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Iraq and Iran
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to discuss arms and nuclear exports to Iraq and Iran from European Community countries during the European summit of the European Council.
The Prime Minister : We are committed to strengthening nuclear non- proliferation regimes and to controlling arms exports. The United Kingdom presidency has taken forward work on nuclear
non-proliferation and on the harmonisation of conventional arms export policies in European political co-operation. We have no plans to discuss EC arms and nuclear exports to Iraq and Iran at the Edinburgh summit.
Legal Expenses
Mr. Campbell-Savours : To ask the Prime Minister on what dates, in what circumstances and at what cost, contributions have been made, at public expense, towards the legal expenses of officers of Her Majesty's Government, officers of the House of Commons who are Members of the House, persons working in the private office of Ministers and accounting officers for Departments of state since 1979.
The Prime Minister : I have nothing further to add to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Thurrock (Mr. Mackinlay) on 3 December, Official Report, column 307.
WALES
South Glamorgan Health Authority
Mr. Jon Owen Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many secretarial staff were assisting consultants in South Glamorgan health authority in (a) 1990, (b) 1991 and (c) the first half of 1992.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The requested information is not available centrally.
Unemployment Statistics
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the unemployment figures for (a) Wales and (b) Clwyd for men and for women and as a percentage for May 1979 and for the latest date ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : The earliest month for which data comparable with present coverage are available for local areas is June 1983. The seasonally adjusted series, consistent between 1979 and 1992, is produced only for Wales as a whole. All available unemployment figures can be accessed from the NOMIS database, by House of Commons Library staff.
Local Government Reorganisation and Education
Mr. Murphy : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what considerations informed his decision in respect of whether to place in the Library the results of his
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consultation exercises in the case of (a) local government reorganisation and (b) "Choice and Diversity and the Education Bill".Sir Wyn Roberts : Responses to the various consultative documents on local government reorganisation were placed in the Library of the House at the request of the local authority associations in Wales and others.
Our policy on the responses received in respect of the proposals contained in the Education White Paper "Choice and Diversity" was described in my reply of 26 November to the hon. Gentleman at column 794.
Youth Training
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how he intends to improve the training within the youth training scheme.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Training and enterprise councils (TECs), which are responsible for the planning and delivery of youth training, operate under a performance-based contract. Each TEC has arrangements for quality assurance and has the flexibility to develop programmes to meet local needs.
Youth training is being made even more effective through the progressive extension of training credits which are designed to increase the motivation of young people, encourage more employers to train and promote an efficient training market.
Young People (Shotton)
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many young people in the Shotton travel-to-work area are not in employment, not on a youth training scheme and not in full-time education.
Sir Wyn Roberts : In October 1992 there were 398 unemployed claimants aged between 16 and 18 years inclusive in the Shotton, Flint and Rhyl trave-to-work area. Information on other young people who are out of employment, not on a YT scheme nor in full-time education, is not available.
Assisted Area Status
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of when the review of assisted area status will be concluded ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given on 2 December to the hon. Member for Havant (Mr. Willetts) by my hon. Friend the Minister of Trade at columns 260-61.
Education (Choice and Diversity)
Mr. Murphy : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) how many representations he has received on the White Paper, "Choice and Diversity and the Education Bill" ; and how many representations were made from (a) local education authorities, (b) teaching organisations and (c) others ;
(2) if he will list, with names and addresses, those organisations and individuals who submitted representations to him over the White Paper, "Choice and Diversity and the Education Bill".
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Sir Wyn Roberts : We have received some 300 representations on the White Paper "Choice and Diversity". A list, setting out the details of 81 of these, has been placed in the Library of the House. The list includes local education authorities and teaching organisations but does not include those governing bodies, headteachers, teachers, parents and members of the public who responded. It would not be appropriate to list such respondents, some of whom may not wish their names to be disclosed.
The list does not include those organisations which responded to the separate consultations on special educational needs and the proposed transfer of responsibility for the development of Welsh language classroom materials to the Curriculum and Assessment Authority for Wales (Awdurdod Cwricwlwm ac Asesu Cymru).
Training
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how he proposes to improve the delivery of training by Training and enterprise councils.
Sir Wyn Roberts : TECs operate under a performance-based contract with the Department. Each TEC has arrangements for quality assuring the delivery of training by its training providers. Each TEC's performance is reviewed by officials.
Dolphins
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of state for Wales what representations he has received concerning the welfare of dolphins in the Irish sea and specifically Cardigan bay ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Forty-eight representations have been received since November 1991 from a number of sources including members of this House, members of the public and conservation bodies. Forty-four were in relation to the issuing of a licence by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry to Hamilton Oil to undertake exploratory drilling in Cardigan bay ; the other four were in relation to the seismic survey that was carried out in the bay in September of this year by the British Geological Survey.
Railway Privatisation
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the chairman of British Rail concerning the privatisation of the rail industry in Wales.
Sir Wyn Roberts : My right hon. Friend last met Sir Bob Reid on 7 September. They discussed a wide range of topics including privatisation.
Disabled Trainees
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps are taken by his Department to monitor the effectiveness of policies employed by training and enterprise councils concerning the placement of disabled trainees.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Training and enterprise councils are required to set out in their business plans what steps they
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intend to take to ensure that appropriate training is provided for people with disabilities. Each TEC's performance is reviewed by officials.Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much money was allocated as travel allowances to assist disabled trainees to take up training placements by each training and enterprise council in Wales in the latest year for which figures are available.
Sir Wyn Roberts : It is not possible to identify separately the amount for travel allowances for disabled trainees. In negotiating budgets with training and enterprise councils (TECs) the Department takes account of travel costs for all trainees and the TECs are under a "best endeavours" obligation in their contract to provide support costs, including reasonable travelling allowances, for disabled trainees.
Tourism
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish figures showing the total earnings from tourism in Wales in each year since 1981 ; and if he will break the figures down according to (a) earnings from United Kingdom staying visits, (b) overseas visitors and (c) day visitors.
Sir Wyn Roberts [pursuant to his reply, 19 October 1992, columns 132- 33] : Unfortunately an incorrect figure was given, the correct answer is as follows : Estimates of expenditure by overnight visitors to Wales are given in the following table. Estimates of expenditure by day visitors are available only for the financial year ending on 31 March 1989 when an estimated £229 million was spent in Wales. ( Source : The Leisure Day Visits survey 1988-89, conducted by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys on behalf of the Department of Employment and the British Tourist Authority.)
|c|Expenditure by overnight visitors to Wales<1>|c|
£ million
Year |United Kingdom |Overseas visitors
|visitors<2>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1981 |n.a. |50
1982 |n.a. |55
1983 |n.a. |85
1984 |n.a. |90
1985 |n.a. |95
1986 |n.a. |100
1987 |n.a. |120
1988 |n.a. |100
1989 |985 |120
1990 |900 |130
1991 |900 |130
Sources: United Kingdom Travel Survey, International Passenger Survey.
<1>These estimates, derived from: sample surveys and thus subject to
potential random sampling errors, have been rounded to the nearest £5
million.
<2>Since 1989 information has been obtained from the United Kingdom
Tourism Survey (UKTS), sponsored jointly by the statutory tourist
boards from: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. It is not
possible to make a direct comparison between the results of this latter
survey and those of earlier surveys.
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Residential and Nursing Homes
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many private residential and nursing homes have been repossessed in Wales in each of the last three years ; and how many beds have been lost each year through such repossessions.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : This information is not held centrally.
Urban Programme
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much has been allocated to the urban programme for Wales for each of the last five years.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Urban programme allocations for Wales for the last five years were :
|£ million
------------------------------
1988-89 |24.6
1989-90 |27.6
1990-91 |32.6
1991-92 |40.6
1992-93 |31.4
Illegal Parking
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will convene a conference of police, county councillors, borough, district, community and town councillors to discuss ways of alleviating the ill effects of illegal itinerant encampments in the county of Clwyd ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : No. This would be a matter for Clwyd county council to consider.
Hearing-impaired Children
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how he intends to ensure that the special needs of children with hearing impairment but who have not been statemented are protected in the future (a) in local education authority schools and (b) in opted-out schools.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Governors of both local education authority and grant-maintained schools have a responsibility to use their best endeavours to secure that, if any pupil has special educational needs, provision is made to meet those needs. The national curriculum applies to all children, including those with hearing impairments, and schools' special needs provision will be subject to inspection under the new system of school inspections by registered inspectors.
Market Testing
Mr. Wilshire : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales to which of those of his Department's activities due to be market tested by 30 September 1993, the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 and the EC Acquired Rights Directive 77/189/EEC will apply.
Mr. David Hunt : Whether or not the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations
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1981 and the EC Acquired Rights Directive 77/189/EEC will apply to an individual case depends upon the facts of that case ; and there are a number of tests to be applied. For example, it needs to be shown that an undertaking or part of an undertaking is actually being transferred.Mr. Wilshire : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish a timetable showing when he plans to market test those activities listed for testing before 30 September 1993.
Mr. David Hunt : The timetable for market testing my departmental activities listed in Cmnd 2101 indicates my aim that the whole programme is complete by 30 September 1993.
Regional Enterprise Grants
Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will start paying regional enterprise grants to companies based in intermediate areas in Wales.
Mr. David Hunt : On 11 May the Minister for Industry announced the extension of the coverage of regional enterprise grants. In Wales, companies in intermediate areas have accordingly been invited to apply for grants. Parliamentary approval to this new service will be sought in a spring supplementary estimate 1992-93 for the agricultural support services, fishing, regional and industrial development, Wales vote (class XVI, vote 2). Pending that approval, and to ensure that projects can go ahead without delay, urgent expenditure estimated at £150,000 will be met by repayable advances for the contingencies fund.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION
Developing Countries
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what commitments have already been made out of the planned provision for aid to developing countries for 1993-94, 1994-95 and 1995-96.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The bulk of multilateral aid spending over the next three years will arise from existing commitments and developments in the EC budget expenditure on aid. Within individual bilateral aid programmes a range of commitments have already been entered into for spending over the next three years. Details of individual commitments could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Tibet
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations Her Majesty's Government have made to the People's Republic of China relating to policies on compulsory abortion and sterilisation of women, and birth control policy in Tibet ; and what assistance is given to China's health and social services under bilateral aid programmes.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We regularly raise with the Chinese authorities our concern about the situation in Tibet and human rights abuses there including allegations of forced abortion. The Chinese authorities deny that forced
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abortion is official policy. Nevertheless there are reports that such practices occur in more isolated areas. Through the United Nations population fund (UNFPA) representations have been made to Chinese authorities about our concerns on these matters.Our bilateral aid programme is focused on the environment, energy efficiency, economic reform and management, and public
administration. We are not currently involved in either of the health or social services sectors.
Overseas Aid (Gross National Product)
Mr. Pickthall : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of gross national product was dedicated by the United Kingdom in overseas aid in the periods October 1990 to October 1991 and October 1991 to October 1992.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Aid as a proportion of gross national product is calculated by calendar year. In 1990 the United Kingdom spent 0.27 per cent. of our GNP on overseas aid and in 1991 0.32 per cent.
Somalia
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in which regions of Somalia the United Nations Secretary-General has proposed the use of force to ensure delivery of emergency food aid.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd [holding answer 7 December 1992] : United Nations Security Council resolution 794 permits the use of all necessary measures by member states throughout Somalia. In practice, we expect use of force only to be necessary in those regions in the south and centre of the country, where the delivery of emergency food aid has been seriously impeded by looting and violence.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reaction Her Majesty's Government have made to the proposal of the United Nations Secretary-General for the use of force to deliver emergency food aid to Somalia.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd [holding answer 7 December 1992] : Increased security is the key to delivering relief to the starving in Somalia. We have therefore accepted the United Nations Secretary-General's judgment that a larger United Nations military operation by a coalition of member states is necessary to secure the delivery of emergency food aid. We co- sponsored United Nations Security Council resolution 794 of 3 December.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will request the United Nations Secretary- General to draw up proposals to enable leaders in the north of Somalia, Republic of Somaliland, to establish an effective system of administration and to consolidate the relative peace in that region.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd [holding answer 7 December 1992] : The strategy proposed by the United Nations Secretary-General in July 1992 by the United Nations Security Council, envisages the re-building of institutions and the consolidation of peace throughout Somalia. The United Nations proposes to pursue those objectives on a regional basis. The north- west is one of the regions identified by the Secretary-General. We hope that the implementation of Security Council resolution 794, adopted on 3 December,
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will create the conditions in Somalia, not only for improved humanitarian relief operations but for effective implementation of the United Nations's plan for rehabilitation and institution rebuilding throughout the country.Bosnia-Herzegovina
Mr. Wareing : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many United Nations humanitarian aid convoys have travelled to their destinations in Bosnia-Herzegovina from (a) Belgrade, (b) Split and (c) by air from other points of departure.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd [holding answer 7 December 1992] : Exact figures for how many convoys have travelled to their destinations in Bosnia -Herzegovina from various points of departure are not available from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees at present. However, there are 79 UNHCR trucks based at Belgrade with a capacity of 1,140 tonnes and 10 at Split with a capacity of 70 tonnes. A further 228 trucks with 2,343 tonnes capacity are based elsewhere in the former Yugoslavia. As of December, a total of 1,840 relief flights had been made, delivering 21,106 tonnes of humanitarian relief ; all of these were to Sarajevo.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Pit Closures
Mr. Donald Anderson : To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what estimate he has made of the total job loss throughout the economy consequent upon the pit closure programme he announced last week ;
(2) what is his working assuption of the consequential effects on British Rail manpower and finances of the pit closure programme which he announced last week.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is his estimate of the knock-on effect of the closure of the 31 mines on employment in (a) transport, (b) the engineering industry, including belting etc., (c) other material suppliers, (d) the demand for electric power on base load, (e) the demand for consumer goods and (f) retail distribution ; and if he will provide an approximate total for the total knock-on effect, including the second-round effects.
Mr. Mike O'Brien : To ask the President of the Board of Trade by what formula he estimates the number of businesses which close consequent on the closure of a colliery.
Mr. Churchill : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will set in hand a study to estimate the overall number of job losses in the mining and related industries and in the mining communities likely to arise in the event of all 31 pits being closed, as announced by him in his statement of 13 October.
Mr. Eggar [holding answer 6 November 1992] : The Government's view of the employment consequences of pit closures is set out in the memorandum submitted tothe Employment Select Committee of the House on1 December 1992 by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment. With the agreement of the Committee, a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
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Personal Protective Equipment
Mr. Dowd : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is his Department's assessment of the likely effect of its regulations arising from the PPE directive on firms employing (a) more than 50 people and (b) fewer than 50 people ; and what action his Department proposes in order to minimise the disadvantages to small businesses in particular, arising from the directive.
Mr. Leigh : The Personal Protective Equipment Directive (89/686/EEC) removes technical barriers to trade arising from national regulations by creating a single regulatory regime. All firms in the sector, regardless of size, will be able to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the new rules. To minimise the difficulties which smaller businesses may face, in preparing for introduction of the provisions of this directive, the Government have decided that a period of 12 months will be allowed under the United Kingdom regulations before it will be necessary for them fully to comply with the new requirements.
Mr. Dowd : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations his Department has received concerning the EC directive on personal protective equipment ; how these
representations have affected his Department's policy on the directive ; and what his Department estimates to be the average cost per employee of those businesses having to comply with the regulations.
Mr. Leigh : The Department has received many representations from industry and others on the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Directive (89/686/EEC). These views have been taken into account in the drafting of the United Kingdom regulations.
The Department has not been able to obtain the necessary information to determine compliance costs per employee for businesses affected by this directive, but these should be comparable with the costs of such businesses throughout the EC. United Kingdom businesses will have access to new markets as a result of this directive.
Package Holidays Directive
Mr. Fraser : To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he intends to lay regulations to implement the European Community package holidays directive.
Mr. Leigh : Regulations implementing the EC Directive on Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours (90/314/EEC) were laid before Parliament on Monday 23 November. They were withdrawn in order to make a number of amendments to the drafting and re-laid on Tuesday 1 December. They will be subject to the affirmative resolution procedure.
999 Service
Mr. Spearing : To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to the oral statement of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Technology of 27 November, Official Report, columns 1163-66, concerning the future of the 999 service, if he will investigate the technical feasibility of running the existing system of operator centres within a competitive system of telephone providers.
Mr. Leigh : Oftel has appointed independent consultants to advise on ways in which the current 999
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arrangements might be improved in the light of the growing numbers of telecommunications operators. Once their report is complete, all the options will be reviewed by the parties concerned in the light of the consultants' findings. As I have made clear, the Government fully support the director general's commitment to ensuring that the quality of any new arrangements at least maintains, and preferably improves, the current high standard of 999 call handling arrangements.Parcelforce and Red Star Parcels
Mr. Alton : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action he is taking to ensure that management and employees of Parcelforce and Red Star Parcels are in a position to put together bids.
Mr. Leigh : As my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade anticipated in his statement to the House on 15 July, he has asked the Post Office Board to make available financial support to help Parcelforce management and employees in putting together a bid for the business, should they wish to do so, in competition with other potential bidders. Red Star Parcels is a division of the British Rail Parcels Group and questions arising from its privatisation are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport.
Parcelforce
Mr. Alton : To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) when he expects to invite bids for Parcelforce ;
(2) when he expects the privatisation of Parcelforce to be completed.
Mr. Leigh : The Government have not yet decided on the method and timing of the privatisation of Parcelforce. I can therefore forecast neither the launch date for the privatisation, nor when it is likely to be completed.
Mr. Alton : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what estimate he has made of the effect on employment of the privatisation of Parcelforce.
Mr. Leigh : The detailed work set in hand following my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade's announcement on 15 July of his intention to privatise Parcelforce will cover all matters relating to the sale.
Mr. Stott : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to ensure that, in the event of the privatisation of Parcelforce, the future owner will make pension provisions for the employees which, when taken as a whole, will be no less favourable than those currently provided under the Post Office pension schemes.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 7 December 1992] : There is extensive experience of protecting the accrued rights of public sector employees on privatisation ; the same diligence will apply to the sale of Parcelforce. A potential purchaser's plans for future pension provision will in addition be carefully scrutinised at the time bids are sought.
Powergen
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action he will take to compel PowerGen to adhere to their previous commitment to retrofit 4,000 megawatts of capacity with flue gas desulphurisation technology ; and if he will make a statement.
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