asked Her Majesty's Government:By how much per week child benefit would be raised in real terms if the wife's earned income allowance were frozen at its present level of £2,005 per annum and the resulting additional revenue diverted to the raising of child benefit, assuming inflation at a constant 5 per cent. per annum.

If, for 1985–86, the wife's earned income allowance was maintained at £2,005 instead of being indexed to £2,105, the direct revenue saving in a full year would be about £115 million. If expenditure on child benefit was increased by a corresponding amount, the resulting increase would be about 20p per week. This estimate assumes that the supplementary benefit scale rates for dependent children would also be increased by a similar amount.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will instruct the National Theatre to lodge copies of its annual accounts in the Library.

Copies of the 1982–83 accounts have been deposited; and the 1983–84 accounts will be deposited as soon as they are available.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will ensure that where a woman has applied to be registered or naturalised as a British citizen, and her husband has applied for leave to enter the United Kingdom as her spouse, the case papers nevertheless remain in the Nationality Division, and that priority treatment is accorded to those cases.

No. Case papers will continue to be sent wherever they are needed in the light of the circumstances of the individual case. Giving priority treatment to particular categories of application could only be achieved at the expense of the general body of applicants. We think it both more efficient and fairer to give priority instead to reducing processing delays generally while taking individual applications out of turn where there are exceptional and compelling circumstances.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When they expect to respond to Sir Cyril Philips's first report on the operation of the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1984.

Copies of my right honourable friend the Home Secretary's response to Sir Cyril Philips's first report have been placed in the Library of the House and in the Printed Paper Office.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What progress has been made with appointments to the new Police Complaints Authority.

My right honourable friend the Home Secretary is glad to announce that the Right Honourable Roland Moyle and Rear-Admiral John Bell have accepted his offer of appointment as the full-time deputy chairmen of the new authority. They will take up their duties when the authority is established.Sir Cecil Clothier has already agreed to serve as chairman.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether (a) NATO and (b) the European Community consider Ceuta and Melilla "European Territory".

Ceuta and Melilla do not form part of the North Atlantic Area as defined in the North Atlantic Treaty. It is common ground that the terms of Spain's accession to the European Community will apply to all parts of the Kingdom of Spain, of which, under Spanish law, Ceuta and Melilla form a part.