asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have studied the speech of Professor Bernard Knight, professor of forensic medicine at Cardiff University, to a British Medical Association symposium on 14th July, in which he claimed that alcohol was a catalyst for homicide and all forms of violence, and whether they will commission research on this matter.

As I have indicated in reply to previous Questions by the noble Lord, the Home Office is keeping under review the possibility of undertaking research into the relationship between the consumption of alcohol and the commission of criminal offences. The speech to which the noble Lord refers does not point to new grounds for research.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Why a letter for Mr. Raymond Harris, a life sentence prisoner in Albany prison, to a Peer was stopped contrary to Standing Order 5, when the matters it dealt with had been raised internally.

There is no prisoner of this name in Albany prison.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the qualifications and experience of the new chief inspector of prisons.

The new chief inspector has had a long and distinguished career in the Colonial and Diplomatic Services with wide administrative and managerial experience. My right honourable friend concluded that he was well fitted to bring an independent judgement to bear on the conditions of the prison system, as envisaged by the report of the May Committee.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether it is still their intention to introduce legislation on experiments on live animals in the lifetime of the present Parliament.

It remains the Government's intention to improve and modernise the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876 when final agreement has been reached on the draft Council of Europe convention on this subject and parliamentary time permits.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether a note of guidance on sponsorship and BBC television and radio has been prepared by the corporation for BBC programme staff; and, if so, whether a copy could be placed in the Library of the House.

The BBC is precluded by the licence and agreement granted to it by my right honourable friend from broadcasting sponsored programmes; that is, programmes put on at the expense of a sponsor for the purpose of advertising. I am informed that the corporation has issued guidelines to its staff covering issues related to the broadcasting of sporting and other events which themselves involve sponsorship, and is in the process of revising them. Arrangements will be made for a copy of the existing guidelines to be placed in the Library of the House.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are satisfied with the system explained by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Home Office (H.L. debates 21st July; col. 869) implying that the Home Secretary is unable to satisfy himself directly, or Parliament, either as the responsible Minister of the Crown or as the police authority for the Metropolitan Police, that the number and dispositions of the police on security duties at Buckingham Palace are sufficient for the protection of the Royal Family other than by his asking for information from the Metropolitan Police whose recent system has been shown to have had serious weaknesses.

The system by which my right honourable friend calls for reports from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis works satisfactorily and does not need to be changed.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in view of recent events, they will consider an amendment of the law of trespass so as to render the authorised entry into private property a criminal offence.

It is already a criminal offence to gain entry to property, against the will of a person on the property, by the use or threat of violence; or to trespass on property in possession of a weapon without lawful authority or excuse. Moreover, anyone who trespasses on property with intent to steal or to inflict grievous bodily harm, or to commit rape or to cause unlawful damage, is guilty of the offence of burglary. The Government nevertheless propose to review the general state of the law in this field.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will institute an inquiry into the cause of the death through poisoning of swans in the Thames; whether if, as alleged, the type of baits and weights used by local fishermen are found to be the source of botulinus and lead poisoning they will prohibit them, and whether they will make a grant to Mr. Steven Cooke, the Windsor veterinary surgeon who is treating the birds voluntarily at considerable cost.

The Institute of Terrestrial Ecology has been consulted about recent deaths of swans on the Thames. Around seven birds are thought to have died, which is considerably fewer than has been suggested in the press. The exact cause of death has not been firmly established, but botulinus or lead poisoning is considered unlikely to be responsible.The Nature Conservancy Council report of December 1981,

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will draw the attention of the local education authority concerned to the case of the South Shields boy who has been refused admission to school because, in accordance with his parents' wishes, he has declined to be caned; and whether they will indicate that to cane a boy against the wishes of parents is contrary to the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights.

The local education authority, South Tyneside, is aware of the circumstances of this case. The Government are carefully considering the implications of the judgement of the European Court of Human Rights on corporal punishment, and, as stated by my honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in another place on 4th March, will take no action without consulting all interested parties.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in view of the adoption by the United States House of Representatives of an amendment rejecting President Reagan's plan to resume production of nerve gas, and calling for an international treaty to prohibit the production, development and stockpiling of chemical weapons, they will seek to accelerate the negotiations to this end proposed at the United Nations Special Session on Disarmament.

The Government have continuously sought progress on a convention which bans chemical weapons and provides for adequate verification. We are playing an active part in the meetings of the working group of the Committee on Disarmament engaged in this task.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they are taking to end the injustice to the non-designated officers of the dissolved East African Community who have received no pension because the partner states are paying them only to their own nationals; and whether they will initiate discussions with the partner states to remedy this situation.

As part of the arrangements under which responsibility has been assumed for certain overseas pension matters, Her Majesty's Government have been paying pensions since April 1979 to those non-designated officers of the dissolved East African Community who did not become citizens of the partner states.The continuing non-payment of pensions to the separate category of former East African Community pensioners known as "non-nationals" is a matter solely for the partner Governments. However, our High Commissions in East Africa have been asked to bring to the attention of the Governments to which they are accredited the concern felt by the Overseas Service Pensioners' Association over the non-payment of these pensions.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they are taking in response to the report by the National Consumer Council that a significant number of old people have cut down on food purchases because of high prices and that the average weekly expenditure of old people on food is little more than half the national average among all the population.

We continue to maintain our pledge to protect the purchasing power of the retirement pension and associated long-term benefits, as shown by the planned increase of 11 per cent. due in November. The Retail Price Index, which is used to determine the movement of prices on which the annual uprating is based, gives an average picture of the actual expenditure patterns, including expenditure on food, for nearly 90 per cent. of all households in the United Kingdom, including half of all pensioner households. The pensioner price indices, covering one- and two-person pensioner households on low incomes, do allow for expenditure of a higher proportion of net disposable income on food, but the overall movement of those indices over a period of years is slightly below the corresponding movement of the Retail Price Index. The National Food Survey shows that pensioner spending on food per head is consistently a few percentage points above the national average food expenditure per head.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will amend the regulation which reduces benefit when unemployed persons take education courses to improve their skills or make such persons an equivalent grant to do so.

An unemployed person who takes an education course may still be able to receive unemployment or supplementary benefit provided that he remains available for work and that he is prepared to give up the course in the event of a suitable job offer being made to him. We have no plans at present to amend the regulations in this respect.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they intend to publish their leaflet offering guidance on safety measures to be taken by walkers on public rights of way which cross a field where there is a bull, and whether they expect the leaflet to repeat the advice given by the Government in 1917, to the effect that people being attacked by bulls should be on the ground and shake their legs in the air.

It will be published as soon as the discussions presently taking place between Government departments and the Health and Safety Executive on the scope of the guidance and the subsequent consultations with interested bodies have been completed.I cannot at this stage comment on the exact nature of the guidance.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will state for each year since 1980 the species involved and quantity of seizures made in Hong Kong of species and products of species that are prohibited from trade or controlled by the Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)

Seizures made in Hong Kong since 1980 of species and products of species prohibited from trade or controlled by CITES are as follows:

1980
Species	Type	Quantity
Cheetah	Skin	1 PC.
Elephant	Ivory Tusk	6 PCS
	Ivory Cut Pieces	60 KG
	Skin	3 PCS
Ocelot	Skin	15 PCS
Serval	Skin	1PC
Fishing Cat	Stuffed Specimen	2 Head
Margay	Skin	28 PCS
Pangolin	Live	6 Head
	Stuffed Specimen	7 Head
	Skin	318 PCS
Leopard	Skin	7 PCS
	Scraps of Skin	19 PCS
Tiger	Skin	4 PCS
Rhino	Horn	4 PCS
	Skin	21 PCS
Brown Bear	Live	1 Head
Eagle	Stuffed Specimen	20 Head
Owl	Live	5 Head
	Stuffed Specimen	1 Head
Birds of Paradise	Stuffed Specimen	5 Head
Pitta	Live	1 Head

Hornbill	Casque	24 PCS
Crocodile	Stuffed Specimen	49 Head
	Skin	454 PCS
Sea Turtle	Live	1 Head
	Stuffed Specimen	189 Head
	Scales	676 KG
	Eggs	184 NOS.
Python	Skin	25 PCS
Monitor Lizard	Skin	2 PCS
American Ginseng	Root	0.2 KG

1981
Species	Type	Quantity
Giant Salamander	Live	3 Heads
Clouded Leopard		1 PC
Leopard	Skin	4 PCS
Tiger	Skin	4 PCS
Rhino	Horn	5 PCS
	Skin	1 PC
Musk		8 LB
Sea Turtle	Stuffed Specimen	122 Heads
	Egg	936 NOS.
	Scale	17 PCS
	Skin	211 PCS
Eagle	Live	15 Heads
	Stuffed Specimen	4 Heads
Owl	Live	51 Heads
	Carcass	9 Heads
American Ginseng	Root	570 KG
Monkey	Live	9 Heads
Elephant	Ivory Tusk	1,800 KG
Leopard Cat	Live	1 Head
	Skin	393
Serval	Skin	1 PC
Ocelot	Skin	2 PCS
Lynx	Skin	4 PCS
Margay	Skin	2 PCS
Fishing Cat	Stuffed Specimen	1 Heads
Pangolin	Live	41 Heads
	Carcass	31 Heads
	Stuffed Specimen	2 Heads
Otter	Skin	107 PCS
Seal	Skin	61 PCS
Crocodile	Stuffed Specimen	27 Heads
	Skin	1,397 PCS
Python	Skin	337 PCS
	Live	2 Heads
	Stuffed Specimen	2 Heads
Monitor Lizard	Skin	2,559 PCS
	Stuffed Specimen	5 Heads

1982 (First Quarter)
Species	Type	Quantity
Musk	Skin	1 PC
Cheetah	Skin	1 PC
Leopard	Skin	1 PC
Rhino	Horn	3 PCS
Sea Turtle	Egg	419 PCS
	Stuffed Specimen	22 Heads
False Gravial	Stuffed Specimen	1 Head
Buzzard	Stuffed Specimen	1 Head
Eagle	Live	1 Head
Owl	Live	11 Heads
	Carcass	11 Heads
American Ginseng		20 KG
Elephant	Tail	5 PCS
Leopard Cat	Skin	55 PCS
Lynx	Skin	57 PCS
Ocelot	Skin	2 PCS
Margay	Skin	1 PC.
Pangolin	Live	6 Heads
	Stuffed Specimen	1 Head
	Carcass	18.6 KG+
		13 Heads
		+ 127 PCS
Seal	Skin	32 PCS
Python	Skin	5 PCS
Crocodile	Skin	500 LB
Monitor Lizard	Skin	2,185 PCS

asked Her Majesty's Government:What quantity of ivory has been (

Ivory imports and exports are as follows:

	1980	1981	1982
	kg	kg	(1st quarter)kg
Total Imported	540,928.58	545,140.60	104,662.40
Total Exported	115,392.36	142,548.57	48,178.85
Imported from Sudan	160,542.67	197,186.90	58,389.30

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will list the six countries to which most of the species or their products controlled in Appendix I or Appendix II of CITES were exported from Hong Kong in each year since 1980.

The export of Appendix I species is prohibited. The six major importing countries of Appendix II species are as follows:

1980	Ivory	Japan, China, India, Thailand, USA and Singapore.
	Reptile skin	Japan, West Germany, China, Singapore, the Netherlands and United Kingdom.
	Fur Skin	United Kingdom, Japan.
1981	Ivory	Japan, China, India, Thailand, West Germany and USA.
	Reptile skin	Japan, West Germany, USA, Singapore, the Netherlands and Thailand.
	Fur Skin	USA and Canada.
1982 (1st quarter)	Ivory	Japan, China, India, Thailand, West Germany and USA.
	Reptile skin	Japan, West Germany, USA, Singapore, the Netherlands and Thailand.
	Fur Skin	USA and Canada.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many reptiles listed on Appendix I of CITES have been (

Only farmed reptile skin is imported. Figures are as follows:

1980	Nile crocodile skin	1 piece
1981	Green turtle skin	2,500 pieces
	Saltwater crocodile skin	738 pieces
1982 (1st quarter) None so far

The export of Appendix I species is prohibited.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When legislation implementing CITES came into force in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong's Animals and Plants (Protection of Endangered Species) Ordinance, which implements CITES in Hong Kong, came into force in August 1976.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they intend to publish the recently completed report on acid rain in the United Kingdom prepared by the Warren Spring Laboratory, and when they first received a copy of this report.

The preliminary report of the United Kingdom Review Group on Acid Rain, The Acidity of Rainfall in the United Kingdom, was published by the Warren Spring Laboratory on 11th June and received in the Department of the Environment the same day. Copies of the report have been placed in the Library of the House.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which areas of the United Kingdom they estimate currently receive the highest depositions of acid rain, how the levels involved compare to the levels of acid rainfall in Scandinavia, and what steps have been taken in Scotland and in England to reduce the effect of acid rain.

The United Kingdom Review Group on Acid Rain found the highest deposition of acid rain to occur in parts of Cumbria and in the West Central Highlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. In these areas the inputs involved are of the same order as those of the high input areas of Scandinavia. There is still much uncertainty about the effects of acid rain in Scotland and England, and this is the subject of a substantial research programme in the areas concerned.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How much has been spent at 1981 prices in each year since 1970 by (

The details requested are not readily available; one difficulty is that much air pollution research not specifically directed to the problem of acid rain is nevertheless relevant to it—for example, basic work on atmospheric chemistry.For recent years, in 1981–82 the Department of the Environment spent approximately £1.5m on relevant research, the Natural Environment Council £1.0m and the CEGB £2.5m. Expenditure by DoE in 1982–83 on relevant research will be somewhat smaller (about £1.3m at current prices) consequent upon a general reduction in research expenditure. Expenditure for 1983–84 is currently under consideration.Expenditure by the EEC on relevant UK projects amounted to about £150,000 during the Environmental Research Programme of 1976–80; we have no annual breakdown. Details of contracts for the 1981–85 Programme are not yet available.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they accept that one million hectares of forest in Central Europe and thousands of lakes in Sweden and Norway have been damaged by acid rain, and whether they accept that sulphur emissions from the United Kingdom have been partly responsible for this damage.

It was agreed by the Expert Group at the recent Stockholm Conference on Acidification c) the Environment that the reported damage to forests in Central Europe is probably due not to acid rain but to lengthy exposure to high concentrations of pollution resulting from local emissions and perhaps to other local factors. The contribution from United Kingdom emissions is not easily quantified but is certainly a minor factor.The connection between sulphur emissions and the acidification of freshwaters in certain sensitive areas of the world such as southern Scandinavia is not fully understood and further research is needed before categorical statements can be made. It seems likely, however, that these emissions play a part and, in that event, those from the United Kingdom may have contributed in a small measure to the changes observed in some lakes in Sweden and Norway.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many local DHSS offices have been closed since May 1979; and what assistance is given to indigent, invalid or elderly claimants who, as a result of closures, have to travel further.

Sixteen national insurance offices, which deal with claims to national insurance benefits, and 12 area offices, which deal with claims to supplementary benefit, have been closed since May 1979. Their work has been absorbed by the creation of 12 new integrated local offices, which deal with the whole range of social security benefits.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will investigate ways of introducing flexibility into the Resource Allocation Working Party (RAWP) formula, to make allowance, when allocating resources to the new district health authorities, for such factors as social deprivation.

Regional health authorities are responsible for deciding how to apply the RAWP formula when determining allocations to district health authorities and it is open to them to introduce variations in the national formula to take account of particular factors, such as social deprivation, which are considered to be significant at district level.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many consumer complaints were received by the Director-General of Fair Trading in the year ended 30th September 1981 concerning each of the following services:

I understand that the information is not readily available. The Director-General has told me, however, that he will write to the noble Lord about the subject, and I will arrange for a copy of his reply to be placed in the Library.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they are aware that—

(i) Italy has a shortage of bovine animals, and is currently supplied by France (and to a lesser extent by the United Kingdom and Germany);

(ii) France re-stocks with calves from the United Kingdom and, assisted by the EEC, offers a higher price than is obtainable in our home market;

(iii) that the consequent export of live calves induces less home-produced beef and veal, low abattoir throughput, less employment and low consumption and also leads to imports of veal car-cases for our hotel trade; and

(iv) calf-rearers, slaughtermen and retailers would welcome the cessation of the live calf export trade.

Cattle, beef and veal may all be traded freely within the Community under the rules governing free circulation of goods, subject only to certain animal health, public health and animal welfare requirements. There is a small traditional trade in calves exported from the United Kingdom to the Continent, but this is only one feature of the substantial United Kingdom import and export trade in both live cattle and beef.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they halted the export of cows and ewes recently calved and lambed.

In June 1979.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What were the areas of animal welfare in which they acted immediately where it was necessary.

Within a few weeks of coming into office, the Government appointed the Farm Animal Welfare Council with a wide-ranging remit to keep under review the welfare of farm animals. In the light of the council's advice, the harvesting of antler velvet from farmed deer was prohibited in 1980 and a new order governing the export of farm animals was made in 1981. The Government are acting on, or considering, several other council recommendations. In addition, the Government take appropriate action in response to reports received, both from their own officials and from others, about particular circumstances in which the welfare of farm animals appears to be at risk.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they updated the Brambell Report.

As indicated in response to a separate question from the noble Lord today, the Farm Animal Welfare Council has advised the Government on the revision of the codes of recommendations on pigs, cattle, domestic fowls and turkeys. It has also recommended the introduction of new regulations for the control of certain mutilations of farm animals. The council is now beginning to consider what further regulations may be necessary. The advice provided by the council is enabling the Government to fulfil their commitment to update the Brambell Report.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they updated the codes on welfare of farm animals.

The Farm Animal Welfare Council was asked to continue the work which was begun by its predecessor on the updating of the codes of recommendations for the welfare of farm animals. The council submitted revised versions of the codes for cattle and pigs to Ministers in July 1981. As a result of the statutory consultations which were undertaken, we have recently asked the Council for further advice on a few points relating to the proposed pigs code. The majority of the council's recommendations on both the cattle and pigs codes have been accepted, and the Government hope to submit the revised codes for parliamentary approval in accordance with the requirements of the Agriculture (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1968 later this year. The council submitted their proposals for revisions of the codes for domestic fowls and turkeys in June 1982. Statutory consultations on the draft revised codes were initiated earlier this month.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether in view of the fact that the Secretary of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has already declined in one instance, namely at Lockton High Moor, North Yorkshire, to offer grant aid for moorland reclamation under Section 11 of the Countryside Act 1968 it is now the Government's policy to allocate grant aid to reclaim open moorland in the North York Moors National Park which lies outside those areas marked as potentially reclaimable on the Ministry of Agriculture's "Review of the potentially reclaimable areas of open moorland" which was confirmed on 16th March 1981.

It is our policy to require farmers in national parks to notify the relevant national park authority of any proposals to carry out work on which they want to claim grant and to consider each case on its merits and in the light of the response of the national park authority.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether it is their intention (given the spirit of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981) that any proposal (or any decision thereon) for major land use changes in the North York Moors National Park should be deferred until the draft critical moorland map, currently the subject of public consultation, has been confirmed.

Under Section 43 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the county planning authority must prepare (by 30th November 1983) a map showing those areas of moor and heath in the North York Moors National Park which it is in their opinion particularly important to conserve. There is no requirement for confirmation of this map. Meanwhile, it is for the county planning authority to decide how to deal with any proposals for major land use changes within the park.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether a non-qualified member of NHS staff would be liable in a claim for damages at the suit of a patient diagnosed by a consultant as requiring surgery which was frustrated by the intervention of such a non-qualified person resulting in the deterioration of the patient's health.

This is a matter for the courts to decide in the light of the circumstances of the individual case, but they would no doubt wish to consider whether there was a duty of care owed to the patient by the prospective defendant, and whether the prospective defendant could reasonably have foreseen that a deterioration in the patient's condition could result from his actions.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What housing concessions, financial benefits and other help are given to service widows.

The widow is allowed to remain in the married quarter for a minimum period of six months. This period can be extended should the widow require it. After the six-month period the widow is only asked to leave if there is a pressing requirement for the quarter (from another service family) and if the widow has found alternative accommodation. The widow is never evicted. During the period the widow remains in the quarter the usual charges will be made. The widow will continue to receive her husband's full rate of pay for 182 days (six months) if she has children or 91 days (three months) if there are no children.A tax-free death grant is paid as soon as possible after death to all widows whose husbands die in service. When death is attributable directly to service (as in the Falklands) an additional gratuity is paid. These grants depend upon length of service and rank; typical examples of the approximate orders of payment are as follows (including additional gratuity):

Widow of Private	from £7,500 to £10,500
Widow of Sergeant	from £10,250 to £14,500
Widow of Captain	from £14,500 to £20,500
Widow of Colonel	from £25,500 to £35,500

Widows will receive a service widow's pension from the Ministry of Defence and a war widow's pension from the Department of Health and Social Security. These pensions are both index-linked; the DHSS pension is tax free. Typical exampled of the two pensions

taken together are as follows (for widows aged under 40 and with no children):

Widow of Private	£2,700 pa
Widow of Sergeant	£3,800 pa
Widow of Captain	£5,300 pa
Widow of Colonel	£9,200 pa

In addition, if the widow is over 40 the pension increases in every case by about £1,500 pa, and if there are children extra pensions to the value of £1,000£2,500 per annum per child are paid, so if the widows quoted above were over 40 and had two children their pensions would be:

Widow of Private	£6,600 pa
Widow of Sergeant	£8,200 pa
Widow of Captain	£10,300 pa
Widow of Colonel	£12,400 pa

Just as important as all the foregoing, of course, is that throughout the difficult period following bereavement we do as much as possible from our various welfare organisations to provide advice, comfort and support within the context of the shared experience of service life.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will confirm that the Belfast Shipyard of Messrs. Harland and Wolff has the necessary overall capability, including suitable management, technical and craft skills, to undertake competitive tendering for the repair or replacement of merchant and naval vessels as a result of the Falklands campaign and particularly the replacement of the "Atlantic Conveyor".

Harland and Wolff Limited is considered to have the necessary overall capability including suitable management, technical and craft skills to tender for the repair or replacement of merchant and Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels. Harland and Wolff is already on the Ministry of Defence's tender list for certain types of work. However, there will be intense competition for future work particularly because the bulk of Royal Fleet Auxiliary repair work is likely to be carried out in the Royal Dockyards and unless Harland and Wolff can compete effectively on price and delivery they cannot expect significant naval work. With regard to merchant vessels returning from the Falklands a contract has been placed with Harland and Wolff for the repair of the "Atlantic Causeway" and they will continue to be considered with other ship repairers for similar work. Because of the optimisation of its facilities for the production of large merchant vessels, the yard is no longer suitable for warship building which has become an increasingly complex and specialised task.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will:

The Industrial Development Consultative Forum has met on eight occasions since its inception: 26th June 1980, 2nd October 1980, 29th January 1981, 31st March 1981, 30th June 1981, 3rd November 1981, 2nd February 1982 and 11th May 1982. The forum agreed at its first meeting that the papers which it discussed and the minutes of its meetings should be confidential. However I can tell the noble Lord that the forum has received regular progress reports from the industrial development institutions (the Northern Ireland Development Agency (NIDA), the Local Enterprise Development Unit (LEDU) and the Department of Commerce (DOC)) on their performance in stimulating industrial investment and job promotion in Northern Ireland. It has also discussed number of other topics pertinent to the performance of, and co-ordination of the work of, NIDA, LEDU and DOC, such as the merits of different types of incentives, and the policy on recovering grants when companies close. In particular, the forum considered drafts of the document Industrial Development in Northern Ireland—A Framework for Action published in October 1981 which sets out the Government's overall approach to industrial development in the Province and the individual programmes being undertaken by NIDA, LEDU and DOC. When the forum meets again later this year it it agreed that it will consider its future role and functions in the light of the establishment of the Industrial Development Board and the Department of Economic Development.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will have any statement to make on

The Government are still considering the large number of very useful comments received on the official report prepared last year on the legal basis of further education.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will give assurances that the eastern section of the A.1-M.1 link between Huntingdon and Bythorn will not be delayed because of problems at the western end of the link near Naseby.

The M.1-A.1 link road is a very large scheme and the selection of the most suitable route at Naseby is only one of a number of difficult issues which Her Majesty's Government have had to consider. An announcement about these issues will be made very shortly, and this will be followed by publication later this year of the draft orders for the scheme, including the eastern section.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the starting date for the eastern end of the A.1-M.1 link to join up with the A.45 improvement to Northampton.

Because of the urgent need to help Corby, and the fact that there is no satisfactory road from the M.1 to Kettering, we are giving priority to construction of the western section of the link road and work on this section should start in 1985. We are giving the same priority to the Thrapston bypass, but from this point eastwards the A.604 carries the existing traffic reasonably well and should be able to cope with any additional traffic from the improved A.45. That is why work on the eastern section is programmed to begin in 1986, for completion soon after the western section as traffic on the A.604 builds up.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether any progress has been made regarding road improvements on Wardley Hill (on the A.47 some three miles to the west of Uppingham) now that the Uppingham by-pass has been completed ahead of schedule.

No. Following my right honourable friend, the Secretary of State for Transport's announcement last year of the preferred route, work on the preparation of the scheme was temporarily suspended until there is a reasonable prospect of fitting it into the trunk road programme.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether aeroplanes are permitted to overfly Buckingham Palace when the Queen is in residence or the Palace of Westminster when either House of Parliament is in session.

Buckingham Palace and the Palace of Westminster are situated within the London control zone. All aircraft flying within the zone are required by law to be under the positive control of the appropriate unit of the National Air Traffic Services at all times and must comply with all instructions given by the controlling authority. Subject to compliance with the air traffic control clearance, there are no restrictions on flying over the places mentioned. Aircraft are also subject to the minimum height rule which is set out in Rule 5 of the Rules of the Air and Air Traffic Control Regulations 1981, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.

asked Her Majesty's Government:

(a) What soil tests and other ground surveys they have carried out on each of the alternative routes considered for the M.1-A.1 link road in the southern corridor in the vicinity of Naseby.

(b) In what way the proposal to consider a new alternative route closer to Naseby village does not comply with the principal and secondary constraints which were applied in the selection of the Southern Corridor, and whether any soil tests have been carried out along this proposed route.

(c) What insurmountable engineering problems, if any, have been discovered which would prevent a route being chosen from the Southern Corridor passing between Naseby and Haselbech Villages.

(a) In 1977 a desk study was carried out which looked at the basic geology of the preferred southern corridor announced in 1975 and identified potential problem areas. This was followed in 1979 by a more detailed desk study which assessed design possibilities in relation to the geological conditions in the area south of Naseby. Finally in 1979–80 investigations were carried out involving the digging of trial pits and soil boreholes to check the results of the desk studies.(b) The constraints on a route for the proposed road south of Naseby included the effects on the village, on individual properties, on farmland and on the economics of the route. All these factors have been changed to some degree by the need to move closer to the village to avoid the ground instability. Soil tests have been carried out and confirm the feasibility of a route south of Naseby. The considerations involved in assessing the original southern corridor are still relevant to the assessment of the more detailed information now available on alternative routes north and south of Naseby.(

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether copies of the report of the British Occupational Hygiene Society

I am informed that the British Occupational Hygiene Society do not now intend to publish the results of this study.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the workers covered by

Some of the workers in the two factories concerned have been examined by the Pneumoconiosis Medical Panel and under the auspices of the Employment Medical Advisory Service. The precise proportions of workers covered by these arrangements are not readily available, but I will write to the noble Earl with further details.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they are satisfied that, when giving planning approval for private hospitals which has been subject to appeal, sufficient consideration is given to the location of the chimney which is used for the disposal of hospital waste and to the detrimental effect which a wrong location can have on residential property in the vicinity.

My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for the Environment is required by the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 to take all material considerations into account in reaching his decisions on Planning Appeals. Local Planning Authorities have the same statutory obligations in deciding the planning applicatons with which they deal.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their response to the call by the 9-nation South African Development Co-ordination Conference, which met in Botswana on 22nd July, for greater international aid to help them end their economic dependence on the Republic of South Africa.

The British Government have already confirmed their full support for the Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference and for its member countries in their search for greater economic integration through practical forms of regional cooperation. British aid to SADCC members is substantial, totalling some £111 million in 1981, and last year we committed an additional £10 million specifically to assist projects of a regional nature in the transport and communications sectors, to which SADCC attaches very high priority. We have participated in donor meetings with SADCC members in Maputo in 1980 and in Blantyre last year, and we will of course be represented at the next meeting which we understand is due to be held in Maseru in January 1983.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether European Governments were consulted before the United States Administration decided to double their neutron warheads for use in Europe; if not, whether the European members of NATO have protested as they did on a previous similar occasion; and whether the United Kingdom concurs in the action of the United States.

The United States Administration have told us that they have taken no decision to increase the production of enhanced radiation, or "neutron", warheads. Such a decision, about weapons to be held on United States territory, would in any case be a matter for them. No proposals for the deployment of these warheads in Europe have been made.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many persons applied to the British Interests Section, Tehran, for visas to enter the United Kingdom in the first six months of 1982, and how many letters to inquiries on entry to the United Kingdom were sent through or by the section during this period.

Because of limitations on staff the British Interests Section, Tehran are not able to keep records of the total number of visa inquiries received. Most of these are dealt with by telephone rather than letter. The section have issued approximately 1,000 visas in the first six months of 1982.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether it is the case that both the USA and the USSR are abiding by the terms of the SALT II Treaty and that the continued refusal of the United States congress to ratify the treaty is serving no purpose other than to aggravate relations between the superpowers; and, having regard to the strong interest of the United Kingdom, what action the Government are taking to maintain SALT II and to promote the successful outcome of the START negotiations.

The United States Administration have undertaken not to undercut the SALT II agreement as long as the Soviet Government continue to do likewise. This is an interim measure. The United States intention is to secure agreement, in the START talks, to substantial reductions in strategic weapon levels. We strongly support them in this aim.House adjourned for the Summer Recess at fourteen minutes past one o'clock until Tuesday, 12th October next.