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Column 464
had not yet delivered its opinion. It agreed that benzene which had been the substance of a separate proposal rejected by European Parliament would come within the scope of this proposal.There was general discussion on the social dimension of the single market in the light of the European Council's conclusions at Hanover in June, and Rhodes in December this year. No resolution was adopted.
A wide measure of agreement was reached on the second phase of the community action programme for education and training for techology, on the basis of funding of 200 mecus over five years to encourage Communitywide co -operation between higher level education and training institutions and industry in support of the development and application of new technologies. This was agreed by a majority vote on the assumption that the legal base was article 128. The United Kingdom voted against as in our opinion the legal base should have included article 235. Other member states also voted against. These states reserved the right to challenge the decision before the European Court of Justice. Consideration of a resolution on continuing training was deferred till the Spanish Presidency. The Council was unable to reach agreement on a proposed directive to reverse the legal burden of proof so that it fell upon the employer in equal pay and equal treatment cases. However, a resolution was adopted on the reintegration and late integration of women into working life. This emphasises the importance of measures to help women return to paid work after time at home looking after their families.
An extension was agreed to a regulation providing financial assistance to Greece for vocational training centres, and centres for the rehabilitation of the mentally ill and mentally handicapped. There was also some discussion on family benefits for migrant workers.
SCOTLAND
Transplants
Mr. Home Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State Scotland if he will make a statement on the shortfall between organs available for transplant and the need for such organs ; and if he will indicate how many potential recipients are likely to die because donor organs are not available, over the most convenient period.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : It is not possible to estimate how many patients are likely to die because donor organs are not available. The number of organs available for transplant fluctuates significantly from time to time. The balance between the need for organs and the number available also varies, depending also on such factors as whether a suitable match between recipient and donor can be found.
Hospital Beds
Mr. Tom Clarke : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the total amount of money still owed to the National Health Service in Scotland by patients who used private beds between 1979 and 1988 ; and how many beds are currently available for private hire.
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Mr. Michael Forsyth : As at 31 March 1988, a total of £92,706 was due to the National Health Service in Scotland for treatment given to private in-patients, and 113 beds are currently available for private hire.
Baby Bottle Feeds
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to alter the methods by which health boards purchase baby bottle feeds ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : There are no plans to alter the present purchase arrangements. A centralised United Kingdom contract was considered recently, but an analysis of tenders showed that there was little benefit to be gained by such an arrangement. The policy of the health Departments is to encourage all healthy mothers to breastfeed their babies, because breastfeeding provides the best infant nutrition.
Housing Starts
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many public housing starts were made in Scotland in 1979 and in the latest year available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information requested was published in table 3 of Scottish Development Department statistical bulletin HSU No. 2--"Housing Trends in Scotland 1987 Part 2". Copies of the bulletin were sent to all Members representing Scottish constituencies and are available in the Library.
Homelessness
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total number of households accepted as homeless by local authorities in Scotland in 1979 and the latest year available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The number of households accepted as homeless by local authorities was 7,443 in 1979-80 and 10,404 in 1986-87.
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what estimate he has for the number of people homeless in Scotland other than those accepted as such by local authorities, in 1979 and for the latest year available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Information on which any such estimate might be based is not collected centrally.
Housing (Expenditure)
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was his Department's total expenditure on housing in 1979 and in the latest year available, at constant prices.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The Scottish Development Department's expenditure on housing at constant prices was £547 million in 1979-80 and £310.8 million in 1987-88. This calculation relates to those items of expenditure which occur in both years and can therefore be sensibly compared.
Crime Statistics
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was (a) the total number of recorded crimes and (b) the total number of crimes committed against the person in 1979 and the latest year available.
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Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information requested is set out in the table :
Crimes recorded: Scotland
|1979 |1987
---------------------------------------------------------------
Total crimes |346,680|481,230
Crimes committed against the person<1> |14,698 |23,616
<1> Comprises group 1 (non-sexual crimes of violence) and
group 2 (crimes of indecency) of the Scottish Home and Health
Department classification of crimes and offences.
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total crime clear-up rate for Scotland, broken down by police authority area, in 1979 and the latest year available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information is as follows :
Force Percentage clear-up
rate: crimes
|1979 |1987
----------------------------------------------
Central |37.6 |48.8
Dumfries and Galloway |40.4 |53.8
Fife |43.4 |41.8
Grampian |37.4 |31.5
Lothian and Borders |29.2 |38.9
Northern |60.7 |62.9
Strathclyde |25.6 |29.3
Tayside |35.0 |42.7
|-------|-------
Scotland |30.0 |34.9
Prisons
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total number of people held in prison in Scotland, both on remand and those serving a sentence, in 1979 and in the latest year available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information requested is set out in the table :
'
Average daily prison population:
Scotland
|1979 |1987
---------------------------------------
Remand |691 |938
Under sentence |3,891 |4,509
|-------|-------
Total<1> |4,585 |5,446
<1> Includes also civil and court
martial prisoners.
Police (Firearms)
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the number of recorded uses of firearms by police in Scotland in 1979 and in the latest available year.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : There were two incidents in 1979 and four in 1987 during which firearms were used by the police in Scotland. On each occasion the firearms were used for the destruction of animals.
Island Schools (Mathematics and English)
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether, in any report submitted since 1 January 1986 by Her Majesty's inspector of schools in respect of a primary school in Orkney or Shetland, adverse criticism has been expressed about the teaching of mathematics or English ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Michael Forsyth : Since 1 January 1986, reports by Her Majesty's inspectors of schools have been published on seven primary schools and departments in Orkney and Shetland. Each of the reports draws attention to certain weaknesses in the teaching of mathematics and of language within the context of its assessment of the work of the school as a whole. A copy of each report was sent to the hon. Member when it was published, and copies are also available in the Library.
Geese
Mr. Morley : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether, and to what extent, he provides advice to landowners on methods that may justifiably be used to reduce or prevent the possibility of damage to grasslands or crops by Greenland white-fronted geese.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Landowners and occupiers are advised to undertake non-lethal scaring of Greenland white-fronted geese as the primary means of grassland or crop protection. Specific advice on the use of scaring devices is available from the Nature Conservancy Council.
Mr. Morley : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he intends to issue licences under the provision of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 for the purpose of shooting Greenland white-fronted geese during the winter in order to reduce or prevent serious damage to improved grassland and crops ; and if he will state the number of applications and the number of guns in respect of each such application he has received to date.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Licences will be issued to reduce or prevent serious damage to improved grassland and crops only in cases where non- lethal scaring has proved ineffective in preventing such damage caused by this species.
Twenty applications have been received. Sixteen applicants have requested the use of two guns and the remainder one gun. No licence has yet been issued.
Mr. Morley : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will state (a) the criteria which his professional staff will apply in determining the extent of damage that has been, or would have been, caused by Greenland white-fronted geese in considering individual applications to shoot such geese this winter and (b) the number of professional staff employed for this purpose.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The criteria applied are the methods of non- lethal scaring used and their effectiveness, the number of geese involved and frequency of grazing, physical evidence of damage, loss of grazing to livestock due to geese grazing competition and expected loss of future grassland productivity which would result from uncontrolled grazing by geese. Two members of professional staff are employed in the assessments.
Sports Premises (Eastbank)
Mr. David Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what offers, and from whom, and for what purpose, the Scottish Sports Council has received in respect of the premises formerly occupied by Actionsport, Scotland, in the Eastbank educational complex in Shettleston constituency.
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Mr. Michael Forsyth : None. The premises were leased from Strathclyde regional council at a peppercorn rent and were returned to the owners on 30 November.
Local Health Councils
Mr. David Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he intends to publish the review of local health councils ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : I shall consider the question of publication when I have received and studied the report I commissioned from the management consultants Arthur Young.
Mental Health Services
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list by health board the amount of money spent on mental health services in each year since 1979, the percentage increase in real terms and the percentage of overall spending on health services, both in the National Health Service and the private sector.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 15 December 1988] : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Strathkelvin and Bearsden (Mr. Galbraith) on 17 June at column 78. The table shows the percentage change in real terms between 1981-82 and 1986-87 and the percentage of overall spending on health services for 1986-87. There are no figures held centrally for private sector expenditure on mental health services.
Scottish Health Boards-Mental Health Services<1>
|Change in real terms |Proportion of overall
|1981-82-1986-87 |spend on health services
|1986-87
|percentage |percentage
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Argyll and Clyde |0.5 |15.5
Ayr and Arran |38.5 |10.8
Borders |2.9 |15.1
Dumfries and Galloway |9.3 |18.8
Fife |31.5 |18.7
Forth Valley |17.6 |23.2
Grampian |4.9 |15.5
Greater Glasgow |4.0 |14.1
Highland |-4.8 |14.3
Lanarkshire |14.7 |13.1
Lothian |-1.6 |13.0
Orkney<2> |57.0 |0.4
Shetland |177.0 |2.2
Tayside |-1.9 |16.0
Western Isles |n/a |n/a
<1> Mental Health covers Mental Illness, Care of the Elderly with Mental Disability, and Mental
Handicap.
<2> Excludes Care of the Elderly with Mental Disability.
Woodland Grant Scheme
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to the reply to the hon. Member for Moray of 5 December, Official Report, column 45, if he will break down the hectarage approved for planting and awaiting approval for planting under the woodland grant scheme into new planting and replanting.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 16 December 1988] : The information is as follows :
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Conservancy Area approved for Area awaiting approval
planting (hectares) for planting (hectares)
|new planting|replanting |new planting|replanting
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
N(England) |86 |121 |535 |831
E(England) |19 |87 |441 |2,614
W(England) |73 |153 |540 |790
Wales |105 |197 |461 |214
N(Scotland) |2,134 |128 |4,884 |843
M(Scotland) |658 |93 |2,152 |742
S(Scotland) |266 |78 |2,895 |1,887
|------ |------ |------ |------
Totals |3,341 |857 |11,908 |7,921
Timber
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what was the United Kingdom shortfall in timber and timber derivatives in volume terms for each year since 1980 ;
(2) what was the estimated trade deficit in timber and timber derivatives in constant prices for each year since 1980.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The shortfall in timber and timber derivatives in the United Kingdom in volume terms (wood raw material equivalent) and in constant prices was as follows :
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Year |Volume (millions of cubic|Value £(1987-88) millions
|metres)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1980 |32.4 |2,900
1981 |32.0 |3,500
1982 |33.7 |3,300
1983 |34.1 |3,000
1984 |35.9 |3,600
1985 |35.2 |4,000
1986 |37.8 |4,200
1987 |44.0 |4,800
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