To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps are taken by the Overseas Development Administration to ensure that all aid projects are assessed for their environmental sustainability. [739]

All projects are subject to environmental assessment according to the guidelines and procedures set out in the manual of environmental appraisal. ODA has recently revised and updated the manual. It is accompanied by guidance on the major international environmental agreements and their implications for both aid donors and recipients. Copies of both documents have been placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals Her Majesty's Government intend to place before the UN world hunger conference to be held in Rome in November; and if he will make a statement. [483]

The Government's principal objective for the world food summit is to work for international consensus on the action needed to reduce hunger and malnutrition in the world. To help achieve this objective, we propose to present to the summit a paper on policy towards food security. In preparing this paper, we have consulted extensively among interested groups in the United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received relating to the conviction for murder and subsequent hanging in Cardiff in 1952 of Mahmood Hussein Mattam; and if he will now refer the matter to the Court of Appeal. [777]

On 10 October 1996, solicitors acting on behalf of Mr. Mattam's family submitted a substantial dossier in this case. My right hon. and learned Friend will decide as soon as possible whether any action on his part would be appropriate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the items of new equipment authorised by his Department for use by (a) the Metropolitan police and (b) other police forces in England and Wales in the last two years; how much training is required by his Department (i) initially and (ii) annually for each piece of equipment; and what assessment he has made of the impact of the introduction of each piece of equipment on the time available to police officers on active duty. [75]

My right hon. and learned Friend gave his consent to the following in the Metropolitan police district, in accordance with the Metropolitan Police Town Clauses Act 1829:

(i) on 23 November 1994, 24 in and 26 in straight batons;

(ii) on 28 June 1995, expandable three-piece friction lock batons.

In addition, between 1 March and 31 August 1996, Metropolitan police officers participated in operational trials of CS aerosol sprays with my right hon. and learned Friend's consent. His consent is not required to the introduction of police equipment in other forces.Training in the use of equipment is a matter for individual chief officers. An assessment was made of the effect of the introduction of expandable side-handled batons on working days lost by injury to police officers. No conclusions could be drawn because it coincided with a period in which there was a large fall in the number of officers on long-term sick leave.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total cost to his Department of the custody of Omanga Mangwete in the UK prior to his removal to Canada. [165]

The cost of detaining Mr. Mangwete in the United Kingdom prior to his removal was £21,521.17.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total number of asylum seekers whose application has been rejected but remain in Britain awaiting appeal. [669]

As at 30 September 1996, an estimated 20,100 refused asylum seekers, excluding dependants, were pursuing appeals.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total cost of the custody of Micrea Ilin prior to his release from prison; and what was the cost to his Department of their actions on his case. [164]

The cost of detaining Mr. Ilin was about £6,630. The cost to the Home Department of our actions in this case could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made in increasing the use of recycled material in the construction industry. [202]

There is increasing interest in the use of recycled materials for construction in order to conserve primary aggregates. This has been further encouraged by the introduction of the landfill tax. Reliable data on the extent of usage of recycled materials are not presently available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the administrative cost of implementation of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993 by English local authorities. [668]

Information about such costs is not available centrally, but I would expect any administrative costs to local authorities of implementing the housing provisions of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993 to have been offset by savings arising from the changes, introduced by the Act, to the duties owed by authorities to asylum seekers under the homelessness legislation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will call in for determination planning application NT/0925/96 DM made to North Tyneside council for residential development at the Northern Electric sportsground, Wallsend. [782]

If it is minded to approve this planning application, North Tyneside council will refer it to the Secretary of State for the Environment as a departure from the development plan, and he will then consider whether to call it in. I have asked the Government office for the north-east to write and let the hon. Member know his decision.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects the inspectors' report into Stockport UDP to be published. [73]

The inspectors' report on objections to the Stockport unitary development plan is expected to be delivered to the council at the end of December this year. It will then be for the council to decide when to publish the report. I have asked the Planning Inspectorate's chief executive to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects a decision to be taken into the appeal by Gladmen Homes to build a nursing home on land at Lisgard lane, Stockport. [74]

The provision of information on planning appeals is the responsibility of the Planning Inspectorate. In the absence of the inspectorate's chief executive, Mr. Chris Shepley, I have asked the deputy chief executive, Mr. James Greenfield, to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to place a duty on local authorities to adopt footpaths. [783]

We have no plans to do so.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to make a decision on proposals to expand Liverpool airport; and if he will make a statement. [493]

A decision will be taken as soon as possible on the planning applications made by Liverpool Airport plc for the phased development of Liverpool airport. These were called in for the Secretary of State's determination in June 1994 and a public local inquiry was held from 4 April 1995 to 30 June 1995. The report of the inquiry inspector, which was submitted on 25 July 1996, is being considered.It remains our intention, if feasible, to announce decisions simultaneously on the applications for the phased development of Liverpool airport and for a second runway at Manchester airport.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the net carbon dioxide emissions from Britain (a) in each year since 1990 and (b) in each year up to 2010. [154]

Emissions of carbon dioxide, net of the increase in carbon stored in forests and wood products, for the UK are estimated to have been:

	Million tonnes CO2
1990	574
1991	579
1992	563
1993	549
1994	546

Projected emissions are subject to greater uncertainty. They are currently estimated to be:

• 2000: 545
• 2005: 588
• 2010: 591

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate he has made of the proportion of discarded (a) glass, (b) paper, (c) plastic, and (d) biodegradables which have been (i) recycled and (ii) composted in each of the past five years, the current year, and each of the next five. [156]

It is not possible to provide information in the form requested. Information on plastic recycling and composting of biodegradables is not held centrally.The Department does obtain information from trade associations on the amounts of glass and paper recycled as a proportion of glass and paper consumption in the UK. Figures for the years 1989–1994 are given in the table.

Glass and paper recycling as a proportion of the consumption of these materials in the UK
Year	Glass recycling (per cent.)	Paper recycling per cent.)
1989	17	28
1990	21	32
1991	21	34
1992	26	34
1993	29	32
1994	28	33
The Department has not made projections of these figures.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the average rent paid by (a) council tenants and (b) housing association and housing trust tenants in each year since 1990. [158]

Average weekly rents for council and housing association tenants in England are set out in the table:

	(a) Council tenants1£	(b) HA tenants2£
1990	23.74	n/a
1991	27.29	n/a
1992	30.57	29.62
1993	33.62	34.03
1994	35.68	37.56
1995	38.31	40.60
1At 1 April.
2At 31 March.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment from what sources he draws his evidence of global temperature changes; and on whom he relies for the evaluation of this information. [495]

The Hadley centre, Bracknell, complies global temperature data and analyses them for indications of change. The result of the Hadley centre's work are published in scientific journals and hence subject to peer review. These results, with the work of other investigators around the world, have been assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change—IPCC—and reported in the IPCC's most recent report, the second assessment of climate change 1995.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action he intends to take following the publication of the National Consumer Council report on environmental claims on goods. [240]

My Department is currently working with the Department of the Environment to draw up, in consultation with industry and consumer interests, a code of practice for the making of environmental claims.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the country of origin and tonnage of coal imports for 1995. [436]

The information requested is given in the table:

Coal imports for 1995
Country of origin	Thousand tonnes of coal
Australia	3,641
Belgium/Luxembourg	13
Canada	1,364
Colombia	2,687
Czech Republic	2
Estonia	59
Germany	131
India	9
Indonesia	65
Irish Republic	25
Netherlands1	104
Norway	2
People's Republic of China	77
Poland	1,274
Republic of South Africa	1,313
Russia	160
Sweden	10
United States of America	4,858
Vietnam	101
Total	15,896
1Imports include extra-EU coal routed through the Netherlands.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the tonnage of coal imports for each of the last 10 years. [437]

The information requested is given in the table:

Coal Imports
Year	Thousand tonnes of coal
1986	10,554
1987	9,781
1988	11,685
1989	12,137
1990	14,783
1991	19,611
1992	20,339
1993	18,400
1994	15,041
1995	15,896

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what (a) grants and (b) other assistance have been given by his Department to R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. in the last five years. [176]

There is no record of any assistance having been given by this Department to R. R. Donnelley's York plant within the past five years.However, R. R. Donnelley's Gateshead plant has received business support assistance through its local training and enterprise council. The total value of this assistance is approximately £21,000.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade when his Department began its investigation into the activities and conduct of (a) Butte Mining, (b) Richmond Oil and Gas plc and (c) the Robertson Group; when the investigations were completed; what action was taken; and which Minister dealt with the matter. [785]

It is not my Department's practice to comment on the affairs of individual companies.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the file with the classmark WO 32/20843 recorded at the Public Record Office relating to experiments at the chemical and biological defence establishment is currently retained by his Department; and if he will open it. [724]

Arrangements are being made to review WO 32/20843 to see whether release into the public domain is now possible. I will write to the hon. Member on completion of the review process.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if British beef is purchased by the armed forces for their own consumption in the United Kingdom. [198]

The procurement of food for the armed forces is contracted to the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes—NAAFI. My Department does not specify the source of origin from which the NAAFI should obtain beef—or any other meat—but expects it to seek the best market price for the product. There are no constraints on the choice of British meat products, which are considered equally with meat products sourced generally in the open market. The majority of our requirements are, however, for frozen beef which is not readily available from the British market and I understand that on cost grounds the majority of beef joints have been sourced from South America, predominantly Brazil and Uruguay, although a range of beef products including sirloin, foreribs, minced and diced beef are normally procured in the UK along with other meat and poultry produce.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the cost of mine clearance and detection vehicles and equipment in service with British forces in operations under the NATO, UN and implementation force—IFOR—programmes in former Yugoslavia. [397]

This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received opposing the sale of military married quarters to a Japanese-led consortium; what plans he has to review the sale; and if he will make a statement. [484]

My Department has received a number of letters expressing views on the future ownership of the married quarters estate. The sale is proceeding satisfactorily, with exchange of contracts having taken place on 24 September and completion scheduled for 5 November. A copy of my Department's press release announcing the exchange of contracts was placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the nine F3 Tornados referred to in his answer of 16 October, Official Report, column 1094, had been refurbished by British Aerospace, Warton, Lancashire, by means of (a) fitting a new mid-section fuselage taken from an F2 Tornado and (b) making good directly the previously damaged fuselage mid-section. [786]

All nine of the Tornado aircraft to which I referred in my answer of 16 October were refurbished by means of fitting centre fuselage sections taken from Tornado F2 aircraft held in store.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the same-day authorisation to fly the F3 Tornado that crashed at Blackpool on 28 September constituted the full normal manufacturers' certificate of airworthiness. [780]

The full and normal certification was provided by British Aerospace as contractor in respect of this aircraft, concurrently with the Ministry of Defence authorisation provided by my Department's principal quality assurance officer at British Aerospace, Warton, where the aircraft was being refurbished.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with his German counterpart concerning the future large aircraft programme. [247]

When I met State Secretary Simon on Tuesday 3 September, the future large aircraft programme was among the subjects we discussed. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has not recently discussed the future large aircraft programme with his German counterpart.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the aims of Operation Joint Endeavour; what part will be played by British military forces; and if he will make a statement. [485]

Operation Joint Endeavour is the NATO-led implementation force—IFOR—operation in Bosnia. Its primary aim is to implement the military aspects of the Dayton peace agreement. The operation has been conspicuously successful and all the key military objectives have been achieved. Britain is making a major contribution to IFOR through our leadership and status as framework nation for headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps, which commands the land operation, our command of one of the three multinational divisions and a troop contribution which is second only to that of America.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his plans for refurbishing his Department's main building headquarters using the private finance initiative. [246]

Main building was constructed in the 1950s. Many of its key services are now in urgent need of replacement and the accommodation falls far short of meeting today's needs. To correct these deficiencies requires a major programme of work that will provide a modern working environment, maximum utilisation of space and flexibility for the future.The Department intends to examine private finance options for the redevelopment and subsequent operation of the building. In due course, we would expect to be inviting ideas for the scheme from potential private sector partners. I hope to be able to make an announcement on the way ahead within the next few weeks.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to complete his official investigation into the case of Nicola Goode, 2 Victoria heights, Dartmouth who suffered an injury on 2 February 1996 at RAF Halton; and will he make a statement. [257]

I will shortly write to the hon. Member in respect of his constituent in this case.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he will announce a decision on the compulsory purchase order regarding land or the proposed replacement building for Andover primary school, Brechin; and when he received the application for this compulsory purchase order. [248]

A decision on this order, which was submitted for confirmation in March 1995, will be made shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his Department's policy in respect of the pensions of war widows whose husbands' deaths are assessed to be related to smoking while in prisoner of war camps during the second world war; and if he will make a statement. [498]

A war widow's pension may be awarded where the late husband's death was due to, or was substantially hastened by, any service in the armed forces. There is no automatic entitlement to a war widow's pension simply because the late husband was a war pensioner.The war pensions scheme has never been intended to compensate for the effects of a personal habit such as smoking. Policy on this has not changed. Over more than 40 years, that has been the general policy of successive Governments; it has applied to all those who served including those who were prisoners of war.The law does, however, provide for awards in respect of smoking-related conditions where there is a severely disabling mental condition—itself attributable to service and assessed for war pension purposes at a minimum of 50 per cent.—which rendered the individual incapable of exercising personal choice and prevented him from giving up the habit.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) of those of adult working age and (b) pensioners are currently in receipt of income support; and if he will list separately the estimated number whose income is less than (i) £6,000 annually and (ii) £5,000 in each group. [223]

The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table:

	Millions
Number of income support claimants of adult working age	4,080
Number of pensioner income support claimants	1,588

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what increase could be paid to recipients of a state pension if it had been consistently uprated in line with earnings since 1980; and what would be the gross cost of this in the current financial year and the cost net of taxation and losses of other benefit entitlement. [159]

If the basic state retirement pension had been increased in line with average earnings since 1980, the standard rate of basic pension would be increased by £19.10 a week. The gross cost of such an increase is estimated at £8.8 billion in 1996–97. After taking account of the effect on income-related benefits and taxation, the net cost is estimated at £5.5 billion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many full-time employees are currently estimated to have no arrangements for pension purposes outside the state pension; and what percentage of the work force this amounts to. [155]

We estimate that in 1994 approximately 2.8 million full-time employees had no current additional pension arrangement other than the state earnings-related pension; this represents about 17 per cent. of all full-time employees.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many of those claimants of incapacity benefit who failed the all work test were also refused unemployment benefit due to failing to meet the availability for work criteria. [224]

The information is in the table:

	Number
Number of claims for unemployment benefits by former incapacity benefit claimants.	72,564
Number disallowed unemployment benefits because not available for work or unreasonable restriction placed on availability for work.	208
Number disallowed unemployment benefits because not actively seeking work.	40

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what reports he has received recently concerning the performance of the Child Support Agency. [1095]

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has recently received two reports, both of which are being placed in the Library today. These are the annual report for 1995–96 from the chief child support officer and the mid-year report of the Child Support Agency.The CSA's mid-year report shows that by the end of September maintenance totalling more than £183 million had been collected or arranged by the agency and that it was clearly on course to meet the target of £380 million to £400 million for the year. In September, 80 per cent. of assessments were correct to the nearest penny and 98 per cent. of payments received from absent parents were paid over to the parent with care within 10 working days. In addition, the report shows the agency's commitment to prompt enforcement action by issuing over 25,000 deductions from earnings orders and applying for over 1,000 liability orders against non-compliant absent parents.The CCSO's report for 1995–96 shows continued improvement over the standards of adjudication for the first two years of the agency's operation. The CCSO, who is independent of the CSA and Ministers, acknowledges the progress made and the dedication of agency staff at all levels towards securing better standards of adjudication. He also points out that the agency's assessment of accuracy and the assessment of his own monitors are now broadly in line.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the impact of ESE on staffing levels in his Department as at 1 April, 1 October and prospectively for 1 April 1997. [778]

My Department continually keeps under review its staffing requirements for each area of business. Priorities have been established which will enable the BSE work to be taken forward.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to assist farmers, unable to have their cattle culled as a result of the culling backlog, with the cost of winter feed; and if he will make a statement. [71]

The Government have made a further £29 million available to assist beef farmers and are consulting the industry on how this can be most effectively allocated. The Government have committed a total of £2.5 billion to supporting the agriculture industry.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the number of agricultural holdings and the hectarage of agricultural land in each county in Wales in the year (i) 1994, (ii) 1995 and (iii) 1996. [772]

The information requested is shown in the following table. Data for 1996 are not yet available.

	1994		1995
County	Hectares	Holdings	Hectares	Holdings
Clwyd	197,581	3,774	194,384	3,506
Dyfed	485,021	11,137	479,625	10,580
Gwent	92,642	2,181	91,176	2,053
Gwynedd	324,976	4,813	322,847	4,490
Mid Glamorgan	57,158	950	57,398	891
Powys	443,325	5,679	443,260	5,286
South Glamorgan	23,832	501	23,566	474
West Glamorgan	45,767	875	44,759	796
Wales	1,670,301	29,910	1,657,013	28,076

To ask the Lord President of the Council what progress has been made in respect of the use of illegal drugs since the publication of "Tackling Drugs Together". [600]

Since there are as yet no data beyond 1995, the year in which "Tackling Drugs Together" was published, it is too early to make such an assessment. However, good progress has been made in carrying forward all elements in the strategy which the White Paper set out.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries have so far failed to sign the comprehensive test ban treaty; when he expects the ban to become international law; and if he will make a statement. [49O]

The following countries had not signed the CTBT by 28 October:

Afghanistan, Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Burma, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, Cuba, Czech Republic, Dominica, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, The Gambia, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, India, Iraq, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Korea (North), Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritius, Moldova, Nauru, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Rwanda, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Surinam, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda, Yugoslavia, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

According to article XIV of the treaty, the CTBT will enter into force 180 days after the date of deposit of the instruments of ratification by the 44 states listed in annexe 2 of the treaty, but in no case earlier than two years after its opening for signature.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to the Government of Japan concerning ratification of the Antarctic treaty; and if he will make a statement. [671]

I refer the hon. member to the answer that I gave him on 22 July, Official Report, columns 39–40, since when there has been further correspondence between British and Japanese officials on detailed technical issues relating to the environmental protocol and we have against urged Japan to ratify the protocol as soon as possible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in discussions with fellow signatories to the Antarctic treaty on the establishment of a secretariat; and if he will make a statement. [672]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave on 22 July, Official Report, columns 39–40. There has been no recent discussion.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total budget spent in each of the last three years on (a) Britain's responsibility on Antarctica through the Antarctic treaty and (b) grant to the British Antarctic Survey. [225]

Our only financial responsibility in relation to the Antarctic treaty is contributions to the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. FCO contributions for the last three years were as follows:

• 1993–94: £31,685
• 1994–95: £31,932
• 1995–96: £32,700

The Natural Environment Research Council is responsible for funding the British Antarctic Survey. The council provided the following information on the NERC grant to the survey in each of the last three years:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Romania concerning human rights; and if he will make a statement. [670]

We monitor closely the human rights situation in Romania, as we do in other countries. When appropriate, we raise concerns bilaterally or in company with our EU partners.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list by date the discussions he has held with representatives of the Argentine Government since January 1991. [674]

My right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary met his Argentine counterpart on the following dates:

• 26 July 1995
• 27 September 1995
• 15 December 1995
• 30 January 1996
• 28 February 1996
• 13 April 1996
• 10 June 1996
• 29 July 1996
• 25 September 1996
• 27 September 1996

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what review of the Government's arms policy with regard to Argentina has taken place since January 1991; what factors underlay the review; what classes of equipment were released from embargo as a consequence of the review; what quantities of such equipment have been sold since January 1991; and what information was released to (a) Parliament and (b) industry by his Department in respect of the review. [677]

I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary's remarks in the House on 24 October 1996, Official Report, column 141.As my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary made clear, there has been no relaxation of the embargo and no goods have consequently been released from embargo. However, there have been exceptions allowed under the embargo in specific cases. I also refer the hon. Member to the written answer given to the hon. member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) on 13 June 1996,

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has held with representatives of the Argentine Government since January 1991, in respect of relaxing the arms embargo. [675]

Argentine representatives have raised their desire to have the arms embargo relaxed on several occasions. I have nothing further to add to the remarks made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary on 24 October, Official Report, column 141.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the British Government's policy on the export of arms and military equipment to Argentina. [676]

I refer the hon. Member to the remarks made by my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary on 24 October, Official Report, column 141.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the United States ambassador in respect of the Helms-Burton Act; and if he will make a statement. [481]

My right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary has discussed the Helms-Burton Act with the United States ambassador and the US Secretary of State, Warren Christopher.We consider that this legislation sets a dangerous and unwelcome precedent. It is against the spirit, if not the letter, of international trade law. While we agree with the US objective to promote democracy in Cuba, we disagree fundamentally on the means to achieve this. US sanctions against British companies are not the way forward. We have put firmly on record with the US Administration and Congress bilaterally, and also collectively with our EU partners, our views and our objections to the legislation. The EU has requested World Trade Organisation disputes panel to rule on the issue. Countermeasures are under consideration in Brussels. The Government are determined to do everything possible to protect our legitimate business interests and the law-based international trading system.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) on what occasions she has visited the Nottinghamshire DARE programme; and if she will make a statement. [400](2) what estimates she has made of the cost of ensuring all nine-year-olds undertook a 17-week DARE course on social skills. [401]

My right hon. Friend has not visited the Nottinghamshire drug abuse resistance educationDARE—programme, but officials of the Department maintain regular contact with DARE representatives and monitor its progress closely.No estimates of requiring the DARE programme to be implemented nationwide have been made. While we encourage inter-agency drug education initiatives, it is for individual schools to decide which approach best suits their needs and circumstances. DARE is one of a number of possible programmes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many children with Down's syndrome are being educated (a) in mainstream schools and (b) in special schools in each local education authority; and if she will make a statement. [784]

This information is not collected centrally. Local education authorities are under a duty to educate children with special education needs in mainstream schools, provided this accords with parents' wishes and is compatible with the child receiving appropriate special educational provision, the provision of efficient education for other children and the efficient use of resources.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many physical education teachers are employed in local education authority schools; and what has been the percentage change since 1979. [502]

In 1992, there were 24,400 full-time teachers in maintained, including grant-maintained, secondary schools in England who were teaching at least one lesson of physical education—PE—a week. Comparable figures are not available for later years. This represents a decrease of 36 per cent. since 1984, the earliest year for which comparable figures are available.Most teachers in maintained primary schools teach some PE.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment she has made of the educational effects of (a) children in registered work and (b) children working illegally; and if she will make a statement. [174]

Employers must register any children they employ with the local education authority—LEA. If the LEA considers that such employment is affecting a child's fitness to obtain full benefit from his or her education, it is for the authority to prohibit or restrict the child's employment with that employer.The Government deplore any illegal employment of schoolchildren. The provisions of the legislation, which among other things forbid a child to work during school hours, or for more than one hour beforehand, are designed to avoid any adverse effect upon his or her education. They should be enforced rigorously.

To ask the Secretary of Sate for Education and Employment what (a) grants and (b) other assistance have been given by her Department to R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. in the past five years. [175]

R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. has used recruitment services provided by the Employment Service and a variety of training and enterprise council services which will have been funded either wholly or in part by the DFEE. There is no record of any direct grant by the Department to R. R. Donnelley (UK) Ltd. in the last five years.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many people have been awarded each vocational qualification. [781]

The number of national vocational qualifications, NVQs, Scottish vocational qualifications, SVQs, general national vocational qualifications, GNVQs, general Scottish vocational qualifications, GSVQs, and other vocational qualifications awarded for the last three years are set out in the following table:

Year	NVQs/SVQs	GNVQs/GSVQs	Other VQs	Total
1992–93	194,000	—	781,000	975,000
1993–94	240,000	19,000	773,000	1,032,000
1994–95	277,000	48,000	613,000	938,000

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is her estimate of the cost of reducing to a maximum of 30 all maintained infant school classes for pupils of five, six and seven years of age. [170]

The Department's statisticians estimate that it would have cost between £120 million and £250 million to reduce to a maximum of 30 pupils all single-teacher classes in years 1, 2, and 3 in January 1996. The exact cost will depend on the extent to which children in larger classes could be accommodated in existing smaller classes or grouped together in new classes. The estimated costs are for extra teachers only.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidance he has issued as to the acceptance by NHS pathologists as adequate of cervical cancer screening test record cards that do not confirm that visual inspection has taken place; [457](2) if he will place in the Library copies of the guidance he has issued about the adequacy and competence of cervical cancer screening tests; [393]

Number of adequate smears examined by pathology laboratories in England 1990–91 to 1994–95
	1990–91		1991–92		1992–93		1993–94		1994–95
	Total adequate smears1(thousands)	Percent of results requiring follows2	Total adequate smears1(thousands)	Percent of results requiring follows2	Total adequate smears1(thousands)	Percent of results requiring follows2	Total adequate smears1(thousands)	Percent of results requiring follows2	Total adequate smears1(thousands)	Percent of results requiring follows2
England	3949.2	7.0	4252.0	7.1	4055.0	7.1	4131.0	7.9	4150.2	8.5
Regional health authority
Northern	296.2	6.3	302.0	5.7	306.7	6.2	274.2	6.5	287.1	8.2
Yorkshire	227.0	6.2	271.9	5.4	265.3	4.8	302.1	6.4	326.3	7.3
Trent	419.2	5.5	418.2	5.7	398.6	5.8	300.9	7.2	416.0	8.0
East Anglia	134.3	5.5	163.2	5.6	167.6	5.7	174.7	6.3	177.9	8.1
North West Thames	236.0	4.7	321.7	7.3	292.7	6.5	434.7	7.0	302.7	7.9
North East Thames	340.0	9.4	350.0	8.9	329.6	6.4	348.0	7.2	324.8	7.9
South East Thames	261.4	7.1	299.8	7.4	299.7	7.5	286.0	7.2	300.5	7.2
South West Thames	236.2	6.3	250.5	6.1	243.3	6.1	267.5	7.7	291.5	8.3
Wessex	193.0	5.4	243.7	6.4	239.4	6.3	265.8	8.8	244.6	9.2
Oxford	244.6	11.9	237.9	8.3	223.3	7.4	228.9	7.0	228.2	8.2
South Western	254.2	8.3	306.6	7.5	222.4	7.7	233.1	10.2	239.8	9.5
West Midlands	483.8	6.8	494.2	7.9	491.0	8.4	436.9	8.5	422.3	8.6
Mersey	223.1	8.0	208.8	8.0	201.4	8.0	170.2	8.1	219.3	8.4
North Midlands	400.2	5.1	383.4	11.2	373.9	12.2	407.9	11.6	369.5	11.6
Excludes smears found to be inadequate
Includes all smears tested found to be positive or abnormal.
The information is obtained from the central return KC61 which collects information about cervical smears examined by pathology laboratories. The date inlcude all cervical smears examined for whatever reason ie symptomatic as well as screening programme smears.

In October 1995, a working party of the Royal College of Pathologists, the British Society for Clinical Cytology and the national health service cervical screening programme produced guidelines entitled "Achievable Standards, Benchmarks for Reporting and Criteria for Evaluating Cervical Cytopathology". These guidelines were launched by the chief medical officer in March this year, together with two further sets of guidelines relating to cervical screening: "Quality Assurance Guidelines for the Cervical Screening Programme" and "Standards and Quality in Colposcopy", and issued to the NHS. No specific representations have been received as to the adequacy of cervical screening where no visual inspection has taken place. However, the importance of visual inspection is emphasised in the British Society for Clinical Cytology's training video and booklet for smear takers "Taking Cervical Smears", which was promulgated to the NHS under cover of EL(94)33. Copies of all guidance documents relating to cervical screening are available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cervical cancer screening tests were carried out in each health authority area since 1990, indicating in each case the percentage of cases requiring follow-up. [501]

Information on cervical screening tests is collected from pathology laboratories and is not held at district health authority level. The number of adequate smears examined by pathology laboratories in England in the years 1990–91 to 1994–95 is shown by region in the table. Questions relating to cervical screening in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales and for Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to seek compensation in respect of the NHS HISS. [452]

There is no such thing as a national health service hospital information support system—HISS. In 1989, the NHS executive established a HISS initiative to test out the means of purchasing and implementing hospital-wide integrated computer systems. The 25 NHS trusts sponsored by this initiative demonstrated a number of options for achieving this goal. These were pilot projects and have provided the basis of lessons learned for the future. The National Audit Office report on the HISS initiative published on 17 April 1996 makes no suggestion of waste of money. On the contrary, it recommends further work by the NHS executive to increase the value for money already obtained.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many beds in NHS trusts have been closed since 1 April with resource problems cited as the cause. [445]

The information requested is not available centrally. Information on the average daily number of available beds in each national health service trust is published annually in "Bed availability for England", copies of which are available in the Library. Data for the 1995–96 financial year will be available shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he intends publishing the Government's response to the Health Committee's report "Long Term Care: Future Provision and Funding", HC59 of Session 1995–96. [1082]

We have published the Government's response today. Copies are available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what account his Department takes of the quantity of funding received by the health service from charities in determining public expenditure in this area; [491](2) to what extent Government financial policy on the NHS assumes a continued level of charitable contributions to keep the service functioning. [488]

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if it is Government policy to substitute NHS equipment facilities funding in the service with charitable donations. [489]

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will indicate the levels of money raised in the past three years via charitable donations to supplement funding of the NHS. [487]

The table shows the total income of funds held on trust by the national health service in England.

	£000s
1992–93	256,012
1993–94	245,032
1994–95	255,702

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses were in NHS hospitals in April 1992; and how many are currently employed. [492]

The Department of Health's non-medical work force census collects the number of hospital and community health services nursing and midwifery staff as at 30 September each year. Individual hospital units cannot be separately identified in the census, but up until September 1994 nursing and midwifery staff could be sub-divided between those working in hospitals and those working in the community on the basis of their area of work. Areas of work were determined by a combination of the pay scales nurses and midwives were paid on and their occupation codes. Data for September 1992 are available in the Library from the Department of Health's publications: "Health and Personal Social Services Statistics for England", 1995 edition. The sub-division of nursing and midwifery staff between hospital and community areas of work is not possible for the 1995 non-medical work force census—the latest available—and future censuses because of the introduction of new occupation codes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to prevent the use of organophosphates in the treatment of head lice among children. [76]

Malathion is the only organophosphate authorised for the treatment of head lice. There is no evidence to suggest that malathion is dangerous when used for this purpose. Like all marketed medicines, products containing malathion are continually monitored for safety.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if it is his Department's policy that a CT scanner is a necessary piece of equipment for a district general hospital. [486]

It is not the Department's policy for every district general hospital to have a computerised tomography scanner as a necessary piece of equipment. It is for the purchasers of health care to ensure that they have access to those services necessary to meet the needs of their patients.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what pay increases for (a) nursing and (b) ancillary grades has been agreed for the current financial year in the NHS; and what proportion of it has been funded by his Department. [167]

As recommended by the nursing pay review body, nurses on national terms of service received a 2 per cent. national increase from 1 April 1996, with local negotiations for further increases. Ancillary grade staff on national terms also received a 2 per cent. national increase, with local negotiations. For staff on national health service trust terms and conditions, pay increases are a matter for local negotiation. Pay costs are funded within overall NHS resources.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what data he collates concerning the pay increases for (a) nursing and (b) ancillary grades by each English NHS trust. [166]

Executive letter EL(96)63 sets out the information which is collected centrally from trusts about annual pay settlements reached for nursing and ancillary staff on national terms and conditions. Copies of EL(96)63 will be placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with representatives of local government concerning the employment of children; and if he will make a statement. [172]

Officials are in regular contact with their counterparts in local government regarding the employment of children.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received concerning the employment of children in the United Kingdom. [173]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 21 February 1996, Official Report, columns 163–64.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the modus operandi of the list held in his Department of individuals deemed unsuitable to work with children; which other agencies have the right to consult that list in their vetting procedures; how frequently the list has been consulted in each of the last five years; and what consultations he has undertaken recently to extend its coverage and use. [779]

The operation of the consultancy service index, which is the list to which the hon. Member refers, is described in annexe C to circular LAC 93(17), copies of which have been placed in the Library. The service is currently subject to review and consultations have taken place with the Home Office, Department for Education and Employment and other interested bodies.Approximately 55,000 checks against the index are made each year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the housing of refugee families since August 1996 by English local authorities within the terms of the Children Act 1989. [667]

Special grant report No. 22 (HC 16) relating to the persons from abroad children's grant was laid before the House on the 23 October. The purpose of this grant is to compensate social services departments for the additional expenditure they incur under the Children Act as a consequence of changes in social security entitlement and local authorities' housing duties towards certain asylum seekers.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure the final version of the North West Regional Railways Ltd. passenger service requirement issued by the Office of Passenger Rail Franchising maintains the current timetable. [581]

No.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures he plans to deter commuting by motor car. [570]

The Green Paper stresses the benefits of companies drawing up commuting plans to reduce car dependency. Improved rail services by private operators and better promotion of bus travel will encourage a switch to public transport.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to meet the Civil Aviation Authority to discuss helicopter use. [572]

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date the decision was made not to pursue proposals for profit participation or revenue risk sharing with bidders for rail franchises. [573]

The decision not to pursue proposals for profit participation was taken prior to the publication of invitations to tender for the first three rail franchises in May 1995. The decision not to pursue revenue risk sharing was taken in October 1995, after the receipt of indicative bids for those three franchises.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received about the A2 road through the London borough of Bexley. [574]

I have received representations about a number of issues on the A2 in Bexley.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects National Air Traffic Services to announce the successful bid for the building and operation of the new Scottish air traffic control centre; and if he will make a statement. [575]

The original timetable for this project assumed an announcement in February 1997. I understand that, in the light of the current Civil Aviation Authority review of the two-centre strategy, a paper will be presented to the CAA board in November on the tenders for the new Scottish centre.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to support those agencies planning to provide travel training for the people with mobility impairments who might wish to transfer to forms of public transport recently made accessible. [576]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to support those agencies planning to provide travel training for people with mobility impairments who might wish to transfer to forms of public transport recently made accessible; and if he will make a statement. [398]

The Department of Transport works closely with transport operators and with disability organisations on this and many other issues arising from the growing move towards fully accessible public transport.The importance of travel training will also be highlighted in guidance issued by the Department in parallel with regulations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 which will set standards to ensure that future public transport is accessible.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on progress on upgrading the A30 across Goss moor. [577]

The main road programme includes a scheme to improve the A30 from Bodmin to Indian Queens across Goss moor. The scheme will be brought forward when funds allow.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent representations he has received on the Fenchurch Street line service. [579]

I have received two letters this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to improve cycling safety. [571]

Providing a safer environment for cyclists, as well as more convenient one, will be important for achieving national targets for increasing cycling set out in the national cycling strategy, which was launched in July. The Government will play their part towards achieving this: for example, through our education, publicity and research programmes; through advice to local authorities, and funding for their transport packages and local safety schemes; and through our involvement in the National Cycling Forum, the first meeting of which I am chairing next month.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if German type approval of vehicle parts is sufficient basis for them to conform to British standards. [13]

In Britain, most vehicle components are type approved in accordance with the appropriate European standards. Components approved to those standards in Germany are acceptable in Britain.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his Department's policy on road signs announcing distances in miles/yards and kilometres/metres. [203]

The current Traffic Signs Regulations specify that all distances must be shown in miles and yards. I have no plans to change that.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the scheduled departure time for Euston of the train which overshot Watford Junction station on Wednesday 10 July. [122]

The scheduled departure time from Euston was 08.00.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the cost of car parking spaces at his Department's building on the basis of equivalent central London charges. [769]

There is provision for 23 car parking spaces in the Department's headquarters building, Great Minster house, which houses approximately 1,100 staff. On the basis of equivalent local commercial rates, these would cost some £69,000 per annum.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what plans he has to extend passenger rail services from Matlock to Buxton; and what finance he proposes to make available for this project; [162]

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what are the operational needs of the police to enable them to combat excessive noise emitted from stereo systems in motor vehicles; [221](2) what representations he has received from environmental and enforcement bodies (a) on the scale of the problem of excessive noise emitted from stereo systems in motor vehicles and (b) the most effective way for dealing with it; [222](3) what existing powers and practices exist to enable environmental health officers to combat excessive noise emitted from stereo systems in motor vehicles. [220]

Following the failure of a prosecution under regulation 97 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, which relates to excessive noise from vehicles, the Metropolitan police have suggested that the regulation be amended so as specifically to include noise from car accessories, such as stereo systems or radios. This would enable the police to continue to issue fixed penalty notices to offenders.In response, I have sought comments from bodies representing environmental, local authority, police and motoring interests to ascertain their views on the scale of the problem and the adequacy or otherwise of existing powers to deal with it. I am currently considering these comments.Local authority environmental health officers have powers under part III of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 as amended by the Noise and Statutory Nuisance Act 1993 to deal with noise of all types from vehicles parked on premises and in the street. I understand that a number of local authorities have also recently brought successful prosecutions for noise from car stereos under the loudspeaker provisions of the Control of Pollution Act 1974.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has had from users and service providers of the London concessionary fares and taxicard schemes regarding the proposals recommended in a review of the operation of those schemes carried out for the London committee on accessible transport; and if he will make it his policy that the present administration of these schemes will not be impaired. [496]

I have received representations from the company which is contracted to provide the London taxicard scheme.These are matters for the London boroughs and my Department is not able to intervene.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will list the proportion and absolute number of rail journeys which failed to achieve the required passengers charter performance standards, with regard to reliability, for all routes monitored by the Central Rail Users Consultative Committee, for each year since 1993; [219](2) if he will list the proportion and absolute number of rail journeys which failed to achieve the required passengers charter performance standards, with regard to punctuality, for all routes monitored by the Central Rail Users Consultative Committee, for each year since 1993. [218]