asked Her Majesty's Government:When the report of the Review of the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) will be published and when the Lord Chancellor expects to respond to it.

The report of the Review of the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) has been published today and copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. I am very grateful to the members of the review, and in particular to Sir Jeffery Bowman for chairing it. I am at present considering their conclusions and recommendations and intend to publish a detailed response early in the New Year.

asked Her Majesty's Government:On whose and with what authority Joyce Stewart, of the Crown Service headquarters, wrote to Robert Gardener, Clerk to the Cambridge Crown Court (letter reference PQ 98/289), following publication of the judgment delivered at Cambridge Crown Court on 11 September 1997, instructing him not to release to Reginald Buckland (the appellant) in case A970014 any papers and documents lodged with the court by the Chief Constable of Cambridge, in respect of the case heard on 15 August 1997 against the refusal of the Chief Constable to vary the conditions of a firearms certificate; and whether they will place a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.

The question concerns a matter which has been assigned to the Court Service under the terms of its framework document. I have therefore asked the Chief Executive to respond.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Answer by Lord Williams of Mostyn of 27 October (

There are no powers to do so. Although many asylum seekers are found to be economic migrants, it would not be right and would be contrary to existing agreements to notify their national authorities that they had claimed asylum.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What was the number of nuclear warheads deployed on each of the Polaris submarines as they completed operational service, following their modernisation with the Chevaline system, and what are the implications of this for the number of warheads to be deployed on each of the Trident submarines taking into account commitments which were given not to deploy more warheads on Trident than on Polaris.

Information on the number of Chevaline warheads deployed on Polaris submarines has not previously been made public. This Government is, however, committed to being as open as possible in all areas of Government business and we are currently examining, as part of the strategic defence review, whether we can now release information relating to the Chevaline system.Future warhead requirements for the Trident force remain under consideration in the strategic defence review. The review will take into account the withdrawal from service of the WE177 free-fall nuclear bombs which supplemented Polaris throughout its operational life and the different technical characteristics of the Polaris and Trident systems, including the larger yield of the Chevaline warhead.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether there were any reports of Iraqi SCUD missiles which landed on Israeli territory during the Gulf War containing chemical or biological agents.

We have no evidence that any of the SCUD missiles used by Iraq against Israel carried chemical or biological warfare agents.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many officials (a) at the British Embassy in Washington and (b) in the Ministry of Defence are employed in studying the United States Defense doctrine.

The Ministry of Defence does not employ staff exclusively dedicated to the study of US defence doctrine, but consideration of the development of relevant aspects of that doctrine forms part of the normal duties of a large number of staff both within the Ministry itself and with the British Defence Staff (Washington).

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in view of the fact that a recent Gallup poll showed a majority of 63 per cent. for the view that it would be best for United Kingdom security not to have nuclear weapons, they will take public opinion into consideration in determining nuclear weapon policy.

The Government were elected on a clear manifesto commitment to retain Trident and this is one of the policy principles on which the strategic defence review is fundamentally based. Our aim is to establish the widest possible shared vision about Britain's future security needs and the tasks of its Armed Forces. We continue to encourage input to the strategic defence review from anyone who wishes to contribute.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their policy on the late payment of debt; and whether they differentiate between late payment in industry, commerce and cases where compensation is due.

The Government are determined to promote a better payment culture in the UK and will bring forward a package of new measures, including the introduction of a Bill to provide a statutory right to interest on late payment of commercial debts. Commercial debts will include late payments by industry and commerce. In addition the Government have welcomed the announcement that the Federation of Small Businesses will be publishing league tables showing the average payment times of public companies and their large private subsidiaries.It is important that the public sector lead by example in paying its invoices promptly. Government departments and agencies must pay all of their bills on time. In addition the Government intend to publish league tables of the payment performance of local authorities. The Government also recognise the importance of effective credit management procedures and are pleased that all the main small firms organisations have agreed to work with the Government to look at better payment practice.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Which United Nations bodies have been consulted on, or are participating in, the negotiations on the Multilateral Agreement on Investment.

The OECD Secretariat has reported to UNCTAD (the UN Conference on Trade and Development) on the progress of the negotiations on the MAI.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What public consultation there has been, and with whom, on the Multilateral Agreement on Investment.

Her Majesty's Government have consulted extensively on the MAI, including with the CBI, ICC-UK (International Chambers of Commerce), the TUC, professional bodies, TUAC (Trade Union Advisory Committee) and BIAC (Business and Industry Advisory Committee) (the labour and business representatives at the OECD), and, more recently, non-governmental organisations (including the Catholic Fund for Overseas Development, the Catholic Institute for International Relations, Consumers International, Oxfam, the Environmental Investigation Agency, Friends of the Earth, the World Development Movement and the World Wide Fund for Nature).Conferences with developing countries have been held in Latin America, Asia and Africa, as well as at the OECD in Paris.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Traffic Director for London has studied the effect of the closure of Hammersmith Bridge on shops and small businesses in Barnes and on daily commuter parking in the area immediately to the south of the bridge; and whether they will ask the Traffic Director to prepare and publish a report into the effects of the closure of Hammersmith Bridge to traffic.

The Traffic Director's office has not undertaken a study into the effects of the closure of Hammersmith Bridge on shops, small businesses or on daily commuter parking. The collection of information on these matters is for the local authorities concerned and we therefore do not propose to ask the Traffic Director to undertake such a study or prepare a report.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their response to the statement by Professor Sir David Goldberg of the Institute of Psychiatry that only Tehran and Bangladore, India, have fewer psychiatrists per 100,000 people than London.

While it is not straightforward to draw conclusions about the delivery of health services in the United Kingdom as compared to other countries (as the configuration of services may differ widely), we have already taken steps to understand and address the particular problems of mental health services in London.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their response to the league table compiled by Professor Sir David Goldberg of the Institute of Psychiatry, which suggests that London occupies the lowest place amongst industrialised cities in its care for the mentally ill by virtue of having fewer hospital beds, fewer psychiatrists and a lower amount of cash available for treatment.

London does face significant and complex mental health problems and that is why all London health authorities have received real terms increases in their allocations for 1997–98 and will also receive real terms increases for 1998–99. Targeted mental health funds amounting to £16 million through the Mental Health Challenge Fund, the Emergency Pressures Fund and the mentally Disordered Offenders Strategic Assistance Fund have also been received by London health authorities.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many psychiatrists there are in the United Kingdom dealing with the mentally-ill full time.

There were 7,520 psychiatrists in Great Britain on 30 September 1996 (the whole time equivalent figure was 6,130), of whom 5,130 worked full time.

• Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
• Information for Northern Ireland will not be available until December.
• Source: the Medical and Dental Workforce Census 30 September 1996.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many mentally-ill people there are; how many beds in secure places there are for them; and how many beds in hospitals or other insecure places there are, in each case specifying the figures for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

A survey conducted in Great Britain in 1993 established that about one in six adults between the ages of 16 and 64 suffered from a neurotic disorder in the week before interview and about four per 1,000 had suffered from a psychotic disorder in the previous 12 months. There was no significant difference in the rates for England, Scotland and Wales. Only a small proportion of mentally ill people will need in-patient or residential care. The following tables show the facilities available in England, Wales and Scotland.