To ask the Attorney-General when the Director of the Serious Fraud Office intends to publish her Annual Report. [92060]

The Director Serious Fraud Office has today published her Annual Report and copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

To ask the President of the Council, pursuant to her answer of 16 June 1999, Official Report, column 151, when she will publish the results of the May market research, tracking public perception of the Millennium Bug. [92123]

I have placed copies of the Executive Summary of the May tracking research in the Libraries of the House.The latest results are broadly consistent with those for previous months, showing that concern among the public on this issue remains low.During the summer recess, copies of the monthly Executive Summary will continue to be placed in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, if the Commission has agreed which company should be offered the contract to operate the Travel Office following the expiry of the current contract with American Express; and if he will make a statement. [92196]

The existing contract for travel agency services, currently provided by American Express, ends on 31 August 1999. Following a full open competition, the Commission has endorsed a recommendation by a tender board to award the new contract to American Express. The new contract will run from 1 September for a period of three years, although it is extendable for a further two years. Enhancements to the existing services provided have been insisted upon; for example, Eurostar tickets will be available on-site from this autumn, following the installation of a ticket machine. In addition, American Express travel consultants will, wherever possible, routinely give alternative quotations to ensure that best value for money is achieved. In the interest of the House, and therefore taxpayers, the Travel Office will also actively pursue options for further discounts and rebates from airlines and railway companies.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will publish an account of the official overseas visits made by the former Minister without Portfolio during the time he held that office, listing the venue, the event, the number of officials accompanying him and the total cost of the visit to public funds. [89841]

[holding answer 5 July 1999]: I have accounted fully for all overseas travel undertaken by Ministers, and any accompanying officials, in the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (Mr. Pendry) on 17 June 1999, Official Report, columns 196–97. This global figure of course included overseas visits by the former Minister without Portfolio.Listed in the table are the official overseas visits made by the former Minister without Portfolio during the period 2 May 1997 to 27 July 1998.

Date	Destination	Purpose of Visit
17–18 July 1997	Paris	Discussions on EU related matters/British Council Seminar
11 September 1997	Bonn/Munich	Bilaterals with German Ministers. Represented HM Government at meeting of the Club of Three.
10 October 1997	Rome	Address Institute of International Affairs/Bilaterals with Italian Ministers
27 November 1997	Paris	Visit to Futuroscope as Minister responsible for Millennium Dome
30 January 1998	Florence	Address European University Institute
2–3 February 1998	Brussels	Bilaterals with EU Commissioners
2–4 March 1998	Bonn	Address Seminar on Democracy and Legitimacy
8–9 May 1998	Amsterdam	Address Congress of Europe
8–9 June 1998	Paris	Address National Assembly
18–22 July 1998	Brazil	Visit on behalf of the Government to promote political and economic relations between two countries

The average cost of each visit was £1,365. All visits were fully in accordance with the rules set out in the Ministerial Code. On the November 1997 visit to Paris, the Minister was accompanied by an official. On other occasions he was supported by locally based diplomatic staff.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will list all the overseas visits since December 1998 by hon. Members funded by the Government. [89842]

[holding answer 5 July 1999]: I have accounted fully for all overseas travel undertaken by Ministers, including members of the official party and I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (Mr. Pendry) on 17 June 1999, Official Report, columns 196–97. There is, however, no systematic and central record kept of every visit made by hon. Members which has funding support from a Government source.In exceptional circumstances, hon. Members can receive funding from Government. These can include official events where representation wider than just the Government is warranted, for example the handover ceremony of Hong Kong where the Government paid for the Leader of the Opposition and the leader of the Liberal Democrats to attend.Members may also occasionally travel abroad as members of an official party observing elections in emerging democracies. The costs of such visits are usually met by the respective Government or by a national or international sponsoring organisation such as the European Union or United Nations. Again, no records are available centrally for such costs.Since December 1998, my Office has not funded any overseas visits by hon. Members.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will list proposals which have become legislation at European Community level, following the joint Franco-German letter at the Cardiff EU summit; what was the UK's policy on each proposal; and if he will make a statement. [90846]

All Community legislation is published in the Official Journal, copies of which are placed in the Library of the House. It is the Government's policy to consider each proposal on its merits, taking into account all relevant factors including the principle of subsidiarity as mentioned in the Franco-German letter to the Cardiff European Council.The Government attach importance to the proper application of subsidiarity, which is designed to ensure that decisions are taken at the most appropriate level, be that European, national, regional or local.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will list those developments in policy and operational practice which are consequential to the Portschach meeting. [90942]

Following informal discussion of European defence arrangements at Portschach, the United Kingdom and France agreed a joint declaration at St. Malo on 4 December 1998. Following this, the NATO Summit in Washington on 25 April 1999 agreed on ways to take forward the initiative in NATO. The European Council at Cologne issued a Declaration on 4 June 1999 committing the EU to strengthen its common European security and defence policy.

To ask the Prime Minister if progress in response to the threat of the millennium bug was discussed and an assessment of the millennium compliance of the global economy made at the recent Cologne Summit; and if he will make a statement. [91297]

The millennium bug was discussed at the G8 Summit in Cologne. It was noted that there had been real progress since the 1998 Birmingham Summit in tackling the millennium bug, but that some countries still had a lot of preparation to do. This was reflected in the strong language of the Communiqué G8 countries agreed to maintain vigorous programmes of action and urged all other Governments to do the same. The Communiqué also highlighted the importance of contingency planning to cope with potential system failures. The G8 will maintain close co-operation among members and with others. A special G8 Conference on contingency planning will take place in the autumn.

To ask the Prime Minister what proposals Her Majesty's Government have evaluated on the (a) creation of new institutions and (b) enhancement of existing ones in respect of the application of international legal procedures to the determination of the justification for possible interventions for humanitarian reasons, with particular reference to the relationship between such authority and considerations of national sovereignty. [91729]

I consider it hugely important that we should have a world ruled by law and by international co-operation, with the United Nations as its central pillar. We are a leading supporter of the International Court of justice, which has the central role in determining the conformity of action with international law. We are committed to working with our partners to find new ways to make the United Nations system work more effectively.

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his announcement of a new £50 million enterprise fund on 6 July, what provision is being made for Wales. [91420]

[holding answer 15 July 1999]: On 6 July, I launched a consultation on proposals for support for the creation of Regional Venture Capital Funds in England. The proposed support will form one element of a package of measures to support small and medium enterprise finance. This package will be funded through the Department of Trade and Industry's Enterprise Fund, announced in the 1998 Competitiveness White Paper (Cm 4176).The legal basis for the new support is Sections 7 and 8 of the Industrial Development Act 1982. The power to provide support is a concurrent power, that is, it is shared by the Secretary of State and the devolved administrations. Each administration therefore has the power to make similar assistance available to that proposed for England. Mechanisms to support venture capital in Wales are a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.Other elements of the Enterprise Fund package of measures (including the Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme) will be made available by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry across the United Kingdom, in consultation with the devolved administrations.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what changes he intends to make to (a) section 8 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 and (b) section 83 of the Companies Act 1989. [90328]

[holding answer 8 July 1999]: I have no specific intentions to amend section 8 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 but subject to available parliamentary time it would be my intention to introduce legislation to provide for a consent order regime.I have no intention at present to seek to amend section 83 of the Companies Act 1989.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what new data series separated by gender, race, disability and age have been commissioned by his Department since June 1997. [90827]

In early 1999, DTI conducted a survey of the caring and child care responsibilities of its headquarters staff. This survey separated respondents by gender.In addition, since June 1997 data have been collected and analysed by gender, race and disability on recruitment, the operation of the Department's staff appraisal system and special bonus scheme, its system for deploying staff within the Department and on participation rates on in-house training courses.Information collected for the Department's Equal Opportunities Annual Report, which includes the composition of the Department and application and success rates for progression/promotion, is separated by gender, race, disability and age.A travel to work survey was carried out in July 1997 for Victoria street area HQ staff and is currently being carried out for some dispersed HQ staff. The data are separated by gender, disability and age.This excludes the Department's Executive Agencies.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the statutory instruments introduced into Parliament by his Department in (a) 1997, (b) 1998 and (c) 1999 which gave effect to European Union legislation. [90745]

This question cannot be answered without incurring disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what environmental targets he has set for the Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils. [91010]

The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry does not set environmental targets additional to those set by the Environment Agency. CCLRC conforms to limits for emissions set by the Environment Agency, and has reduced its annual spending on utilities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had this year with the European Commission about the proposed alliance between British Airways and American Airlines. [91218]

[holding answer 13 July 1999]: Shortly after I took office I met Commissioner Van Miert and discussed a number of topics including the proposed alliance between British Airways and American Airlines. Since then I have not had any discussions with the European Commission about the proposed alliance.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list each occasion since he took office when he has met (a) British Airways and (b) Virgin Atlantic to discuss the proposed British Airways alliance with American Airlines. [91221]

[holding answer 13 July 1999]: Since I took office I have met neither British Airways nor Virgin Atlantic to discuss the proposed British Airways alliance with American Airlines.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what involvement his Department has had in the Ambassadors for British Business project. [91841]

The Ambassadors for British Business scheme was launched by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in November 1997 and was administered by the Joint Export Promotion Directorate, a joint FCO/DTI directorate in the Export Command of the DTI. It is now administered by the new unified DTI/FCO operation, British Trade International.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans his Department has to monitor the movements of the imminent shipment of MOX fuel to Japan. [90200]

As part of the security plan for the shipment of MOX to Japan, the UKAEAC control centre in the UK, which is manned 24 hours per day, will receive reports from the ships every hour, via secure communications, detailing the position of the ships.

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement about the arrangements for the provision of additional ECGD support to facilitate the completion of the Ungaren Klaten transmission lines and sub-stations contract between VA Tech Reyrole Projects and PLN of Indonesia. [92224]

I have been advised by the Export Credits Guarantee Department's Accounting Officer that, in his view, the risks involved in giving medium and long-term export credit guarantees for exports to Indonesia under Section 1(1) of the Export and Investment Guarantees Act 1991 do not currently meet ECGD's normal underwriting criteria.In view of the importance that we attach to our relations with Indonesia, I have instructed ECGD's Accounting Office to make arrangements to provide an additional US$1.1 million of support to enable VA Tech Reyrolle

	1998–99	1997–98	1996–97	1995–96	1994–95
Number of testers employed	438	394	393	448	1273
Number of vehicles tested2	988,491	970,775	968,426	959,727	981,298
Number of voluntary tests3	38,016	36,902	29,965	425,124	10,224
Number of vehicle examiners employed	252	248	235	235	229
Number of traffic examiners employed	169	166	162	159	163
Number of HGVs and trailers examined for roadworthiness5	132,826	158,289	171,203	162,607	166,099
Number of HGVs checked for traffic enforcement6	161,268	192,573	214,924	248,674	267,217
Number of HGVs checked at emission spot checks	12,149	12,812	13,887	11,406	n/a
Number of PSVs examined for roadworthiness5	26,394	34,484	35,921	30,787	32,338
Number of PSVs checked for traffic enforcement6	18,183	30,436	30,435	38,306	39,036
Number of PSVs checked at emission spot checks	7,940	10,867	11,001	10,140	n/a
Number of LGVs7 examined for roadworthiness5	13,810	17,481	19,964	18,326	19,992
Number of LGVs checked for traffic enforcement6	9,671	10,879	14,108	21,830	n/a
Number of LGVs checked at emission spot checks	76,253	93,156	99,446	108,757	n/a
1 Figure does not include all grades of staff carrying out testing work due to the way in which information was recorded at the time.
2 Includes tests and retests of HGVs, PSVs and LGVs. A vehicle may be retested more than once.
3 Test carried out in VI's test stations designed to aid test preparation or for routine maintenance. Checks available for brake tests, headlamp aim, smoke check or multi-check.
4 From 1995–96, voluntary brake tests were based on number of axles tested. Figures include brake checks on axles, headlamp aim checks, smoke checks and multi-checks.
5 Figure includes vehicles inspected at the roadside and at operator's premises for mechanical condition. A vehicle will be counted in the figure for roadworthiness inspections and traffic enforcement inspections if it has been checked by both a VE and a TE.
6 Figure includes documentation checks and weighings. Figure does not include the number of individual tachograph charts checked. TEs checked 1,417,646 tachograph charts in 1998–99.
7 Cars, vans, taxis and non-testable vehicles (eg mobile cranes, mechanical diggers) n/a Figure not available.

Projects to undertake the necessary additional work to allow previously supplied equipment to become fully operational.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many inspectors were employed or engaged by the Vehicle Inspectorate in each of the last 10 years; and how many vehicles were inspected in each year. [90413]

Information in a consistent form is available only for the last five years. Prior to that date the data are not available, or could be obtained only at disproportionate costs. The information for the period since 1993–94 is presented in the table.The Vehicle Inspectorate employs testers to carry out statutory annual tests on heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), passenger service vehicles (PSVs) and some light goods vehicles (LGVs). This is a demand-led activity. Vehicle examiners (VEs) carry out enforcement inspections on all types of vehicles to check their mechanical condition and traffic examiners (TEs) check compliance with traffic regulations including weighing and tachograph charts. The Inspectorate's performance measures have, during the period covered, increasingly encouraged examiners to target those vehicles which are considered most likely to be committing offences. This has increased the effectiveness of the checks in terms of road safety and environmental protection.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the effect the A6 bus lane at Loughborough has had on journey times for (a) buses and (b) other road traffic in its first three months. [90502]

I have asked the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency to write to my hon. Friend.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what new data series separated by gender, race, disability and age have been commissioned by his Department since June 1997. [90829]

In September 1998 the central core of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions commissioned diversity consultants Pearn Kandola to conduct an independent evaluation of the Performance Management and Appraisal System. This work involved an analysis of performance and promotion markings of grades below the Senior Civil Service by gender; ethnic origin; disability, and part-time/full-time status. A copy of the report is available in the Library.In the Department's Executive Agencies the following specific projects have been commissioned:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many parliamentary questions were tabled to his Department for written answer on a named day between May 1997 and 14 April 1999; and what percentage of them received a substantive response on that named day. [91064]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to him on 15 April 1999, Official Report, column 301.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what matters were discussed, what decisions were made and which departments were represented by officials at the meeting of Green Ministers on 6 July; and if he will make a statement. [91249]

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Elmet (Mr. Burgon) on 16 July 1999, Official Report, column 341. The first annual report of the Green Ministers Committee, due to be published later this month, will set out the achievements and future plans of the Committee.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many officials in his Department are working on leasehold reform proposals. [91260]

Currently, two officials work purely on leasehold reform and a further seven devote a significant proportion of their time to this area of work. We plan to expand this team further.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the number of leasehold properties as a percentage of the total. [91261]

The most recent estimates from the Survey of English Housing are that there were approximately 1.78 million owner-occupiers in England in 1997–98 who were leaseholders, representing 12.8 per cent. of all owner-occupiers.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what progress has been made on his leasehold reform proposals. [91259]

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Poole (Mr. Syms) on 13 July 1999, Official Report, column 139.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the respondents to the recent consultation paper on the use of lead shot over wetlands. [91274]

My Department received 270 representations from members of the public in addition to those organisations that are listed in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what evidence his Department has assessed linking mortality of wildfowl and the ingestion of lead shot. [91262]

The toxic effects of ingested lead on birds have been known for over a century, and reported from many sources around the world. It would not be possible to list all the published research, but a selection of key papers is listed.The reference texts are:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to encourage more people to stand for election to their local authorities. [91299]

Our proposals for new rewarding roles for councillors and for addressing some of the potential disincentives to serve on councils, as set out in our White Paper: "Modern Local Government—In Touch with the People" (Cm 4014), will we believe encourage more people to stand for election to their local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) if he will estimate how many new homes will be built in the United Kingdom by the year 2006 (a) in total, (b) on green-field sites and (c) on brown-field sites; [91318](2) if he will estimate how many new homes will be built within Lancashire on

My Department does not estimate the number of new homes to be built. Estimates of housing requirements are derived in Regional Planning Guidance following public examination.The Government's target is to provide 60 per cent. of new homes on previously developed land or by conversion of existing buildings. They have asked Regional Planning Bodies and local planning authorities to set their own recycling targets consistent with delivery of the national target. To assist in this process, my Department has established the first phase of the National Land Use Database to provide a comprehensive assessment of previously developed vacant and derelict land, and other developed land that may be available for recycling.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when the new PPG3 will be fully operational. [91412]

Over 600 responses have been received to the consultation draft of Planning Policy Guidance note 3 on Housing, which are now being analysed. I expect to issue the final version after the recess. In the meantime, the draft PPG3 can be cited as a material consideration in determining planning applications although it will have full effect only when the final version has been published.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has for the development of Post Bus services under the proposals for the reform of the Post Office. [91506]

Post Bus services are principally an operational matter for the Post Office. We recognise, however, that such services can provide important transport links for people in rural areas, and the Countryside Agency provides grants from the Rural Transport Development Fund towards the costs of starting up new Post Bus services in rural areas of England.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what representations he has received regarding extensions to the 42-day notice period for bus service variations; and if he will pay compensation to operators compelled to continue running uneconomic services; [91478](2) what studies he has commissioned into the commercial effects of repealing section 92(1) of the Transport Act 1985 or otherwise relaxing local authorities' duty not to inhibit competition in bus services; [91417](3) what representations he has received regarding compensation for bus operators excluded from routes or areas under a re-regulated Quality Contract. [91418]

These are among the matters on which we have consulted widely with the bus industry, local authorities and other interested parties in our publication "From Workhorse to Thoroughbred—A Better Role for Bus Travel". Several hundred responses have been received in total, and they will be carefully considered as we develop firm proposals.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to set national criteria for determining the social necessity of uncommercial passenger bus services. [91408]

None. We intend that decisions about subsidising local bus services should remain a matter for the judgment of individual local authorities in the context of their local transport plans.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what proportion of 1999 rural bus challenge funds were allocated to projects in the (a) North West, (b) North East, (c) Yorkshire and the Humber, (d) West Midlands, (e) East Midlands, (f) Eastern, (g) South West and (h) South East Government Office regions. [91411]

The invitation to local authorities to submit bids for the 1999 Rural Bus Challenge was issued on 2 July. The closing date is 1 October 1999 and we expect to announce decisions by early December.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he plans to publish (1) the Urban White Paper; [91393](2) the Rural White Paper. [91392]

My right hon. Friend will publish the Urban and Rural White Paper when work has been completed. We expect this will be within the next twelve months.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the total cost to local authorities of introducing half-fare bus travel for all pensioners. [91449]

Our estimate of the additional costs of introducing in England our proposed minimum standard for concessionary bus fares for pensioners is approximately £25 million a year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if the half-fare concessions scheme for pensioners will apply to forms of local passenger transport other than buses. [91410]

Our proposal for a national minimum half-fare scheme for pensioners applies only to bus travel. It will remain open to local authorities to provide concessionary travel on other forms of local transport if they judge it right to do so in the light of their local policies and circumstances.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on driver recruitment for bus operators; and what plans he has to introduce new bus driver instruction regulations. [91489]

Ensuring that they have sufficient drivers to provide their services is primarily a matter for individual bus companies. We recognise however that there have been driver recruitment and retention difficulties in some areas and are discussing the issues involved with the industry and the relevant agencies.As stated in our policy document "From Workhorse to Thoroughbred: A Better Role for Bus Travel", we recognise the importance of driving standards and training. We intend to improve driving standards by specifying a training syllabus for drivers and by introducing a statutory register of bus and coach driving instructors. We are holding discussions with the industry and intend to publish detailed proposals later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what criteria he will use to evaluate the performance of Quality Partnership; [91322](2) if employer-provided bus services will be required to meet Quality Partnership standards before being permitted to use Quality Partnership facilities. [91505]

It will be for local authorities to decide whether to introduce Statutory Quality Partnerships, once the legislation is in place, and to evaluate their effectiveness. Our proposals relate only to local bus services as defined in the Transport Act 1985.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) how he will determine whether Quality Contracts are necessary in a local authority area; [91405](2) how many Quality Contract pilot schemes he intends to approve, and when. [91323]

Quality Contracts for buses require primary legislation. As we said in our consultation document "From Workhorse to Thoroughbred—A Better Role for Bus Travel", we expect to give a very limited number of approvals initially to allow the Quality Contract approach to be tested. The broad criteria were set out in that document.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he expects the national public transport timetable information system to be available. [91324]

Good progress is being made with the relevant parties, building on existing local and national information sources, including the National Rail Enquiry Service. We expect to be able to introduce a national, multi-modal information system in the course of next year.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many landfill sites (a) in Greater London and (b) outside Greater London receive household waste from Greater London. [91500]

This information is not available centrally. The Municipal Waste Survey collects data from waste disposal authorities about the amount of municipal waste sent to landfill, but does not collect information about the individual landfill sites used.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what national planning guidelines there are on the siting of transmission masts on schools and colleges; and if he will make a statement. [91501]

Planning policy guidance on telecommunications development is set out in Planning Policy Guidance note 8 (revised December 1992), supplemented by DETR Circular 4/99 "Planning for Telecommunications". In addition, my Department has published in March 1996 a Code of Best Practice for local planning authorities and telecommunications code system operators on telecommunications prior approval procedures as applied to mast/tower development.My Department has also issued for consultation the draft of a circular on land use planning and electro-magnetic fields (EMFs) prepared jointly with the Department of Health. The circular provides draft advice to local planning authorities in deciding applications for development giving rise to EMFs, such as telecommunications base stations. We are considering the responses received.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many accidents have been recorded in science laboratories in the last 10 years in (a) schools and (b) higher educational establishments. [91278]

The Health and Safety Executive's records for the years 1989–90 to 1998–99 show that there were 1,297 reportable accidents in school laboratories and 457 reportable accidents in laboratories in higher and further education establishments. These data include accidents to both students and employees.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the annual volume of carbon dioxide emissions which would be eliminated by the use of a 100MW tidal electric power plant. [91646]

A 100MW tidal electricity generating plant would make an annual carbon dioxide saving of between 80,000 and 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide depending upon the type of fossil fuel fired electricity generating plant displaced.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many (a) English Partnerships and (b) Rural Development Commission offices (i) have closed and (ii) will close as a result of the creation of the regional development agencies. [91512]

[holding answer 15 July 1999]: 14 offices were transferred from English Partnerships to the Regional Development Agencies on 1 April 1999 under the Transfer Schemes made in accordance with the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998. None of these has yet closed, but three are expected to do so.7 offices were transferred as assets from the Rural Development Commission to the Regional Development Agencies on 1 April 1999 under the Transfer Schemes. Three of these have closed and one other is expected to do so.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the official engagements of each of his Ministers for the week beginning (a) Monday 12 July, (b) Monday 19 July and (c) Monday 26 July. [91527]

[holding answer 15 July 1999]: It is not the normal practice of Governments to give details of forthcoming engagements.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many (a) regional development agencies and (b) regional chambers have offices in Brussels. [91516]

[holding answer 15 July 1999]: Decisions on the establishment of offices in Brussels are a matter for the Regional Development Agencies and regional chambers themselves. I understand that no Agencies or regional chambers have dedicated offices in Brussels. However, two Agencies and two regional chambers share or have access to an office there.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many (a) English Partnerships staff and (b) Rural Development Commission staff (i) have moved offices and (ii) will move offices as a result of the creation of the regional development agencies. [91513]

[holding answer 15 July 1999]: Three hundred and seventy four staff transferred from English Partnerships to the Regional Development Agencies on 1 April 1999 under the Transfer Schemes made in accordance with the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998. Of these staff, 61 have moved offices, and 43 others are expected to do so.One hundred and four staff transferred from the Rural Development Commission to the Regional Development Agencies on 1 April 1999 under the Transfer Schemes. Of these staff, 29 have moved offices, and 25 others are expected to do so.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many new homes were built in Lancashire in 1998. [91586]

[holding answer 16 July 1999]: It is estimated that a total of 4,465 dwellings were completed in Lancashire in 1998.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what proposals he has to devolve powers to local authorities in relation to planning decisions. [91587]

[holding answer 16 July 1999]: Most planning applications are determined by local authorities. My right hon. Friend has various powers in planning legislation. For example, he can make orders granting a general planning permission for specified categories of development and can make regulations setting fee levels for different types of application. Such powers are used primarily to ensure a consistent national approach to planning matters and we have no plans to devolve them to local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the non-departmental public bodies in existence on 1 May 1997 that (a) have been disbanded, indicating when they were disbanded, (b) will be disbanded in the next 12 months, (c) have had their functions transferred to (i) another non-departmental public body and (ii) a democratically elected body, (d) have been renamed but continue to perform a similar role and (e) have been unchanged; if he will indicate in (c)(ii) the relevant successor body; what new non-departmental public bodies have been established since 1 May 1997; and how many non-departmental public bodies his Department currently is responsible for. [90676]

The information requested is as follows:

(a) Eleven executive non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) sponsored by this Department have been wound-up since 1 May 1997; nine Urban Development Corporations (UDCs)— Birmingham Heartlands, Black Country, London Docklands, Merseyside, Plymouth, Trafford Park, Teesside and Tyne & Wear, which were wound-up on 30 June 1998, and Sheffield which was wound-up on 30 June 1997; North Hull Housing Action Trust was wound-up on 28 February 1999; and the United Kingdom Ecolabelling Board was wound-up on 19 April 1999 and its functions were brought into DETR. In addition, the British Board of Agrement became an autonomous body, no longer classified as an NDPB, on 1 April 1999. Four advisory NDPBs have been wound up since 1 May 1997; the Assessment Panel for Construction Research wound up on 14 July 1997, the Advisory Committee on Plant and Machinery wound up on 14 May 1998, the Local Government Staff Commission (England) wound up on 12 May 1998, and the Export Action Group for Building Materials wound up on 31 May 1999.

(b) The Rural Development Commission (RDC), which is non-operational at present, is due to be wound up in the Autumn of 1999.

(c)(i) The RDC's programmes and most of its staff transferred to the Countryside Agency, which was formerly known as the Countryside Commission, and the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) on 1 April 1999; some of the functions and staff of English Partnerships also transferred to the RDAs on 1 April 1999; and the Commission for the New Towns was merged with English Partnerships, although the two bodies remain legally separate, on 1 April 1999 for operational purposes. (ii) No bodies have had their functions transferred to a democratically elected body.

(d) Apart from the Countryside Agency, none have been renamed but continue to perform a similar function.

(e) Details of other NDPBs in existence on 1 May 1997 sponsored by this Department are listed in "Public Bodies 1998".

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to sell 51 per cent. of National Air Traffic Services Ltd. [91854]

The Government issued a consultation document in October 1998 seeking views on our proposal for a public private partnership for NATS. The period for responses to that consultation has now closed and we are considering those received. We will make a detailed announcement on the way forward in due course.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what safety checks are made to guarantee the integrity of wiring in commercial aircraft. [91309]

Wiring installations are subject to detailed inspection and testing at the time of aircraft manufacture.Subsequently, the Civil Aviation Authority sets comprehensive maintenance requirements which ensure the continued airworthiness of all UK-registered commercial aircraft; this includes checks of the external physical appearance of wiring looms at scheduled intervals. In addition, electrical continuity checks are made on affected electrical circuits whenever modifications are made to the electrical system.Any serious faults in electrical wiring that occurred during aircraft operations would normally be detected because they are accompanied by system faults and warnings. In such cases, investigations will be made specifically directed at the relevant wiring. Individual electrical circuits are protected by automatic current limiting devices designed to isolate the associated circuit in the event of a current overload.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance her Department is giving to the re-building of the civil administration in Kosovo; and if she will make a statement. [91293]

Our aim is to provide timely help to meet the basic safety and welfare needs of all Kosovars, while assisting in rapid stabilisation through the establishment of an effective and well-co-ordinated international civil administration. We provided a support package, including funds and equipment, to the UN Special Representative's Office. Through the World Health Organisation, we are helping the UN Mission in Kosovo to establish a central health administration. Our support includes experts, logistical support, essential equipment and supplies.The UN has recently requested qualified staff to build up the UN Civil Administration in Kosovo. The Government will shortly decide their response.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the non-departmental public bodies in existence on 1 May 1997 that (a) have been disbanded, indicating when they were disbanded, (b) will be disbanded in the next 12 months, (c) have had their functions transferred to (i) another non-departmental public body and (ii) a democratically elected body, (d) have been renamed but continue to perform a similar role and (e) have been unchanged; if she will indicate in (c)(ii) the relevant successor body; what new non-departmental public bodies have been established since 1 May 1997; and how many non-departmental public bodies her Department currently is responsible for. [90679]

The information requested is as follows:

(a) None.

(b) The Crown Agents Holding & Realisation Board and the India Family Pension Funds Body of Commissioners are expected to be disbanded within the next year.

(c)(i) None.

(c)(ii) None.

(d) None.

(e) In addition to those listed at (b) the following bodies were in existence on 1 May 1997 and remain unchanged:

• The Advisory Committee on Overseas Economic and Social Research
• The Overseas Service Pensions Scheme Advisory Board The Know How Fund Advisory Board
• The Commonwealth Scholarships Commission in the United Kingdom.

(f) One new body has been created since 1 May 1997—The Development Awareness Working Group.

(g) My Department is currently responsible for seven non-departmental public bodies.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list for (a) her Department and (b) associated bodies listed in the National Asset Register, how many vehicles are currently (i) owned and (ii) leased; if she will indicate their (1) fuel types and (2) engine cubic capacities; how many of the vehicles due for replacement by (A) her Department and (B) associated bodies listed in the National Asset Register will be replaced in (x) 1999–2000, (y) 2000–1 and (z) 2001–2 by vehicles using (a1) petrol, (b2) diesel, (c3) natural gas, (d4) electric batteries and (e5) other; and how much her Department plans to spend in each year on vehicle replacements. [90690]

We own 50 vehicles used in the administration of the aid programme overseas. The other information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, how much of the Church's investment is in the defence and military hardware industries. [90234]

The Commissioners do not invest in companies whose main business is the manufacture of armaments. The Commissioners' main investments in defence-related companies are presently in GEC and GKN. In addition, some of the companies in which the Commissioners hold shares may have small defence-related interests, ranging from electrical and electronic systems to engineering components, but these companies would not be described as military and certainly cannot be classified as armaments.

To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Commissioners are taking to support initiatives from the parochial ministry to celebrate the millennium. [90233]

I would encourage every parish to take steps to mark the Millennium year as the 2000^th anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ. Now that the funding for the Faith Zone at the Dome is secure, I hope my hon. Friend will encourage churches in his own constituency to see that, whatever happens at the Dome, local community activity is an essential part of a Christian marking of the Millennium. I understand from the Churches' Millennium Office that they are very encouraged by the level of activity in churches up and down the country.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the title and purpose of each item of market and opinion research commissioned by or through his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies since May 1997 stating in each case whether or not the results were published. [89694]

[holding answer 5 July 1999]: The Department conducts or commissions market or opinion research only when it is justified by the specific needs of a particular policy or programme and when this is the most economical, efficient and effective way to achieve the purpose. Consulting and involving the public helps inform both policy formulation and the delivery of better quality public services. Responsive public services are an important part of the Modernising Government initiative.For the available information, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply the then Minister of State, Home Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, South and Penarth (Mr. Michael) gave to the hon. Member for Gordon (Mr. Bruce) on 23 February 1998,

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 12 May 1999, Official Report, column 156, on the private finance initiative, if he will list (i) the amounts by which the contract payments were reduced, (ii) the reason for each reduction, (iii) the dates on which the reductions were made and (iv) the period of the contract they relate to; if he will list the decisions on further reductions in contract payments which are pending; and if he will make a statement. [90711]

Description/amounts by which contract payment reduced	Reasons for reduction	Dates reduction made	Contract period deductions relate to
Immigration and Nationality Directorate
£4.5 million	Delay in delivering full implementation of programme	Between 24 April 1996 and 31 March 1999	24 April 1996–31 March 1999
Medway Secure Training Centre
1. £618,721	1. Non-availability of places	Between September 1998 and May 1999	1. 18 July 1998–30 April 1999
2. £61,161	2. Failure to meet performance standards	2. 17 April 1998–30 April 1999
Data Capture (United Kingdom Passport Agency)
£66,931 (service credits)	1. Failure in systems availability (£47,235).	March 1999	5 October 1998–31 March 1999
	2. Accurancy errors in data passed to United Kingdom Passport Agency
Manufacture of Digital Passports (United Kingdom Passport Agency)
£4,489 (service credits)	Faults in passport books	Between 5 October 1998-to date	5 October 1998-to date
Altcourse Prison
£28,089	Failure to meet performance standards	May 1998	December 1997-February 1998
Lowdham Grange Prison
1.£702	1. Unavailable place	1. July 1998	1. 14–22 June 1999
2. £82,645	2. Failure to meet performance standards	2. Between October 1998 and March 1999	2. June 1998-February 1999
Parc Prison
1. £54,782	1. Failure to meet standard contract requirements	1. March 1998	1. February 1998
2. £751,309	2. Failure to meet specific performance standards	2. Between May 1998 and October 1999	2. 17 November 1997–30 November 1998
3. £835	3. Doubling cell occupation beyond permitted level	3. Between August 1998 and June 1999	3. July 1998-May 1999
Prison PABX System
£441,382	Late delivery of systems	Between April 1996 and October 1997	April 1996-October 1997

Of the contracts referred to in the table, further payment reductions are due to be implemented as follows:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many parliamentary questions were tabled to his Department for written answer on a named

The available information is as given the table.day between May 1997 and 14 April 1999; and what percentage of them received a substantive response on that named day. [91065]

I refer to the reply given to you on 15 April, Official Report, column 316. A further 11 'Named Day' parliamentary questions were answered by my Department up to, and including, the 14 April 1999 and received a substantive reply on the day requested. This does not alter the figure of 75.4 per cent. as previously stated.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to review the remission rates applied to prison sentences; and what monitoring his Department undertakes of remission rates in other European countries. [90989]

Provisions in Part II of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 abolished remission. In the reply I gave to my hon. Friend on 13 July, Official Report, column 109, I set out the new arrangements under the Act. We have no current plans to change these arrangements.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reported racial incidents there were by region in each year since 1995; and how many led to a conviction. [91165]

Available information about the number of racist incidents recorded by each police force since 1995 is set out in the table. These are based on the Association of Chief Police Officers definition of a racial incident

"any incident in which it appears to the reporting or investigating officer that the complaint involves an element of racial motivation; or any incident which includes an allegation of racial motivation made by any person."

Last year, a breakdown of the number of racist incidents recorded by the police in each police area was included for the first time in the Home Office publication "Statistics on Race and the Criminal Justice System", a copy of which is in the Library. The statistics for 1998–99 will be published in the autumn.The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry recommended that these incidents are referred to as "racist" incidents and that simpler and clearer definition should be used;

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from organisations concerned with health and safety on the draft Freedom of Information Bill. [90809]

Up to and including 12 July 1999 I had received one representation on the draft Freedom of Information Bill from an organisation concerned with health and safety. This was from the Health and Safety Commission and Health and Safety Executive (dated 7 July) and was a contribution to the public consultation exercise.The Health and Safety Commission/Executive expressed views primarily on the extent and nature of the exemptions.When the pre-legislative scrutiny and public consultation exercise have been completed, the Government will respond to the reports of the Select Committees and the submissions of the consultees. Consultation responses will be made publicly available at this time.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there were in Sussex in (a) May 1997 and (b) May 1999. [91450]

Information on police numbers is collected twice a year, in March and September. The information available is set out in the table:

Date	Number of officers
31 March 1997	3,085
31 March 1999	2,847

The number of police officers in each force is a matter for local determination by the chief constable and the police authority. It is for chief officers to decide on the balance between numbers of police officers and civilian support staff. The Sussex Police increased civilian numbers by 244 between March 1997 and March 1999.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Dr. Jones) of 14 April 1999, Official Report, column 257, what representations he has received regarding the working group on the status of transsexual people; what meetings he and his officials have had with groups representing transsexual people; and what plans he has made for such meetings in the future. [91294]

The Working Group on Transsexual People invited written submissions from interested parties. To date it has received representations from 10 organisations and 28 members of the public. A number of hon. Members have also written to me about the work of the Group. In addition, the Minister of State, Home Office, my right hon. Friend, Lord Williams of Mostyn, had a meeting with Susan Marshall, Vice-President of Press for Change, on 13 July. Consideration will be given to further meetings as appropriate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 5 July 1999, Official Report, column 325, on the M4 bus lane, when information on the number of motorists that have been (a) charged and (b) cautioned for using the new bus lane on the M4 will be made available. [91409]

The statistics collected centrally do not contain the location of offences and, therefore, offences committed on particular roads cannot be identified.I understand from the Metropolitan Police that they do not routinely keep statistics at this level of detail either, and have no plans to do so.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for the last five years for which figures are available, of those defendants who pleaded not guilty at (a) the Crown Court and (b) the magistrates court, how many were acquitted and how many convicted. [91396]

The table shows, in respect of cases handled by the Crown Prosecution Service, the outcome of contested hearings following a plea of not guilty in the Crown Court and in magistrates courts for each of the last five years. The table also shows the number of defendants convicted and acquitted, and expresses these as a proportion of all contested hearings.

Crown Court—contested hearings
Year ending March	Convictions after trial	Acquittals
1995	11,511	8,462
1996	12,358	8,399
1997	11,982	8,012
1998	13,413	9,012
1999	11,561	8,668

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research he has commissioned into the respective (a) rates of conviction, (b) levels of sentencing upon conviction following a plea of not guilty between (i) stipendiary and (ii) lay magistrates and (c) the levels of sentencing upon conviction following a plea of not guilty of (i) judges in the Crown Court, (ii) stipendiary and (iii) lay magistrates; and if he will publish it. [91397]

Research is being commissioned jointly by the Home Office and the Lord Chancellor's Department to assess the relative costs, effectiveness and other benefits/disadvantages of stipendiary and lay magistrates. This will look, inter alia, at conviction rates and sentencing patterns, although it is unlikely that it will seek to distinguish between sentencing in contested and guilty plea cases. Some information about differences between sentencing by lay and stipendiary magistrates is to be found in "Sentencing Practice: an examination of decisions in magistrates courts and the Crown Court in the mid-1990's" by Flood-Page and Mackie (1998, Home Office Research Study No. 180), a copy of which is in the Library.Statistical data are available on the type of sentence, including length of custody, received by defendants in the Crown Court for various offence groups by type of plea. These are to be found in Table 7E of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales 1997" (Home Office, 1998) a copy of which is in the Library. Data by plea are not yet available from magistrates courts.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for the last five years for which figures are available, how many defendants have elected trial by (a) jury and (b) magistrates; and what proportion of defendants charged with either way offences (a) and (b) represent. [91395]

The table shows, in respect of proceedings handled by the Crown Prosecution Service, the number of defendants charged with either way offences who elected trial by jury. These figures are also expressed as a percentage of all either way cases dealt with at the Crown Court.The table also shows the number of defendants charged with either way offences who consented to summary trial, and whose case proceeded to a contested hearing in magistrates courts. However, the Crown Prosecution Service maintains no separate record of either way proceedings dealt with in magistrates' courts by way of a guilty plea.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in respect of offences triable either way, what was, for the last five years for which figures are available, the average period between the plea of not guilty and the trial in (a) the Crown Court and (b) the magistrates courts [91398]

I have been asked to reply.Information on the time taken to deal with proceedings in the Crown Court and the magistrates court is not collected in a way which allows offences triable either way to be separately identified.The Court Service collects data on the average time between committal and arraignment or start of trial in the Crown Court. Table A shows the average time in the Crown Court from committal to start of trial for defendants pleading not guilty from 1994 to 1998. These data include both either way and indictable only cases.The Lord Chancellor's Department Time Intervals Survey collects data on the duration of criminal cases completed in magistrates courts in sample weeks in February, June and October. The interval between a plea of not guilty and the trial is not separately identified. Table B gives the average number of days from first appearance or mode of trial decision to verdict for defendants pleading not guilty in indictable and triable either way cases in magistrates courts from 1994 to 1998.

Table A: Crown Court: England and Wales: Average time from committal to start of trial for defendants pleading not guilty, 1994 to 1998
Year	Average number of weeks from committal to start of trial
1994	21.4
1995	21.3
1996	19.1
1997	18.2
1998	18.4

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Human Rights Act 1998 comes into effect in (a) Wales and (b) Scotland; and if he will make a statement. [91687]