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Research (Dogs and Cats)
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if non-purpose-bred dogs and cats used for research in the United Kingdom are obtained from non-designated supplying establishments situated within the United Kingdom. [11171]
Mr. Sackville: In Great Britain during 1995, the only year for which figures are available, 66 dogs but no cats used in scientific procedures were obtained from sources within the United Kingdom not designated breeding or supplying establishments.
Animal Procedures Committee
Mr. Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his appointments to the Animal Procedures Committee. [11929]
Mr. Sackville: I have appointed the following persons to be members of the Animal Procedures Committee for four years with effect from 1 January 1997:
- Professor Robin Dunbar, professor of psychology, university of Liverpool;
- Mr. John Gregory, fellow, Institute of Animal Technicians;
- Professor John Turner, professor of evolutionary genetics, university of Leeds.
Shoplifting
Mr. Thurnham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the minimum number of items of information a police officer has to provide in order to initiate the prosecution of a juvenile delinquent for shoplifting; and if he will make a statement. [10761]
Mr. Maclean: Six forms are needed in the prosecution file in the case of a juvenile offender where a guilty plea is expected. These are:
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- a file front sheet which includes the defendant's details;
- a copy of the charge sheet/summons;
- the defendant's previous convictions, if any;
- a compensation form completed by the victim;
- a short descriptive note; and
- a note of how the decision to prosecute was reached.
More information is required where a not guilty plea is expected. There are also other forms and documents which are completed or taken into account which are not directly associated with the prosecution process; these include property registers, custody records and fingerprint forms.
Deaf-blind People
Mr. Alfred Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what training police receive in communicating and making contact with deaf-blind people. [9471]
Mr. Maclean [holding answer 16 January 1997]: There is no national training aimed specifically at how police officers should communicate or make contact with deaf-blind people although the probationer foundation training programme seeks to establish a general awareness and understanding of the special needs of people the police are likely to encounter. There are, however, special provisions for dealing with people in police custody who appear to be blind or deaf and training in the requirements of the relevant Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 codes of practice is included in the custody officer training package which is available to all forces.
It is the responsibility of individual chief officers to ensure that their officers are suitably trained for the duties that they undertake.
Firearms (Amendment) Bill
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what estimate he has made of the number of (i) small businesses which will close and (ii) jobs which will be lost as a result of the implementation of the Firearms (Amendment) Bill;[11219]
- (2) what is the size of the budget which the Government are proposing to compensate (a) businesses and (b) individuals who will have to surrender firearms as a result of the implementation of the Firearms (Amendment) Bill. [11220]
Miss Widdecombe [holding answers 16 January 1997]: Our estimate of the costs that will need to be paid to compensate all those who surrender guns and accessories is as set out in the financial memorandum to the Firearms (Amendment) Bill.
It has not been possible to estimate the full impact of the measures that would be introduced by the Bill on businesses and employment.
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Mr. Harry Greenway:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to ban interviews between journalists and convicted murderers on prison premises; and if he will make a statement. [10658]
Miss Widdecombe
[holding answer 13 January 1997]: Visits to prisoners by journalists or authors in their professional capacity are generally not permitted. Where, exceptionally, a visit is permitted, journalists or authors are required to give a written undertaking which limits the subject and conditions of the interview. The Government have considered the recent High Court judgment in the case of Simms and O'Brien and have decided to appeal.
Parliamentary Questions
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will list the five hon. Members who most frequently had one of the first five oral questions to the Prime Minister on the Order Paper since the beginning of the Session. [9951]
Mr. Newton: The hon. Members listed have appeared more than once in the top five on the Order Paper for oral questions to the Prime Minister between the start of the current Session and 18 December. In that period, there were 15 Prime Minister's Question Times. The total number of times each Member has appeared is shown in brackets after their name.
- Mr. Edward O'Hara (3)
- Mr. D. N. Campbell-Savours (2)
- Mr. Malcolm Chisholm (2)
- Roseanna Cunningham (2)
- Mr. Harry Greenway (2)
- Mr. John Hutton (2)
- Mr. John Marshall (2)
- Sir Irvine Patnick (2)
- Mr. Dennis Skinner (2).
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Lord President of the Council how many hon. Members have had questions lost since the contract with the Stationery Office commenced. [10728]
Mr. Newton: I have been advised that there has been one incident, on 17 December, when a single batch of eight questions from five hon. Members was lost.
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Lord President of the Council when he expects to receive an apology from the Stationery Office about hon. Members' lost questions; and when he expects hon. Members to receive apologies. [10725]
Mr. Newton: I am advised that the chairman of the Stationery Office wrote to the Speaker on 19 December, apologising for the incident. He also sent a letter of apology to four of the five hon. Members whose questions were lost. I understand that the fifth has not yet been identified.
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Mr. MacNamara: To ask the Lord President of the Council what assessment he has made of the security of hon. Member's questions at the Stationery Office. [10708]
Mr. Newton: I am advised that a review of the process for dealing with Members' questions is being undertaken by the Stationery Office in consultation with House officials. In the meantime, the photocopying of Members' questions immediately on arrival at the Parliamentary Press has been introduced as a safeguard.
Hon. Members (Swearing In)
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Lord President of the Council if arrangement are in hand for hon. Members to take the oath following the next election in accordance with the recommendations in the first report of Session 1995-96 on proceeding at the start of Parliament [HC 386] of the Procedure Committee. [11475]
Mr. Newton: As I explained to the House on 11 July 1996 Official Report, column 636, this is a matter for Madam Speaker.
TREASURY
Administration Costs
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what factors underlie the increase in the provision for gross running costs of civil Departments compared with revised plans as set out in the Red Book paragraph 5.30; and if he will provide a breakdown of the increase by Department, indicating, where possible, executive agencies separately. [8277]
Mr. Waldegrave [holding answer 9 December 1996]: Compared with an estimated 1996-97 outturn of £14,919 million for running costs of civil Departments, the Government's planned expenditure on running costs of £14,736 million in 1999-2000 represents a fall of 7 per cent. in real terms over three years.
| 1997-98 £ million | 1998-99 £ million | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Departmental group | PESA 1996-97 | New Plans | Change | PESA 1996-97 | New Plans | Change | |
| Foreign Office | 540 | 525 | -15 | 539 | 535 | -4 | |
| Overseas Development | 58 | 56 | -2 | 58 | 56 | -2 | |
| Agriculture, Fisheries and Food | 466 | 524 | 58 | 468 | 522 | 54 | |
| Trade and Industry | 435 | 447 | 12 | 432 | 440 | 8 | |
| Transport | 395 | 393 | -2 | 376 | 374 | -2 | |
| Environment | 511 | 455 | -56 | 501 | 445 | -56 | |
| Home Office | 1,865 | 1,928 | 63 | 1,907 | 2,013 | 106 | |
| Legal departments | 776 | 766 | -10 | 775 | 759 | -16 | |
| Education and Employment | 1,193 | 1,130 | -63 | 1,189 | 1,107 | -82 | |
| National Heritage | 39 | 64 | 25 | 39 | 63 | 24 | |
| Health | 278 | 276 | -2 | 278 | 276 | -2 | |
| Social Security | 3,426 | 3,539 | 113 | 3,105 | 3,259 | 154 | |
| Scotland | 378 | 382 | 4 | 374 | 373 | -1 | |
| Wales | 76 | 75 | -1 | 76 | 74 | -2 | |
| Northern Ireland | 794 | 787 | -7 | 792 | 787 | -5 | |
| Chancellor's departments | 2,929 | 2,944 | 15 | 2,919 | 2,998 | 79 | |
| Cabinet Office | 566 | 558 | -8 | 567 | 557 | -10 | |
| Total | 14,725 | 14,850 | 125 | 14,395 | 14,637 | 242 | |
| Plus: Changes between FSBR95 and publication of PESA | 105 | 114 | |||||
| Equals: Difference between new and revised plans | 230 | 356 | |||||
Note:
See Annex B to Chapter 5 of FSBR 1997-98 for details of departmental groupings.
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17 Jan 1997 : Column: 399
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