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Written Answers to Questions
Friday 15 January 1993
NORTHERN IRELAND
Labour Statistics
Mr. McNamara : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the estimated proportion of economically active Roman Catholics and Protestants as at 31 December 1996.
Mr. Atkins : The Government have not carried out any projections of the economically active population in terms of religion.
Public Bodies (Targets)
Mr. McNamara : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proposals he has for the introduction of goals and timetables to other public bodies in Northern Ireland similar to those introduced for senior civil servants in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Atkins : It is not for the Secretary of State to set goals and timetables for other public authorities. Under section 31(3) of the Fair Employment (Northern Ireland) Act 1989, all public authorities have a duty to consider the need for goals and timetables to assist in securing fair participation in their employment by both communities.
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Press Office
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff were employed by his Department's press office in each year since 1979.
Mr. Mates : Data on staff employed prior to 1989 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The available information is as follows :--
|Staff in Post as at
|1 April
------------------------------------------------------------
1989 |50
1990 |54
1991 |58
1992 |58.5
These figures include staff from the home and Northern Ireland civil services and the press offices of Northern Ireland Departments.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Electricity Transmission Wires
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment his Department has made of the effects of overhead electricity transmission wires on farm animals using fields adjoining or below.
Mr. Soames : The Department has not made such an assessment.
Green Pound
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the value in European currency units of the green pound in each year since 1987.
Mr. Curry : The information requested is given in the table.
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Value of Green Pound in European Currency Units
(Day Weighted Rates)
Sector
Year |Beef |Milk |Eggs and Poultry |Sugar and Cereals|Sheepmeat |Pigmeat |Olive Oil
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1987 |1.452 |1.537 |1.537 |1.558 |1.533 |1.503 |1.583
1988 |1.407 |1.503 |1.503 |1.524 |1.532 |1.428 |1.524
1989 |1.382 |1.429 |1.437 |1.453 |1.489 |1.355 |1.472
1990 |1.295 |1.351 |1.362 |1.347 |1.424 |1.284 |1.397
1991 |1.257 |1.285 |1.287 |1.270 |1.285 |1.248 |1.278
1992 |1.233 |1.233 |1.233 |1.233 |1.231 |1.190 |1.231
Press Office
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many staff were employed by his Department's press office in each year since 1979.
Mr. Curry : The number of staff employed in this Department' press office in recent years is as follows :
Year |Number --------------------- 1985 |35 1986 |35 1987 |30 1988 |28 1989 |26 1990 |25 1991 |20 1992 |20 Figures for previous years are not readily available.
EDUCATION
Further Education
Mr. Rooker : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he intends to publish advice with respect to changes of name for colleges in the new further education sector.
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Mr. Boswell : The Department has today issued advice to colleges entering the new further education sector on 1 April 1993 on the procedure for applying for name changes. The advice also includes guidance on college titles.
Press Office
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many staff were employed by his Department's press office in each year since 1979.
Mr. Boswell : Figures for the number of press officers are available only for the last three years. These are as follows :
Year |Press officers --------------------------------------------- 1990 |9 1991 |8 1992 |8
Student Grant Cheques
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if Her Majesty's Government will hold urgent discussions with clearing banks about the criteria they use for cashing student grant cheques.
Mr. Boswell : This is entirely a matter for the clearing banks themselves to decide. My right hon. Friend has received no representations about any difficulties over their arrangements for cashing student grant cheques.
Secondary Schools, Northamptonshire
Mr. William Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will publish a list of secondary schools in Northamptonshire together with the amount spent per pupil in each school in the most recent available year.
Mr. Forth : Details of schools' planned unit costs are contained within part 2 of the budget statements prepared and published by each local education authority under section 42 of the Education Reform Act 1988. Information on schools' actual expenditure is contained in authorities' outturn statements. Copies of the relevant parts of the budget statements for 1991-92 and 1992-93 and the outturn statement for 1991-92 published by Northamptonshire county council have been placed in the Library.
PRIME MINISTER
Calcutt Inquiry
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Prime Minister when he was first advised of the contents of the letter from Lord McGregor to Sir David Calcutt.
The Prime Minister : The first I knew of Lord McGregor's letter was when it appeared in the national press.
Yugoslavia
Mr. Wareing : To ask the Prime Minister when he responded to a letter dated 9 December 1992 from President Dobrica Cosic of Yugoslavia concerning the
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conflict in the former Yugoslavia ; if he will indicate what his response has been ; and if he will seek agreement to the publication of the correspondence.The Prime Minister : I replied to President Cosic 's letter on 11 January. I believe it important to maintain the confidentiality of such correspodence.
Denmark
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 14 December, Official Report, column 37, what is the basis for clear distinction between the intergovernmental binding decision in respect of Denmark taken in Edinburgh, and a treaty judiciable at the International Court at The Hague.
The Prime Minister : In the EC context treaty' is normally used for an instrument amending the Community treaties and thus requiring ratification. The decision in respect of Denmark does not amend either the Maastricht treaty or the earlier Community treaties and does not require ratification. It is, like a treaty, binding in international law.
Jamaica
Mr. Kaufman : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it the policy of Her Majesty's Government to withdraw all British economic aid to Jamaica if hangings are recommenced there in February.
The Prime Minister : No. But in line with normal practice, our bilateral aid policy for Jamaica will continue to take full account of all human rights considerations.
Seals (Russia)
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Prime Minister what written evidence or information Her Majesty's Government have received from the Russian authorities concerning the seal cull in Russia ; and if he will make a statement.
The Prime Minister : The Russian authorities informed us of the 1992 culling quotas of 7,300 and 2,300 for adult hooded and harp seals respectively. We have not received any figures for 1993. The Russian authorities are well aware of public concern in the United Kingdom about seal culling.
Human Rights
Mr. Soley : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to incorporate article 10 of the European convention on human rights into British law.
The Prime Minister : No. Our policy remains not to incorporate the European convention on human rights into domestic law, since we believe that it is for Parliament, rather than the judiciary, to determine how the principles of human rights in the convention are best secured.
Honours (Withdrawal)
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Prime Minister under what circumstances he would recommend to the Queen that awards be withdrawn posthumously ; and if he will make a statement.
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The Prime Minister [holding answer 14 January 1993] : None that I can foresee, but the forfeiture of awards is considered on a case-by -case basis.
Prince and Princess of Wales
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Prime Minister what consultations he held with (a) the Prince and (b) the Princess of Wales prior to his statement of 9 December 1992.
The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Leicester, East (Mr. Vaz) on Tuesday 12 January at column 697.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Electrical Faults (Fires)
Mr. Page : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of fires in (a) the private sector and (b) the commercial sector were caused by faulty electrical installations for the latest year for which figures are available.
Mr. Jack : The table shows the percentage of fires attended by local authority fire brigades in the United Kingdom in 1991 where the cause was reported to be faults in the electrical plugs, sockets, switches, leads to appliances and other wiring in buildings, by their trade or business activity. The classification of "private" or "commercial" is not available.
Percentage of all fires in each category of building in 1991 caused by faulty electrical distribution apparatus<1> Category of building |per cent.<2> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dwellings |5 Private garages, sheds etc. |2 Agricultural, forestry, fishing premises |9 Industrial premises |7 Premises used for distributive trade, hotels and catering; repairs |8 Transport and communication premises |6 Banking, finance, insurance, business services and leasing premises |12 Other service premises |5 Other |2 Unspecified |6 All occupied buildings |5 <1> Electrical distribution apparatus include plugs, sockets and switches, leads to appliances and other wiring. <2> Provisional. Source: Home Office Fire Statistics, based on reports from local authority fire brigades.
Betting Offices
Mr. Devlin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to meet the chairman of the British Greyhound Racing Board to discuss the possible extension of betting office opening hours in the evening.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I have no present plans for a further meeting, but have previously discussed this matter with the chairman. In addition, I met a delegation including the chief executive of the British Greyhound Racing Board on 21 December 1992 to discuss evening opening. My officials also met the chief executive and his colleagues on 2 December 1992.
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Immigration
Sir Teddy Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice he has taken on the continuing right to deny entry to the United Kingdom of visitors to other EC nations ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The Government have access to legal and other advice from a variety of sources, but it is not the normal practice to reveal details of the advice provided in relation to any specific issue.
Sir Teddy Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his discussions with Commissioner Bangemann about the implications of proposed article 8A of the treaty of Rome in relation to the right of the United Kingdom to deny admission to visitors to other EC nations.
Mr. Charles Wardle : My right hon. and learned Friend had a number of discussions with EC Vice-President Bangemann when Herr Bangemann had responsibility within the Commission for implementation of the internal market. My right hon. and learned Friend made it clear that, while the Government's policy was to make it as easy as possible for EC nationals to enter and leave the United Kingdom, immigration controls would be maintained on non-EC nationals.
Sir Teddy Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will outline the reasons underlying his statement that the United Kingdom has a continuing right to exclude visitors to other EC nations following the implementation of proposed article 8A of the treaty of Rome.
Mr. Charles Wardle : Our view is that, insofar as it deals with the movement of persons, article 8A of the treaty of Rome applies only to EC nationals.
Drug Abuse
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will use sequestrated assets from drug dealers in Liverpool to fund the expansion of the city's Dare to Care anti-drugs project ; and if he will make a statement on measures he is taking to combat drug abuse in Liverpool.
Mr. Jack : Under present public accounting arrangements confiscated money is treated in the same way as fine revenue, and paid directly into the Consolidated Fund from which Government expenditure generally-- including substantial support for drug-related work--is financed. In April 1991 the seized assets fund was established to recycle assets confiscated here under drug confiscation agreements with other countries to support work against drug misuse. £3.2 million has been made available from the fund in the current financial year to enforcement agencies and a variety of individual projects, including some based in Liverpool, directed against drugs misuse. The possibility of further funding being made available from this source is under consideration, but the final amount will depend on the success of international operations to confiscate the assets of drug traffickers.
Under the drugs prevention initiative, a local drugs prevention team has been working in Liverpool since 1990.
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The team has provided financial and other support to a wide range of drugs prevention projects, including Dare to Care.Merseyside police play an active role in tackling drug misuse. In addition to enforcing the law, they are involved with other agencies, including the regional health authority and the education authority, in a number of prevention and education initiatives.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many new drug addicts registered on Merseyside in 1992 ; how many crimes on Merseyside were drug related over the past five years ; and what resources are available to patrol Liverpool bay and the River Mersey to combat the smuggling of drugs into the area via small craft.
Mr. Jack : Addict statistics for 1992 are not yet available. In 1991, the number of new addicts notified to the Home Office in the Merseyside police area was 893.
Information on drug-related offences in Merseyside is contained in table A2.1 of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin "Statistics of Drugs Seizures and Offenders Dealt With, UK 1991 (Area Tables)", a copy of which is in the Library.
Anti-smuggling control is the responsibility of the Customs and Excise Department. Patrol of the areas mentioned forms a part of the duties of the flexible anti-smuggling teams based in the Liverpool area. These comprise a total of 38 staff plus support of two further officers whose specific job is to gather coastal intelligence. There are, in addition, further staff based at Holyhead, Heysham and Ellesmere Port who can be called on should the need arise. The staff are supported by a locally based Searider semi- rigid inflatable vessel, Customs marine branch cutters, aerial surveillance and mobile radar vans as necessary. A wide range of other technical aids is also available to local staff as Liverpool is the centre for the research and development of Customs equipment.
Youth Crime
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what measures he proposes to take to tackle youth crime in Mansfield and Nottinghamshire ;
(2) what measures he intends to take to deal with car crimes committed by young people in (a) Mansfield, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) England and Wales.
Mr. Jack : The Government have encouraged the police and other agencies in the development of effective crime prevention programmes aimed at tackling youth crime and have funded a number of initiatives. The Home Office safer cities project in Nottingham has committed more than £100,000 to youth crime prevention schemes since 1989. In addition, we have set up a local drug prevention team in the area. The Department of Education announced last month that Nottinghamshire is to receive £147,000 in 1992-93 under its grants for education support and training (GEST) programme for youth crime prevention schemes, one of which will be a "wheels" project in the Ashfield district to divert young people from car crime. The Department of the Environment's city challenge programme in Nottingham is also targeting youth crime prevention. In addition the probation
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supervision grant scheme provides funding for three projects in the Nottingham area for support for offenders and ex- offenders. As part of its programme of action on youth crime for 1993, Crime Concern is planning a series of regional seminars, including two in the midlands, on best practice in diverting young people from crime. The Government are also considering what means might be needed to reduce offending by the very small group of persistent juvenile offenders.With regard to the measures being taken nationwide to prevent car crime, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the question from the hon. Member for Alyn and Deeside (Mr. Jones) on 16 December 1992, Official Report, column 208.
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of offenders appearing before the courts in (a) the east midlands, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) England and Wales were unemployed in (i) 1989, (ii) 1990 and (iii) 1991.
Mr. Jack : Information on the employment status of defendants appearing before the courts in England and Wales is not recorded centrally.
Property Offences
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if his Department will publish regional data on the relationship between property offences and consumption levels.
Prison Education
Mr. Tipping : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria he will use in deciding which contractors should be awarded contracts to provide prison education services.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Contracts will be awarded to those providers, whether from the public or private sector, who offer the best combination of quality and price which reflects the priority of the service.
Press Regulation
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department was first made aware of the contents of the letter sent by Lord McGregor to Sir David Calcutt.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : My Department first became aware of the letter when it was published in the press on Tuesday 12 January.
Offenders (Employment)
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of offenders in (a) the east midlands, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) England and Wales went immediately into employment on release from prison in (i) 1989, (ii) 1990 and (iii) 1991.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The information requested is not recorded. However, the National Prison Survey 1991, which was based on a random sample of the prison
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population, found that about one sixth of prisoners who had an earliest release date in 1991 said that they had jobs to go to on release.Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of offenders under supervision by the probation service in (a) Nottinghamshire and (b) England and Wales were unemployed in (i) 1989, (ii) 1990 and (iii) 1991.
Mr. Jack : This information is not available centrally.
Terrorism
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been his response to a request from the Association of London Authorities for his Department to meet the costs of the Metropolitan police's counter-terrorism operations.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : I have not recently received any such request. But I shall be meeting representatives of the association later this month and will consider their views.
Press Office
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff were employed by his Department's press office in each year since 1979.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : The Home Department's records do not contain a breakdown between press office and paid publicity (advertising, publications, exhibitions and videos) staff before 1982. Instead, public relations branch staff were listed together and this total, including clerical support grades, for 1979 to 1982 was 33 for each year inclusive.
Press office staff numbers, including clerical grades, for subsequent years are :
|Number
---------------------
1983 |22.25
1984 |21.75
1985 |20.50
1986 |24.25
1987 |24.50
1988 |26.00
1989 |28.50
1990 |27.50
1991 |26.50
1992 |25.50
Mr. Meale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will update Home Office research study no.119: "Trends in Crime and their Interpretation."
Mr. Jack : The study examined a period of some 30 years up to 1987 and was published in 1990. More recent trends in recorded crime are being kept under review, but there is no reason to believe that there have been significant changes in the patterns which it describes in the period since publication.
In coming to its conclusion the study, published in 1990, based its findings on a period of some 30 years up to 1987 and as a consdquence I have no reason to doubt the continuing validity of its conclusions. I therefore have no immediate plans to repeat this particular work using post -1987 crime data.
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Correspondence
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall, North of 17 December about inquiries into passport records.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : I replied to the hon. Member on 13 January 1993.
Dr. Kypros Loucas
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 17 December 1992, Official Report, column 450, if he will identify the professionals who gave references on behalf of Dr. Kypros Loucas.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Dr. Loucas gave the names of two professionals as personal referees whom the Prison Service could approach. The references were given in a personal capacity and with the customary assurance that they would be treated in strict confidence. On that basis, it would be wrong to identify them.
Central European Time
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate his Department has made of the cost of a move to central European time.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Estimates of some of the possible costs and savings resulting from a move to Central European Time were made in the 1989 Green Paper "Summer Time : A Consultation Document" (CM722). We will review the adequacy of this information in our further consideration of policy on future summer time arrangements.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Cold Weather Payments
Mr. O'Hara : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many cold weather payments were made in November 1992 and in December 1992 (a) nationally and (b) in Merseyside.
Mr. Scott : The administration of the social fund is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Edward O'Hara, dated 14 January 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking how many cold weather payments were made in November 1992 and in December 1992 (a) nationally and (b) in Merseyside.
There were no forecast or recorded periods of cold weather in November 1992. Following forecast and recorded periods of cold weather in December 1992, around 2.5 million payments nationally have been made costing approximately £15.5 million. More detailed national and local figures will be placed in the Library as soon as they are available.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
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