asked Her Majesty's Government:

(i) How much public money at 1981 prices has been (a) given, (b) loaned and (c) paid in return for equity or other stock to the De Lorean project in West Belfast in each year since the project was first supported by them;

(ii) what is the value at 1981 prices of all the other assistance, whether in kind or by way of grants, loans etc., provided from public funds to the De Lorean project in these years, including standard grants available to new industrial projects in Northern Ireland, help with site acquisition, associated public services etc.;

(iii) how many additional jobs (in terms of full-time jobs per year) have been created (a) at the De Lorean factory itself and (b) in other associated industries and suppliers in the United Kingdom in each year since the project started.

(i) The Northern Ireland Development Agency has subscribed a total of £17·75 million for redeemable participating preference shares in De Lorean Motor Cars Limited as follows:

	Cash Prices £ million	Constant 1981 Prices £ million
1978	6·21	9·32
1979	7·10	9·39
1980	4·44	4·97

(ii) The following grants and loans have been provided:

Grants:	Cash Prices £ million	Constant 1981 Prices £ million
1979	3·95	5·23
1980	10·86	12·16
1981	3·88	3·88
Loans:
1979	7·77	10·28
1980	22·70	25·42
1981	0	0

A loan guarantee in respect of bank borrowings of up to £10 million has also been provided. This guarantee expires on 31st May 1982 when it will be replaced by a guarantee in respect of borrowings of up to £5 million which will run to 31st August 1982.(iii) Total employment at De Lorean Motor Cars Limited has built up as follows:

31st December 1978	25
31st December 1979	212
31st December 1980	631
31st December 1981	2,636

I regret that it is not possible to estimate to an acceptable degree of accuracy the number of employees of other companies whose jobs depend on the De Lorean enterprise.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in the light of the Burns Group's Report on local authority powers to assist industry and commerce, they have any legislative proposals.

My right honourable friends have given the Burns Report very careful consideration. They recognise, on the one hand, the understandable desire of local authorities to encourage the economic development of their areas. On the other hand, they have been conscious of the danger to the Government's inner city and regional policies from directly competing activity by local authorities outside the disadvantaged areas, while the variety of powers available to local authorities to assist industry and commerce has proved confusing.The Government believe local authorities have a positive and important role to play in sustaining and fostering local employment. Circumstances will differ from area to area so the Government propose to grant local authorites a general power to assist industry in ways appropriate to their own local circumstances. In particular, one of the primary uses of such a power should be to give a helping hand to small firms which underpin the economy of a community. The Government hope local authorities will direct their aid to stimulating additional private investment in new enterprises.They propose that local authorities should have a new general power to assist independent firms employing up to 25 people in any way they see fit, subject only to an annual limitation on their expenditure of the product of a halfpenny rate. This would replace local Act powers due to expire in 1984, and the use some local authorites have made of Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972, which will, however, remain available to them for other purposes.Because of the special problems of the inner areas of our cities, districts designated under the Inner Urban Areas Act would, however, continue to have access to Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972 for the purposes of assistance to industry, as well as their powers under the Inner Urban Areas Act.In addition, the Government propose the following minor extensions to the Local Authorities (Land) Act 1963 in England and Wales:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their best estimate, or if they have none, what estimates have been made by public bodies, of the total costs, including all training, supervision, labour, materials and all other capital costs, at 1980 prices, of insulating all homes in Great Britain to currently approved standards, how many years it is estimated such a programme might take to complete, and how many additional jobs (in terms of full-time jobs per year) would be created while this work was being done.

There are no approved standards for insulating existing homes. Grants are made under the Home Insulation Scheme for insulating lofts and associated hot water tanks. It is estimated that the total costs at 1980 prices of these measures would be of the order of £450 million.Current projections suggest that the measures should be largely completed within 5 to 10 years.The number of additional jobs that would be created would depend on how much of the insulation work was carried out by householders themselves.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will state, in respect of the Nature Conservancy Council's (NCC) grant-in-aid:

The approved level of grant-in-aid to the Nature Conservancy Council for 1981–82 was £10,047,000. The council asked for its grant-in-aid to be increased by an amount within the range from £950,000 to £1,130,000, in constant terms, for 1982–83 in the light of its increased responsibilities under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. Subject to parliamentary approval of the estimate, the Government propose that the level of grant-in-aid to the NCC for 1982–83 should amount to £11,270,000. The NCC is not required to estimate the cost of maintaining its activities at the present level during 1982–83, but on the basis of forecast pay and price increases that would have required a grant-in-aid settlement of £10,670,000.The difference of £600,000 between the last two figures does not mean that that sum has been allocated specifically for new responsibilities. The grant-in-aid will cover the whole range of the council's activities and it will be for the council to decide how to distribute the funds amongst them.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Full details are published annually in the Accounts laid before Parliament under the Severn Bridge Tolls Act 1965. The total maintenance and operating costs, including interest charges, and the total revenue of the Severn Bridge for each of the last five financial years for which accounts have been published are as follows:—

	Maintenance and operating costs	Revenue
	(£)	(£)
1975–76	2,339,719	1,216,512
1976–77	2,686,082	1,254,380
1977–78	3,165,399	1,242,306
1978–79	3,533,294	1,330,837
1979–80	3,739,409	2,134,378

The total maintenance and operating costs, including interest charges, since the bridge was opened have been £27,161,898; and the total revenue has been £15,476,273.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is now the estimated total cost of the Civil Service strike last year.

The cost to public funds resulting from the Civil Service dispute last year has been mainly in terms of interest on the additional borrowing resulting from delays to the collection of revenue. Up to the end of January 1982 the estimated extra interest amounted to £450 million to £500 million.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Under what authority or by whose permission the Royal Mint has accepted a commission to mint a commemorative plaque of the Pope's pastoral visit to this country showing the image of the Queen alongside that of the Pope.

The Royal Mint obtained confirmation that its client had consulted the Lord Chamberlain's office and no objection had been raised to the design proposed by its client for use on the plaque. Thereafter, the Royal Mint's decision to accept an order to manufacture the plaque was taken on commercial grounds.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether a company set up by the Roman Church to handle the promotion of the papal visit is required to register under the Companies Acts and whether profits from fees and royalties to cover the visit and profits from promotional commercial enterprises will be taxable.

The answer to the first question would depend on the form in which the body concerned was set up, and whether it was a company as defined in the relevant provisions of the Companies Act. As the noble Lord knows, information about the tax affairs of particular taxpayers is confidential. However, profits from the activities described would normally be liable to tax.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they intend to end the contracts of registrars who continue to ban marriages on Saturdays.

Registration officers are not employed under any contract of service. They are statutory officers. The present dispute, which arises from a claim for regrading, is with the local authorities by whom their salaries are paid. Neither the Government nor the Registrar General is a party to the negotiations.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many dental practitioners working within the National Health Service General Dental Services in England were (a) investigated; and (b) found to be in breach of their terms of service, because of over-prescription of dental treatment, in each of the years from 1970 to 1981.

The figures for allegations of breaches of terms of service are not analysed by type and the information could only be obtained retrospectively at disproportionate cost.Against the background of some 30,000,000 courses of treatment provided in 1980 alone, the overall number of dental cases investigated in each of the years in question is:

Year	Cases Investigated	Breach Found
1970	296	147
1971	222	103
1972	267	111
1973	252	112
1974	236	125
1975	272	125
1976	266	144
1977	277	130
1978	337	139
1979	250	133
1980	264	120

Figures for 1981 are not yet available.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made towards a solution of the Cyprus problem; and what part they, as a guarantor power of the sovereignty and integrity of Cyprus, are playing.

Intercommunal talks under the auspices of the United Nations Secretary-General continue in Nicosia. In his annual report to the General Assembly, Dr. Waldheim noted that there had been a "rapid evolution" in 1981, with new ideas submitted by both sides and by the United Nations. The parties are now discussing these. The Government continue to give their fullest support to the United Nations Secretary-General's efforts.House adjourned at eighteen minutes past nine o'clock.