| Previous Section | Home Page |
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of the minutes of the meeting held between the Cabinet Secretary and Lord Justice Scott on 12 February.
The Prime Minister : No. The Cabinet Secretary and Lord Justice Scott discussed the procedures which Lord
Column 740
Justice Scott will adopt during the course of his inquiry and that discussion was rk the Prime Minister what recent representations he has received from the national chairman of the Royal British Legion ; what reply he is sending ; what action he is taking ; and if he will make a statement.The Prime Minister [holding answer 15 April 1993] : A letter has been received expressing concerns over the recent introduction into war pensions legislation of a 20 per cent. disablement threshold for claims for noise-induced sensorineural hearing loss, and the new community care arrangements.
A reply has been sent which emphasises that the package on war pensions which included the change on hearing loss claims also included, gains of up to £5 a week for almost 200,000 war disablement pensioners. The Government consider that the concentration of limited resources on the most severely disabled war pensioners is the right way forward.
The reply explains that it is now for local authorities to make sure that they discharge their community care responsibilities effectively. Ministers in the Department of Health have encouraged organisations such as the Royal British Legion to seek discussions with the local authority associations.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Nuclear Weapons
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has on the use of the International Atomic Energy Agency's international centre for theoretical physics in Trieste by potential proliferator nations to obtain information which could contribute to the development of nuclear weapons.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The international centre for theoretical physics (ICTP) at Trieste is supported by the IAEA, UNESCO and the Government of Italy. It seeks to promote international co-operation among scientists from both industrialised and developing countries. A small proportion of its activity concerns the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. We have no information that the centre has been used in the way suggested.
Middle East
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the countries he visited on his recent visit to the middle east ; which Ministers or Government officials he met ; and what matters in regard to nuclear non-proliferation and arms exports were discussed.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has not been to the middle east since May last year, when he visited Egypt, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. In Egypt he met President Mubarak, the Foreign Minister Mr. Amre Moussa, and the Secretary General of the Arab League
Column 741
Dr. Abdel Meguid. In Kuwait he met the Amir, His Highness Shaikh Jabir al Sabah, the Crown Prince Shaikh Saad al Sabah, and the then Foreign Minister Shaikh Salem. In Saudi Arabia he met His Majesty King Fahd. He discussed a range of security issues, including the question of weapons of mass destruction and the United Kingdom contribution to the maintenance of peace in the Gulf.Russia
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he had on nuclear proliferation and the forthcoming preparatory committee meeting for the fifth review conference of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty during his recent visit to Russia.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs discussed North Korea's announcement of her intention to withdraw from the non-proliferation treaty and the importance of upholding the treaty. There was no discussion about the first preparatory committee meeting of the 1995 extension review conference.
Sudan
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what evidence he has of the presence of Iranian troops, together with heavy military support equipment in southern Sudan ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The evidence is limited, but we shall continue to monitor the situation.
Forestry
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if he will make a statement on decisions taken during the 11th meeting of the FAO's Committee on Forestry in Rome during March ;
(2) what action will be taken by the United Kingdom in accordance with decisions taken at the 11th meeting of the FAO's Committee on Forestry held in Rome during March.
Sir Hector Monro [holding answer 2 April 1993] I have been asked to reply.
The biennial meetings of FAO's Committee on Forestry provide an opportunity for the exchange of views on important subjects related to forestry and for the provision of advice to FAO on its forestry activities. The Committee acts in an advisory capacity and does not take executive decisions.
At its 1993 meeting, the Committee reviewed and commented on FAO's regular programmes, criticised the reduction in FAO's forestry budget, and discussed the increasing political recognition of the importance of forestry, the implementation of the Forest Principles agreed in Rio de Janeiro, the role of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development and the future of the Tropical Forests Action Programme.
Column 742
HEALTH
Nutrition (Children)
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many reported cases there have been of malnutrition in children in the last five years ;
(2) what steps she is taking to ensure that children are getting their recommended daily calorie intake.
Mr. Sackville : Malnutrition is a term which covers a wide variety of single or combined deficiencies of nutrients and/or energy, none of which are notifiable. Current surveillance does not indicate that, on average, children in the United Kingdom are malnourished in terms of any specific nutrient or energy.
Estimated average requirements for the daily calorie intakes appropriate for those aged 0 to 18 years in the United Kingdom are set out by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy in its report on Dietary Reference Values published in 1991. A copy is available in the Library.
Improved surveillance, through the Government-funded national study of health and growth and the national diet and nutrition survey programme, will provide more detailed information on children's health status in relation to energy and nutrient intake.
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to ensure that all children and their parents are aware of what constitutes a healthy and balanced diet.
Mr. Sackville : Within the national curriculum, the science order for each key stage covers diet and nutrition in the context of personal health. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Department of Health are contributing funds to the production of a comprehensive education pack "Food--A Fact Of Life" which the British Nutrition Foundation is producing for use in schools. The Health Education Authority (HEA) provides information and advice on healthy eating to the public through its publications and local and national campaigns. In addition the Government have produced "Eight Guidelines for a Healthy Diet" as well as a range of booklets in the "Food Sense" series, copies of which are available in the Library.
The nutrition task force set up under "The Health of the Nation" as a partnership between Government and key outside organisations is currently considering action to improve and target advice on healthy eating and weight control for all population groups.
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to ensure that children who have parents on a low income have access to a healthy and balanced diet ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Sackville : A healthy and balanced diet can be achieved in a variety of ways and need not be more expensive than the current average diet. Children whose parents are in receipt of income support are entitled to free school meals and the welfare food scheme continues to provide a nutritional safeguard for children in low-income families.
Column 743
Elderly People
Sir David Steel : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evaluation she has made of the effect of the European Year of the Elderly in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Yeo : It is too early to evaluate the effect of the year, which commenced in January, but I am confident that it will bring real and lasting benefits to older people.
Orthopaedic Operations
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what percentage of orthopaedic hand operations carried out in the last 14 years have required revision ;
(2) what percentage of knee replacement operations carried out in the last 14 years have required revision.
Mr. Sackville : It is not possible to identify precisely what proportion of operations required revision, but in 1989-90 and 1990-91 respectively, an estimated 6.3 per cent. and 5.3 per cent. of knee joint replacements were revisions. Equivalent information for hand operations is not available.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to introduce a national register of knee replacements and revisions to provide an accurate measure of revision rate.
Mr. Sackville : I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave him on 14 April at column 610.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health which knee replacement implants which have been used in the NHS in the last 14 years have (a) the highest success rate and (b) the highest failure rate.
Mr. Sackville : Information on the outcome of knee replacement operations is not available centrally. It is the responsibility of clinicians to give advice to patients on the various types of knee implants available, based on the needs of the patient.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what tests are carried out on knee replacement implants before they can be marketed.
Mr. Sackville : There are no statutory requirements for the marketing of knee replacement implants.
Since 1986, knee implants have been controlled by the voluntary Department of Health manufacturer registration scheme, which requires that new designs should undergo appropriate testing prior to their release for general sale. There are currently 23 registered manufacturers of knee implants and the vast majority of these products implanted in the United Kingdom are from registered sources.
From 1 January 1995, the European Directive on Medical Devices will place the control of knee implants on a formal statutory basis, and manufacturers will be required to submit details of manufacturing and design to third party assessment.
Consultation Procedures
Mrs. Jane Kennedy : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will set out the process of consultation that will apply to the proposed changes to health services by local health authorities.
Column 744
Mr. Sackville : District health authorities (DHAs) are required by the Community Health Council (CHC) Regulations 1985 (SI No. 304), as amended, to consult the relevant CHC on proposals they are considering which would result in substantial changes to the services in the district.
Information about the proposed changes should be provided to the relevant CHC and other interested parties, and a date prescribed by which comments should be made. The DHA will then reconsider the proposal in the light of the comments and, if there is no objection from the CHC, may proceed with implementation.
Ministers make decisions on contested closure proposals. Where a CHC wishes to object formally to a proposal, involving the closure or change of use of a health building, the DHA refers it to the regional health authority (RHA). If the RHA supports the DHA's proposal, it will refer the proposal to the Secretary of State for final decision.
Health Districts (Budgets)
Mr. Channon : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the 10 health districts in England which had the lowest revenue budgets per head of the population in the most recent available five-year period.
Mr. Sackville [holding answer 30 March 1993] : The information requested for a five-year period could be compiled only at disproportionate cost.
The budgets of district health authorities are set by regional health authorities and detailed information is not collected centrally. However, lists derived from information which relates the expenditure of district health authorities to their resident populations for the years 1989-90 to 1991-92 are shown in the table. The district health authority figures for 1991-92 are not comparable with those for earlier years as they show the authorities primarily as purchasers rather than providers of health care. Figures of expenditure per head of population for district health authorities will inevitably vary. Those for years prior to 1991-92 will reflect patterns of local service provision and the effects of patient flows across health authority boundaries while the figures for 1991-92 should be regarded as transitional as each regional health authority moves towards allocating funds to district health authorities on a weighted capitation basis. Figures for spending per capita include other resources (such as regional budgets and local income) in addition to allocations for resident populations.
Revenue expenditure per head of
population-lowest annual figures
for district health authorities in England
|£
---------------------------------------------
1989-90
West Surrey and North East Hampshire |168
Sandwell |167
North Tyneside |166
Durham |162
South West Hertfordshire |160
Northallerton |158
Wycombe |157
Halton |153
East Hertfordshire |150
Chorley and South Ribble |96
1990-91
West Surrey and North East Hampshire |182
North Tyneside |181
Trafford |181
South West Hertfordshire |174
Durham |173
Northallerton |172
Wycombe |172
Halton |163
East Hertfordshire |162
Chorley and South Ribble |103
1991-92
North Derbyshire |286
Kettering |281
Southend |279
South East Staffordshire |277
Chorley and South Ribble |276
Medway |276
Wycombe |276
West Surrey and North East Hampshire |268
Huntingdon |264
Durham |209
Sources:
Annual accounts of district health
authorities in England 1989-90 to 1991-92.
Mid-year estimates of resident
population-1989 to 1991 (Office of
Population, Censuses and Surveys).
Notes to the table:
1. The figures for the DHAs are based upon
their total revenue expenditure on the
services which they managed or accounted for
in the relevant financial years. Those for
1991-92 cover their total revenue
expenditure including that on purchases of
health care and directly related services,
administrative and purchasing functions and
other expenditure.
2. Capital expenditure incurred by the DHAs
and all expenditure incurred by regional
health authorities is excluded. Expenditure
on family health services, which is
accounted for by family health services
authorities and cannot strictly be
attributed to particular districts, is
similarly excluded.
3. The population figures used make no
allowance for residents of particular
districts who receive treatment in others.
The figures used for mid-1991 are
provisional and based on the 1991 census.
WALES
Housing
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many new lettings were made by housing associations in Wales for each year since 1979 ; and what proportion of new lettings were made to tenants receiving housing benefit.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The information is not available centrally.
SCOTLAND
Infertility Treatment
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many women have in vitro fertilisation treatment each year ; how many are undertaken by the national health service ; and how many in the private sector.
Mr. Stewart : Prior to August 1991 and the advent of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), data was collected on the number of treatment cycles rather than the number of women treated. If did not differentiate between the NHS and the private sector. Figures are as follows :
Column 746
Year |Number --------------------- 1989 |456 1990 |570 1991 |390
The 1991 figures are for January to July only. Data about the number of women given IVF treatment from August to December 1991 will be available in July this year. The HFEA will not be able to give information about the number of women treated by the NHS because of the complexity of funding arrangements.
NATIONAL FINANCE
National Debt
Mr. Jopling : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give in cash terms the level of the national debt at the end of each financial year since 1979, together with his forecasts for its level at the end of each year until 1997-98 using the public sector borrowing requirement forecasts published with his Budget.
Mr. Lamont : The table shows data for net public sector debt at end- March for each year from 1979 to 1992, plus projections for 1993 and 1994 consistent with the Budget forecast.
Net public sector debt (end-March figures)
|£ billion |Percentage GDP
------------------------------------------------------------
1979 |92.0 |49.50
1980 |100.6 |45.50
1981 |115.2 |47.00
1982 |126.1 |47.00
1983 |134.0 |45.75
1984 |146.5 |46.50
1985 |160.3 |46.75
1986 |166.4 |44.75
1987 |172.3 |42.50
1988 |177.1 |38.00
1989 |157.2 |31.50
1990 |151.0 |28.00
1991 |153.9 |27.25
1992 |167.9 |28.25
1993 |204.0 |33.50
1994 |255.0 |39.25
Projections for 1994-95 to 1997-98 for net public sector debt as a percent of GDP are shown in chart 2.5 of the 1993-94 Financial Statement and Budget Report. The projections are illustrative and depend on the assumptions made about the growth of the economy.
Oil Taxation
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment the Treasury made of the possible jobs impact of the Budget oil taxation changes ; if he will publish details of the impact assessment ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Dorrell : The Budget tax proposals increase the post-tax costs and increase the post-tax profits that would have been subject to PRT. The effect on jobs depends on the extent to which companies would have been deterred from worthwhile investment by the current levels of taxation, or have planned more exploration and appraisal activity than is economically justified.
Column 747
The Government expect little net effect on employment levels as a result of the proposed PRT changes.Arrears Payments
Mr. Robin Cook : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance he, or the Commissioners of the Inland Revenue, have issued in the past 12 months changing the instructions on restricting the acceptance of payment of arrears by instalments.
Mr. Dorrell : There has been no change to the instructions issued regarding the acceptance of payment of arrears of tax by instalments. The Inland Revenue recognises that people may face temporary financial difficulties and in such circumstances the collector should be contacted at the earliest opportunity to discuss how the difficulty may be resolved. All reasonable offers of payment, including payment by instalments, are considered. There are no plans to change this practice.
Consumer Statistics
Ms Abbott : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information is collated on consumption by (a) low income families, (b) middle income families and (c) high income families over the last 12 months for (i) food, drink and tobacco, (ii) furniture and house maintenance, (iii) fuel, electricity and gas, etc., (iv) clothing and (v) entertainment.
Mr. Nelson : Information on expenditure by households on all items, including categories (i) to (v), was obtained in the last 12 months through the Family Expenditure Survey. Analyses of expenditure by level of household income will be included in the report "Family Spending", to be published in the autumn. A copy of the latest report, for 1991, is available in the Library.
Small Businesses
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how long he gave the Bank of England to prepare the report on bank charges to small businesses which he reported to the House on 20 January, Official Report, columns 623-25.
Mr. Nelson : The bank was asked on 16 November to undertake the study. Its final report, which was based on a number of exchanges with the commercial banks and the information provided by them, was published on 26 January. The period from initial request to final publication was 71 days.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 26 January, Official Report, columns 623-25, how many small business customers were interviewed in the instance on which he has based his statement.
Mr. Nelson : The answer of 26 January concerned a report produced by the Bank of England based on information which it had gathered from the banks. Although my right hon. Friend the Chancellor had commissioned the report because of the number of complaints which the Government had received from small business customers, none was interviewed as part of that study. However, as the answer made clear, the bank's conclusions were supported by another report commissioned from Nottingham university and published, a few
Column 748
weeks earlier, by the Forum of Private Business. The Nottingham university study had been based on information provided by small business customers.Oil Taxation
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment the Treasury has made of the possible impact on exploration and appraisal activity in the United Kingdom continental shelf of the Budget oil taxation changes ; and if he will express the impact in terms of numbers of drilling wells in each of the next five years.
Mr. Dorrell : Exploration and appraisal activity has proved highly volatile and difficult to forecast, irrespective of tax changes. The Government do not publish five-year forecasts of this or other components of North sea activity.
The increasing use of 3D seismic surveys means that the level of drilling activity is becoming a less effective measure of total exploration and appraisal activity. One of the aims of the Budget proposals is to encourage companies to improve their international competitiveness by giving them greater rewards for innovation and for more effective working methods.
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish details of the Treasury's impact assessment of the Budget oil taxation changes on the forecast number of exploration and appraisal drilling wells, in the United Kingdom continental shelf, in each of the next five years ; and if he will make a comparison with those forecasts made prior to the Budget changes.
Mr. Dorrell : The Budget proposals shift the emphasis away from adding to oil and gas discoveries and towards developing existing finds. That is likely to influence how companies allocate their funds between exploration, appraisal, development and enhanced recovery. The Budget tax changes are one, and only one, factor affecting future exploration and appraisal levels. A significant number of wells are drilled by companies which do not expect to get early PRT relief for the expenditure. There is no reason to suppose such activity would be affected. To the extent that companies with discoveries made more attractive by PRT abolition wanted to get them into production earlier, there should be some increased appraisal activity. However, to the extent that companies have planned their E and A programmes essentially to obtain PRT tax relief at 75 per cent. rather than on pre-tax economics, some decline in future E and A activity is to be expected.
Immigration and Nationality Department
Mr. Fraser : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer in what circumstances the Inland Revenue passes information on individual cases to the Immigration and Nationality Department of the Home Department without the express consent of the individual.
Mr. Dorrell : The Inland Revenue does not disclose to other Government Departments any information it holds on taxpayers without their consent except as authorised by statute. There is no legislation which requires the Inland Revenue to pass such information to the immigration and nationality department of the Home Office.
Column 749
Securities and Investments Board
Mr. Burns : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to receive the report by the chairman of the Securities and Investments Board on the board's regulatory responsibilities.
Mr. Nelson : Pursuant to the answer given to the hon. Member for Bradford, North (Mr. Rooney) on 3 November 1992, Official Report, column 121, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer now expects to receive the report in the next few weeks.
VAT
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total capital income from value added tax at 8 per cent. and 17 per cent. from (a) gas and (b) electricity bills in 1994-95 and 1995-96.
Sir John Cope [holding answer 14 April 1993] : Estimates of total revenue from VAT on fuel on power at 8 per cent., and 17 per cent. were given in the Budget speech. No estimate was made for the separate revenue from gas bills and electricity bills.
Intra-Community Trade
Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the intra-Community trade declared despatch arrival values for January to February 1993 as a percentage of the corresponding values for January to February 1992 period.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 14 April 1993] : Details of the value of intra-Community arrivals into and despatches from the United Kingdom in January and February 1993 are not yet available. As such, the requested figures cannot be calculated at this time.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Wild Birds (Transport)
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to the answer of 22 May 1992, Official Report, column 271, what further progress has been made in persuading European Community partners to introduce special safeguards on the transport of live wild birds ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Soames : The Commission has established a working group of experts to consider what additional measures should be adopted under the directive on the protection of animals during transport. Amongst the subjects being addressed is the trade in wild-caught birds. We have urged the Commission to bring forward its proposals quickly.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Market Testing
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the criteria used by the Home Office to select outside tenderers for Home Office tasks which are the subject of market testing exercises.
Column 750
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : Evaluation criteria will be contained, where appropriate, in the EC Journal notice advertising the relevant market tests, or in the invitation to tender documents.
Prisoner Escort Services
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the estimated current cost of court escorts ; and how much might be saved if the function was contracted out in England and Wales.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the director general of the prison service. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Mr. D. Lewis to Mr. Alun Michael, dated 1 April 1993 :
Court Escort and Custody Work
The Home Secretary has asked me to write to you in response to your Parliamentary Question about the costs of court escort and custody work.
Court escort and custody work has been the responsibility of individuaat £92m. A number of studies have indicated that the provision of a contracted out, unitary service dedicated to court escort and custody work would reduce costs although the estimates of percentage savings have varied from study to study. Detailed costing work is undertaken as each area of the country is considered for contracting out.
Terrorism
Mr. McNamara : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate has been made of the costs to the Exchequer of bomb damage, terrorist violence or threat of violence in (a) London, (b) the rest of Great Britain and (c) Northern Ireland, in terms of compensation paid to victims for (i) personal injury, (ii) loss of business and (iii) damage to property, on a yearly basis since 1969.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : The Criminal Injuries Compensation Board, which is responsible for administering the criminal injuries compensation scheme in Great Britain, does not record centrally information about claims for personal injury arising from terrorist incidents as distinct from other forms of crime. Such information could not be provided without disproportionate cost. Compensation is not paid for loss of business or damage to property arising from terrorist incidents in Great Britain. Compensation matters in Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the Compensation Agency.
| Next Section
| Home Page |