asked Her Majesty's Government:What document contains the undertakings given by Turkey concerning human rights and democracy at the time of ratification of the Customs Union with the European Union; and what individual or group within the European Union has responsibility for overseeing the implementation of the undertaking. [HL957]

There is no document containing any commitments concerning human rights and democracy from Turkey at the time of the entry into force of the Customs Union with the European Community. The then Turkish Prime Minister, Mrs. Ciller, wrote to the European Parliament at the time of the ratification of the Customs Union Treaty, in December 1995, acknowledging that Turkey needed to make further progress in the field of human rights. The Commission is responsible for overseeing the functioning of that Customs Union, including progress on human rights reform. The Commission's latest report to the European Parliament on this subject was submitted on 4 March 1998.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What has been the decline in livestock farming incomes:

Incomes for the various types of livestock farms in the United Kingdom are given below:

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the answer by the Lord Carter on 28 January (H.L. Deb., col. 223), under which legislative powers the Environment Agency can make by-laws to protect stocks of salmon and sea trout. [HL992]

The Environment Agency has powers under Section 210 and Schedule 25 to the Water Resources Act 1991 to make by-laws regulating fishing for salmon and sea trout.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Donoughue on 3 March

The telephone enquiry line for the Phillips Inquiry is now based in Hercules House, Lambeth North, London SE1 7DU. From 22 December 1997 until 20 February 1998, the line was based in the offices of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in Whitehall Place. At no time has the line been manned by Ministry staff.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Donoughue on 3 March

None of the staff manning the telephone enquiry line is a serving or past employee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they have set a date for the publication of their proposals for the reform of the House of Lords. [HL1019]

No.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What estimate they have made of the total loss of duty due to smuggling of tobacco products and alcoholic drinks during the last four years. [HL1002]

The tables below set out Customs' estimate of revenue losses (duty and VAT) to the Exchequer through cross-Channel smuggling of alcohol drinks and tobacco products in calendar years 1996 and 1997.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they intend to publish the 1996–97 Fraud Report on the Internet as was done for the 1995–96 Report; and, if not, why not. [HL993]

Yes, we do intend to place the 1996–97 Fraud Report on the Treasury's Internet site in due course. Hard copies of the report are now available from the Treasury's Public Enquiry Unit on 0171–270–4558.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether Value Added Tax is chargeable in respect of compensation payments made to former handgun owners who have surrendered their weapons under any of the options available to them under the Firearms (Amendment) (No.2) Act 1997 Compensation Scheme. [HL894]

Yes, only in respect of payments to handgun owners who are registered for Value Added Tax. Compulsory transfers of ownership of property against payments of compensation clearly fall within the scope of Value Added Tax.If the surrendered guns are second-hand they may be eligible for inclusion in the special margin scheme for second-hand goods. This is a special scheme in which VAT is due only on the seller's profit margin rather than the full value of the goods. As the margin is the amount by which the selling price exceeds the purchase price, it follows that no VAT will be due on any goods sold at a loss.Under the Value Added Tax rules, VAT registered gun owners should account for tax at the time their guns are surrendered. However, as a concession, Customs have agreed that owners will not have to account for tax until the time the compensation payments are received.

asked Her Majesty's Government:How many civil servants in each department receive a greater rate of pay than the spokesman for that department in the House of Lords. [HL948]

Estimates based on the information available centrally are set out in the following table:

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is the current rate of unemployment in (a) the United Kingdom; (b) Canada; (c) France; (d) Germany; (e) Italy; (f) Japan; and (g) the United States of America. [HL1047]

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Chief Executive of the Office for National Statistics, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What is their estimate of total central and local government expenditure on crime prevention in England and Wales in each of the next three financial years; what savings they expect this spending will produce; and whether they are designing mechanisms to enable the benefits of these savings to be appropriately shared between government departments, agencies and local authorities, both nationally and internationally. [HL1016]

The information requested on expenditure is not available. Crime reduction work is funded from a range of central government programmes, often in partnership with local authorities and other agencies, and by local authorities directly from their own budgets. Expenditure on crime reduction is not recorded separately.

asked Her Majesty's Government:In how many police constabulary areas, with names, in England, Wales and Scotland there have been, or are, investigations into fraud in connection with the Firearms Act 1997 Compensation Scheme; how many police officers and civilians, of what grade, are or have been suspended, and on what dates, giving the relevant constabulary name in each case. [HL998]

We are aware of current and past investigations into potential fraud in relation to firearms compensation claims in five police areas: Nottinghamshire; South Yorkshire; Devon and Cornwall; Essex; and the Metropolitan Police. In the South Yorkshire case, three police constables and one civilian employee have been suspended from duty pending the outcome of the investigation. The dates of suspension were 13 November 1997, 12 December 1997, 28 January 1998 and 18 February 1998. In the other cases, the investigations relate to the possibility of attempted deception by claimants, with no indication of police involvement. One is at the preliminary enquiry stage, and criminal charges have been laid in two cases.However, the number of attempted deceptions must be seen in the context of over 40,000 compensation claims received by the Firearms Compensation Section. Officials will continue to examine the remaining claims closely, drawing possible discrepancies to the attention of the police for further investigation. This examination of claims is a detailed but essential task.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether, in view of the fact that present and projected traffic levels no longer justify the construction of the Corwen Bypass/Inner Relief Road on the A.5 between Chirk and Llandegai, they will remove the blight being caused by the present safeguarding of the route for this scheme. [HL1021]

In March 1997, the Welsh Office announced that decisions on improvements at Corwen would be deferred until the feasibility of an inner relief road scheme had been assessed. This now forms part of the overall review of the Welsh trunk road programme launched on 31 July 1997. No decisions on whether to withdraw the projected route for the bypass can be made until the review has been completed.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What decision has been made on the application under Section 19 of the Fire Services Act 1947 of the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority to reduce its firefighting resources. [HL1102]

My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Mr. George Howarth) has today advised the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority that my right honourable friend the Home Secretary has agreed to its application to close the Barbican and Shooters Hill fire stations, to change the arrangements for the provision of fire cover on the River Thames and to make a consequent reduction in the establishment of London Fire Brigade of 80 firefighting posts.The statutory responsibility for the provision of an efficient fire service rests with the local fire authority. In considering applications by fire authorities for reductions in firefighting resources, my right honourable friend has to be satisfied that there has been adequate consultation and that, following any reductions, national standards of fire cover can continue to be maintained. In fulfilling this function, my right honourable friend relies on advice from Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Fire Services.Both my right honourable friend and my honourable friend are satisfied that the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority has consulted widely over its proposals. There has also been opportunity over some months for representations to be made direct to the Home Office and a considerable number, including representations from right honourable and honourable Members, have been received. These have all been thoroughly considered, particularly those relating to the proposed closure of the fire stations at the Barbican and Shooters Hill. We have taken into account the points raised by honourable Members in the debate on the Adjournment in another place on 10 March. We have sought the professional advice of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Fire Services, and, specifically, of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector.The advice that we have received from Her Majesty's Chief Inspector is unequivocal that, following the proposed reductions, the London Fire Brigade would still be able to meet fully the agreed national standards of fire cover in the areas immediately affected by the changes and elsewhere in the capital. The Chief Inspector has, in particular, confirmed that the authority's proposal to cover the fireground currently served by Shooters Hill from the fire stations at East Greenwich, Plumstead, Woolwich, Eltham, Lee Green and Bexley is wholly consistent with the continued maintenance of the national standards, as is the proposal to cover the Barbican fireground from the fire stations at Dowgate, Clerkenwell and Shoreditch.Taking full account of this advice and after the most careful consideration, my right honourable friend has therefore decided to approve the authority's application. The implementation of these proposed changes is now a matter for the authority.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When the revised Framework Document for the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency will be published. [HL1083]

The revised framework document has been published today and a copy will be placed in the Library.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will instruct assessors in Scotland to follow the same practices as suggested by the British Horse Society, the Association of British Riding Schools and the British Show Jumping Association to the English valuation officers in the agreed practice note of 1995 with regard to the rating of riding schools and livery stables. [HL950]

The Government have no powers to direct Scottish assessors in the way requested. It is for assessors to develop their own schemes of valuation on a professional basis. Rights of appeal are of course available to ratepayers in the usual way.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish data for Scotland showing for state schools, independent schools and all schools separately, the percentage of S4 pupils in each of the years 1994 to 1997 passing Standard Grade examinations with credit level (grades 1 and 2) in the following subjects: mathematics, English, English literature, sciences (showing separately percentages for general science, physics, chemistry and biology), French, history and geography, showing data separately for boys, girls and all pupils and including for each category of school, the number of schools and the number of S4 pupils. [HL925]

Examination data for Scottish Qualifications are published on an annual basis and available in the Library of the House of Lords. Read together, the annual Examination Statistics published by the Scottish Qualifications Authority and Examination Results in Scottish Schools from the Scottish Office show examination success at Standard Grade broken down by school, by subject, by gender and by grade. Additional detailed analyses can be made available in response to specific enquiries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish data for Scotland showing for state schools, independent schools and all schools separately, the percentage of S4 pupils in each of the years 1994 to 1997 passing Standard Grade examinations with credit level (grades 1 and 2) in the following combinations of subjects: mathematics and English; mathematics, English and one science; mathematics, English, one science, French and either history or geography, showing data separately for boys, girls and all pupils and including, for each category of school, the number of schools and the number of S4 pupils. [HL926]

Examination data for Scottish qualifications published on an annual basis do not include information on combinations of subjects in the format requested. Such detailed analyses can, however, be made available in response to specific enquiries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish data for Scotland showing for state schools, independent schools and all schools separately, the percentage of S4 pupils in each of the years 1994 to 1997 obtaining five or more Standard Grade passes at credit level (grades 1 and 2), showing data separately for boys, girls and all pupils and including, for each category of school, the number of schools and the number of S4 pupils. [HL927]

Information on the percentage of S4 pupils obtaining five or more Standard Grade credit awards in each secondary school in Scotland is published in the series Examination Results in Scottish Schools. This source does not provide a gender breakdown. Further detailed analyses of this type can, however, be provided in response to specific enquiries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish data for Scotland showing for all state schools, independent schools and all schools separately, the number of pupils in S5 together with the percentage of the previous S4 year group in each of the years 1994 to 1997 obtaining three or more Higher Grade passes at Bands A, B or C, showing data separately for boys, girls and all pupils and including, for each category of school, the number of schools and the number of S4 pupils. [HL928]

Examination data for Scottish qualifications are published on an annual basis and available in the Library of the House of Lords. Read together, the annual Examination Statistics published by the Scottish Qualifications Authority and Examination Results in Scottish Schools from the Scottish Office show examination success at Higher Grade broken down by schools, by gender and by grade, including an analysis of success in three or more Higher Grades at A—C. Additional detailed analyses of the data can be made available in response to specific enquiries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will publish data for Scotland for state schools, independent schools and all schools in each of the years 1994 to 1997 giving the number of pupils in S5 together with the percentage of the previous S4 year group in each of the subjects: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, English literature, history, geography, French and economics, entering for Higher Grade, passing Higher Grade at bands A, B or C and passing Higher Grade at band A, showing data separately for boys, girls and all pupils and including, for each category of school, the number of schools and the number of S4 pupils. [HL929]

Examination data for Scottish qualifications are published on an annual basis and available in the Library of the House of Lords. Read together, the annual Examination Statistics published by the Scottish Qualifications Authority and Examination Results in Scottish Schools from the Scottish Office show examination success at Higher Grade broken down by school, by subject, by gender and by grade. Additional detailed analyses of the data can be made available in response to specific enquiries.

asked Her Majesty's Government:When the Prime Minister referred to "benefit fraud estimated at £4 billion a year" (

The figure of £4 billion is the previous administration's estimate of the level of benefit fraud. The estimate was based on the findings of the ongoing programme of benefit reviews. Copies of completed benefit reviews are available in the Library.The Government are examining this estimate. We are not convinced that the current analysis of benefit review results enables us to distinguish fully between wrongly made payments arising from fraud, incorrect claims, misunderstandings by benefit claimants on when to report changes of circumstances, or the weakness in the design of benefits. We have asked for further work to be done on the methodology of, and analysis of, all current reviews.

asked Her Majesty's Government:What would be the value today of attendance, invalid care allowance, severe disablement allowance, mobility allowance and the care component of disability living allowance, if the link with prices and earnings created by the Social Security Act 1975 had not been broken by the Social Security Act 1980.[HL735]

The information requested is set out in the table. However, only attendance allowance was linked with prices and earnings by the Social Security Act 1975 and disability living allowance was introduced in 1992.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Further to the Written Answer by the Baroness Jay of Paddington on 3 March

Since Sharing Resources for Health in England: Report of the Resource Allocation Working Party was published in 1976, there has been a clear objective for Hospital and Community Health Services resource allocation—namely, "to secure equal opportunity of access to healthcare for people at equal risk". RAWP recommended distributing resources on the basis of population, weighted according to two basic criteria: need—adjustments were to be made for perceived differences in the need for healthcare; cost—unavoidable differences in the cost of providing services were to be taken into account.The current Hospital and Community Health Services weighted capitation formula contains three basic elements. The first element is an age-related need adjustment. As well as the size of the population, its age structure is also important as patterns of morbidity (levels of sickness) vary by age group. The very young and the elderly, whose populations are not evenly distributed throughout the country, make more use of health services than the rest of the population.Even when differences due to age are taken into account, populations of the same size and age distribution display different morbidity characteristics. The second element of the formula is an additional adjustment for need, over and above that accounted for by age. This adjustment takes the form of three indices of need for different services: acute, psychiatric and community. The needs indices include a wide range of health and socio-economic indicators associated with the need for healthcare—e.g., unemployment, elderly living alone, single carers, lone parent households, households with no central heating, etc. The percentage weighting of the indices is determined by reference to a three-year average of the latest available national expenditure figures. Fairness has been put as the top

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the code practice for local authorities roadside emissions testing. [HL991]

Copies are being placed in the Library of the House today.

asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the public notice entitled

Whether the requirements in Section 30 (5) of the Local Government Act 1974 for publicising reports of the Local Government Ombudsman are met is a matter for the local authority concerned and not for Her Majesty's Government.