	27,594	35,098	44,350
Magistrates courts
Prosecutions	28,302	27,081	34,605
All courts
Convictions	22,677	21,897	27,796
of which sentenced to
Fine	11,928	11,139	14,517
Community sentence1	2,614	3,319	4,376
Immediate custody2	3,676	3,599	4,028
1Includes probation, supervision, attendance, community service and combination orders.
2Includes young offender institution and unsuspended imprisonment.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to lay an order bringing part I of the Criminal Justice Act 1993 into operation. [7744]

As I said in reply to a question from the hon. Member for Edinburgh, Central (Mr. Darling) on 19 July 1995, Official Report, column 1440, we are considering the practicalities of bringing into force the provisions of part I of the Criminal Justice Act 1993.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to delegating authority to release prisoners imprisoned for life for murder; and if he will make a statement. [7950]

Section 35 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 provides that the Secretary of State may release a mandatory life sentence prisoner if recommended to do so by the parole board, and after consulting the Lord Chief Justice and, if available, the trial judge. The Home Secretary normally takes such decisions personally. The Government have no plans to change these arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to collect information centrally and on an annual basis on the number of police stations which have (a) opened, (b) closed and (c) had their opening hours curtailed. [8123]

No. These are operational matters for chief constables, in consultation with their police authorities where appropriate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will issue guidance to police authorities to include in their annual policing plan proposals for the closure or curtailment of opening hours of police stations. [8124]

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional funding he will make available to the police authority on Merseyside to combat violent crime. [8137]

The overall effect of the Government's funding proposals for Merseyside police authority would be to provide a total spending power of £226.7 million in 1996–97, an increase of £8.14 million or 3.7 per cent. over 1995–96. It is for the chief constable to decide how to allocate his resources.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has to act on the requirement of article K3(2) of the treaty on European Union in respect of designating the convention on a European police office (Europol) CM3050, as a Community treaty by statutory instrument in accordance with section (3) of the European Communities Act 1972. [8304]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: There is nothing in article K3(2) of the treaty on European Union which requires the designation of the Europol convention as a Community treaty.Title VI of the treaty of European Union, pursuant to which the Europol convention was concluded, is not one of the Community treaties for the purposes of the 1972 Act. Accordingly, there is no proposal to make an Order in Council under section 1(3) of the European Communities Act 1972 declaring that the Europol convention is to be so regarded.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were in post in Leicester in each year since 1993; and how many are proposed for 1996–97. [8207]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: The strength of the Leicestershire constabulary was as follows:

• 31 December 1993: 1,838
• 31 December 1994: 1,838
• 30 September 1995: 1,860.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) civilian, (b) non-civilian police officers have been sent to Bosnia in the last six months; and how many is it planned to send under arrangements currently under discussion. [8184]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: Seven police officers have served in Bosnia in the past six months with the Western European Union police operation. We are currently considering the options for a possible future role for British police officers in Bosnia as part of the proposed United Nations civilian policing contingent.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many applications for bereavement payments under the criminal injuries compensation tariff scheme, which was withdrawn following the House of Lords ruling, were made (i) in total and (ii) by (a) parents of adult murder and manslaughter victims, (b) adult children of murder and manslaughter victims, (c) unmarried partners of murder and manslaughter victims and (d) fathers of illegitimate children who were murder and manslaughter victims; [7928](2) how many bereavement payments were made to applicants under the criminal injuries compensation tariff scheme, which was withdrawn following the House of Lords ruling (i) in total and (ii) to

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to him on 28 November 1995, Official Report, columns 652–53, and 4 December 1995, Official Report, column 27.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents requiring an immediate response were recorded by the police in terms of (a) crime, (b) disorder, (c) traffic, (d) alarms and (e) other, and what number of 999 calls were made in (i) 1993–94 and (ii) 1994–95 in each police force in England and Wales, with totals for England and for Wales. [7966]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: The figures for incidents requiring an immediate response and 999 calls recorded by the police in England and Wales are set out in the table. The nature of an incident requiring an immediate response is a matter for individual police forces, and the criteria vary between them. Data are collected only in terms of the total number of incidents requiring an immediate response, and cannot be disaggregated.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will allow those police authorities with direct responsibility for policing matches in Euro '96 to spend, if necessary, above the prescribed limit for 1996–97; and if he will make a statement. [7614]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: No. Funding for public order policing is included in the police grant settlement for 1996–97.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to make additional revenue available to those police authorities which will have responsibility for policing football matches during the Euro '96 competition; and if he will make a statement. [7616]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: No specific provision is being made available to police authorities for this purpose, but total funds for the police service are set to increase by around 4 per cent. in 1996–97 to £6.6 billion. The Football Trust has agreed to contribute to the capital costs of the police communications equipment that will be used during the competition. The cost of policing inside football stadiums will be met be the Football Association.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when and by what measures he has consulted the main organisations representing police constables concerning his proposals in the Asylum and Immigration Bill. [4468]

[holding answer 6 December 1995]: A copy of our consultation exercise on the prevention of unauthorised employment has been sent to the Association of Chief Police Officers.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the position of United Kingdom interest rates relative to those of the United Kingdom's EU partners. [8204]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]:Short and long-term interest rates in EU member states are published in tables 3.1 and 3.2 of "Money and Finance (Eurostat)" on a monthly basis. Table 1 gives three-month interbank interest rates and yields on 10-year bonds as of 8 January, for the UK and its EU partners.

EU interest rates
	10 year bonds	3-month interbank
UK	7.49	6.53
Austria	6.30	3.68
Belgium	6.62	3.74
Denmark	7.15	4.65
Finland	7.03	4.25
France	6.67	5.00
Germany	5.98	3.79
Greece	—	15.25
Ireland	7.33	5.58
Italy	10.65	10.38
Netherlands	5.96	3.49
Portugal	9.92	8.60
Spain	9.57	9.10
Sweden	8.34	8.60

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the amount of humanitarian aid provided to Burma in (a) 1993–94, (b) 1994–95 and (c) 1995–96; and if he will make a statement on its purpose. [7621]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: Our humanitarian aid to Burma over the last three financial years is as follows:

	£	Purpose
1993–94	1,400	Intravenous rehydration packs for Dengue fever victims
	22,589	Blankets and immediate relief items for fire victims
1994–95	5,000	Ringers Lactate Solution for Cholera victims
1995–96	43,512	Food, clothing and training in fire safety for fire victims
	19,108	Restoration of water and sanitation facilities for flood victims

In addition, the ODA has assisted refugees who have fled Burma into neighbouring countries. These contributions have been made through UNHCR, the International Federation of the Red Cross and non-governmental organisations. Amounts are as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the financial contribution made by his Department towards the cost of land mine clearance projects in (a) 1993–94, (b) 1994–95 and (c) the current financial year; and if he will make a statement. [7980]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: UK support to global humanitarian mine clearance operations in the last three financial years is as follows:

• 1993–94: £3.15 million
• 1994–95: £5.91 million
• 1995–96: £3.65 million (to date).

In addition the UK's share of European Community support for mine clearance is some £3.37 million since 1992.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the value, (a) at constant prices and (b) in cash terms of United Kingdom (i) bilateral and (ii) multilateral overseas aid has been in each financial year from 1991–92 to 1994–95; and what it is estimated to be in (1) 1995–96 and (2) each year to 1998–99. [8238]

The information is as follows:

ODA bilateral and multilateral expenditure 1991–92 to 1995–96
£ million
	Cash price		Constant 1995–96 prices
	Bilateral aid	Multilateral aid	Bilateral aid	Multilateral aid
1991–92	1,074	819	1,204	918
1992–93	1,125	934	1,212	1,006
1993–94	1,156	962	1,210	1,007
1994–95	1,120	1,117	1,151	1,148
1995–961	1,126	1,131	1,126	1,131
1Estimated outturn. Planning figures for the period 1997–98 to 1998–99 are being finalised. As usual these figures will be published in the 1996 FCO departmental report in March.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth affairs what is the gross national product per capita limit for aid-for-trade provision projects; and if the limit applies at gross national product per capita prices. [8235]

The countries eligible for ATP are those with a gross national product per capita of not more than $700 in 1989. Consideration is being given to updating this to the latest available year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the value of United Kingdom bilateral aid to sub-Saharan Africa in each year since 1973–74 (a) at constant prices and (b) in cash terms. [8239]

The total United Kingdom bilateral gross public expenditure on aid to countries in sub-Saharan Africa from 1973 to 1994–95 is set out in the table.

£000
	Cash prices	Constant prices1
1973	62,679	398,747
1974	71,938	398,350
1975	75,752	329,930
1976	102,710	388,567
1977	110,930	368,563
1978	169,912	505,916
1979	202,436	526,793
1980	243,894	531,059
1981	278,706	544,624
1982	234,760	426,348
1983	225,899	389,837
1984	249,808	412,150
1985	294,285	459,361
1986	268,520	405,871
19872	297,670	428,660
1987–88	247,881	354,298
1988–89	396,774	531,541
1989–90	462,826	579,554
1990–91	485,887	563,275
1991–92	419,119	457.324
1992–93	502,929	527,317
1993–94	438,319	446,544
1994–95	462,254	462,254
1 Calender year figures are given in 1994 prices while financial year figures are given in 1994–95 prices.
2 Prior to 1987–88 figures are only available by calendar year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on Britain's participation in EBRD. [6865]

We fully support the European bank for reconstruction and development which has made impressive progress over the last two years under President Larosière. To enable it to continue its highly regarded work in promoting transition and private sector development in the countries of central and eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, we are participating actively in current discussions on a capital replenishment. The UK shareholding in the EBRD is 8.5 per cent. or 850 million ECU.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many prosecutions there have been in breach of the Companies Act 1985; under what section each prosecution took place; and for what purpose in each year since the Act was passed. [7595]

In cases where the prosecution was brought by my Department, information on prosecutions under the Companies Act 1985 is contained in the Companies annual report which is laid before both Houses of Parliament in accordance with section 729 of the Companies Act 1985. This report does not include information on prosecutions brought by other prosecuting authorities, for example the DPP and the SFO, and records for these are not maintained within the Department.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what share of British markets for carpets is held by the Belgian Beaulieu Group. [8071]

Statistics specific to Beaulieu products are not available.In 1994, total Belgian exports of carpets to the UK were £184 million. This accounted for 14.7 per cent. of the UK market and 39 per cent. of all UK carpet imports.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many applications for appeal against unfair dismissal have been made to each employment office in the United Kingdom in the last year. [8075]

Applications to the industrial tribunals are registered by their central offices in Bury St. Edmunds, for England and Wales, and Glasgow, for Scotland. The number of registered applications alleging unfair dismissal in 1994–95 was 35,610 for England and Wales and 3,832 for Scotland.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is his Department's policy towards the availability of export credits guarantee for business in Algeria. [7997]

There is no ECGD medium/long-term cover for business with Algeria.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade when the Government will respond to the third report of the Science and Technology Committee of Session 1994–95, "Human Genetics, the Science and its Consequences" (HC 41.I) [8690]

The Government have published today their response to the Select Committee's report on "Human Genetics: The Science and its Consequences". Copies of the response have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.The response emphasises the excellence of UK genetic research and the opportunities which it offers for improving the country's competitiveness and quality of life. However, it also recognises the sensitivities which can apply to the application of genetics on health care and other fields. The response refers to the establishment of a new advisory body on genetic testing, to complement existing arrangements for addressing the ethical aspects of medical research. Details will be announced separately by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what has been the total sum raised by the fossil fuel levy borne by electricity consumers since this levy was introduced; and what sum this represents for the average electricity consumer. [7839]

The total sum raised by the fossil fuel levy between 1 April 1990 and 31 March 1995—the latest data available—was £6,285 million. Over the same period, an average domestic electricity customer has paid about £135 towards the levy.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 13 December, Official Report, column 640, what considerations led to his not yet having initiated a consultation exercise to implement the 1994 timeshare directive; and if he will estimate the number of timeshare purchasers affected as a result of the interval. [7981]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: The deadline for implementing the timeshare directive is 29 April 1997. We plan to meet that deadline. With this in mind a consultation paper will be issued shortly. We intend to lay regulations before Parliament early in 1997. Purchasers of timeshare in the UK are already protected under the UK Timeshare Act 1992, and we believe no consumer will be adversely affected by our timetable.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what has been the total expenditure on management and financial consultants employed by the Department to advise on the sale of Nuclear Electric and Scottish Nuclear; and what estimate he has made of future expenditure. [8013]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: The Department has provision for expenditure of £25 million in 1995–96 on restructuring and privatisation of the nuclear power generation industry. Actual expenditure will be reported to Parliament in the normal way through the appropriation account. Details of estimated expenditure in 1996–97 will be published in due course in the supply estimates.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade which companies are currently employed to advise on the privatisation of Nuclear Electric and Scottish Nuclear; and on what aspects. [8014]

[holding answer 9 January 1996]: The following advisers are currently employed in connection with the privatisation of Nuclear Electric and Scottish Nuclear.

Adviser	Area
Addison Design	Design company
Allen and Overy	Legal adviser (England and Wales)
Barclays de Zoete Wedd	Financial adviser/Global co-ordinator
Binder Hamlyn	Joint reporting accountant1
Brodies	Legal adviser (Scotland)
Cluttons	Property valuer
Davis Polk and Wardwell	Legal adviser (US)
Dewe Rogerson	PR/Marketing adviser1
Jonathan Sumption QC	Legal advice
London Economics	Electricity pool price modelling
Lowe Howard-Spink	Advertising agency1
Mail Marketing (Bristol)	Mailing house
Matthew Clarke QC	Legal advice
Price Waterhouse	Joint reporting accountant1
Solid Solutions Associates	Retail adviser
Stone & Webster and Electrowatt	Joint technical consultants
The Database Group	Database manager
Tillinghast	Insurance adviser
Touche Ross	Accountancy adviser
Watson Wyatt	Actuary
Williams Lea	Printer
1Appointed jointly with British Energy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if answers sent to hon. Members in reply to parliamentary questions by the head of executive agencies in his Department are (a) seen, (b) approved and (c) amended by him before they are sent; and if he will identify such letters to which amendments by him have been made in 1994–95. [7832]

Parliamentary questions are passed to the head of an executive agency for reply when the matter is delegated to him or her under the agency framework document. The relevant Minister normally sees a copy of the reply before it is sent, but would not normally intervene in operational matters. No record is kept of occasions when Ministers propose amendments to the terms of a chief executive's reply, though such instances are rare.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate was made of the cost of the work to be undertaken at the atomic weapons establishment Aldermaston in support of the Trident programme before the work commenced. [8269]

I have nothing to add to the reply given to the hon. Member on 16 October 1995, Official Report, column 36.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about defence agency status for the Directorate of Accounts (Bills). [8535]

The Directorate of Accounts (Bills) became a defence agency of the Ministry of Defence on 1 January 1996 following the restructuring of the Defence Accounts Agency. The agency, to be known as the Defence Bills Agency, is located in Liverpool and has a staff of 652 MoD civil servants. The agency is responsible for the authorisation and payment of bills from MoD's suppliers and contractors and the invoicing and collection of MoD receipts. In addition, the agency will maintain accounting records for the MoD central ledger and provide financial management information to budget holders and other MoD customers including other defence agencies.As part of the Government's "Competing for Quality" initiative, the Directorate of Accounts (Bills) underwent a market testing feasibility study. As a result of this it was decided to keep the work of the directorate in house and to set challenging efficiency targets. These have been met and the in-house team and has been awarded a three-year fixed-price service level agreement effective from 1 April 1996. Embodied within the SLA are efficiency savings of over 27 per cent. measured against a baseline of the agency's 1993–94 outturn and these will be achieved by 31 March 1996.The former Director of Accounts (Bills), Mr. M. A. Rowe, is the acting chief executive, pending the results of an open competition to appoint a successor. The chief executive will be seeking to develop the current organisation's professional expertise and improve the high performance standards to fulfil the agency's aim of providing its customers with an efficient service which offers the best value for money. The chief executive has been set the following key targets:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will give, for each year since 1989, the total number of (a) district nurses, (b) health visitors, (c) practice nurses, (d) midwives and (e) nursery nurses employed by Sunderland district health authority; [6308](2) if he will give, for each year since 1989, the total number and the percentage of

The information available is shown in the tables.

NHS Hospital and Community Health Services District Nurses, Health Visitors, Midwives and Nursery Nurses employed by Sunderland Health Authority (DHA) at 30 September 1989 to 19941
Whole-time equivalents
	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	41994
District Nurses2	80	90	90	100	80	—
Health Visitors3	70	80	70	70	60	—
Midwives	150	160	160	150	140	—
Nursery Nurses	—	—	—	—	—	—

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what sums were given by his Department to (a) the King's Fund institute and (b) the King's Fund college in each of the last six years. [6228]

The Department has made the following grants to the King's Fund in the last six years:Towards the running costs of the King's Fund centre:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice he has received from the chief medical officer in respect of banning tobacco advertising. [7674]

The advice to Ministers is treated as confidential. The Department of Health's assessment of the effects of tobacco advertising is contained in the "Effect of Tobacco Advertising on Tobacco Consumption", a discussion document published in October 1992, copies of which are available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if answers sent to hon. Members in reply to parliamentary questions by the heads of executive agencies in his Department are (a) seen, (b) approved and (c) amended by him before they are sent; and if he will identify such letters to which amendments by him have been made in 1994–95. [7834]

Parliamentary questions are passed to the head of an executive agency for reply when the matter is one delegated to him under the agency framework document. The relevant Minister may see a copy of the reply before it is sent, but would not normally intervene in operational matters. The available information shows that no letters have been amended by Ministers of the Department, but no formal record is kept.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements are being put in place to oversee developments in genetic testing. [8536]

As announced today in the Government response to the report of the Select Committee on Science and Technology, an advisory committee on genetic testing will be established to consider and advise on the ethical, social and scientific aspects of genetic testing. I am pleased to announce that the Rev. Dr. John Polkinghorne FRS, president, Queen's college, Cambridge has agreed to chair the committee. A copy of the press release that I am issuing today will be placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to introduce regulation of private home care agencies to protect (a) existing users and disabled people who use such agencies and (b) others who may do so when the Community Care (Direct Payments) Bill is enacted; and if he will make a statement. [7766]

On 22 September 1995 we published a consultation document, "Moving Forward", on the regulation and inspection of social services. Among other issues, it seeks views on whether statutory regulation should be extended to day and domiciliary care services. We shall decide on what action, if any, to take in the light of this review, including any implications for people who in the future may receive direct payments if Parliament approves the Community Care (Direct Payments) Bill. Copies of the consultation document are available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has (a) to encourage the use of protected paracetamol and (b) to discourage the use of paracetamol products that do not include methodine. [7840]

There are no plans. Paracetamol is a safe and effective pain killer when used at the recommended dose. Paracetamol-methionine combinations have been assessed by the Medicines Control Agency and are authorised for sale from pharmacies. They may be preferred where there is a risk of an overdose.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people died in each of the past five years as a result of the use of (a) tobacco, (b) alcohol, (c) medicinal drugs, (d) heroin, (e) solvents, (f) ecstasy and (g) cannabis. [7841]

It is estimated that in the Untied Kingdom about 110,000 deaths each year are smoking related.It is not easy to estimate the annual number of deaths in the UK directly caused by alcohol consumption. Estimates in academic literature range between 5,000 and 40,000 deaths in England and Wales per annum, and reflect a wide range of methodological approaches. There is therefore currently no universally acceptable mortality figure.Deaths from medicinal drugs are shown below.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed as suffering from cancer in each standard region of the United Kingdom, for England as a whole, and for the United Kingdom, for each of the last available three years, expressing each figure as a percentage of the corresponding population. [8087]

Data on registrations of newly diagnosed cases of cancer for England, by region, and Wales were published in tables 7 and 9 of the following publication "Cancer Statistics—Registrations", series MB 1 No. 20: 1987; No. 21: 1988, and No. 22: 1989. Copies of all three publications are available in the Library.Information relating to Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish the next edition of "NHS Workforce in England". [8286]

No further editions of "NHS Workforce in England" are planned following a readership survey which indicated that the book was of little interest. The publication has been replaced by a set of summary tables which provide the information most often requested. These tables, containing information from the 1994 non-medical work force census, will he available shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many pre-registration nursing and midwifery students commenced training as initial entrants by means of (a) salaried student places, (b) Project 2000 and (c) undergraduate study in each of the last five years; [8287]

This information is not available centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how he intends to estimate demand for nurses from the non-NHS sector; and how this information will be used to regulate the supply of nursing students. [8294]

Work force planning will continue to be undertaken by local employers. National health service employers together with health authorities will join together with other providers of healthcare to estimate demand for nurses. These estimates will be translated on to contracts for training places. The NHS Executive headquarters will maintain a national overview.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the total number of second level registered nurses; and how many are currently undertaking training to convert to first level registration. [8291]

This information is not held centrally. I refer the hon. Member to the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting for information concerning the former and to the English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting for the latter.