| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Abortion
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the change in the abortion rate since 18 October 1995. [27128]
Mrs. Angela Knight: I have been asked to reply.
Data to monitor abortion rates since October 1995 are currently being processed and are not available for release. The December 1995 quarterly monitor on legal abortions performed in England and Wales, which is
2 May 1996 : Column: 610
expected to be published on 27 June, will include new statistics on the number of abortions each month and also comparisons with previous years.
Mr. Shore:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what investigations he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated to establish whether the BSE infective agent can be transmitted directly from a cow to its calf; what was the conclusion of that research; and if he will make a statement. [24472]
Mrs. Browning:
I have been asked to reply.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Edinburgh, East (Dr. Strang) on 25 April 1996, Official Report, column 274.
Remploy
Mr. Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many of the directors of Remploy (a) have a trade union background and (b) were nominated by trade union bodies. [27404]
Mr. Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when each of the directors of Remploy was appointed; and when their terms of appointment expire. [27405]
Mr. Paice: The information is as follows:
2 May 1996 : Column: 609
| Name | Title | Start of contract | End of contract |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Heywood | Chairman | 9 September 1993 | 8 September 1996 |
| Anthony Withey | Chief Executive | 15 October 1994 | 4 October 1998 |
| Len Boulton | Executive Director | 1 January 1996 | 30 June 1999 |
| Raymond Fletcher | Executive Director | 1 January 1996 | 30 April 1999 |
| Kenneth Taylor | Executive Director | 1 April 1996 | 31 March 2000 |
| Derek Boothman | Non-Executive Director | 10 September 1995 | 9 September 1998 |
| Roy Jackson | Non-Executive Director | 2 September 1995 | 1 September 1998 |
| John Ramsay | Non-Executive Director | 9 September 1995 | 8 September 1998 |
| Ann Roberts | Non-Executive Director | 21 August 1993 | 20 August 1996 |
| David Winterbottom | Non-Executive Director | 12 December 1994 | 11 December 1997 |
2 May 1996 : Column: 609
Mr. Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many of the directors of Remploy have a background or professional qualification in accountancy. [27409]
Mr. Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans she has to alter the balance of membership of the board of directors of Remploy in order to increase the number of members with a trade union background. [27408]
Jobseeker's Allowance
Mr. Hinchliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what estimates she has made of (i) the number of persons who will be disallowed jobseeker's allowance as a result of (a) voluntary
2 May 1996 : Column: 610
unemployment and (b) failure to follow jobseeker's directions, (ii) the number of such persons who will receive reduced benefit and (iii) the number who will have no benefit entitlement in the first two weeks of a jobseeker's allowance sanction. [26439]
Mr. Forth: I have made no such estimates. Decisions on disallowance of jobseeker's allowance will be made by independent adjudication officers.
Training and Enterprise Councils
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, pursuant to his answer of 29 April, Official Report, column 349, if the training provider companies named in the letter sent to regional offices all have the same parent company. [27845]
2 May 1996 : Column: 611
Mr. Paice: The letter sent to regional offices included commercially sensitive information. It would be inappropriate for me to make any further comment on the contents of that letter.
Modern Apprenticeships
Mr. Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) how many people are presently on modern apprenticeships; and how many have successfully completed a modern apprenticeship since its inception;[27800]
- (2) if she will list for each TEC the number of people presently on modern apprenticeship courses; [27805]
(3) how many people are presently studying for a modern apprenticeship for each occupational area; [27804]
(4) if she will list the number of modern apprenticeships in each training and enterprise council for each occupational area. [27806]
Mr. Paice: As the reply will consist of a large amount of data, I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my reply in the Library.
Tottenham B Jobcentre
Mr. Bernie Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what are the implications of the inaccuracy of the April figures for vacancies at the Tottenham B jobcentre for estimates of employment trends in (a) the Tottenham Constituency and (b) nationally; [27881]
- (2) when accurate figures for vacancies at the Tottenham B jobcentre will be released; [27880]
(3) what assessment she has made of the accuracy of the figures released on 17 April by the Central Statistical Office in respect of job vacancies at the Tottenham B jobcentre on 8 March; where the vacancies are; and what are the implications of the new computer system for the accuracy of the figures. [27879]
Mr. Forth: Responsibility for the subject of the questions has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from Robert Horne to Mr. Bernie Grant, dated 2 May 1996:
The Secretary of State has asked me, in the absence on leave of the Chief Executive, to reply to your questions relating to the figure for Unfilled Vacancies at Tottenham "B" Jobcentre which was published in the Greater London "First Release" on 17 April 1996.
During the changeover to the new Labour Market System (the new Employment Service system for client and vacancy records) an incorrect figure was generated for this office. Clearly the published figure of 1,062 is about 1,000 too high. It has not yet been possible to pinpoint the cause of the error but urgent steps are being taken to do this, and to prevent a similar occurrence in the future. I will write to you again with a fuller explanation when we have it.
In the meantime I would like to apologise for the confusion which this must have caused.
2 May 1996 : Column: 612
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION
China
Ms Lynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that United Kingdom aid is not used to subsidise coerced abortion and sterilisation in China. [27088]
Mr. Hanley: All UK bilateral aid to China has clear objectives. Our projects aim to guarantee good water supplies, to strengthen transport infrastructure, to assist with China's severe environmental problems, to improve English language teaching and to promote good government. Projects are carefully designed and monitored to ensure that UK aid is used for the purposes intended. No bilateral aid gives any support to China's family planning programmes. Projects and programmes in China funded by the International Planned Parenthood Federation, IPPF, and the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, UNFPA, are subject to equally close supervision. Annual spending by IPPF and UNFPA in China is equivalent to less than 0.8 per cent. of the sum spent annually by China on its family planning programmes.
Ms Lynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what specific steps he has taken to ensure that the financial, technical and management resources available through the United Nations Fund for Population Activities do not enable the Chinese authorities to enforce coercive population control programmes more vigorously; and if he will make a statement. [27009]
Mr. Hanley: We regularly discuss with, and advise, senior officials of the UNFPA on matters concerning its current activities and future plans in China. As a result of this dialogue, we are satisfied that the activities that UNFPA currently funds in China do not in any way encourage coercive practices, but have promoted the health and welfare of Chinese women and children, especially in poorer regions of the country. UNFPA's current programme is approaching completion. Any new UNFPA programme in China would be subject to approval by the fund's governing body. If necessary, the UK Government, in partnership with like-minded board members and observers, will use this additional mechanism to influence the outcome of a future decision relating to a new UNFPA programme in China and to ensure that any such programme is fully consistent with the programme of action of the international conference on population and development agreed in Cairo in September 1994.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |