To ask the Attorney-General what proposals there are to change the 1997–98 cash limit or running cost limit for the work of Her Majesty's Procurator-General and Treasury Solicitor. [14043]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class VIII, vote 6 will be increased by £433,000 from £7,003,000 to £7,436,000. The running costs limit is also increased by £712,000 from £25,742,000 to £26,454,000. The increases reflect the increased demand for services, machinery of Government changes and a transfer of an end year flexibility amount from the Crown Prosecution Service to take account of the costs of the CPS review falling on the Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers. The increase in the cash limit will be charged to the Reserve and will therefore not be an addition to the planned total of public expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he has set the British Railways Board an external finance limit for 1997–98. [14922]

I have set the British Railways Board an external finance limit of £69.7 million for 1997–98.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the Transport Council held in Luxembourg on 9 October. [14923]

The Transport Council met in Luxembourg on 9 October. I represented the United Kingdom.The Council opened with a session of structured dialogue with Transport Ministers of the applicant central European countries—CECs. A report by the Commission on the recent Pan-European conference in Helsinki was followed by discussion of issues relating to market access. Three areas for future work were identified: the need to strengthen co-operation between the Community and the CECs; developing the mobility of citizens; and the need to take account of all modes of transport in negotiations in market access.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the expenditure by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies, on (i) tax consultants and (ii) other external tax advice in (1) 1995–96, (2) 1996–97 and (3) 1997–98; and if he will make a statement. [13257]

For the Department and for non-departmental public bodies the information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. For agencies the figures are: 1995–96 Nil, 1996–97 £16,562 and 1997–98 (spend to date) £3,525.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the policy of his Department on the purchase of tax avoidance advice; and if he will make a statement. [13258]

One agency of the Department has used tax advisers to enable it to fulfil its statutory tax obligations rather than for tax avoidance purposes.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what compensation payments are required to be made, and to whom, as a result of the decision not to proceed in July with the construction of the A27 Polegate bypass and associated works within the Weald and Downland DBFO scheme. [13776]

[holding answer 3 November 1997]: We are currently considering whether the four consortia that submitted tenders for the Weald and Downland DBFO project should be compensated for their costs.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the total cost to the Government of compensation in respect of the postponement of the Downland DBFO Scheme. [14204]

We are currently considering whether the four consortia who submitted tenders for the Weald and Downland DBFO project should be compensated for their costs.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what proposals he has to change the 1997–98 cash limit and net running cost limit for the Ordnance Survey. [14400]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary winter supplementary estimate for Ordnance Survey, the cash limit will be increased by a token of £1,000 from £6,759,000 to £6,760,000 and the net running cost limit increased from £3,025,000 to £3,026,000.This supplementary estimate reflects an increase in running cost expenditure of £2,001,000 from £73,970,000 offset by an increase in appropriations in aid of £2,000,000 from £78,180,000 to £80,180,000.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to change his Department's cash limits and running cost limits for 1997–98. [14401]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates, my Department's cash limits will change as follows:

(i) the cash limit for class V, vote 1—Highways Agency—will be increased by £10,229,000 from £1,562,329,000 to £1,572,558,000. The increase in the cash limit reflects the take-up of £11,979,000 capital end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report, columns 245–50, offset by an inter-vote transfer from this vote to class V, vote 2 of £1,750,000 for the ongoing motorway tolling project.

(ii) the cash limit for class V, vote 2—Department of Transport: administration and transport services—will be increased by £3,625,000 from £158,075,000 to £161,700,000. The increase results from the take-up of £2,000,000 capital end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report columns 245–50 and inter-vote transfers from class V, vote 1 of £1,750,000 and from class V, vote 5 of £85,000 for mobility unit expenditure to be re-classified as running costs, offset by inter-vote transfers from this vote to class V, vote 5 of £60,000 for priority routes in London and to class XIII, vote 2 of £150,000 for the Edinburgh City Car Club research project. Running cost provision for this vote increases by £85,000 from £86,436,000 to £86,521,000.

(iii) the cash limit for class V, vote 5—Roads and local transport—will be increased by £1,675,000 from £313,863,000 to £315,538,000. The increase reflects the take up of £2,100,000 structural funds end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report columns 245–50 and an inter-vote transfer from class V, vote 2 of £60,000, offset by an inter-vote transfer from this vote to class V, vote 2 of £85,000 and a reduction in the provision for licence fee refunds to goods vehicle and public service vehicle operators and drivers of £400,000.

(iv) the cash limit for class V, vote 7—Passenger rail services—will be reduced by £51,000,000 from £1,516,385,000 to £1,465,385,000. The reduction reflects a £50,000,000 inter-vote transfer from this vote to class V, vote 3 for Metropolitan Railway Passenger Services Grant, and a £1,000,000 reduction in respect of reduced expenditure on consultants.

(v) the DoT/LACAP (Local Authority Capital) non-voted cash limit will be increased by £7,150,000 from £349,193,000 to £356,343,000, to fund works associated with the rebuilding of Manchester city centre comprising of improvements to the Inner Relief Road, the development of a bus strategy and traffic management scheme and improved routes for pedestrians. The increase of £7,150,000 will be met by a call on the Reserve.

As a consequence of the changes in (ii) above the gross running costs limit operating on class V, votes 1, 2, 4 and 6 will be increased by £85,000 from £373,274,000 to £373,359,000.

(vi) the cash limit for class VI, vote 1—housing and construction, England—covering sections A, D to G, I, J and L of that vote, will be decreased by £3,325.000 from £599,708,000 to £596,383,000. An increase in the cash limit of £220,000 is offset by a decrease of £3,545,000. The increase is to meet residual additional administration costs the Housing Corporation is expected to incur in respect of the loan portfolio sale, funded from sale receipts. The decrease results principally from a reduction of £2,935,000 in homelessness grants current expenditure provision to fund an increase in rough sleepers initiative capital allocations through the Housing Corporation, which falls outside the cash limit. Of the remaining reductions, Estates Renewal Challenge Fund provision will be reduced by £500,000 to support registered social landlords' housing costs arising from the need to house people displaced from Montserrat as a result of volcanic activity on the island, and a reduction of £110,000 results from a reclassification of extra receipts recovered from homelessness grants, so that voted provision takes account of those receipts and is adjusted accordingly. The DETR/HC (Housing Corporation) cash limit will consequently be increased by £3,435.000 from £673,050,000 to £676,485,000.

(vii) a new DETR/CRI (Capital Receipts Initiative) cash limit will be introduced, subject to the passage of legislation, to cover the Government's initiative to release additional resources to support local authority spending on housing and housing associated regeneration. The limit on expenditure is set initially at £174,270,000.

(viii) the cash limit for class VI, vote 2—regeneration and countryside and wildlife, England—will be increased by £36,116,000 from £1,480,168,000 to £1,516,284,000. An increase is required of £14,000,000 for the Urban Regeneration Agency (English Partnerships) to continue with works at Greenwich for the Millennium Exhibition and £7,230,000 for support for the regeneration of Manchester city centre; £8,000,000 for payments to be made for ERDF projects in advance of grant; £2,491,000 for the Teesside Development Corporation to meet a deficit as a result of judicial review; and £4,395,000 on three capital projects which had slipped from previous years. The increase will be met by a call on the Reserve of £17,991,000, the use of £10,125,000 end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report columns 245–50, offset in part by the surrender of £4,000,000 of receipts to the Exchequer and a transfer of £8,000,000 from the DOE/ERDF non-voted cash limit.

(ix) the DETR/ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) non-voted cash limit will be reduced by £8,000,000 from £146,332,000 to £138,332,000. This reflects gross payments to be made for ERDF projects in advance of European Community receipts. As a consequence of (viii) above, there will be increases to external financing limits for the Urban Development Corporations of £1,427,000 from £199,784,000 to £201,211,00; for the Urban Regeneration Agency (English Partnerships) of £46,000,000 from £204,779,000 to £250,779,000 and for the Housing Action Trusts of £512,000 from £88,688,000 to £89,200.00.

(x) the cash limit for class VI, vote 4—local government and planning, England—covering sections A to F of that vote, will be reduced by £321,000 from £30,987,957,000 to £30,987,636,000. This reflects savings on payments to meet the expenses of valuation tribunals in Section A (Valuation services), on grant in aid to the Local Government Residuary Body in Section B (Reorganisation of local government) and on the European Union Spatial Planning Initiative in Section D (Planning and minerals research). The saving will be used within vote 4, to cover residual payments of council tax transitional reduction grant in Section H (Council tax transitional reduction grant) and of special grant to authorities affected by the terrorist bombings of Docklands and Manchester and emergency financial assistance under the Bellwin scheme in section 1 (Other grants), which are outside the cash limit on the vote.

The overall increases will be offset by transfers or charged to the reserve and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how much money has been given to Derbyshire county council and Derby city council in revenue support grant from central Government for 1997–98 [13753]

Derbyshire county council received £166.734 million and Derby city council received £84.507 million revenue support grant for 1997–98.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what decision has been made in relation to the future of the rent officer service; and how many responses were received during the consultation period. [13479]

I announced on 7 August that I had concluded that there was a strong case for the creation of a Next Steps Agency for the Rent Officer Service in England. I said then that before taking a final decision I would be consulting interested parties, including the Local Government Association, the trades unions representing rent officers and their support staff, and other interested parties. That consultation is now complete, and I am grateful for the 63 responses I received from individuals and organisations. I am placing a summary of these in the Library.There is general agreement that the current arrangements are unsatisfactory, but views differ on the solution. Many respondents favoured the Agency proposal, but support was also expressed for various alternative proposals. I have given very careful consideration to all the views which have been submitted, but have concluded that none of the alternative suggestions would tackle satisfactorily the inherent problems of the Service, which are caused by the unclear pattern of accountability and local inconsistencies of approach. I have therefore decided to proceed with the establishment of a Next Steps Agency for the Rent Officer Service in England.My Department will now go ahead, in consultation with interested parties, to make preparations for establishing the Agency. It will be necessary to ensure that the implementation costs can be contained within the available public expenditure provision. For this reason, and because of the amount of detailed planning yet to be done, I cannot yet say when the Agency will become operational, but it will be as soon as practicable.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the time scale for ending the dumping of wastes at sea. [13025]

I have been asked to reply.The United Kingdom is a contracting party to the Oslo convention for the prevention of marine pollution by dumping from ships and aircraft and its successor, the convention for the protection of the marine environment of the north-east Atlantic (the OSPAR convention) which is expected to come into force shortly. Under the OSPAR convention only the following may be considered for dumping.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many passports were issued by the British embassy in Dublin in each of the last five years and how many were refused in each of those years specifying the most frequent reason for refusal. [13020]

The information is as follows:

	Passports issued	Ineligible applications/refusals
1993	4,835	12
1994	6,122	24
1995	5,236	17
1996	5,406	20
1997	5,068	11
Total to date	26,667	84

These figures do not include extensions, child additions or amendments. Entitlement to British passports is a matter of law. Passports are refused when the applicant is unable to prove identity or his or her claim to British nationality.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations Her Majesty's Government have made through diplomatic channels to the State of Belarus about the suspension of parliamentary democracy within that country. [13101]

We regularly make clear to the Belarus authorities our concerns over the constitutional and human rights situation in Belarus. Our ambassador in Minsk reiterated these concerns to Foreign Minister Antanovich at a meeting in September and officials from this Department made similar points to Deputy Foreign Minister Martynov in London in September.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent contacts there have been between Her Majesty's Government and the state of Belarus. [13100]

Following the disputed constitutional referendum of November 1996, the EU General Affairs Council adopted Conclusions in February 1997, in accordance with which we have had no Ministerial contacts with Belarus. Officials from this Department made clear to Deputy Foreign Minister Martynov in London in September our concerns about the constitutional and human rights situation.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he had with representatives of Commonwealth Governments at Edinburgh concerning (a) the World Trade Organisation judgment on trade in bananas and (b) the consequential effects of such judgment on the Lomé agreement, with particular reference to its protocol concerning sugar. [13390]

My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met representatives of Caribbean Commonwealth Governments and discussed, among other things, their concerns about the implications of the World Trade Organisation ruling. He made clear that the UK would work for a new EC banana regime which was consistent with WTO rules and which took account of our obligations under the Lomé convention. He did not discuss the potential effects of the ruling on other preferential effects of the ruling on other preferential trading arrangements provided for under the Lomé convention. The Edinburgh economic declaration notes our support for the legitimate interests of the African Caribbean and Pacific banana producers and our resolve to work for a successor arrangement to the Lomé convention which gives the ACP adequate transitional arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with which person or body articles of ratification of the treaty of Amsterdam will be deposited; if there is any time limit on such action; and what obligations will be placed on any member state, other than those entered into in the current treaties, if they are unable to deposit such articles or other necessary documents. [13050]

[holding answer 30 October 1997]: Instruments of ratification of the Treaty of Amsterdam will be deposited with the Italian Government. No time limit has been set for ratifying the treaty. The treaty will only enter into force after all member states have ratified it and it will therefore impose no obligations on a state which does not ratify it.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish prior to consideration of the Bill enabling Her Majesty's Government to ratify the treaty of Amsterdam a consolidated version of the principal treaties of the European Community and Union combining the content of the treaties of Maastricht and Amsterdam. [13054]

[holding answer 30 October 1997]: The intergovernmental conference agreed to attach to the Final Act, for illustrative purposes, the texts of the treaty on European Union and the treaty establishing the European Community as they result from the amendments made by the Treaty of Amsterdam. These texts are set out in Cm 3780. They do not form part of the treaty of Amsterdam and do not themselves require ratification.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters from hon. members have been received since May relating to immigration matters; how many were received in the same period last year; what percentage of replies to hon. Members are signed by a Minister; and what are the factors which determine that such replies are signed in this way. [13199]

[holding answer 30 October 1997]: Between 1 May and 31 October 5,812 letters were received from Members; 4,321 were received in the same period last year; around 11 per cent. are signed by a Minister. There are no set factors determining which letters are signed by a Minister; each case is considered individually.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what changes he proposes to make in his Department's cash limits and running cost limits for 1997–98. [14286]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates the following changes will be made:The cash limit for class II, vote 1 (Overseas Representation) will be increased by £9,050,000 from £619,826,000 to £628,876,000. The increase is required to cover the costs of major conferences, specifically the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the EU Presidency and the Asia Europe Meeting, which total £9,000,000. There is also a transfer in of £50,000 from the Home Office for a contribution towards the fight against international drug trafficking.The gross running costs limit on class II, vote 1 will be increased by £9,050,000 from £525,763,000 to £534,813,000.The cash limit for class II, vote 2 (Other External Relations) will be increased by £12,600,000 from £217,215,000 to £229,815,000. The increase is required to cover UK contributions to certain OSCE, United Nations and WEU Missions of £12,000,000 and also for a transfer of £600,000 from the Home Office towards certain Overseas Drugs Assistance Programmes.In addition, the cash limit for class H, vote 3 (BBC World Service) will be reduced by £2,558,000 from £169,906,000 to £167,348,000. This reduction takes account of transfers to the Ministry of Defence of £3,444,000 and to the Cabinet Office of £327,000 to reflect the movement of the BBC World Service Monitoring Service to subscription-based funding. This is partially offset by the take-up of a capital end-year flexibility amount of £1,213,000 as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July,

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations concerning abuses of human rights Her Majesty's Government have made to the Czech and Slovak Republics. [13491]

[holding answer 3 November 1997]: We are aware of reports of incidents of discrimination against members of the Roma community in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. We have been in contact with the Governments of the two countries, and do not consider these to be institutionalised abuses of human rights.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress towards democracy in Burma since 1 May. [14072]

The State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) continue to repress pro-democracy and ethnic groups, and remain unwilling to enter into substantive dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and other political leaders. Ministers have made several statements since 1 May condemning the SLORC' s policies, and have supported the introduction of tougher measures against the SLORC at both the national and EU level.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Australian counterpart concerning the arrangements being made for testing parliamentary and public opinion in Australia on whether that country should become a republic; and if he will make a statement. [14395]

None.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have been held with the Government of Japan concerning ratification of the Antarctic treaty. [14218]

Officials have discussed the ratification of the Environmental Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty with their Japanese counterparts several times in the past few months and have used these occasions to encourage Japan to ratify it at the earliest opportunity.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place with the signatory nations to the Antarctic Environmental protocol; and when he expects to be able to make an announcement on the siting of the secretariat. [14219]

There have been no further discussions since the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) in New Zealand in May this year when the Consultative Parties were unable to reach consensus on the location of the Secretariat. The next ATCM will be in May 1998.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the percentage increase in 1996 of reissues of girocheques (a) in total and (b) by social security office that involved losses to her Department; and if she will make a statement. [13021]

Responsibility for the subject has been delegated to the Social Security Agency under its chief executive, Mr. Chris Thompson. I have asked him to arrange for a response to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which members of the Southern health and social services council belong to (a) the SDLP, and (b) the Ulster Unionist party; how many of these appointments were recommended by representatives of the Irish Government; and if she will make a statement. [13012]

Monitoring information on the political activity of appointees to the Health and Social Services Councils has only been collected since July 1996. Of the 10 places, out of a full membership of 24, reserved on the Southern Health and Social Services Council for District Council nominees, five are held by SDLP members and five are held by members of the Ulster Unionist Party. The monitoring information held by the Department indicates that no political activity has been undertaken by the other members in the last five years.None of the members of the Southern Council were recommended for consideration for appointment by representatives of the Irish Government.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will list all recorded instances of paramilitary beatings in the period since the Provisional IRA ceasefire of July 1997, indicating in each instance whether the event was carried out by loyalist or republican groups and giving the equivalent figures of the preceding six months. [13856]

The table illustrates the number of paramilitary style assaults and paramilitary shootings attributed to Loyalist and Republican groups since the Provisional IRA ceasefire on 20 July 1997 and equivalent figures for the previous six months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans she has for the future organisation of the Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture. [14838]

As my colleague the Minister with responsibility for this matter, Lord Dubs, announced in another place on 16 October in reply to a question from baroness Nicol, Official Report, House of Lords, column 200, following consideration of a Prior Options Study, which was announced to Parliament on 7 March 1995, the Government have decided that the Forest Service should become a Next Steps Agency and that preparations should proceed with a view to agentisation with effect from 1 April 1998.

Retained deficits of HPSS boards Northern Ireland
	1994–95		1995–96		1996–97
Board	Deficit (£ million)	Percentage of budget	Deficit (£ million)	Percentage of budget	Deficit (£ million)	Percentage of budget
EHSSB	1·986	0·37	—	—	5·15	0·95
SHSSB	—	—	1·582	0·62	5·2	0·2
WHSSB	1·139	0·53	2·653	1·16	1·02	0·44

NHSSB recorded a surplus in each of the three years.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the (a) actual deficits and (b) projected deficits of each health trust as a percentage of their budgets for the last three years. [14271]

Retained deficits of HSS trusts (Northern Ireland)
	1994–95		1995–96		1996–97
Trust	Deficit (£ million)	Percentage of income	Deficit (£ million)	Percentage of turnover	Deficit (£million)	Percentage of turnover
BCH	0·997	1·22	0·586	0·69	2·406	2·66
CAH	0·191	0·45	0·344	0·76	1·288	2·82
Northern Ireland Ambulance Service	0·086	1·22	—	—	0·01	0·05
UNDAH	1·014	1·94	0·32	0·56	1·857	3·21
RGH	—	—	—	—	1·225	0·9
Green Park	—	—	1·118	2·34	0·519	1·04
Mater	—	—	—	—	0·007	0·38
Craigavon/Banbridge	—	—	—	—	0·088	0·27
Newry/Mourne	—	—	—	—	0·25	0·58
North and West Belfast	—	—	—	—	0·839	0·99
Causeway	—	—	0·378	0·8	—	—
Altnagelvin	—	—	—	—	0·109	0·23
Armagh/Dungannon	—	—	—	—	0·092	0·16

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how he intends to promote greater use of alternative dispute resolution in place of civil litigation. [13312]

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will list the (a) actual deficit and (b) projected deficit of each health authority as a percentage of its budget for the last three years. [14464]

The following schedule gives (a) the actual deficit for each of the HSS Health Boards in Northern Ireland for the years 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97 as per the audited accounts and (b) the deficit expressed as a percentage of each board's budget figure.

[holding answer 4 November 1997]: The schedule gives (a) the actual deficit for each of the HSS trusts in Northern Ireland for the years 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97 as per the audited accounts and (b) the deficit figure expressed as a percentage of each trust's total income.

The Lord Chancellor has recently approved pilot schemes for alternative dispute resolution at Bristol county court and in the Court of Appeal. A mediation pilot scheme has been running at Central London county court since May 1996. Before deciding the next steps, the Lord Chancellor will consider the outcome of research on the Central London scheme. The initial report is expected early next year.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps Her Majesty's Government have taken to ensure the up-to-date publication of all amendments to the current United Kingdom law occasioned by European Union regulations. [13387]

Queen's Printer's copies of all newly enacted Acts of Parliament and of Statutory Instruments implementing amendments to current United Kingdom law occasioned by European Union regulations are published promptly by The Stationery Office Limited. The text is also made available on the Internet. The explanatory note at the end of each Statutory Instrument which implements a European Union obligation will identify and cite the relevant European Union instrument.The Lord Chancellor's Department is setting up a statute law database to ensure publication of up to date amended text of United Kingdom Public General Acts of Parliament. Amendments made to those Acts by United Kingdom legislation in implementation of European Union obligations will be duly incorporated. It is not at present intended that the statute law database should include amended text of Statutory Instruments.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to amend the law relating to living wills; and if he will make a statement. [13146]

The Law Commission report on mental incapacity published in 1995 includes recommendations relating to advance statements (sometimes referred to as living wills). As I indicated in my written answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Corby (Mr. Hope) on 28 October, Official Report, column 787, the Government do not consider that it would be appropriate to legislate on the basis of these recommendations without fresh public consultation. It is hoped that a consultation paper will be issued by the end of the year.

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what representations he has received from magistrates in West Yorkshire over the work of the joint magistrates committees; and if he will make a statement. [13398]

I have received a letter from one magistrate from West Riding Metropolitan Magistrates Courts Committee which questioned the necessity for a magistrates courts committee for the area. I have also received a letter from the chairman of the Wakefield bench of that MCC concerning the committee's proposals to reallocate duties from the deputy clerks to an increased number of justices clerks and to remove the post of deputy clerk.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will list his Department's priorities in relation to tourism during the United Kingdom presidency of the European Union. [12972]

We believe that the main aim for the Tourism Unit in the Commission should be to ensure that, across the range of Commission responsibilities. account should be taken of the impact on tourism of decisions and actions, and that the employment and other opportunities represented by tourism should be recognised.We shall be announcing specific events for the British presidency relating to the Department's various responsibilities in due course.

to ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what changes he proposes to make to his Department's cash limit and running cost limit for 1997–98.[14011]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimate, the cash limit for class X, vote 1 will be increased by £6,100,000 from £867,853,000 to £873,953,000 and the running costs limit reduced by £746,000 from £30,091,000 to £29,345,000. This is to provide for an increase in provision for the British Library St. Pancras project; to provide for additional maintenance expenditure for the British Library; an increase in provision for the refurbishment of Somerset House for the housing of the Gilbert Collection; transfers from the Department of Trade and Industry (class IV, vote 1) for Sector Challenge funding of tourist and media projects and for sponsorship of the music industry; and a transfer to the Home Office (class VII, vote 1) for voluntary services.The increases will be offset by transfers, savings and charges to the Reserve, and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.

To ask the Prime Minister what proposals he has to change the Cabinet Office: Security and Intelligence Services cash limits for 1997–98. [14278]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class XVIII, vote 2 will be increased by £5,606,000 from £713,307,000 to £718,913,000. The running costs cash limit will be increased by £5,606,000 from £362,082,000 to £367,688,000. The increase in running costs is needed to take on board transfers from OPS to the FCO and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.

To ask the Prime Minister what proposals there are to change the 1997–98 cash limit or running costs limit for the Cabinet Office: other services vote. [14308]

The cash limit for Cabinet Office: other services (class XVIII, vote 1) will be increased by £1,291,000 from £36,153,000 to £37,444,000 and the running costs limit will be increased by £1,291,000 from £42,803,000 to £44,094,000.This is to reflect a transfer of £168,000 from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (class II, vote 3) for the BBC World Service Monitoring Service, which is moving to subscription based funding. The vote is also eligible for a running costs cash limit increase of £1,123,000 in respect of end year flexibility arrangements, as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997,

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers living in the London borough of Barnet have had (a) a final determination of their asylum application made adverse to them and (b) how many of (a) above have been moved into deportation areas and have not yet left the country; and what is the cost to the London borough of Barnet and to central Government of supporting such persons, in total and on average. [13119]

I regret that the information requested is not available centrally. Information on where asylum seekers are living is not available centrally: we cannot therefore give any information on asylum seekers in the London borough of Barnet.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many unsuccessful asylum seekers are currently awaiting deportation from England and Wales; [13769](2) how many unsuccessful asylum seekers are currently awaiting deportation from Scotland.[13770]

I regret that the information is not available separately for England and Wales, or for Scotland.The available information relates to asylum seekers whose initial decision was a refusal, who have subsequently had a deportation order signed and who have not yet left the United Kingdom. As at 30 September 1997, there were 1,510 such persons. That figure is provisional and excludes persons treated as illegal entrants or subject to port refusal procedures.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals he has for changes to the 1997–98 cash and running costs limits within his responsibilities.[14066]

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary token supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class VII, vote 1 (Home Office administration, police, probation, immigration and other services, England and Wales) will be reduced by £510,000 from £4,729,171,000 to £4,728,661,000 and the running costs limit will be increased by £5,251,000 from £1,887,680,000 to £1,892,931,000.The changes in the cash limit are the net effect of the following:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much money has been given to Derbyshire county council through the revenue support grant for the county's police authority in each of the last three years. [13755]

The Derbyshire Police Authority is independent from the county council, an arrangement which was consequent on the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994. It is the Police Authority which is responsible for setting the budget. The budget is made up of police grant, revenue support grant, non-domestic rates (the business rate) and the police authority precept raised through the council tax. Providing the revenue support grant figure on its own would be uninformative and I have therefore provided a table which shows how the total spending power was made up in the three years referred to in the question.

Derbyshire Police Authority
£ million
Year	Home office grant	Revenue support grant	Non-domestic rates	Police precept (Council tax)	Total spending power
1995–96	43.76	13.71	17.8	13.02	88.3
1996–97	46.36	13.14	19.7	13.3	92.5
1997–98	48.09	14.09	18.89	15.28	96.3

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis is to complete his investigations into the alleged perjury of Mr. Jonathan Aitken during his High Court action against The Guardian; and if he will make a statement. [13768]

This investigation is an operational matter for the Commissioner. The Commissioner informs me that the investigation is continuing and is being pursued as expeditiously as possible. At this time the Metropolitan Police do not have a date for the conclusion of the investigation. When the investigation is complete a report will be sent to the Crown Prosecution Service.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list all (a) secondary, (b) other delegated legislation and (c) all deregulation orders his Department made during the summer adjournment. [14374]

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster today.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total number of (a) police officers and (b) civilian support staff, in each police force on (i) the last day for which figures are available and (ii) 1 May for each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [13724]

[holding answer 3 November 1997]: The latest date for which figures are available are those for 31 March 1997. Since 1995, police numbers are collected only twice a year. The strength figures for 1995 and 1996 are therefore those at 31 March. Prior to April 1995, they were collected every month. Police strength figures for 1992, 1993, and 1994 are therefore those for 30 April. Between 30 April 1992 and 30 March 1997, the number of police officers fell by 536. During the same period, the number of civilian support staff increased by 5,568. The information is set out in tables which have been placed in the Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when part V of the Police Act 1997 will be brought into force. [14174]

We are currently reviewing the provisions of part V of the Police Act 1997 in the light of our top priority in this area which is the protection of children and vulnerable adults.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the criteria which govern the granting of exceptional leave to remain. [14207]

The criteria governing the granting of exceptional leave to remain depend on the particular exercise of discretion outside the Immigration Rules from which a person seeks to benefit. In addition, the Home Secretary may permit any foreign national to remain in the United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what new measures he proposes to take to protect the community from sex offenders who pose a risk to the public. [14703]

I have published today a consultation paper on community protection orders. Copies are available in the Library.I propose that the chief officer of police will have the power to apply for an order in the civil courts if the behaviour of a person who has been convicted or cautioned for a sex offence, whether in this country or abroad, poses a risk of serious harm to the public.The order will require the defendant to register under the provisions of the Sex Offenders Act 1997, if he is not already required to do so. The court may also impose other prohibitory conditions as are necessary to protect the public.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has received the final report of the Community Fire Safety Task Force. [14547]

I have received the report of the Community Fire Safety Task Force and made arrangements for it to be published on 3 November. Copies of the report have been placed in the Library.The task force was asked last November to propose a five year strategy to reduce the number of fires and fire casualties in dwellings. It has highly commended the enthusiasm with which fire safety and prevention work is already undertaken by some brigades. It wants to build on their success by putting community fire safety at the centre of both policy and action. It recommends a more integrated and business like approach to community fire safety, with the establishment of a national centre to co-ordinate activity and an increased role for Her Majesty's Fire Service inspectorate to support brigades in the delivery of imaginative, well targeted messages. It also recommends that community fire safety should be made a statutory duty of the fire service.I am grateful to task force members, who came from both the public and private sectors, for delivering an imaginative report in less than a year. I share their high regard for the enthusiasm and expertise of the fire service. It is a high performing service with an excellent record to which I pay tribute.We must, however, all be concerned by the rising trend in domestic fires, deaths and casualties and the task force therefore makes a strong case for an increased and co-ordinated emphasis on community fire safety. Community safety is not solely about reducing crime. It is about our wider responsibilities to make our communities safe and confident. This report is an important contribution to that overall aim and I note that it strongly endorses the multi-agency approach.Before I take any decisions on the details of the strategy, I want to hear the views of chief officers, fire authorities and unions who have a crucial role to play in translating the strategy into action. We will therefore be consulting interested parties over the next few months before deciding how to respond to the report.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the expenditure by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies, on (i) tax consultants and (ii) other external tax advice in (1) 1995–96, (2) 1996–97 and (3) 1997–98; and if he will make a statement. [13261]

Expenditure by the Department, its agencies and non departmental bodies (NDPBs), on tax consultants and other tax advice for the three years in question is:

	1995–96	1996–97	1997–98
	£	£	£
(a) Departmental
(i) Tax Consultants	—	—	—
(ii) Other	49,688	30,550	16,450
(b) Agencies
(i) Tax Consultants	—	—	—
(ii) Other	—	25,000	—
(c) NDPBs
(i) Tax Consultants	11,268	45,543	4,000
(ii) Other	42,475	36,672	38,070

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the policy of his Department on the purchase of tax avoidance advice; and if he will make a statement.[13262]

The Department's policy is not to use tax advisers for tax avoidance purposes. Such advisers may be used to assist the Department in meeting its statutory tax obligations.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has for implementing court-ordered secure remand for juveniles. [14548]

At present, when juveniles—aged 10 to 16 years—are charged and not released on bail after a court appearance, they are remanded to local authority accommodation. The local authority may, if it can satisfy certain strict conditions, return to the court and seek a secure accommodation order to place the juvenile in local authority secure accommodation. Separate arrangements exist for 15 and 16-year-old boys who may be remanded direct to prison, again if strict conditions are met. The courts have no power to require any juvenile in this age group to be remanded directly to local authority secure accommodation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he intends to take to prevent the use of motorway service stations for rave parties; and if he will make a statement. [14315]

There are already powers available to the police to deal with the problem of illegal rave parties. Sections 63–67 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 empower the police to direct persons assembling on land to leave where it is believed that a large-scale gathering—of 100 or more—will take place and would cause serious distress to the inhabitants of the locality by the playing of amplified music during the night. Furthermore, in order to assist the police in preventing such events from taking place, the Act provides them with pre-emptive powers to direct people to leave the land where they reasonably believe that those people are preparing or gathering for such an event. The police also have powers to stop persons proceeding to a rave, or an intended rave, within a radius of five miles of its site.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many police man-hours were spent on the policing of rave parties in the last financial year in (a) England and Wales and (b) Cheshire; [14314](2) what was the total cost of policing rave parties in the last financial year in

The information requested is not held centrally. The costs of specific activities carried out by the police is a matter for chief officers but police forces do not routinely hold information about the time spent on or the costs of individual operations. However, I understand from the Chief Constable of Cheshire that there were two rave parties in the last financial year at the M62 motorway service station at Burtonwood. A total of 220 officer hours was used in the policing of these events at a cost of approximately £3,600.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the injunction against The Mail on Sunday remains in force following the publication of further disclosures from David Shayler on 2 November. [14900]

Yes. The purpose of the injunction which the High Court granted against The Mail on Sunday was to prevent it from publishing any further material which could damage national security. The terms of the injunction restrained the newspaper from publishing any information provided by Mr. Shayler, but expressly did not apply to the publication of any material in respect of which the Crown serves written notice that it does not seek to restrain publication. The Editor of The Mail on Sunday provided me with a draft of the article which he proposed to publish well in advance of the publication date. This enabled me to obtain an assessment from the Director General of the Security Service, who advised me that the article would not cause damage to national security if it were published. Notice was therefore given that we would not seek to restrain publication. The fact that the article was substantially wrong is another matter. The issue here is not necessarily whether a story is true or false as it is quite possible to conceive circumstances in which false accusations might nevertheless cause damage to national security.This is entirely consistent with the position which the Government have adopted all along. Our concern is to ensure that nothing is published which is likely to damage national security. Former members of the Security and Intelligence Services are in a position to make disclosures which intentionally or unintentionally can cause real damage to national security. The Government cannot stand by and let that happen. We have, however, never sought to suppress criticism of the Security Service—even where that criticism is misguided or inaccurate—provided that national security is not damaged.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what proposals he has to change the 1997–98 cash limit or running cost limit for the Office of Public Service. [14158]

Subject to Parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimate, the cash limit for the Office of Public Service (Class XVII, Vote 1) will be increased by £17,760,000 from £141,061,000 to £158,821,000 and the gross running cost limit will be decreased by £52,000 from £80,475,000 to £80,423,000.The changes reflect the take up of end-year flexibility of £9,000,000 under the end-year flexibility scheme announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997,

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list all (a) secondary, (b) other delegated legislation and (c) all deregulation orders his Department made during the summer adjournment. [14379]

A full list of statutory instruments laid before the House, whether under the affirmative or the negative procedure during the summer adjournment, is contained in the House of Commons Votes and Proceedings dated Monday 27 October 1997, which has been publicly available since Tuesday 28 October 1997.

To ask the Chairman of the Catering Committee what were the countries of origin of beef served in the Palace of Westminster in each of the last three months; and if he will make a statement as to the percentage of beef supplied from each country. [13962]

All beef served by the House of Commons Refreshment Department during the last three months was of British origin.

To ask the Chairman of the Administration Committee what steps he is taking to ensure the compliance of all parliamentary groups and committees to be recognised and listed with the rules and undertakings required of them, with particular reference to those referring to membership. [12540]

[holding answer 27 October 1997]: At its meeting on 4 November, the Administration Committee considered whether any amendments to the existing regulations concerning All Party and Parliamentary Groups might be appropriate. The Committee determined that the current regulations, approved by the House on 20 March 1997, were adequate, and did not consider that further revision was necessary. However, I would expect any hon. Member to draw to my attention any incidences of where they consider the regulations might have been breached.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what formal discussions he has held with pharmaceutical industry leaders. [13921]

My noble Friend, the Minister for Health holds the main ministerial responsibility for the pharmaceutical industry. She met representatives of their trade association, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, on 17 June. A further meeting is planned for 26 November. Both she and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health have also had a number of informal meetings with representatives of individual companies.Officials also keep us in touch with matters of concern to the industry through the joint industry/government Industry Strategy Group, a forum which meets regularly to discuss issues of mutual interest.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to implement the remainder of European Council directive 94/22/EC on the Protection of Young People at Work on child employment, following its consultation with local authorities and others. [13912]

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health will announce in due course proposals further to safeguard the interests of young people at work.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS charges certificates (AG3) were awarded in the area of Stockton borough council or the related local DSS offices; and what plans he has to improve the quality of information available to the public in respect of the use of the certificates. [13744]

National Health Service low income Scheme charges certificates AG3 were replaced by HC3 from 1 June 1997. The new version was introduced following consumer testing and provides clear information to the user. During the period 1 December 1996, when computer records were introduced, to 31 May 1997, when the AG3 was replaced, 2,855 AG3s were sent to people providing a Stockton postcode ("TS") with their low income scheme claim.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes will be made to the cash limits of his Department in 1997–98. [13695]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes will be made to the cash limits of his Department in 1997–98. [14054]

Subject to parliamentary approval, the cash limit for class XI, vote 1 (hospital, community health, family health and related services, England) will be increased by £3,982,000 (from £29,349,456,000 to £29,353,438,000). This allows for a transfer of £2,457,000 from class XI, vote 2 (Department of Health administration, miscellaneous health and personal social services, England) for the Medical Device Evaluation Service and an increase of £2,000,000 for the Drugs Challenge Fund made up of a claim on the Reserve (£1,000,000) and by transfers from class VII, vote 1 (Home Office administration, police, probation, immigration and other services, England and Wales) (£350,000), class IX, vote 1 (Department for Education and Employment: programmes and central services) (£300,000) and class XI, vote 2 (£350,000). The overall increase is partially offset by transfers of £367,000 to class XIV, vote 4 (Hospital, community health, family health services and other health services (part), Wales) for Cuyler Declaration, on rebasing of funds between central budgets and health authorities; £8,000 to Department of Health and Social Services, Northern Ireland for the National Poisons Information Service and £100,000 to class XI, vote 2 for the Xenotransplantation Interim Authority.The cash limit for class XI, vote 2 (Department of Health, administration, miscellaneous health services and personal social services, England) will be reduced by £2,987,000 (from £998,724,000 to £995,737,000). This reduction allows for transfers of £2,737,000 for the Medical Device Evaluation Service made up of transfers to class XI, vote 1 (Hospital, community health, family health and related services, England) (£2,457,000), class XIV, vote 4 (Hospital, community health, family health services and other health services (part), Wales) (£187,000) and to the Department of Health and Social Services, Northern Ireland (£93,000); and a transfer of £350,000 to class XI, vote 1 for the Drugs Challenge Fund. The overall reduction is partially offset by a transfer of £100,000 from class XI, vote 1 as mentioned above.The non-voted cash limit for supplementary credit approvals or personal social services (DoH/LACAP) in England is to be increased by £429,000 from (£14,700,000 to £15,129,000) in respect of the take up of the end year flexibility entitlement as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997,

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the expenditure by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies on (i) tax consultants and (ii) other external tax advice in (1) 1995–96, (2) 1996–97 and (3) 1997–98; and if he will make a statement. [13267]

The Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) have spent the following on

	1995–96	1996–97	1997–98
	£	£	Estimated £
(i) Tax consultants:
(a) Department of Health	nil	nil	15,000
(b) DH Agencies	nil	nil	nil
(c) NCPBs	26,000	19,000	13,000

(ii) Other external tax advice: One NDPB uses a telephone Pay As You Earn advisory service at a cost of £180 per annum.This expenditure has been to provide advice on the proper interpretation of tax law.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the policy of his Department on the purchase of tax avoidance advice; and if he will make a statement. [13268]

The Department has used tax advisers to enable it to fulfil its statutory tax obligations rather than for tax avoidance purposes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his assessment on the effect of the delivery of NHS services over the next two years of the need to divert moneys from within his budget to deal with the millennium computer compliance problem in the NHS; and if he will make a statement. [13250]

The likely cost to the National Health Service of ensuring that systems are millennium compliant is difficult to forecast accurately. Guidance has recently been issued to chief executives outlining the action they are expected to take to deal with the millennium problem. Much of the work required is likely to be funded from budgets already allocated to supporting NHS information management and technology needs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths where hypothermia was mentioned on the death certificate as the main or contributory cause of death, took place in England and Wales in (a) 1994, (b) 1995, (c) 1996 for (i) all age groups, (ii) people aged 65 years and over and (iii) people aged 80 years and over. [14258]

I have been asked to reply.The information requested falls within the responsibility of the chief executive of the Office for National Statistics, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths were registered in England and Wales between (a) 1 April 1996 and 30 September 1996 and (b) 1 October 1996 and 31 March 1997, for people aged (i) 60 to 69 years, (ii) 70 to 79 years, (iii) over 80 years and (iv) in total. [14256]

I have been asked to reply.The information requested falls within the responsibility of the chief executive of the Office for National Statistics, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what communication on the subject of the European single currency has taken place between his special adviser Ms Sue Nye and Mr. Gavyn Davies of Goldman Sachs. [13411]

None.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what applications the Government have made for EU funding to inform or persuade the public about the single European currency.[13187]

[holding answer 30 October 1997]: I refer to the answer that I gave to the Member for Grimsby (Mr. Mitchell) on 27 October, Official Report, column 656.Application for funding is to inform businesses about the implications of the single currency, whether or not we join. It is a condition of the rules governing the EC funds that information measures must not be regarded as propaganda.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total value of debt issued by the Government each day between 25 September and 18 October. [13380]

The Government issued £1.5 billion of 8 per cent. 2,021 stock on Thursday 25 September, and £150 million of index-linked stock on Thursday 2 October.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what changes took place in the price of Government bonds between noon and the closing of the financial markets on Thursday 25 September; [13402](2) what changes took place in the price of Government bonds between the opening and closing of the financial markets on Thursday 25 September. [13404]

The movement in the price of gilts (UK government bonds) on Friday 17 October are shown in the following table:

Price of benchmark gilts
	7 per cent.2002	7.25 per cent. 2007	8 per cent.2021
Opening price	101-06	104-21	117-13
Closing price	101-06	104-22	117-10
Change from previous day's close	+0-01	+0-02	-0-01
Day's high	101-11	104-02	117-25
Day's low	101-00	104-10	116-23

Prices quoted in 32nds.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes took place in the price of Government bonds between the opening and closing of the financial markets on Friday 17 October. [13403]

The movement in the price of gilts (UK Government bonds) on Friday 17 October are shown in the following table:

Price of benchmark gilts
	7 per cent. 2002	7.25 per cent. 2007	8 per cent. 2021
Opening price	101-15	105-09	117-17
Closing price	101-19	105-18	118-07
Change from previous day's close	-0-01	0-00	+0-05
Day's high	101-21	105-22	118-14
Day's low	101-08	104-29	117-05

Price quoted in 32nds.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what disciplinary action has been taken against his special adviser Mr. Charlie Whelan for discussing market sensitive information in a public place; [13406](2) which Minister in his Department authorised his special advisers to brief

The terms under which special advisers work are set out in their contracts, a model copy of which is available in the Library. These build upon the rules in force under previous Administrations.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has (a) received and (b) requested advice on the subject of EMU from Mr. Gavyn Davies, chief economist of Goldman Sachs. [13410]

Since 1 May, and following the publication of the Lord Currie reports on EMU, Treasury Ministers and officials have received representations and information from a wide range of people, including Mr. Gavyn Davies.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what legal actions his Department is pursuing against newspapers regarding reports relating to trading in the period before the publication of Government briefing on EMU. [13408]

None.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if the Government have notified their European partners that the United Kingdom will not move to the third stage of economic and monetary union on 1 January 1999. [14898]

Following my statement to the House on 27 October, Official Report, columns 583–88, and in accordance with paragraph 1 of Protocol (No. 11) of the Maastricht Treaty, the Government formally notified the Council of the European Union on 30 October 1997 that the United Kingdom does not intend to move to the third stage of economic and monetary union on 1 January 1999. The Treaty enables the United Kingdom to reverse this notification after the beginning of the third stage.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if it is the Government's intention to rejoin the European exchange rate mechanism two years prior to entering the third stage of EMU. [13775]

[holding answer 3 November 1997]: The Government have no intention of joining the ERM.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will investigate the trading in gilts futures in the period before the Financial Times story of 26 September.[13409]

This is a matter for the regulatory authorities and their supervisors.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes are proposed to the cash limit of the Registry of Friendly Societies in 1997–98. [14753]

Subject to approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimate, the cash limit for the Registry of Friendly Societies Class XVI, Vote 9 will be increased by £775,000 from £3,767,000 to £4,542,000. The additional provision is required for capital expenditure arising out of the late completion of the Department's relocation project. The increase is partially funded by the take up of £189,000 carried forward under the end year flexibility scheme for capital, as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July, Official Report, cols 245–50. The increase will be charged to the Reserve and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.