asked Her Majesty's Government:What research has been undertaken at a national and regional level to assess the scope to increase the capacity of urban areas for new dwellings and to encourage people to choose to go back into such areas.

We are not aware of any national studies of the scope to increase the capacity of urban areas. The Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions has, however, studied the possible impacts of increased development and activity in such areas in a research project titled "Urban Consolidation: the Impact of Intensification", the results of which we hope to publish soon. The department has also part-funded research with the London Planning Advisory Committee (LUAC) on "Sustainable Residential Quality: New Approaches to Urban Living", which examines the potential for new housing whilst maintaining urban environmental quality and fostering sustainable developments. LPAC hope to publish the report early in the new year.The Housing Sub-Group of the UK Round Table on Sustainable Development commissioned a review of a sample of local authority urban capacity studies, published in February as

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their estimate of the number of children who regularly ride unrestrained in:

In October 1988 the then Transport and Road Research Laboratory, on behalf of the Department of Transport, began a series of six-monthly surveys on the use by car occupants of seat belts and other restraint systems. These surveys continue to be carried out by the Transport Research Laboratory.In April 1997, the latest published survey, 6 per cent. of children aged 0-13 who were travelling in the front seat of motor vehicles were estimated not to be wearing seat belts or other restraint systems compared with 9 per cent. in October 1988.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What advice they give to those wishing to carry a child aged two in the rear seat of a motor vehicle in the absence of a car seat or booster cushion.

The Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions leaflet Seat Belts and Child Restraints provides the following advice to those wishing to carry a child aged two in the rear seat of a motor vehicle in the absence of a car seat or booster cushion:"If no child restraint is available for children under three years of age, it is generally safer for them to wear an adult belt alone, in the back seat, rather than no restraint at all".The leaflet also provides advice about the law, selecting the right child restraint and advice on wearing for pregnant women.Copies of the leaflet are being placed in the Library of the House.The advice is also provided in the 1996 version of the Department of Transport publication

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will provide guidance on the dangers of rear seat passengers placing a belt around both themselves and a child.

The Government already provide guidance on the dangers of rear seat passengers placing a seat belt around both themselves and a child. The section on safety belts and child restraints in the 1996 version of the Department of Transport publication Choosing Safety, published by the Stationery Office, advises:"Never put a child inside the safety belt which you are wearing. In a crash you would crush the child against the safety belt. At 30 mph, if you are of average weight, you would exert a force equivalent to the weight of an elephant on your child's body. Your child could he seriously injured or crushed to death."A copy of

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will introduce legislation to require minicab companies to provide a proportion of vehicles operated by them with child safety seats.

The Government have no plans to introduce legislation to require minicab companies to provide a proportion of vehicles operated by them with child safety seats. The wide variations in age and size of children carried in minicabs means that no one type of restraint would be suitable for all, and minicab companies would find it extremely difficult to be prepared for all eventualities.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their estimate of the number of:

The Government's estimate of the number of deaths and injuries that would have been prevented in 1996 if the rear seat belt wearing rate was either 90 per cent., 95 per cent. or 100 per cent. is set out in the table below:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What amount of dangerous radioactive material is carried on the roads in this country; for what purposes; and what precautions are taken against what hazards.

Data on the amount of radioactive material carried by road are not routinely collected by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. However, it can be estimated that of the order of 500,000 packages of radioactive material are carried by road annually in the United Kingdom (source: Radiation Exposure from the NormalTransport of Radioactive Materials within the UK 1991 Review, by R. Gelder, NRPB Report NRPB-R255, a copy of which is held in the Library). The majority of these packages carry only small quantities of radioactive material which are used for a great variety of purposes in research, medicine and practically every industry. For example, radioisotopes are used in research on pollution measurement, plant breeding, soil fertility, irrigation, insect and pest control; medical diagnosis and a variety of industrial applications such as level gauging, leak detection, wear measurement, flow measurement, light sources, moisture/density gauges used in road construction and smoke detectors used in factories. shops, offices and homes. Nuclear techniques are also widely used in geochemistry and geophysics—for example, in prospecting for oil, water and minerals.Larger sources of radioactive material are used in such applications as industrial radiography to detect flaws and cracks in pressure vessels and pipelines, medical cancer therapy and sterilisation of medical and consumer goods. Radioactive material associated with the nuclear fuel cycle, including unirradiated and irradiated material, accounts for a relatively small proportion of the total package movements by road.The transport of radioactive material by road is regulated in Great Britain by The Radioactive Material (Road Transport) (Great Britain) Regulations 1996 (511996 No. 1350). These, in common with regulations of all other modes of transport, are based upon the international recommendations of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which provide standards for ensuring a high level of safety to people, property and the environment against radiation and criticality hazards as well as thermal effects associated with the transport of radioactive material, under both normal and accident conditions of transport. The basic requirements are:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What steps are being taken to ensure that all computerised systems affecting air safety are ready for a smooth transition to the year 2000.

The Civil Aviation Authority and National Air Traffic Services Ltd.(NATS—a wholly owned subsidiary of the CAA) fully recognise the importance of addressing the year 2000 issue. In May 1996, NATS began reviewing its operational computer systems, and work is now in hand to implement the necessary remedial action prior to the start of validation testing in September 1998.NATS has covered some 700 pieces of equipment in the review. A number of solutions to potential problems are available, and each piece of equipment will need to be evaluated to determine which solution is the most appropriate in terms of cost effectiveness. Options for possible solutions are based on system or component replacement, modification of existing software or changes in the way the equipment is operated. NATS believes the technical issues are in themselves relatively simple to resolve. It is the number of potential changes required, the amount of testing, the short deadline and financial and staffing restraints which present the biggest challenge.In addition to the NATS review of air traffic control and related systems, the CAA's Safety Regulation Group (SRG) initiated a study in May 1997 to identify the scale and nature of the problem in all their applications, including those which are safety critical. The study will look at any equipment containing a microprocessor chip, personal computer hardware and software, all other computer systems and paper forms, whether provided by CAA or by external suppliers. The study will set implementation dates for solutions to any problems encountered, which SRG has undertaken to meet.SRG, along with the other CAA Groups (Economic Regulation and Directorate of Airspace Policy) and NATS, is also part of the CAA Year 2000 Liaison Working Group, which has met representatives of the US Federal Aviation Administration and will work with them at future meetings in order to share experiences and plans.The Government are monitoring closely the steps the CAA and NATS are taking to ensure a smooth transition. Between now and the date of implementation of all solutions, progress reports will be requested and examined.I would also refer the noble Lord to the reply the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State gave to the honourable member for Crewe and Nantwich, on 19 June 1997

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they intend to continue support for the British tourist industry and to encourage foreign visitors to come to the United Kingdom.

We shall continue to support the British Tourist Authority (which promotes Great Britain abroad) and the national tourist boards. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport recently announced that it would be preparing a tourism strategy with a newly expanded Tourism Forum, comprising more than 50 industry leaders. The strategy will cover identification of trends, improving quality and enabling growth in tourism, and will include developing Britain's image to attract more overseas visitors. Similar work has been, and is being, undertaken in Scotland. The Wales Tourist Board will develop a tourism strategy which it is intended should be presented to the proposed national assembly. In Northern Ireland a new strategy is being developed in consultation with the local industry. The Northern Ireland Tourist Board will continue to work in partnership with the British Tourist Authority in tourism marketing initiatives.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in the light of the Appendix to Resolution DH(97)507 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in the

In any particular case it is the duty of Counsel, and not of Her Majesty's Government, to decide whether to draw a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights to the attention of the court. It is for the court to decide what weight to attach to the judgment in all the circumstances of the case. The same applies to Resolutions of the Committee of Ministers, which are also publicly available.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the statements of the Lord Chancellor on the Human Rights Bill on 24 November 1997 (HL Deb, cols. 830-34): (1) whether they consider that the adoption into UK law of the Strasbourg "victim" test in place of the British "sufficient interest" test of standing to bring proceedings against a public authority claiming that the authority has acted (or proposes to act) in breach of the convention rights is intended to mean that different tests of standing will apply according to whether a judicial review application is based upon (a) common law principles alone; or (b) common law principles embodying convention rights; or (c) European Union law embodying convention rights; or (d) convention rights alone; or (e) a combination of any of those grounds; (2) and, if so, what their reasons are for considering that this will be in the interests of the due administration of justice; (3) and, if not, what is their understanding of the position resulting from the operation of clause 7(3) of the Human Rights Bill as it stands.

As my noble and learned friend the Lord Chancellor said on 24 November, we acknowledge that a consequence of the approach taken by the Human Rights Bill is that a narrower test will apply in relation to applications for judicial review on convention grounds than will continue to apply in relation for judicial review on other grounds. Our reasons for adopting the Strasbourg victim test are set out in my reply to a Question from the noble Lord on 9 December 1997.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether additional funds have been secured for research into alternatives to animal use in scientific procedures.

We are pleased to announce that the budget which will be made available to the Animal Procedures Committee in 1998–99 to sponsor research to reduce, refine or replace animal experiments will be £259,000. This is an increase of £77,000 compared to the 1997–98 figures.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish the Government's response to the Home Affairs Committee report into the management of the Prison Service.

We are pleased to report that we will tomorrow publish the Government's response to the Home Affairs Select Committee's inquiry report into the management of the Prison Service. Copies will be placed in the Library.We are grateful for the Committee's report, and have studied its conclusions and recommendations carefully. We agree with the Committee's conclusion that the Prison Service has done well to manage a rapidly rising prison population and, against this background, has made considerable progress in providing acceptable accommodation for prisoners. The Government accept in principle the desirability of reducing the present high levels of overcrowding, though the Audit of Prison Service Resources, published on 25 July, shows that this will be difficult to achieve in the current circumstances. In the meantime, it will be a priority for the Prison Service to seek to provide adequate regime activities for those prisons which are overcrowded. In order to ensure that the projected numbers can be accommodated safely, we have provided the Prison Service with an additional £43 million this year and next to increase capacity and to pay for the costs of overcrowding and purposeful activity. Longer term resourcing issues will be considered as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What action they intend to take to address the underfunding of the Eastern Health and Social Services Board in Northern Ireland during 1995–96 and 1996–97.

The Eastern Health and Social Services Board received its capitation share of available resources in 1995–96 and 1996–97. It also received £2 million special assistance in 1996–97 and £4 million in 1997–98 in recognition of the fact that it would probably gain as a result of revisions to the capitation formula which would arise from the work of the Capitation Formula Review Group. The Minister with responsibility for this matter, Mr. Tony Worthington, is considering the findings of the Capitation Formula Review Group report and will shortly announce his decision.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many instances of varroa infestation in apiaries have occurred in the United Kingdom in each of the last five years; what is the most northerly occurrence; what steps they have taken to control the spread of infestation; and what research is currently being undertaken to eradicate the virus and by whom.

The cumulative number of apiaries infested by the mite varroa over the last five years is shown in the table below. The most northerly occurrence to date has been in Golspie, Scotland.Control measures are based on varroa being a statutorily notifiable disease. Upon first finding evidence of varroa infestation in Devon in 1992 a Statutory Infected Area (SIA) was declared with movements across the boundary being strictly controlled. On the basis of available information on the geographical distribution of the mite, backed by the results of statutory searches, the boundary has subsequently been extended. The SIA now covers the whole of England and Wales and will be extended to cover Dumfries and Galloway. For England and Wales the need for formal search has been removed. In Scotland random spring and autumn searches have been supplemented by movement restriction orders where appropriate and in the case of isolated incidents, eradication by destruction of hives and bees.The MAFF research programme, utilising existing expertise at IACR Rothamstead and the Central Science Laboratory's National Bee Unit, concentrates on work concerning identification and monitoring methods for the varroa mite and diagnostics and the epidemiology of the associated viral diseases—for example, Slow Paralysis Virus. This work, costing around £215,000 in 1997–98, will lead to improved timing for control measures.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the Lancaster House Agreement on Rhodesia acknowledged that those holding British passports have the right to own land in Zimbabwe.

The Zimbabwe Independence Constitution, agreed at Lancaster House, made no reference to citizenship as a condition of land ownership. Its Declaration of Rights offers, protection from arbitrary deprivation of any property, or interest in property. Many foreign companies and holders of non-Zimbabwe passports own land in Zimbabwe.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they agree with President Mugabe's policy of seizing farms for redesignation; and if not, what action they are taking to dissuade the Zimbabwean Government from land confiscation.

We recognise the need for land reform in Zimbabwe but do not support that Government's present programme of land acquisition. We have expressed to them our concern that their current action will damage the economy, undermine investor confidence and do nothing to help the poor. We have urged them to follow a carefully planned programme that is fair and transparent and aimed at poverty eradication.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What are the implications for NATO and for Poland's joining NATO, of that country's decision to equip itself for NATO membership with Israeli weapons systems that will require maintenance by Israeli personnel.

It is the decision of any member country or prospective member country how, and from whom, they wish to equip their armed forces in order to maintain or meet the requirements for NATO membership. We are unaware of any final decision by the Polish Government to purchase either equipment or subsequent support facilities from Israel.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What decision they have reached on the future of HM Yacht "Britannia".

We have decided that "Britannia" should be preserved for the wider public benefit, subject to the conclusion of satisfactory arrangements to safeguard her future appearance and use. Following an initial sift earlier this year on a wide range of proposals, seven very imaginative ideas have been considered in detail. We are grateful to all the organisations for their enthusiasm and hard work. Two proposals have been assessed as offering the best prospects for successful preservation, namely those for Edinburgh (Forth Ports plc) and Manchester (Peel Holdings plc). These two proposals stood out from all the rest with firm, costed plans for the appropriate preservation and care of "Britannia", and finance already in place. Detailed discussions will begin on these with a view to a final decision in the Spring. Her Majesty the Queen has been kept closely advised.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In the light of their proposals for the reform of student support, what support will be available to students in England and Wales through mandatory awards and student loans in the academic year 1998–99.

The total level of support available to students through grant and loan together in 1998–99 will be 3 per cent. higher than for 1997–98, in line with forecast price increases. I am placing a memorandum in the Library giving full details of the new grant, loan and fee rates for 1998–99. These rates will be incorporated in the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations and the Education (Student Loans) Regulations to be laid before Parliament in due course.