asked the Secretary of State for Energy what steps he is considering to prevent unauthorised use of plutonium at all plants dealing with it or planned to deal with it such as at Wind-scale.

British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. and the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority apply strict physical security measures to protect plutonium in their charge—measures which are kept under constant review. Detailed nuclear materials accounting procedures are used to record all production, stocks and movements of plutonium. Exports of plutonium are authorised by the Government only when they are satisfied as to the end use and that safeguards and other protective measures will be applied in a manner consistent with our obligations under the NPT and as a supplier of nuclear material.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy, in view of the need for Deminex to meet its commitments in the West Germany market, whether he will permit the company to export 75 per cent.

NET IMPORTS (1) AS PERCENTAGE OF GROSS INLAND CONSUMPTION (2) IN 1976
					Oil (3)	Natural gas	Solid fuel (4)	Total oil, natural gas and solid fuel
Western Europe (5)			…	…	94·7	11·0	15·9	63·8
United States of America				…	43·4	4·5	-9·8 (6)	20·7
Japan	…	…	…	…	102·5 (7)	74·5	75·9	96·8
Notes:
(1) Imports less exports and international marine bunkers.
(2) Indigenous production plus net imports plus or minus stock changes.
(3) Crude petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas liquids.
(4) Coal and lignite and derived solid fuels and gases other than town gas. Also included are small quantities of non-commercial fuels, e.g. peat, wood.
(5) OECD European countries: sums of net country imports.
(6) Exports exceeded imports.
(7) Some oil imported was stocked.
Source: OECD, Energy balance of OECD countries 1974–1976.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects the North Cormorant platform support structure contract to be allocated;

It is a condition of all North Sea production licences that the crude oil produced shall be delivered on shore in the United Kingdom unless my right hon. Friend gives written consent to delivery elsewhere. There is no statutory restriction on subsequent export. Pending completion of a pipeline to Sullom Voe, Thistle oil is being loaded into tankers offshore and can therefore, subject to my right hon. Friend's consent, be delivered overseas direct from the field. My Department is currently discussing with Deminex its disposal plans for the immediate future and my right hon. Friend has already agreed that its first cargo may be delivered direct to West Germany.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will publish a table showing what percentage of oil, natural gas and coal currently consumed by Western European States, the United States of America and Japan is imported by them.

The following is the latest available information:and what steps are being taken to ensure that the structure will be built in a Scottish yard.

The order for the Cormorant North platform is expected to be placed towards the end of this year. I am certain that United Kingdom yards will be given a full and fair opportunity to bid in accordance with the procedure agreed with the offshore operators.

asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether the United Kingdom is taking part in any international collaborative research on wave power.

An agreement is due to be signed in Tokyo today between four member countries of the International Energy Agency, to undertake a collaborative programme of research and development on one aspect of wave power. In this programme, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada will collaborate with Japan in the testing of air driven turbines and generators on board an 80-metre-long buoy, specially constructed for the Japan Marine Science and Technology Centre. The tests, which will be carried out in the Sea of Japan during the two coming winters, will cost approximately £1½ million. The United Kingdom contribution is expected to be about £300,000, part of this being spent in British industry.The information and experience from the sea trial will be of considerable value to our independent national programme on wave power, which I announced in April 1976, and to which the Department of Energy has so far committed £2½ million.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment: (1) over what sites in England and Wales the Central Electricity Generatng Board has planning permission to build a nuclear power station pursuant to section 40 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971;(2) for what sites in England and Wales consents under the Electric Lighting Act 1909 have been granted for the construction of projected nuclear power stations; and what are the type of stations requested in the applications.

pursuant to his reply[Official Report, 8th February; Vol. 943, c. 561], gave the following further information:I am now informed that the Central Electricity Generating Board carried out certain "specified operations" as defined by Section 43 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 on the site of the proposed AGR station at Sizewell in 1970, is, within five years from the date on which the planning permission for the development was deemed to have been granted in 1969. Accordingly, the planning permission remains in force and the conditions calling for consultations with the local planning authority as to the external appearance of the station and other matters still apply.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Government intend to make a reply to the report of the Select Committee on race relations and immigration on the West Indian community published in February 1977.

Very shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what instructions he has given to the immigration authorities to prevent any successful reentry into the United Kingdom of David Duke of the Ku Klux Klan.

I have given a personal direction under the Immigration Act 1971 that Mr. Duke should be refused to leave or to enter, if he attempts to return to the United Kingdom, on the ground that his exclusion would be conducive to the public good.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many policemen have been injured whilst on duty at: (a) protest marches, (b) football grounds and (c) mass meetings in each of the past two years.

This information is not held centrally and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Departent whether he will introduce measures to discontinue the use of the London Borough prefix in descriptions of parliamentary constituencies within Greater London; and, to avoid confusion, to allow the hon. Members for Romford, Upminster and Horn-church, respectively, to be described as such in official proceedings and printed documents.

It will be open to the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England to recommend new names for constituencies in London and elsewhere as part of its current general review. The form of constituency name used in the official proceedings and printed documents of the House is a matter for the House authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average salary for a member of the police force who has (a) 10, (b) 20 and (c) 30 years' service.

The salary of a uniformed constable is:

	London	Elsewhere
	£	£
After 10 years	3,874	3,483
After 20 years	4,309	3,918
After 30 years	4,309	3,918

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that Mr. Ashraf Kahib Bishay, an Egyptian, who admitted and was found guilty of entering into a marriage of convenience to legitimise his illegal entry and stay in Great Britain, left his wife immediately, claimed and obtained illegally £169·23 in social welfare benefits, plus £213·90 for his wife, and admitted 19 other similar offences; whether he will act in accordance with the courts' recommendation of deportation; and on how many occasions he has declined to deport convicted persons when requested to do so by the courts.

Mr. Bishay has appealed against the sentence imposed by the magistrates' court, and the case is therefore sub judice.In 1977, it was decided not to act on court recommendations for deportation in 181 cases.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many citizens of the Irish Republic have been deported from the United Kingdom in each of the years since 1962.

Following is the information requested:

1962	79
1963	160
1964	141
1965	158
1966	154
1967	205
1968	181
1969	191
1970	156
1971	143
1972	139
1973	107
1974	89
1975	93
1976	71
1977	58

These figures include a number of people who have been removed more than once.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many citizens of the Irish Republic recommended for deportation in each of the years since 1962 made a successful appeal against the deportation order.

Where a person has been recommended for deportation by a court, there is no appeal against a decision by the Secretary of State to make a deportation order. An appeal against the court's recommendation lies to a higher court.The following number of such appeals by citizens of the Irish Republic have been successful since 1962:

1962	12
1963	19
1964	7
1965	8
1966	3
1967	7
1968	7
1969	5
1970	2
1971	3
1972	4
1973	1
1974	3
1975	1
1976	Nil
1977	Nil

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many deportation orders were (a) made and (b) enforced under Sections 3(5)(a), 3(5)(b), 3(5)(c) and 3(6) of the Immigration Act 1971, in 1976 and 1977, respectively; and how many people were re-deported in 1976 and 1977, having

					S. 3(5)(a)	S. 3(5)(b)	S. 3(5)(c)	S. 3(6)
Number of orders made:
1976	…	…	…	…	197	36	Nil	555
1977	…	…	…	…	402	58	8	684
Number of orders enforced:
1976	…	…	…	…	75	35	Nil	419
1977	…	…	…	…	124	40	1	560

There were 32 occasions in 1976 and 26 in 1977 when the deportee was removed after having returned to the United Kingdom in breach of a deportation order.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will list the countries to which deportees have been returned under escort during 1977; and if he will state the reasons for the escort;(2) if he will list the number of deportation orders he signed according to country of origin during 1977 and set out alongside the number of persons who were deported under escort.

I regret that not all the information requested is readily available.Deportees were returned under escort to the following countries during 1977: Egypt, Finland, Germany (Federal Republic), Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey and the United States of America. This list derives from our inspection of manually compiled records of individual cases and may not be comprehensive.An escort is provided if the deportee is considered to be medically or mentally unfit to travel alone, or if he has previously shown aggressive tendencies.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in view of the fact that Middle East Airlines were fined the maximum of £400 with £75 costs at the Uxbridge Magistrates Court on 3rd April 1978 for importing a dog contrary to the anti-rabies law, and as this punishment is not likely to

The figures under the provisions of the Immigration Act 1971 specified are as follows:be a deterrent to such organisations, if he will seek to amend the law to enable airline licences to be withdrawn in such cases.

The maximum summary fine for an offence under the Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974 was increased to £1,000 by Section 55 of the Criminal Law Act 1977, which came into force on 8th September. Offences committed before that date are liable only to the old maximum fine of £400. Offences committed knowingly, and with intent to evade the controls of the importation of animals, may be tried on indictment, when the Crown court may impose an unlimited fine. I am satisfied that the powers of the court are adequate.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions for offences of a racialist character have taken place in Birmingham during the last 12 months under the provisions of the Public Order Act.

My right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney-General will be providing my hon. Friend with such information as is available in respect of prosecutions for the offence of incitement to racial hatred. The statistics kept of prosecutions brought for other offences under the Public Order Act 1936 do not distinguish offences of a racialist character.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many supervised departures were arranged as an alternative to deportation in each year from 1973 to 1977.

The numbers of supervised departures arranged in the years in question are as follows:

1973	52
1974	89
1975	132
1976	95
1977	91

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the number of supervised departures arranged in 1977 by country of nationality.

The information is as follows:

Algeria	1
Australia	1
Bangladesh	1
Canada	3
Chile	1
Colombia	1
Cyprus	1
Denmark	1
Egypt	12
France	5
Germany (Federal Republic)	7
Ghana	1
Hong Kong	1
India	4
Iran	6
Irish Republic	4
Italy	8
Japan	1
Lebanon	1
Libya	3
Nigeria	1
Pakistan	5
Sierra Leone	2
South Yemen	1
Spain	2
Sri Lanka	1
Thailand	3
Tunisia	1
Turkey	7
United States	4
Doubtful	1
TOTAL	91

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the latest figures for the electorates of each of the second-tier local authorities in the non-metropolitan county of Hampshire.

The latest available figures are for 1977 and have been published by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys in "Electoral Statistics 1977" (Series EL No. 4, page 17) a copy of which is in the Library. Provisional figures for the 1978 register will be published in an OPCS Monitor in May or June.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department why he has not so far been able to write to the hon. Member for Woking concerning the review of the question of references on applications for registration and naturalisation, as promised in his reply to the hon. Member's Written Question on 26th October 1977, and in spite of his assurance, in reply to the hon. Member's Written Question on 17th February 1978, that he hoped to do so "very soon".

I am sorry to keep the hon. Member waiting for a reply, but some of the details of this matter have taken longer to settle than had been expected. I hope to have an opportunity of considering the whole matter further in the near future.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in the light of the evidence used in Regina V. Hewitt at Ashton-under-Lyne Magistrates' Court on 29th September 1977, whether he remains satisfied with the arrangements under which police obtain original printed tape recording made from a meter check printer attached to a private subscriber's telephone without his consent; and what information he has of the number of cases in which the police have requested, and been given permission to obtain, the original printed tape recording rather than a print-out of the information collected in this manner.

I understand that in the case referred to by my Friend the original meter check printer record—which shows the number dialled and the duration of the call, but does not show what was said—was made available to the defence at its request; it was later made available also to the prosecution. I am not aware of any other similar case where an original print has been made available. As to the arrangements by which in limited and exceptional circumstances the police obtain from the Post Office information derived from meter check printers, I have nothing to add to the reply which I gave to a Question by my hon. Friend on 23rd February—[Vol. 944, c. 760–1.]

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will ask for a report from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis on the circumstances in which 25 policemen escorted National Front canvassers around the Loughborough Lane housing estate on Thursday 6th April in the forth-coming Lambeth Central by-election; if this police protection was sought by the National Front; what was the cost of this protection; and if the bill will be presented to the National Front.

The Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis tells me that in connection with canvassing in the forthcoming by-election, police officers are deployed, as necessary, to preserve public order and to prevent possible breaches of the peace. The arrangements are an operational matter for the Commissioner.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offences of procuring illegal abortion have been recorded for each of the years 1967–77.

The information requested has been published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", and is in Table 28 of the volume for 1976 (Cmnd. 6909). The number of offences of procuring illegal abortion recorded by the police in 1977 was 11.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many persons have been proceeded against for performing illegal abortions in each of the years 1967–77 inclusive; and how many persons have been convicted;(2) how many prosecutions for illegal abortions have been brought in each year 1967–77 inclusive.

To obtain information about the total number of prosecutions for procuring illegal abortions would involve disproportionate cost. The information available relates to the number of persons proceeded against whose principle offence was procuring an illegal abortion. The number of persons proceeded against at magistrates' courts and the number of persons convicted at all courts for procuring illegal abortions is published annually in "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales". The latest published information is given in tables 1(a) and 10(a) of the volume for 1976. Figures for 1977 are not yet available.

asked the Prime Minister if he will give his assurance to the House that no public money in kind or by grant will be provided in support of any campaigns in the referendums which may be held under the terms of the Scotland and Wales Bills.

The Government have no proposals for making public money available in support of the referendum campaigns.

asked the Prime Minister if he is satisfied with the co-operation between the Department of the Environment and the Department of Health and Social Security over the administration of adaptations to houses for disabled people; and if he will make a statement.

Yes. My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Health and Social Security and for the Environment, and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Wales are tomorrow issuing for consultation the draft of a joint circular to local authorities on adaptations of houses for disabled people.

asked the Prime Minister if he will pay a visit to South Ribble.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister when he proposes next to meet Heads of State of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries.

The OECD does not meet at Head of State or Government level. But I met the Heads of State or Government of some OECD members at the European Council last week and will be meeting others at the Economic Summit in Bonn in July. My right hon. Friends the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary plan to attend the OECD ministerial meeting in Paris in June.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13th April.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 13th April.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will list his official engagements for 13th April.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his engagements for Thursday 13th April.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 13th April.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 13th April.

asked the Prime Minister if he will list his public engagements for 13th April.

I refer my hon. Friends and the hon. Members to the reply which I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Manchester, Withington (Mr. Silvester).

asked the Prime Minister why he will not give for the longest and most convenient period of time since he became Prime Minister the number of photographs he has had printed of himself, the number signed and circulated, to whom, at what public costs, and the reasons for the photographs.

Because it would involve disproportionate effort to do so.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will now establish a United Kingdom disaster fund to give immediate help to those in distress following an emergency of one sort or another.

Existing arrangements whereby local authorities deal with emergencies in their areas have proved generally adequate. Where an undue burden falls on a local authority in dealing with an emergency, the Government will consider giving special financial assistance.

asked the Prime Minister which Minister is responsible for co-ordinating the accident and emergency services.

Action to deal with accidents and emergencies is usually co-ordinated locally. The Government would become involved if an emergency were too serious to be dealt with by local resources, and in such a case responsibility for co-ordination would be determined by the nature of the emergency.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will make a statement on his latest meeting with President Carter.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to the hon. Member for Chingford (Mr. Tebbit) on 11th April.

asked the Prime Minister if he has any immediate plans to visit Reading.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister if he has any plans to visit West Berlin.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister whether he has any plans to visit Burntwood.

I have at present no plans to do so.

asked the Prime Minister when he next expects to meet the TUC.

I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, East (Mr. Thomas) on 6th April.

asked the Prime Minister if, in the light of supermarket trading methods as one of the causes of the demise of Spillers bread manufacturing of the effect of supermarket trading methods on shoplifting statistics, of unsupervised sales by supermarkets of alcoholic beverages and of the effect on manufacturers prices of the insistence of supermarkets that certain manufacturers are obliged to undertake merchandising activities which increase the price of goods supplies, he will set up an interdepartmental inquiry between the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Home Office, the Department of Prices and Consumer Protection and the Department of Trade, to investigate the effect of supermarket trading on the availability and supply of food items, the increase in alcoholism amongst housewives the increase in certain criminal activities and the increase in food prices; and if he will make a statement.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry when he proposes to meet the Small Business Committee of the Confederation of British Industry.

My right hon. Friend has no immediate plans to do so but my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and I both attended the meeting of the council which was held on 1st March 1978.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he will issue a general direction to the Post Office forbidding it from releasing to the police or any other body the original printed tape recording made from a meter check printer attached to a subscriber's telephone without his consent.

No. I understand that it is the Post Office's policy not to release the original printed record from a meter check printer to the police or any other body, except to a court of law when required by the court to do so.

asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many departmental surveys, questionnaires or similar investigations his Department has in hand; how many civil servants are involved in collecting and processing the statistics; what is their estimated annual cost; and if he will list the statistical inquiries in the Official Report.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 12th April 1978], gave the following information:

asked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he has any further statement to make about the deficiency in the Post Office pension fund.

The chairman of the Post Office announced earlier today that the Post Office had found a solution to the long-standing problem of funding that part of the deficiency attributed to the period before the Post Office was established as a public corporation. The proposal will involve the creation of an interest-bearing security financed from the reserves of the Post Office and held by

asked the Secretary of State for Industry if, pursuant to his answer of 8th March to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Perry Barr, he will seek permission from Cadbury Schweppes Limited to disclose the information requested in the orginal Question which he was unable to disclose.

pursuant to his reply [Official Report, 22nd March 1978; Vol. 946, c. 592] gave the following information:I have consulted Cadbury Schweppes Limited and I am able to publish the amounts of investment grants, regional development grants and selective financial

							IG	RDG	SFA
							£	£	£
1970:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	51,084	—	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	66,306	—	—
3. Cadbury Brothers Ltd.				…	…	…	816,821	—	—
1971:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	3,290	—	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	73,188	—	—
3. Cadbury Brothers Ltd.				…	…	…	252,551	—	—
1972:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	91,215	—	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	92,382	—	—
3. Cadbury Brothers Ltd.				…	…	…	188,394	—	—
1973:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	74,065	—	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	82,096	—	—
3. Cadbury Brothers Ltd.				…	…	…	96,965	—	—
1974:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	8,697	10,979	—
1975:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	—	72,107	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	16,021	292,664	—
1976:
1. Glenville Foods Ltd.				…	…	…	—	—	28,000
2. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	—	40,996	10,000
3. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	—	63,415	—
1977:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	—	126,223	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	—	233,769	250,000
1978:
1. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	—	2,721	—
2. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	—	29,051	—
Total	…	…	…	…	…	…	1,913,075	871,925	288,000
1. Glenville Foods Ltd.				…	…	…	—	—	28,000
2. Cadbury Ltd.			…	…	…	…	228,351	253,026	10,000
3. Cadbury Schweppes (Foods) Ltd.						…	329,993	618,899	250,000
4. Cadbury Brothers Ltd.				…	…	…	1,354,731	—	—
							1,913,075	871,925	288,000

asked the Secretary of State for Industry (1) what evidence he has of foreign competitors of British engineering firms receiving subventions from their Governments in their exports to United Kingdom;(2) whether steps taken by his Government to stimulate capital investment in the heavier industries have resulted in an increase in imports;

Any steps taken by the Government to stimulate investment will inevitably, to some degree, result in increased imports, though not necessarily an increase in import penetration—and in fact the import content of heavier goods is lower than average. However, the Government are taking all the steps they can to encourage domestic manufacturers of capital equipment to meet the demand for such equipment. Export subsidies are banned under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and, apart from cases under examination there, I have no evidence of subsidies for exports to the United Kingdom outside those areas where we have already taken countervailing action. If any evidence were to become available we would wish to look into it urgently.

asked the Attorney-General if he is making any study of the current practices relating to uncorroborated evidence of informers seeking the protection of Queen's evidence, including any comparison of different practice within the United Kingdom.

I have been asked to reply.We are making no such general study but if my hon. Friend has a particular point in mind I shall be glad to look into it.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether Mr. Moss Evans will now be appointed ex officio in place of Mr. Jack Jones to all the various Government appointments held by the latter.

No.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment to what extent the wage and salary increases agreed to in the printing industry fall within the Government's wages and incomes policy.

On the basis of the information supplied to my Department the proposed new national settlement for the general printing industry in England and Wales would appear to be consistent with the policies set out in the White Paper (Cmnd. 6882).

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will state the percentage of registered unemployed in the areas that cover the constituency of Holland with Boston.

At 9th March, the percentage rates of unemployment for the Boston, Holbeach and Spalding employment office areas, which correspond closely with the Holland with Boston constituency, were 7·7, 6·7 and 5·1 respectively.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many residents of Haydock, Merseyside, are employed within the boundaries of the former Haydock UDC to the latest available date.

Information about the numbers of people who both reside and work in a particular local authority area is available only from the Census of Population. At the time of the 1971 Census, 1,850 residents of Haydock urban district worked in that district.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether Spillers-French has issued redundancy notices to employees; and what discussions or action is being initiated by his Department to avert redundancies.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he is taking to preserve the jobs of those workers threatened with redundancy by the proposed closure of Spillers Bakeries; and what alternative measures he proposes to take in the event of such measures being necessary.

I understand that redundancy notices were issued by Spillers-French on 7th April to the employees concerned. The only form of assistance which my Department can offer to avert redundancies is the temporary employment subsidy, which is intended to help firms overcome short-term difficulties and was not therefore appropriate in this case. The Manpower Services Commission is, however, doing all it can to help the redundant workers find new jobs or train in new skills. Furthermore, the Government have received informal assurances from Rank Hovis McDougall and Associated British Foods that they expect to take on over 2,000 additional workers—over and above those working in the 13 plants they are buying from Spillers-French—to meet the increased production they will need as a result of the closure of the 23 Spillers' bakeries.

asked the Secretary of State for Employment when he expects to receive the annual report of the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service.

I have received the ACAS report for 1977 and copies have been laid in both Houses. The report is being published today and I have arranged to put copies in the Library and in the Vote Office.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if, in the light of the Transport White Paper, he will confirm the likely starting date for the A17 West Lynn-Clenchwarton-Terrington St. Clement bypass and his latest estimate for a completion date.

I confirm that, as stated in the White Paper "Policy on Roads: England 1978", this scheme is programmed to start in 1979–80; construction is expected to take two years.

Years		Railway Route Miles at 31st December	Railway Passenger Stations at 31st December	Railway Staff'000 at 31st December	Railway Passenger Journeys in millions	Railway Freight in million tonnes
1948	…	19,630	6,686	649	996	278
1955	…	19,060	5,594	563	994	279
1965	…	14,920	3,161	365	865	232
1976	…	11,189	2,361	222	708	178

1948 is the earliest year for which comparable figures are to hand, and 1976 is the last year for which information is available. Information about railway mileage for years other than those shown cannot be obtained without disproportionate cost.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport how many bicycles there were in 1945, 1955, 1965 and in 1977, or the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available.

It is estimated from National Travel Surveys that at the end of 1975 there were 7 million bicycles available to private households in Great Britain. Toy bicycles, etc., not primarily intended for use as a means of transport, and bicycles available only to institutions or businesses are excluded. The corresponding figure in 1965 was over 8 million.Earlier figures are not available.

asked the Minister of Transport (1) how many miles of railways there were in 1945; and how many miles of rail have been built and closed down in each year since 1945; and how many stations have been closed since 1945;(2) how many people were employed on the railways in 1945, 1955, 1965 and 1977, or the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available;(3) how many passenger journeys have been taken on the railways for 1945, 1955, 1965 and 1977, or the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available.(4) what volume of freight was carried by the railways in 1945, 1955, 1965 and 1977, or the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available.

Following is the information:

asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he is now able to make a statement on the line of his Department's proposed works in respect of the Saltash-Trerulefoot section of the A38 link road improvement; and, if not, when he intends to make this announcement.

My right hon. Friend expects to be able to make an announcement very shortly.

asked the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his Written Answer to the hon. Member for Christ-church and Lymington, when the National Bus Company intends to introduce its scheme of off-peak concessionary fares for pensioners in areas where no scheme presently exists.

The National Bus Company has just asked its subsidiary companies to investigate the areas in which schemes might be introduced. Schemes

NUMBER OF STAFF
					1963–64	1969–70	1073–74	1977–78
House of Commons		…	…	…	279 (35)	361 (63)	419 (68)	514 (86)
Refreshment Department			…	…	Not available	194 (14)	191 (22)	236 (6)
House of Lords	…	…	…	…	163 (24)	112 (33)*	149 (38)	171 (41)
Refreshment Department			…	…	Not available	Not available	Not available	51 (10)
Metropolitan Police		…	…	…	85	79	79	205†
Department of the Environment				…	Not available	277 (16)	326 (16)	244 (13)
Civil Service Department‡			…	…	12	17	21	21 (1)
Part-time staff are shown in brackets and are counted as half in the totals.
* The drop in staff numbers between 1963–64 and 1969–70 was due in part to the transfer of 54 Custodian staff to the Vote of the Department of the Environment with effect from 1966–67.
† Includes 98 Custodians and Firemen responsibility for whom was transferred from the Department of the Environment on 1st October 1977. The increase in the number of officers reflects the implementation of improved security arrangements at the Palace following the statement by Mr. Speaker on 27th July 1977.—[Vol. 936, cc. 631–4.]
‡ Includes staff of the Government Whips' Office (Commons), Opposition Whips' Office (Commons) and the Government Whips' Office (Lords). The Government Whips' Office (Commons) is divided between the House of Commons and 12 Downing Street.
Staff employed by the Post Office for postal and telecommunications duty, and those employed by the Royal British Legion as attendants in the underground car park are not included in this table.

asked the Lord President of the Council on how many occasions the Order Paper has not been available on the following morning between the Queen's Speech and 5th April in each of the last 10 parliamentary years.

The information is as follows:

1972–73	10
1973–74	0
1974–75	10
1975–76	6
1976–77	1
1977–78	13

asked the Lord President of the Council what was the number of staff—full-time and part-time—employed in the Palace of Westminster by the House of Commons, House of Lords, the Refreshment Departments, the Metropolitan Police, the Department of the Environment, the Civil Service Department, respectively, in the years 1963–64, 1969–70, 1973–74 and 1977–78, respectively.

The information is as follows:I regret that for the years prior to the 1st November 1972 Queen's Speech the information is not available.

asked the Lord President of the Council how many hours were spent on Scotland on the Floor of the House in each of the last five years.

The information is as follows:

Session	Hours	Minutes
1973–74	8	9
1974	9	8
1974–75	67	14
1975–76	67	40
1976–77	154	37

The totals exclude time spent on the daily Adjournment debate, statements, Private Notice Questions, refused applications under Section 9 or Scottish business as part of the Consolidated Fund or holiday Adjournment motion debates.

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what is the maximum size of oil tankers permitted to enter the Thames Estuary fully laden.

Ships with a draught not exceeding 45 feet enter the Thames Estuary. This is equivalent to a fully laden oil tanker of about 100,000 deadweight tons though larger tankers partly laden enter the estuary.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will specify the sums paid under certificates of indemnity by the national museums and library in Wales in respect of claims for loss of, or damage sustained to, objects lent to them during the financial year ended 31st March 1978, divided between (a) claims satisfied in respect of long-term loans to the permanent collections, and (b) claims satisfied in respect of loans to temporary exhibitions.

None.

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what was the amount allocated to his Department on 1st April 1978, in respect of the £1 million set aside for the preservation of the national heritage as a consequence of the announcement on 26th October 1977, as revalued to current prices.

£85,320.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will set up an examination of the feasibility of using St. Pancras Station for the ancillary services, trades and small industries which the proposed British Library nearby will both require and generate.

The Greater London Council is responsible for preparing an action area plan for the King's Cross and St. Pancras area. The provision of services related to the proposed British Library will be looked at within the framework of that plan. I understand that the British Railways Board has no plans to cease using St. Pancras Station.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what reply he has received from the West Lancaster District Council about its failure to levy charges for the collection of trade waste.

The reply indicates that charges have now been imposed. I shall be writing to my hon. Friend.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many local authorities have failed to charge for the collection of trade waste under the Public Health Act 1936; and what action he is taking to enforce the law.

On present information eight of the 365 collection authorities do not appear to charge. This Department is making further inquiries.

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what was the annual cost of clearing derelict land in each of the metropolitan districts of Merseyside in each year since 1974;(2) what was the annual cost of clearing derelict land in each of the metropolitan districts of Greater Manchester in each year since 1974;(3) what was the annual cost of clearing derelict land in each of the district councils of Cheshire in each year since 1974;(4) how much derelict land has been cleared in each of the district councils of Lancashire in each year since 1974.

Following is the expenditure by the county councils and district councils on derelict land reclamation in each of the years 1974–75, 1975–76 and 1976–77. A break-down of county council

EXPENDITURE BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES ON RECLAIMING DERELICT LAND
								1974–75	1975–76	1976–77
								£	£	£
GREATER MANCHESTER
Greater Manchester County Council						…	…	144,488	349,372	485,125
Bolton		…	…	…	…	…	…	107,083	65,000	46,178
Bury	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	83,000	164,840	33,246
Manchester		…	…	…	…	…	…	75,000	78,016	12,724
Oldham		…	…	…	…	…	…	158,625	311,790	177,763
Rochdale		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	115	66,391
Salford		…	…	…	…	…	…	47,000	—	—
Stockport		…	…	…	…	…	…	3,800	1,070	—
Tameside		…	…	…	…	…	…	89,938	10,000	39,604
Trafford		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Wigan	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	73,407	108,898	266,154
MERSEYSIDE
Merseyside County Council					…	…	…	100	5,492	1,550
Knowsley		…	…	…	…	…	…	73,147	—	—
Liverpool		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
St. Helens		…	…	…	…	…	…	130,740	12,427	39,712
Sefton	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Wirral	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
CHESHIRE
Cheshire County Council				…	…	…	…	21,700	294,938	204,417
Chester		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Congleton		…	…	…	…	…	…	232,801	*	*
Crewe and Nantwich				…	…	…	…	—	—	500
Ellesmere Port			…	…	…	…	…	—	—	26,163
Halton		…	…	…	…	…	…	36,570	*	*
Macclesfield		…	…	…	…	…	…	23,991	10,000	523
Vale Royal		…	…	…	…	…	…	1,166	18,000	7,026
Warrington		…	…	…	…	…	…	11,250	62,000	155,598
LANCASHIRE
Lancashire County Council					…	…	…	81,027	97,535	274,782
Blackburn		…	…	…	…	…	…	88,337	76,021	29,498
Blackpool		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Burnley		…	…	…	…	…	…	202,690	302,239	97,350
Chorley		…	…	…	…	…	…	214	800	8,000
Fylde	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Hyndburn		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	8,227	7,052
Lancaster		…	…	…	…	…	…	912	—	4,812
Pendle		…	…	…	…	…	…	42,041	44,778	14,061
Preston		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Ribble Valley			…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
Rossendale		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	29,067
South Ribble		…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
West Lancashire			…	…	…	…	…	2,430	—	—
Wyre	…	…	…	…	…	…	…	—	—	—
* Included in Cheshire County Council expenditure under agency arrangements.