To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what research has been commissioned and what estimates have been made by his Department and what information presented to him, regarding the costs per annum to the DfEE budget of the introduction of a minimum wage at (a) £3.50 an hour, (b) £4 an hour and (c) £4.40 an hour; and if he will make a statement. [2113]

I refer the right hon. Member to the reply dated Friday 6 June, Official Report, column 310, by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what is his Department's range of estimates of the costs of educating the extra children in the state sector who would otherwise have had an assisted place in (a) 1998–99, (b) 1999–00 and (c) 2000–01; and if he will make the relevant background papers available; [2216](2) what estimates his Department has made of the gross savings that will accrue in

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 5 June to the hon. Member for South-East Cambridgeshire (Mr. Paice), Official Report, column 245.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many children in each age group in (a) Portsmouth and (b) Havant benefit from the assisted places scheme; and which schools they attend. [2675]

The information requested is given in the following table and relates to the current academic year 1996–97. There are no schools participating in the assisted places scheme in Havant.

Assisted places scheme: Portsmouth
	Number of assisted place holders
	Age 5–10	Age 11–15	Sixth form	Total
Portsmouth Grammar School	8	142	38	188
Portsmouth High School for Girls	3	107	25	135
St. John's College, Southsea	none	156	43	199
Total	11	405	106	522

To ask the secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) how many children from Devon are funded through the assisted places scheme; and if he will make a statement; [2497](2) how many of the children in Devon schools on the assisted places scheme are from the county of Devon. [2498]

Information about the local education authority area from which assisted pupils originate is not collected centrally. In the current academic year 1996–97, there are 942 assisted pupils in eight schools participating in the assisted places scheme in Devon.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will publish a list by local education authority of average class sizes for the primary school sector at the latest available date. [2699]

The information is shown in the following table.

Average size1 of classes taught by one teacher in maintained primary schools in each local education authority area in England
January 1996
	Number
City of London	26.8
Camden	27.3
Greenwich	25.5
Hackney	26.1
Hammersmith	26.1
Islington	26.2
Kensington and Chelsea	24.4
Lambeth	24.6
Lewisham	25.7
Southwark	26.2
Tower Hamlets	25.8
Wandsworth	25.4
Westminster	24.9
Barking	26.7
Barnet	26.3
Bexley	28.6
Brent	26.7
Bromley	28.7
Croydon	28.3
Ealing	27.2
Enfield	28.5
Haringey	27.0
Harrow	27.8
Havering	27.9
Hillingdon	26.6
Hounslow	27.3
Kingston upon Thames	30.0
Merton	28.1
Newham	27.9
Redbridge	29.0
Richmond upon Thames	26.7
Sutton	27.3
Waltham Forest	26.4
Birmingham	27.8
Coventry	27.2
Dudley	26.9
Sandwell	28.6
Solihull	28.2
Walshall	26.0
Wolverhampton	26.5
Knowsley	27.6
Liverpool	26.8
St. Helens	27.5

Average size1 of classes taught by one teacher in maintained primary schools in each local education authority area in England
January 1996
	Number
Sefton	27.5
Wirral	26.4
Bolton	28.5
Bury	28.3
Manchester	27.0
Oldham	28.6
Rochdale	29.2
Salford	27.4
Stockport	27.7
Tameside	29.3
Trafford	28.7
Wigan	28.2
Barnsley	28.2
Doncaster	28.2
Rothertham	26.9
Sheffield	26.8
Bradford	27.9
Calderdale	27.7
Kirklees	28.7
Leeds	28.1
Wakefield	28.0
Gateshead	25.9
Newcastle upon Tyne	27.7
North Tyneside	27.0
South Tyneside	26.8
Sunderland	25.6
Isles of Scilly	13.7
Avon	27.7
Bedfordshire	27.1
Berkshire	27.3
Buckinghamshire	27.8
Cambridgeshire	27.8
Cheshire	27.4
Cleveland	26.9
Cornwall	27.3
Cumbria	26.0
Derbyshire	28.9
Devon	27.2
Dorset	27.7
Durham	28.4
East Sussex	27.7
Essex	26.9
Gloucestershire	27.2
Hampshire	27.8
Hereford and Worcester	25.9
Hertfordshire	26.7
Humberside	27.9
Isle of Wight	26.9
Kent	27.7
Lancashire	28.4
Leicestershire	26.7
Lincolnshire	26.7
Norfolk	26.0
North Yorkshire	26.3
Northamptonshire	26.5
Northumberland	27.1
Nottinghamshire	28.3
Oxfordshire	26.8
Shropshire	27.3
Somerset	27.3
Staffordshire	27.7
Suffolk	25.1
Surrey	25.8
Warwickshire	27.9
West Sussex	26.8
Wiltshire	27.1
England	27.3
1 Average size of one teacher classes as taught during a single selected period on the census day.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the average class size in each primary and secondary school, grant-maintained and local authority controlled, in the Spelthorne constituency on 31 March or the latest available date before that. [2566]

Information on class sizes for individual schools is not published centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he expects the Form 7 figures to have been processed to provide class size information as at January 1997; and if he will make a statement. [3033]

Provisional figures on class sizes in maintained primary and secondary schools as at January 1997 are expected to be published in a Statistical Press Notice at the end of this month.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will publish the evidence he has received which suggests that small class sizes deliver better educational standards; and if he will make a statement. [2698]

The electorate have already signalled their support for our policy to bring the educational benefits of smaller classes to all infant pupils, rather than just the few whose parents have paid for smaller classes in the independent sector. Common sense and research evidence here and notably in the United States indicate that class size is a key factor in the early years of education when pupils master the basics. Her Majesty's Chief Inspector has said in the Ofsted report on class size (1995)

"small class sizes are of benefit in the early years of primary education."

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if the undertaking given by the Minister for School Standards on 22 May, Official Report, column 824, that the new Education (Schools) Bill will lead to a reduction in class size for every five, six and seven-year-old in the country applies irrespective of the current size of class of which a child is a member. [2704]

Our pledge is to reduce class sizes for all five, six and seven-year-olds to 30 or below by the end of this Parliament.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many extra staff will be needed in jobcentres to conduct the interviews with single parents announced by the Prime Minister on 2 June; what the gross costs of the exercise will be; and how many single parents are expected to find jobs as a result of it. [2673]

Employment Service help is already available to those lone parents who choose to use it. We will consider what additional support should in time be made available to improve the help to lone parents seeking jobs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to reduce the compulsory elements of the national curriculum in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools; and if he will make a statement. [3029]

My right hon. Friend does not plan to make any statutory changes to key stages 1, 2 and 3 of the national curriculum before the year 2000 and is keeping the situation at key stage 4 under review.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to restore reductions in hours of operation of job clubs imposed during the current year, with particular reference the reduction applied to Frome job club. [2241]

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is his time scale for producing the planned video on education for travellers. [2760]

This is one of a number of matters that are currently under consideration and I will write to the hon. Member as soon as a decision is reached.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what estimate he has made of the number of travellers' children currently of school age but not attending any school. [2761]

Accurate data on Traveller children are difficult to collect. Through the work of the Traveller Education Services funded under section 488 of the Education Act 1996, significant progress has been made in improving school registration of traveller children. At primary level, in particular, about 80 per cent. of the total number are now registered at school, although an estimated 3–4,000 children are not. The picture at secondary level, while also improving, remains a matter of particular concern: an estimated 10,000 children are not registered at school.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many children who are currently of school age are not attending any school. [2762]

As of January 1996, local education authorities in England were arranging education otherwise than at school for 19,133 children of compulsory school age. Included in this total were 1,011 non-statemented children in hospital and 11,055 children attending Pupil Referral Units. Data for January 1997 are not yet available. The Department does not collect information on the number of children whose parents arrange education outside of the school system, as is permitted in law: but it has been estimated that some 10,000 children are educated in this manner.I am replying separately on the question of Traveller children not attending school.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if non-teaching head teachers are included when calculating (a) class sizes and (b) pupil-teacher ratios. [2764]

Non-teaching head teachers are included when calculating pupil-teacher ratios but not class sizes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to take forward the 10 point plan on education for the ethnic minorities. [2759]

We are currently considering ways of raising the achievement of ethnic minority pupils, and among these the future of the previous Government's 10 point action plan. We hope to make an announcement shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has for changes to the way in which pupil-teacher ratio and class sizes are calculated. [2763]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for South-East Cambridgeshire (Mr. Paice) on 5 June, Official Report, column 244.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what steps he plans to take to implement full, enforceable civil rights for disabled people. [2502]

Our manifesto commits us to establishing "comprehensive, enforceable civil rights" for disabled people. We are consulting interested parties on the best way to achieve this and we shall develop proposals in the light of our discussions.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if the revised figures for the number of students in the further education sector as a result of the recent agreement between his Department and the Further Education Funding Council will be the baseline for the next PES round. [2871]

The student numbers implied by the Further Education Funding Council for England's allocations to colleges for the academic year 1997–98 will be taken into account in future decisions about public expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list (a) the name, (b) the salary, (c) the previous occupation and salary and (d) the terms and conditions of each political and special adviser in his Department; and what was the selection process used to appoint these persons. [2420]

[holding answer 6 June 1997]: I have, with the approval of the Prime Minister, appointed two Special Advisers; Conor Ryan and Sophie Linden, who works part-time.I have, in addition, appointed Professor Michael Barber as an expert adviser on Standards and Effectiveness.The terms and conditions of these appointments are set out in the draft model contract, a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House.Special Advisers are paid within a range of £24,349 to £73,484. Their salaries are negotiated individually and are confidential within this range. Details of this and of previous salary are not provided in order to protect the privacy of the individuals concerned. I have already announced that I will provide information on the total costs to the Department of a number of appointments as soon as agreement has been reached.These are personal appointments by myself, following consultation with the Permanent Head of the Department and the Prime Minister.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what share of the costs of the CBDE Porton Down are devoted to research and programmes related to the detection of contraventions of chemical and biological weapons treaties and conventions, and the creation of verification systems; which agencies and departments have commissioned such research and programmes; and what plans he has to review this matter. [1338]

Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) operates as a Trading Fund and all work carried out by the CBD Sector at Porton Down is commissioned and paid for by customers. Income for the 1996–97 financial year relating to the detection of contraventions of chemical and biological weapons treaties and conventions, and the creation of a verification system was:

Customer	Amount £000	Percentage of total income 1996–97
MOD	1,982	4.5
FCO	100	0.3
DTI	150	0.3
OPCW1 Inspector Training
FCO	17	0.04
Other Governments	43.5	0.1
	2,292.5	5.24
1 Organisation for the Production of Chemical Weapons.

MOD provides advice and research and development work on a range of Chemical and Biological arms control and export control matters. Other Government departments provide support to UN Special Commission, tutors for an OPCW inspectors training course and technical support to the DTI which is the UK National Authority for Implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention.Plans for expenditure in this area are regularly reviewed by Departments during their annual costing cycles. The MOD's expenditure will also be reviewed as part of the Strategic Defence Review announced by the Secretary of State for Defence on 28 May.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps have been taken to decontaminate each of the sites (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) abroad where the British Armed Forces have (i) tested and (ii) stored chemical weapons or chemical agents used in chemical weapons; when he expects this work to be completed; and what estimate he has made of the cost to date of those measures. [2438]

Within the United Kingdom, former chemical warfare (CW) sites were decontaminated in accordance with the guidance prevalent at the time my Department vacated the site. Those sites which continue to form part of the Defence Estate are being assessed as part of the Department's Land Quality Assessment programme. This programme is designed to establish the condition of individual sites on the Defence Estate and, where appropriate, make recommendations for remediation. Given the extent of the Defence Estate I am not able to estimate when this work will be completed. As to the costs involved, no central records are maintained. Indeed, as remediation work on former CW sites has been spread over some 50 years it is not possible to quantify the costs involved.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the sites abroad where the United Kingdom has conducted trials or tests of chemical weapons or their components in the last 30 years, indicating the types and quantities of chemical agents used in each case. [2437]

The United Kingdom relinquished its offensive chemical weapons programme in the late 1950s. Since then, no trials of chemical weapons or their components have been carried out, either in the UK or overseas.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research has been commissioned, what estimates have been made by his Department and what information presented to him, regarding the costs per annum to the total defence budget of the introduction of a minimum wage at (a) £3.50 an hour, (b) £4 an hour and (c) £4.40 an hour; and if he will make a statement. [2105]

I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade (Mrs. Beckett) on 9 June (Official Report, Col. 310).

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of the defence budget was spent on updating the equipment of the British Army of the Rhine over the last three years. [2392]

Information about expenditure on defence equipment is collated on the basis of generic categories rather than the user Service or formation. Expenditure on the development and production of Land systems has represented 6 per cent. of the Defence budget in each of the last three years.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) percentage of public expenditure and (b) proportion of Gross National Product each member country of NATO spent on defence in the last five years. [2391]

My Department does not routinely collect information on defence expenditure by our NATO allies as a proportion of total public expenditure.The percentage of Gross Domestic Product spent on defence by each NATO member in each of the last five years is given below.

Per cent.
Country	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996
Greece	5.5	5.4	5.6	4.6	4.6
Turkey	3.9	4.1	4.1	3.9	4.4
United States	5.2	4.7	4.2	3.9	3.7
United Kingdom	3.9	3.6	3.4	3.1	3.0
France	3.4	3.4	3.4	3.1	3.0
Portugal	2.9	2.9	3.0	2.7	2.7
Norway	3.4	3.2	3.2	2.9	2.5
Netherlands	2.5	2.3	2.2	2.1	2.0
Italy	2.0	2.1	2.1	1.9	2.0
Denmark	1.9	2.0	1.9	1.8	1.8
Germany	2.2	2.0	1.8	1.7	1.7
Belgium	1.9	1.8	1.8	1.7	1.6

Per cent.
Country	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996
Canada	2.0	1.9	1.8	1.6	1.5
Spain	1.7	1.5	1.6	1.5	1.5
Luxembourg	1.2	1.2	1.1	0.9	0.8
Iceland, although a member of NATO, has no armed forces.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what guidelines have been laid down for the present and future usage of the RAF Wroughton site, including the former Princess Alexandra Hospital; and what is the total income that has been generated by leasing out the site and its facilities since the closure of the hospital; and from whom. [2306]

Fifty-six airmen's quarters at RAF Wroughton have been leased for a period of three years to three housing associations, pending their re-use by the armed forces. I am withholding information on the level of rent being paid for reasons of commercial confidentiality under exemption 7 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. No other facilities have been leased out since the site closed. The former Princess Alexander Hospital is in disposal, and guidelines for its future use are therefore a matter for the local planning authority. In the meantime, all relevant health and safety guidelines are being followed.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about plastic baton rounds. [3191]

I understand that tests have shown that a significant proportion of a batch of plastic baton rounds, approved for use in public order situations by the Armed Forces, by police forces in England and Wales and by the Royal Ulster Constabulary, have muzzle velocities slightly in excess of the upper limit in the equipment specification. These rounds, which were on issue from early 1994, were withdrawn from all operational use in April this year. Replacement stocks, which do not exceed the specified velocity, have been issued.Plastic baton rounds and the procedures governing their use will be kept under continuous review. In addition, procedures are being put in place to ensure that stocks in operational use are tested regularly to ensure that they continue to conform to specification. A programme has been put in hand to take advantage of emerging technologies, with the aim of developing improved baton round equipment to meet operational needs but with reduced injury potential. We will continue to look at other effective means for controlling public disorder and riot situations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the United Kingdom's contribution to the costs of the preparatory commission for the international organization established under the Comprehensive Test Ban treaty, expressing the figures (a) for each relevant Government financial year and (b) for each financial year of the commission; and from which subheads of which votes these funds are taken. [2551]

The Government is fully committed to the strong verification regime of monitoring and on-site inspection which is so essential to the successful implementation of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. The Budget of the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organisation is determined annually. That for 1997 was finalised last March and amounted to some $US28, of which the United Kingdom contribution, based upon the United Nations scale of charges, is 6 per cent. So far the United kingdom has paid some $US213,00, and the balance will be paid later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what criteria will be used to determine which developing countries are given priority in respect of reducing their debts to the United Kingdom. [2669]

We will give priority to those countries which are eligible for concessional Paris Club relief. These are low income countries whose debt burden is unsustainable, and which are undertaking economic reform programmes agreed with the IMF. Our aim is that debt relief should be part of a wider commitment by debtors to economic reform, to ensure that the relief encourages economic development and leads to lasting poverty reduction.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how she intends to reduce the debt owed to Britain from developing countries in the next year. [2666]

The United Kingdom will play a full part in rescheduling negotiations at the Paris Club of Official Creditors, and will push for swift and comprehensive implementation of the recently agreed Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what is the estimated debt to Britain from developing countries. [2665]

In November 1996 (the latest date for which figures are currently available) the total outstanding rescheduled debt owed to the Export Credits Guarantee Department by countries defined by the World Bank as developing countries (lower and middle income countries) and which have had a Paris Club debt rescheduling was £7,434.58 million.At the end of March 1997 the total value of development loans owed to the Overseas Development Administration was £239 million.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans she has and over what time scale to cancel the debt owed to Britain by developing countries. [2667]

The United Kingdom has already forgiven aid loans worth £1.2 billion. We are willing to consider similar relief on aid debts for the remaining low income debtors which cannot service their debt and have demonstrated their ability to use debt relief to promote economic development and reduce poverty.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what research her Department has evaluated on measures taken or evaluated by other countries to reduce the debts owed by developing countries. [2668]

We have studied with interest assessments from a number of sources, including non-governmental organisations, the OECD' s Development Assistance Committee, the international financial institutions and the Commonwealth Secretariat.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what is the total sum now owed by the Government of Costa Rica to Her Majesty's Government under the terms of the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended; how much of this is (a) principal and (b) interest; and what future interest charges are expected. [2548]

Under the present schedule of repayments the total sum due to be repaid by the Government of Costa Rica to Her Majesty's Government under the terms of the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended is £1,237,845.85; of this £1,121,191.31 is principal and £116,654.54 is interest. Future interest charges are at the rate of 3 per cent. per annum.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what was the total sum lent to the Government of Costa Rica by Her Majesty's Government under the terms of the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended. [2546]

The sum lent to the Government of Costa Rica by Her Majesty's Government under the terms of the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended is £3,880,441.25. Since that date repayments under this loan have been rescheduled on nine occasions and arrears of interest have been consolidated into the original loan.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what further discussions there have been between the Government of Costa Rica and Her Majesty's Government with regard to the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended, since the debt rescheduling agreement of 18 November 1993. [2542]

There have been no discussions of the agreement since the 18 November 1993 rescheduling. We have drawn the attention of the Costa Rican authorities to arrears whenever they have arisen, which has resulted in their being cleared.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what is the total sum paid by the Government of Costa Rica to Her Majesty's Government under the terms of the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended; and how much of this is (a) principal and (b) interest. [2547]

The total sum paid to date by the Government of Costa Rica to Her Majesty's Government under the terms of the loan agreement dated 15 February 1973, as amended £7,105,106.87; of this £4,828,039.28 is principal and £2,277,067.59 is interest.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the current provision of aid to Jammu and Kashmir. [2730]

DFID contributed £17 million from Aid and Trade Provision funds to a 480MW hydroelectric power station at Uri, which has just been completed. Since 1995 DFID has also contributed £450,000 in support of the International Committee of the Red Cross programme in Jammu and Kashmir, including a new contribution of £150,000 in March 1997.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the current provision of aid to Sierra Leone. [2729]

Following the military coup on 25 May, we have suspended our bilateral aid programme pending developments.DFID had been working closely with the democratically elected government to rebuild the country and reduce poverty.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made in implementing the conclusions of the UN Copenhagen Conference on International Poverty; and if she will make a statement. [1193]

This Government is committed to working for a safer, more decent and environmentally stable world. The elimination of poverty is at the centre of our agenda. I am currently reviewing all our programmes to ensure that resources are targeted accordingly. A White Paper will be issued in the Autumn setting out how, through more coherent policies, the Government will tackle global poverty and promote sustainable development. This strategy will embrace the commitments agreed at the Copenhagen Summit.

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what proportion of national lottery proceeds have been directed to the Northern region. [2147]

Regions in the North of England have received £754,542,879 from the Lottery representing a share of 21 per cent. of all Lottery money distributed to date. The details are set out in the following table.

Region	Total £	Total per cent.1
North West	326,412,694	9
North East	143,883,667	4
Yorkshire and Humberside	210,442,746	6
Merseyside	73,803,772	2
Total	754,542,879	21
1 Rounded to the nearest per cent.

To ask the Attorney-General what was the total sum ordered to be paid by defendants in criminal cases in relation to the prosecution cost; and what was the total sum recovered in each of the last three years. [2955]

Information on the amounts ordered to be paid by defendants in relation to prosecution costs is not available centrally within the Crown Prosecution Service and could be collected only at disproportionate cost. The sums recovered from defendants in the last three years in relation to the CPS are as follows:

	Amount recovered £ million
1994–95	19.3
1995–96	20.5
1996–97	21.4

The number of cases handled by the Serious Fraud Office is sufficiently small for such awards to be centrally available. Orders for the payment of prosecution costs are passed to the appropriate magistrates court which is responsible for enforcing the order and collecting payments. The amounts awarded and recovered in the last three financial years in relation to awards in favour of the SFO are:

	Awarded £	Recovered £
1994–95	60,000	154,621.50
1995–96	191,667	24,756.00
1996–97	6,000	1172,554.66
1Unaudited figure. Please note that recovery of amounts of costs awarded do not always fall in the same financial year.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what studies he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated to indicate the relative case disposal rate of stipendiary magistrates and justices of the peace. [2947]

In 1994, the Lord Chancellor established a working party to identify more clearly the respective roles of the stipendiary magistracy and the lay bench in the administration of justice in the magistrates' courts. The working party commissioned research from the University of Leeds on the role and appointment of stipendiary magistrates. A copy of the working party's report (published in February 1996) is available in both libraries.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many appeals against (i) conviction and (ii) sentence were successfully made from decisions of justices of the peace; and how many appeals against (1) convictions and (2) sentence were successfully made from decisions of stipendiary and metropolitan stipendiary magistrates in each of the last three years. [2938]

The question concerns a matter which has been assigned to the Court Service under the terms of its framework document. I have therefore asked the Chief Executive to write to the hon. Member.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to increase (a) the number of metropolitan stipendiary magistrates and (b) the number of stipendiary magistrates. [2949]

Stipendiary magistrates are appointed by the Lord Chancellor at the request of the relevant Lord Chancellor's Advisory Committee in order to assist the efficient disposal of cases in magistrates' courts. Under the Justices of the Peace Act 1997 the statutory ceilings on the number of stipendiary appointments are: 60 metropolitan stipendiary magistrates; and 50 provincial stipendiary magistrates. There are no current plans to raise either ceiling. Appointments to two recently established provincial stipendiary magistrate posts in Derbyshire will be announced shortly.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many justices of the peace there are in England and Wales. [2951]

As at 1 January 1997 there were 30,374 active justices of the peace in England and Wales, 15,858 men and 14,516 women.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many cases were disposed of by justices of the peace in 1996. [2953]

Magistrates throughout England and Wales dealt with 2,321,475 defendants in completed criminal cases and 531,181 applications in completed family and civil cases during 1996. The Lord Chancellor's Department does not collect a breakdown of which cases were heard by justices of the peace or by stipendiary magistrates.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to change the (a) title and (b) working conditions of stipendiary magistrates. [2954]

A consultation paper on the titles of stipendiary magistrates was issued in 1992. The responses revealed there to be insufficient consensus on which alternative title might be adopted for stipendiary magistrates. There are no plans to change working conditions of stipendiary magistrates.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to give (a) stipendiary and (b) metropolitan stipendiary magistrates sentencing or other powers greater than those exercised by justices of the peace. [2940]

There are currently no plans to alter sentencing or other powers of stipendiary or metropolitan stipendiary magistrates. However, this Government's commitment to a review of Youth Justice might identify the need to consider this issue further.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what has been the average cost to the Exchequer of (a) a stipendiary magistrate and (b) a justice of the peace, in each of the last three years. [2948]

The average cost to the Consolidated Fund of a stipendiary magistrate for the last three years was:

• 1994–95:£60,939
• 1995–96: £67,340
• 1996–97: £70,072

The average cost of financial loss, travelling and subsistence allowances and training of a justice of the peace for the three most recent financial years for which such information is available was:

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many metropolitan stipendiary magistrates and stipendiary magistrates there are in England and Wales. [2950]

There are 50 metropolitan stipendiary magistrates and 40 provincial stipendiary magistrates in post.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many cases were disposed of by metropolitan stipendiary magistrates and stipendiary magistrates in 1996. [2952]

Magistrates throughout England and Wales dealt with 2,321,475 defendants in completed criminal cases and 531,181 applications in completed family and civil cases during 1996. The Lord Chancellor's Department does not collect a breakdown of which cases were heard by justices of the peace or by stipendiary magistrates.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what was the total sum ordered to be paid by legally aided defendants in all criminal proceedings by way of contribution to legal aid; and what was the total sum so paid in each of the last three years. [2956]

Information on the amount of contribution ordered to be paid by legally aided defendants in criminal proceedings is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The total amount of contributions received, net of any repayments to defendants, in each of the last three years for which information is available, was as follows:

£ million
	1993–94	1994–95	1995–96
Criminal magistrates' court	2.3	2.7	2.7
Higher criminal courts	1.6	1.6	1.6
Total contributions received	3.9	4.3	4.3

Following an acquittal an assisted person may be reimbursed the full cost of contributions that have been paid. However, information on the amount of contributions repaid is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans there are for financing the proposed new maternity unit at Glasgow Royal Infirmary which will serve the Shettleston constituency; and if he will make a statement. [2215]

The proposed new maternity unit at Glasgow Royal Infirmary is part of a package of private finance initiative projects which I am reviewing at present.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland which body will be charged with responsibility for the cultural and educational aspects of film and video. [2285]

Scottish Screen took over the responsibilities of the Scottish Film Council on 1 April 1997.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what local authority representation there is on the current Scottish Screen Board. [2196]

[holding answer 6 June 1997]: At present there is no local authority representation on the board of Scottish Screen. This is an omission which I look forward to rectifying at the earliest opportunity.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the current staffing of Scottish Screen; and if he will list the job titles of those staff. [2198]

[holding answer 6 June 1997]: Thirty six people are employed. Under the Chief Executive there are eight departments: Production; Development; Archive; Locations; Marketing, Information & Business Development; Europe (Media Antenna): Training; and Central Services.The job titles are:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on his plans for compulsory competitive tendering. [2286]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Shettleston (Mr. Marshall) on 2 June, Official Report, columns 67–68.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what plans he has to provide additional resources for HIV/AIDS therapy in Scotland in light of the increased availability of more effective HIV/AIDS drug treatments; and if he will make a statement; [2433](2) what steps he will take to ensure that there is sufficient funding for HIV/AIDS clinics in Scotland to meet the anticipated increased demand for their services; and if he will make a statement; [2434](3) what steps he will take to ensure full availability of combination therapies, counselling services, dietetic treatments, in-patient services, psychiatric support in the community and district nurse services and other necessary services for HIV/AIDS patients; and if he will make a statement. [2435]

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will provide additional funds for the provision of the new combination therapies for HIV/AIDS patients. [2289]

It is for health boards to consider the treatment and care to be provided to HIV/AIDS patients in their areas in the light of local needs and of the total resources available to them. The implications of the new combination therapies will be among the factors they consider.In the current year, health boards in Scotland have been given, within their general allocations, funds totalling £9.6 million to respond to the treatment and care needs of persons with HIV/AIDS. In addition, boards are receiving some £6.4 million to engage in prevention activities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will remove the capital restrictions imposed on the current year's Scottish Homes budget. [2473]

The Government is committed to working within current expenditure plans. Under these, Scottish Homes is required to use its capital receipts to repay debt. To remove this requirement would mean having to find offsetting savings from other Scottish Office programmes. We are, of course, continuing to review spending priorities generally across the Scottish Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to synchronise the rights of objectors to appeal with the existing rights available to developers. [1970]

[holding answer 9 June 1997]: The Scottish Office has no plans to extend to objectors the existing rights of applicants to appeal against the refusal of planning permission. Objectors already have a voice and can make representations to the planning authority before a planning application is decided. In particular, they have the opportunity to submit views to their community councils (which are now statutory consultees for all planning applications) and the Council. Councils are required to take these views fully into account when deciding applications.

To ask the President of the Council, pursuant to her oral answer to the right hon. Members for Eddisbury (Mr. Goodlad) and for East Devon (Sir P. Emery) of 5 June, Official Report, columns 549–50, if she will make a further statement on the arrangements for the positive vetting of special advisers. [3053]

Special advisers are vetted as appropriate to the sensitivity of material they see. In the Prime Minister's Office, Mr. Jonathan Powell may from time to time need to have access to sensitive intelligence material. He has previously been positively vetted and his vetting is now being renewed. Some other special advisers in No. 10 are, as a matter of routine, being positively vetted though it is unlikely that they will have access to sensitive intelligence material.

To ask the President of the Council when she expects to move to re-establish the Select Committee on European Legislation and European Standing Committees A and B; and if she will make a statement on her proposals for their responsibilities in the forthcoming parliamentary session. [2567]

I hope that the Committees will be re-established soon. They will continue to operate under their current Standing Orders pending the House's approval of any recommendations for change following the review of the process for scrutinising European legislation, which the Government is committed to undertaking.

To ask the President of the Council on which previous occasion or occasions a Bill of constitutional significance has been made subject to a timetable motion before the commencement of the Committee stage. [2153]

[pursuant to her answer, 9 June 1997, c. 318]: The Scotland Bill and the Wales Bill were the subject of Allocation of Time Orders made on 16 November 1977, having been given a Second Reading on 14 and 15 November respectively.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research has been commissioned and what estimates have been made by his Department and what information presented to him, regarding the costs per annum to the total Home Department budget of the introduction of a minimum wage at (a) £3.50 an hour, (b) 4 an hour and (c) £4.40 an hour; and if he will make a statement. [2110]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade on 9 June, Official Report, column 310.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to assist the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority with the growth in its pension liabilities; and if he will make a statement. [2366]

Fire authorities generally are faced with the cost of meeting increasing pensions commitments from their revenue budgets. The Government will take this into account in reaching its decisions on future local government settlements. My right hon. Friend will also be giving early consideration to taking forward the review that has been undertaken of the fireman's pension scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what research he has commissioned into the overbreeding of small animals in London medical schools; and if he will make a statement; [2386](2) what assessment he has made of the findings of the report, "Access Denied", by the national Anti-Vivisection Society, a copy of which has been sent to him. [2388]

The allegations made by the National Anti-Vivisection Society in their report "Access Denied", including those of overbreeding of laboratory animals, were investigated by a senior member of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate. A letter outlining the findings of this investigation was sent to the Director of the National Anti-Vivisection Society in July 1996.The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 anticipates the overbreeding of animals and specifically provides for their humane killing. Overbreeding is inevitable and arises from difficulty in predicting when and how many animals will be needed in the face of varying demands specifying age, sex, weight and strain, for example.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to allow public scrutiny of project licence applications for animal experimentation. [2387]

Section 24 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 prohibits the disclosure of such information.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the members of the Animal Procedures Committee; when the terms of office of the members come to an end; and what plans he has to increase public openness of the appointments procedure. [2385]

The members of the Committee are as follows:

	Appointed
Professor Margaret Brazier (Appointed as Chairman in October 1993)	July 1990
Professor Ronald Anderson	December 1994
Professor Margaret Boden	December 1994
Professor Barry Bridges	January 1990
Professor Fiona Broughton Pipkin	January 1990
Dr. David Christopher	December 1994
Dr. Yvonne Cripps	December 1994
Professor Robin Dunbar	January 1997
Professor Paul Flecknell	December 1994
Mr. John Gregory	January 1997
Professor Susan Iversen	January 1990
Mrs. Judy MacArthur Clark	December 1994
Miss Cindy Milburn	April 1995
Dr. Ian Purchase	December 1994
Dr. Jacqueline Southee	April 1995
Professor Michael Spyer	January 1990
Dr. Anthony Suckling	January 1992
Professor John Turner	January 1997
Mr. Les Ward	April 1995

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what measures will be taken to promote and enforce the principles of reduction, refinement and replacement in respect of animal experiments; [3004](2) how the Government intends to promote and facilitate the investigation of viable alternatives to the use of animals in experiments. [3006]

Under the terms of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, no programme of work can be authorised unless consideration has been given to alternatives; these include reduction, refinement and replacement. In assessing project licence applications, the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate ensures that such consideration has been given.The Government makes funds available to the Animals Procedures Committee to sponsor research into and other work concerned with alternatives.The Government fully supports the work of the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Government will be pressing for immediate implementation of the ban on cosmetics testing on animals agreed by the EU Commission in 1993. [2879]

The 6th Council amendment to the European Cosmetics Directive sought in 1993 to ban the marketing of cosmetic products containing ingredients, or combinations of ingredients, tested on animals after January 1998, but only if validated alternative tests, which offer an equivalent level of protection for the consumer, are in place.Despite intense and continuing research efforts, mainly by the cosmetics industry itself, validated alternatives are not available for all tests and the European Union has had to postpone the deadline until June 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to make the technical details of applications for licences under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 and information regarding breaches of the regulations of this Act more easily available and accessible to the public. [2881]

Section 24 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 prohibits the disclosure of such information.General information on infringements of the Act is published each year in the annual report of the Animal Procedures Committee.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans the Government have to establish a Royal Commission inquiry into animal experiments; and what is the proposed time scale. [3003]

We have no such plans at this time.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the use of CS gas spray by the police. [2267]

The Decision to issue CS spray equipment is for chief constables while the decision to use CS spray, once issued, rests with individual officers, who must comply with the law in relation to the use of any force.In April 1995, the Association of Chief Police Officers agreed that selected forces should conduct street trials of CS spray. This followed a long period of consideration of possible police use of incapacitant sprays. Expert assessment of all available scientific data concluded that not enough was know about the health effects of pepper spray but that CS, which had been tested to a level similar to that required for a new pharmaceutical drug, did not present any significant threat to health. Trials took place in 16 forces between 1 March and 31 August 1996. Officers felt that the new equipment had brought about a marked reduction in assaults, although assaults data gave a mixed picture on this. The trials confirmed the safety of CS. Seventeen forces, including the Metropolitan Police, currently have CS sprays. Guidance on the use of CS is an operational matter for chief officers. The Association of Chief Police Officers have produced guidelines, copies of which have been in the Library since April 1996.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the advantages and disadvantages of introducing into British law the European convention on human rights. [1197]

The speech of my right hon. Friend on the Debate on the Address on 19 May, Official Report, column 395, set out the case, in the Government's view, for incorporating the Convention. It will be for others to point out what they see as the disadvantages.I will send the hon. Gentleman a document, "Bringing Rights Home", published by my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary and my hon. Friend the Member for Brent South (Mr. Boateng) in December, setting out the case in more detail.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many children were served with notices of intention to deport in 1995, 1996 and 1997 to date; [2467](2) how many children were deported in 1995, 1996 and 1997 to date. [2466]

the answer to the question is given in the table.

Children subject to deportation action under section 3(5)(c) of the Immigration Act
	1995	1996	January to May 19971
Served with a notice of intention to deport	146	533	202
Removed under the deportation process2	3	10	2
1 Provisional data.
2 Including voluntary departures after deportation action had been initiated.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were detained in Birmingham prison under Immigration Act powers during 1996; how many of those detained were deported; and what were their nationalities. [2469]

Provisional information for 1996 is contained in the tables.

Persons detained in Birmingham prison under Immigration Act powers, numbers in custody at the end of each month, 1996, by nationality:
	Total number in custody at the end of the month	Nationalities
January	51	Algerian (2), Bangladeshi (2), Chinese (5), Indian (27), Nigerian (4), Pakistani (6), Others (5)
February	55	Algerian (6), Chinese (3), Indian (25), Nigerian (5), Pakistani (9), Others (7)
March	63	Algerian (8), Chinese (2), Indian (30), Nigerian (4), Pakistani (6), South African (2), Others (11)
April	48	Algerian (8), Bangladeshi (2), Indian (27), Nigerian (2), Pakistani (2), South African (2), Others (5)
May	51	Algerian (9), Bangladeshi (3), Indian (23), Nigerian (5), Pakistani (3), Others (8)
June	50	Algerian (7), Chinese (2), Indian (29), Nigerian (4), Others (8)
July	39	Algerian (3), Chinese (2), Indian (20), Jamaican (3), Nigerian (3), Pakistani (2), Others (6)
August	28	Algerian (4), Indian (12), Nigerian (2), Pakistani (3), Others (7)
September	26	Algerian (3), Indian (11), Nigerian (4), Pakistani (3), Others (5)
October	19	Algerian (2), Indian (11), Nigerian (2), Others (4)
November	20	Algerian (5), Indian (7), Jamaican (3), Pakistani (2), Others (3)
December	18	Algerian (7), Indian (4), Jamaican (2), Nigerian (2), Turkish (2), Others (1)

Persons recorded as discharged from Birmingham prison for removal by the Immigration Service in 1996, by nationality:
	Total number deported during the month	Nationalities
January	23	Bangladeshi (3), Indian (16), Others (4)
February	22	China (2), Indian (11), Jamaica (2), Pakistani (2), Others (5)
March	20	Indian (8), Nigerian (2), Pakistani (5), Others (5)
April	17	Indian (8), Pakistani (3), Others (6)
May	10	Algerian (2), Indian (6), Pakistani (2)
June	11	Indian (4), Pakistani (2), Others (5)
July	21	Algerian (2), Indian (16), Jamaican (2), Others (1)
August	15	Hong Kong (2), Indian (8), Jamaican (2), Others (3)
September	12	Indian (4), Morocco (2), Others (6)
October	5	Indian (3), Others (2)
November	12	Indian (6), Others (6)
December	4	Indian (2), Jamaican (2)

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of those people detained in Birmingham prison under Immigration Act powers were deported during the months of January, February, March and April; and what were the nationalities of those deported. [2468]

Provisional information for January to April 1997 is contained in the table.

Persons recorded as being discharged for removal by the immigration service in January to April 1997, who had been detained in Birmingham prison
	Total number discharged during the month	Nationality
January	5	Indian (2), Others (3)
February	5	Indian (3), Others (2)
March	3	Others (3)
April	1	Others (1)

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many people who had applied at some stage for asylum, were deported from Birmingham prison during January, February, March and April; and what were the nationalities of those deported; [2464](2) how many people who had applied at some stage for asylum were detained in Birmingham prison during January, February, March and April; and what were the nationalities of those detained. [2465]

The available information on asylum seekers detained in Her Majesty's Prison Birmingham is given in the table.There were no failed asylum seekers recorded as being deported from Her Majesty's Prison Birmingham during each of the months January to April 1997. This does no include asylum seekers removed as illegal entrants or under port refusal procedures.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were detained in Birmingham prison under Immigration Act powers in January, February, March and April; and what were the nationalities of those detained. [2470]

The information requested is contained in the table.

Persons detained in Birmingham prison under Immigration Act powers, in custody at the end of each month, January to April 1997, by nationality
	Total number in custody at the end of the month	Nationality
January	16	Algerian (5), Indian (5), Nigerian (2), Turkish (2), Other (2)
February	12	Algerian (7), Nigerian (2), Turkish (2), Other (1)
March	11	Algerian (6), Turkish (2), Other (3)
April	11	Algerian (4), Jamaican (3), Other (4)

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will investigate the allegations contained in a television programme in respect of the late Police Constable, Yvonne Fletcher, a copy of which has been sent to him. [2958]

Despite extensive police investigation, nobody has been prosecuted for the brutal murder of WPC Fletcher. The case remains open and the Metropolitan Police will consider any new evidence put to them. They are reviewing the contents of the programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information British intelligence services received prior to the shooting in St James's Square on 17 April about the prospect of a shooting in the square. [2957]

It is not Government practice to comment on speculation about the activities of the intelligence services.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will estimate how many of those persons convicted of a serious criminal offence in 1996 were first-time offenders. [2941]

There is no universal or simple definition of the term "serious offence, but information routinely available centrally for England and Wales relates to convictions for a "standard list" of fence. These offences are listed in appendices 4 and 5 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales, 1995" (Cm. 3421). They include all indictable and some of the more serious summary offences."The latest figures available on this basis relate to 1994, when it is estimated that, of the 357,000 persons sentenced for standard list offences, 199,000 had no previous convictions for such offences.Figures for 1995 should be available later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people sought asylum in the United Kingdom; how many were refused; and of those refused, how many were removed from the United Kingdom in each of the last four years. [2943]

Information regarding asylum applications submitted in the United Kingdom, and on initial decisions on applications, for each of the years 1993 to 1996, is given in table 1.1 of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin "Asylum Statistics United Kingdom, 1996", issue 15/97. Information on removals and voluntary departures of asylum applicants during this period is given in table 10.1 of the same publication, a copy of which is available in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many persons who sought asylum in the United Kingdom in the last three years but were refused, are still in the United Kingdom; and of such persons how many are at addresses known to his Department; [2942](2) what proportion of those persons who sought asylum in the United Kingdom in

The requested information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to announce an amnesty for those in the United Kingdom illegally. [2946]

The Government have no plans to introduce such an amnesty.