asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they propose to remedy the conditions in Armley prison, Leeds, where, according to a Home Office report, two-thirds of the one-man cells are each occupied by three prisoners, one lavatory serves 60 prisoners, half the prisoners are without work, and the entire environment is degrading.

The action which is being taken on the report of HM Chief Inspector of Prisons on HM Prison Leeds is set out in the statement by my right honourable friend which was published with the report, a copy of which is in the Library.

asked Her Majesty's Government:If they can now announce the remaining members of the independent inquiry into the broadcasting policy aspects of the expansion of Cable.

We are glad to announce that the following have now agreed to serve on the inquiry, under the chairmanship of Lord Hunt of Tanworth:Sir Maurice Hodgson, who has just retired from being Chairman of ICIProfessor James Ring, Professor of Physics at the Imperial College of Science and Technology; Member of the IBA 1974–81.We are grateful to all three members for being prepared, at short notice, to undertake this onerous but important piece of Government service.The Secretary of the inquiry will be J. C. Davey, an Assistant Secretary in the Home Office. The address of the inquiry is:Inquiry into Cable Expansion and Broadcasting Policy,Whittington House,19–30 Alfred Place,London, WC1E 7EJ.Telephone: 01–637 2355, Ext. 365

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether their attention has been drawn to the report of the Office of Health Economics which states that one in five of those needing hip operations has to wait more than a year, the longest waiting time of any surgical procedure undertaken by the National Health Service, and what they intend to do to remedy this situation.

The report, Hip Replacement and the NHS, published by the Office of Health Economics, makes a constructive and useful contribution on the difficult problem of supply and demand for this operation, and its findings will be carefully considered by the Department of Health and Social Security. The statement to which the noble Lord refers, which has been given some prominence in the press, should be read in the context of the report as a whole, which points out that the relevant figures are three years out of date and suggests that the rate of hip replacement may now be approaching a peak in some regions. The report also concludes that most patients are not subjected to an unacceptable wait for surgery, and that there is little evidence of Britain's supply of hip replacement surgery falling significantly below that of other Western developed countries.The Government have strongly commended to health authorities the proposals for tackling long waiting times put forward in the report of the working party chaired by Professor Duthie which was published last year. The Office of Health Economics report shows a substantial measure of agreement with the working party's conclusions, in particular on the potential for increasing services within the existing resources.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they accept the Chairman of the Nature Conservancy Council's (NCC) estimate that £20 million is needed over the next 10 years to safeguard Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), and whether they will state the acreage of SSSIs that this estimate assumes will need to be safeguarded by: (

The estimates submitted by the NCC were based on the calculation that about 4,350 hectares of land in SSSIs were damaged by agricultural or forestry operations in 1980 and on the assumption that some 5,000 hectares would therefore require safeguarding every year. The estimates further assumed that 3,000 hectares would be protected each year by management agreement and 2,000 by purchase. According to these estimates, the total costs of protection over the first 10 years would range from £15 million to £25 million. The initial assumption, as to the amount of land requiring protection, is, of course, speculative; only experience will show the true figure.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their best estimate of the total number of State Registered and State Enrolled Nurses employed on either a full or part-time basis:

The latest detailed information as to the number employed in the NHS is set out in the table below:

REGISTERED AND ENROLLED NURSES1—ENGLAND, 30th SEPTEMBER 1980
	Whole-time	Part-time	Part-time	Total	Total
	NO/WTE	NO	WTE	NO	WTE
Registered Nurses2	96,200	49,300	26,500	145,500	122,800
Enrolled Nurses3	41,500	29,000	18,900	70,500	60,300
Agency Staff4:
Registered Nurses2	700	3,200	1,200	4,000	2,000
Enrolled Nurses3	600	3,500	1,200	4,000	1,800
All Registered Nurses2	97,000	52,500	27,800	149,500	124,800
All Enrolled Nurses3	42,100	32,500	20,000	74,500	62,100
Notes:
1The slight discrepancy between the total figures shown and those in individual categories is due to roundings.
2Registered nurses in hospital grades, blood transfusion services, primary health care services and senior grades at administrative headquarters.
3Enrolled nurses in hospital grades, blood transfusion services, primary health care services and at administrative headquarters.
4Qualified nurses employed casually in hospitals and in the primary health care services.

Information on which a reasonable estimate of the number of Registered and Enrolled nurses employed in the independent hospital sector and in private industry is not available to the Department.The latest figures supplied by the Department of Employment show that in December 1981 there were 5,673 qualified nursing and midwifery staff registered as unemployed in England. It is estimated that of these 60 per cent. are Registered nurses and 40 per cent. Enrolled nurses.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many building societies have been investigated under Section 110 of the Building Societies Act 1962 and whether they will set out the grounds on which inspectors were appointed in each case.

One. Inspectors were appointed into the affairs of the Grays Building Society in 1978. Inspectors were also appointed, in 1961, at the initiative of the chief registrar under a similar provision in the 1960 Act in the case of Lloyds Permanent Building Society. In both cases, the societies had got into serious financial difficulties and the chief registrar had used his powers to prevent their seeking further investments. In each case the appointment of an Inspector was thought to be in the public interest, both to establish the circumstances which had led to these difficulties and to bring out possible lessons for the future conduct and regulation of building societies.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will introduce legislation to repeal Section 97 of the Building Societies Act 1962 which removes the right of appeal against decisions of the Chief Registrar of Friendly Societies.

Sections 97 and 98 of the Building Societies Act 1962 apply to arbitration in a dispute between a member and a society, the arbitration being carried out by a court, the chief registrar or other arbitrator appointed in accordance with the rules of the society. The latter section makes a limited provision for matters to go to the court but only in so far as points of law are concerned. This is in accord with the general principle that arbitration is intended as a simple and speedy method of settling disputes and therefore that the award should he final and binding on both parties. It will be for consideration when there is next substantive building society legislation whether this part of the 1962 Act needs revision, in particular in the light of the Arbitration Act 1979. If the noble Lord has a particular case in mind, perhaps he would let me know.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their present position on the recommendation of the Commons Select Committee on Education, Science and Arts on Value Added Tax and the Arts.

The Government are at present considering the committee's recommendations. Their response will be given to the committee in another place in due course.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the present amount of the maternity grant; and how this compares in real terms with the value of the grant when it was first introduced.

The maternity grant is at present £25. When it was first introduced in July 1948 the grant was £4. On the basis of the movement in the general index of retail prices, the real value of the £4 grant at February 1982 prices would be £39·78.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they expect to receive the report of the United Kingdom observers sent to the recent elections in El Salvador.

A summary of the observers' report has been received. A copy has been placed in the Library of the House today. The observers are now working on their full report and expect this to be available later this month.House adjourned at twenty-nine minutes before ten o'clock.