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Mr. Portillo : There have been five grants awarded towards facilities for freight transport on inland waterways under section 36 of the Transport Act 1981. As not all inquiries lead to a formal application for grant it is not possible to state the total number of applicants since the scheme began, but only one formal application has been refused. The last grant was made in October 1986 for petroleum traffic and totalled £65,000. There have been no changes to the terms and conditions attached to these grants, but a review about three years ago on value for money grounds led to some budget adjustment.
Municipal Bus Companies
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the first municipal bus company to be sold.
Mr. Portillo : Two English local authority owned bus companies have already been sold : Portsmouth City
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Transport and Yorkshire Rider. In Wales, Taff-Ely Transport has been sold, and the Secretary of State for Scotland has recently approved the sale of Grampian Regional Transport.Arrests
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the latest available annual figures for (a) total arrests, (b) total passenger journeys and (c) arrests as a percentage of passenger journeys on the London Underground.
Mr. Portillo : The number of arrests for crimes on the London Underground in 1988 was 2,618. The number of recorded crimes during that period was 16,436 and the number of passenger journeys is estimated to have been 814 million. This gives a ratio of one crime for every 49,500 passenger journeys.
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the latest available annual figures for (a) total arrests, (b) total passenger journeys and (c) arrests as a percentage of passenger journeys on British Rail.
Mr. Portillo : The British Transport Police report that there were 6,354 arrests in the 1987 calendar year in relation to offences on British Rail. The total number of passenger journeys on BR in 1987-88 was 727.2 million. There was one arrest every 114,448 passenger journeys. As a percentage, this is 0.000874 per cent.
British Rail (Investment)
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the fixed asset investment in the United Kingdom of the British Railways Board for each year since 1978-79 ; and what is the planned investment for each year to 1991-92.
Mr. Portillo : The figures for the British Railways Board's fixed asset investment in the United Kingdom for the years 1982-83 to 1986-87, the estimated outturn for the 1987-88 and forecasts for 1988-89 to 1990-91 were published in the 1988 public expenditure White Paper (CM 288-11). Earlier years' figures are taken from previous public expenditure White Papers. All are cash.
|£million
---------------------------
1979-80 |388
1980-81 |334
1981-82 |305
1982-83 |273
1983-84 |270
1984-85 |343
1985-86 |402
1986-87 |428
1987-88 |540
1988-89 |641
1989-90 |655
1990-91 |678
Updated figures including forecasts to 1991-92, which are significantly higher than those contained in the 1988 public expenditure White Paper, will be published shortly in the 1989 public expenditure White Paper.
European Community Funds
Mr. Nicholas Baker : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his policy with respect to seeking the
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establishment of a medium-term transport infrastructure fund by the European Economic Community and as to the nature of projects to be covered by such a fund.Mr. Portillo : The Government do not support the European Community Commission's proposal to create a medium-term transport infrastructure fund. The Community has a role in identifying worthwhile schemes of Community significance, and sound means of funding these already exist.
A1 Felton Bypass
Mr. Beith : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the purpose of the works now being carried out on the A1 Felton bypass Coquet viaduct.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The works are connected with the installation of a new gas main from Morpeth to Alnwick. Statutory undertakers have the right to install apparatus within the highway boundary. The Coquet viaduct offered the only suitable crossing.
M63 (Widening)
Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects completion of the M63 road widening programme in the Barton bridge area.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : In about 12 months. The widening across Barton high level bridge finished in December. Work continues on the final contract south of the bridge.
Assessment Studies
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all property in areas covered by the London assessment studies owned by his Department.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : It is not the Department's practice to publish the addresses of individual properties that it owns. The Department owns some 1,300 properties in London. All have been acquired in connection with schemes in the national road programme. It is not possible to identify those in the assessment study areas without disproportionate cost.
Parliamentary Questions
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many oral parliamentary questions he has answered by written reply because the question was not reached at Question Time, for the most recent year for which figures are available.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : Of the 640 questions tabled for oral reply by the Department in the calendar year 1988, 499 received written replies.
British Transport Police
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give details by London British Rail and underground stations of reported incidents to British Transport Police in the last 12 months.
Mr. Portillo : This information is not held centrally in the form requested.
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Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what records are kept of the number of occasions when Metropolitan police are summoned to the assistance of British Transport Police.
Mr. Portillo : This information is not recorded.
London Underground (Fires)
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on how many occasions in the last 12 months the London Fire Brigade has been called to attend upon reported fires within the London underground system ; and what increase or decrease this represents on the previous 12 month period.
Mr. Portillo : London Underground Ltd. does not have figures in precisely the form requested for the relevant period. However, I understand that the numbers of incidents of fire and smoke recorded by London Underground were 844 in 1987 and 1,248 in 1988, following the Kings Cross fire and with the agreement of the London Fire Brigade, London Underground Ltd. issued revised instructions to staff on calling the fire brigade ; these required the brigade to be summoned immediately to all reported or suspected outbreaks of fire or smoke, no matter how small, on any part of the Underground system.
Oil Pollution
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many oil pollution incidents in British territorial waters have been recorded by his Department in each of the past five years ; what were the ecological consequences of each incident ; what was the total cost in each case for the rescue of endangered sea birds and general clear-up ; and how many incidents were traced to the polluter ;
(2) what resources are available to his Department to monitor and prosecute owners and masters of vessels dumping oil in British territorial waters ;
(3) how many prosecutions have followed cases of oil pollution caused by vessels in British territorial waters in each of the last five years.
Mr. Portillo : The numbers of oil pollution incidents in British territorial waters in the period 1985-88 reported to the Department's marine pollution control unit (MPCU) are as follows :
|Number
---------------------
1985 |30
1986 |24
1987 |33
1988 |43
These relate to shipping casualty, ship operational and shore installation spillages or threatened spillages. The figures for 1987 and 1988 reflect the extension of territorial sea limits from three to 12 miles. The 1984 figure is not readily available.
Assessing the ecological consequences of an oil spill is not a matter for my Department. However, the Nature Conservancy Council advises me that usually it is not possible to make an overall assessment of all the various factors involved. This is not only because all incidents are different and affect wildlife to a different extent, but also
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because of the difficulty of obtaining the necessary information about species and habitats affected, particularly when the incident occurs offshore.The rescue of seabirds affected by oil is undertaken by voluntary organisations such as the RSPCA and SSPCA. Details of their costs are not held centrally. Over the four-year period, the MPCU has incurred costs of around £90,000 in responding to pollution or threat of pollution to United Kingdom coastal, fishery, or sea bird interests arising from spillages of oil in British territorial waters. Details of costs incurred by local authorities on beach clean-up are not held centrally.
The likely source of pollution was identified on 65 occasions, but only 16 of these related to possible illegal ship operational discharges.
All masters of ships and pilots of military and civil aircraft, including those engaged by the MAFF and DAFS on fishery protection, are required to report sightings of oil in British territorial waters. The MPCU's contracted remote sensing aircraft carries out surveillance patrols of the shipping lanes around United Kingdom coasts in addition to responding to major spillages of oil reported by other agencies. The United Kingdom is also a member of the fourteen European nation memorandum of understanding on port state control whereby participating states undertake to inspect vessels arriving in their ports reported as suspected of having made an illegal discharge in the course of their voyage. In addition vessels entering their ports are regularly inspected to check inter alia, oil record books for any evidence of illegal oil discharges. In United Kingdom these are carried out by the Department's marine surveyors. The numbers of prosecutions for illegal oil discharges from ships in British territorial waters in each of the last five years are :
|Number
---------------------
1983 |19
1984 |13
1985 |10
1986 |7
1987 |10
1988 |n.a.
n.a. Not yet
available.
Stratford Station (Congestion)
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will call for a report on the congestion at Stratford, London E15, station during peak travelling times caused by the single turnstile passenger exit ; and what arrangements exist for the evacuation of the station in event of an emergency.
Mr. Portillo : As these are matters for the managements of British Rail and London Underground, I will not call for a report. But I understand that in an emergency, both turnstiles could be set to the "out" direction and a gate opened to allow passengers to leave quickly.
Aircraft Sabotage Warnings
Mr. Rooker : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what time and on what date in December 1988 he was first aware of the warning issued by the Federal Aviation Administration in respect of a possible sabotage threat to a Pan Am flight from Europe to the United States ;
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(2) at what level in his Department decisions are taken regarding the passing on to airport and airline operators of warnings of possible sabotage threats received from overseas ;(3) at what time and what date in December 1988 his Department passed to the BAA notices of possible sabotage threats issued by the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States ;
(4) what restrictions in respect of circulation were placed upon warnings received by his Department in December 1988 from the Federal Aviation Administration regarding a possible sabotage threat to a Pan Am flight from Europe to the United States.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : I refer the hon. Member to the statement given earlier today by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State.
Crime on the London Underground"
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his reply of 20 December, Official Report , column 158 how much of the £15 million made available by the Government to London Underground Limited has been expended on safety measures recommended in his report "Crime on the London Underground".
Mr. Portillo : To date, London Underground Limited has spent £3 million of the Government grant of £15 million on measures to improve passenger security and prevent vandalism and graffiti. The remaining funds are budgeted to be spent by the end of 1989-90 on further measures which will reflect experience with the pilot schemes currently under way.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will call for a report from the Police Committee on progress made in the implementation of recommendations in the 1986 Report, "Crime on the London Underground", regarding the organisation of the British Transport Police ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Portillo : An increase in the complement of the London Underground division of the British Transport Police from 350 to 400 officers, and the extension of local area policing as piloted successfully in the Stockwell area, have been agreed. I understand further that the British Transport Police committee is keeping the organisation of the force under review in the light of the 1986 crime report, the recent inspection of the London Underground division by Her Majesty's inspectorate of constabulary and the report of the investigation into the King's Cross fire.
Property Purchase
Mr. Cartwright : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport why his Department allowed the London borough of Greenwich to take possession of 3 Camrose street SE2, before the purchase of the property had been completed and the agreed price had been paid.
Mr. Channon [holding answer 22 December 1988] : The current occupation of 3 Camrose street is a matter for the vendor as its purchase by the Department on the basis of vacant possession has not yet been completed.
Mr. Cartwright : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when his Department agreed terms for the
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purchase of 3 Camrose street SE2, following the service of a planning notice under section 193 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 ; why his Department has refused to meet the vendor's legal and professional costs ; and when the agreed price was paid.Mr. Channon [holding answer 22 December 1988] : Negotiations between the vendor and the district valuer were concluded in August. The district valuer subsequently advised that the vendor's professional fees should be included in the agreed price which is payable on completion, which is expected to take place next month.
Motorcycle Casualties
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many motorcycle casualties were involved in road traffic accidents for the latest available year ; what proportion of these were provisional licence holders ; what proportion resulted from accidents involving cars and what were the primary causes of accidents ; and what proportion of these resulted from a single vehicle accident and what were the primary causes of accident.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The latest year for which figures are available is 1987. There were 45,801 motorcycle user casualties in road accidents in Great Britain--42,288 riders and 3,513 passengers. Of these, 723 were killed and 13,173 were seriously injured. It is not known what proportion of these motorcycle riders were provisional licence holders ; in 3 per cent. of accidents involving motorcycles the motorcycle was displaying an L plate.
Of the motorcycle user casualties, 21 per cent. occurred in single vehicle accidents, and 61 per cent in accidents involving a motorcycle and a car.
The causes of accidents are not recorded on the STATS 19 reporting forms. Of the accidents involving a car and a motorcycle, we know that the car was turning right in about 40 per cent. of cases.
Drivers (Fitness)
Mr. Andrew Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the total number of drivers aged (a) 17 to 60 years, (b) 60 to 69 years, (c) 70 to 79 years, (d) 80 years and over referred to the driver and vehicle licensing centre in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available ; and in each case, what percentage of referrals led to a disqualification from driving.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The figures available are as follows :
|Driver notifications<1> |Application containing a|Other notifications
|medical declaration
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1982 |13,709 |107,930 |12,696
1983 |17,929 |118,872 |13,814
1984 |22,755 |116,502 |12,393
1985 |27,810 |111,618 |14,004
1986 |36,040 |144,126 |15,489
1987 |48,086 |144,734 |10,864
1988<2> |53,884 |140,496 |14,126
<1>During currency of licence.
<2>To end of November.
Many take heed of the advice on the driving licence about the legal obligation to notify disabilities and rightly
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refer themselves. Of these, many retain the right to drive. I will write to my hon. Friend to give fuller details about the statutory powers available to the Secretary of State in this area of driver licensing and how the driver and vehicle licensing centre carries out its medical investigations of drivers.Mr. Andrew Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the total number of drivers referred to the driver and vehicle licensing centre (a) by the driver themselves and (b) on behalf of another driver, with a condition believed to affect fitness as a driver in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available ; and in each case what percentage of referrals led to a disqualification from driving.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : This information is not available.
Orange Badges
Mr. Andrew Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his best estimate of the number of parking spaces available in each local authority area to holders of an orange badge.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The provision of parking spaces reserved for orange badge holders is the responsibility of individual local authorities. Information on the number provided by each authority is not held centrally.
British Rail (Chairman)
Mr. Rowe : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has any plans to replace the chairman of British Rail.
M4 (Barrier Replacement)
Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the current progress on the programme of barrier replacement on the M4 ; and what information he has on the standard and quality of the original installation.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : Pursuant to the reply to my hon. Friend on 6 December, (Official Report, column 97), 79.3 km of safety fencing on the central reserve of the M4 in England have already been replaced. A further 5.2 km is scheduled for replacement this financial year, and 3.8 km next financial year. Up to 61.3 km will be dealt with in subsequent years.
Despite the fact that the Department engaged a consulting engineer to supervise their installation, we know that some original concrete post footings were not constructed to the shape specified by the Department.
TRRL research report 75, published in 1986, showed that the safety fencing involved is nonetheless still performing better than its design requirements.
Replacement of safety fencing can with greatest safety and with convenience be done when other major maintenance is being carried out. There is no case for faster replacement given that the safety fencing continues to perform as intended.
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NATIONAL FINANCE
Personal Equity Plans
Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest estimate of the number of personal equity plans taken out in 1988 and in 1987.
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many personal equity plans have been in existence in each year since the instigation of the scheme.
Mr. Norman Lamont : In 1987 over 250,000 plans were taken out and in 1988 it is estimated that a further 100,000 plans were started.
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the cost to the Exchequer to date of personal equity plans ; and what is the anticipated cost in each of the next three years.
Mr. Norman Lamont : The available information is as follows :
|Estimated cost of income
|tax relief
|£ million
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87 |negligible
1987-88 |5
1988-89 |15
Costs in future years are expected to increase.
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many organisations have offered personal equity plans ; how many have ceased to do so ; and if he will list them by name.
Mr. Norman Lamont : Since the scheme was introduced in 1987, 129 organisations have offered personal equity plans. Details are not held on the number and names of organisations which have ceased to offer plans.
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many personal equity plan holders have a marginal tax rate of (a) 25 per cent. and (b) 40 per cent.
Mr. Norman Lamont : I regret that the information is not available.
Interest (Taxation)
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax is paid annually by zero rate tax payers on bank and building society interest.
Mr. Norman Lamont : In 1987-88, about £450 million of the composite rate tax accounted for by building societies, banks and other deposit-takers was due in respect of interest that would not have been liable to tax in the hands of its recipients in the absence of a composite rate system.
Business Expansion Scheme
Mr. Gordon Brown : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the sums invested so far in BES in (a) manufacturing, (b) services and (c) property for 1988-89 so far.
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Mr. Norman Lamont : The information requested is not yet available centrally from official sources.
Airports (Intimate Searches)
Sir Dudley Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many full and intimate searches of women passengers have been undertaken by the customs authorities at Gatwick airport in the last relevant 12 months, and how many proved negative ;
(2) how many full and intimate searches of women passengers have been undertaken by the customs authorities at Heathrow airport in the last relevant 12 months, and how many proved negative.
Mr. Lilley : Customs set up central records on search of person in July 1987 but these records do not identify separately searches of men and women.
For the period 1 July 1987 to 31 March 1988, the numbers of persons intimately searched were 206 at Gatwick and 166 at Heathrow. Drugs were recovered in 29 instances at Gatwick and 19 at Heathrow. These figures include four cases where drugs were found before the search was undertaken and 30 where drugs were found afterwards (for example, concealed internally by smugglers but recovered only after the search).
Senior Personal Secretaries (Civil Service)
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the average hourly rate of pay to senior personal secretaries in the Civil Service (a) within the London weighting area and (b) outside that area.
Mr. Brooke : Senior personal secretaries in the Civil Service are not paid on an hourly basis. Their pay with effect from 1 April 1988 is as follows :
London (a)£ |Outside London (b)£ ------------------------------------------------------------ 10,924 |9,174 11,341 |9,591 11,758 |10,008 12,331 |10,581
The London salary includes inner London weighting of £1,750 ; the rates for the intermediate and outer London zones are £1,000 and £725 respectively. All senior personal secretaries are eligible for a lower rate skill supplement of £404 per annum. A local pay addition of up to £700 per annum is payable at the discretion of Departments to meet particular recruitment and retention needs.
Taxes and Benefits
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the cost in the 1989-90 financial year of introducing a reduced rate tax band of (a) 20 per cent. and (b) 15 per cent. on the first £1,500 of taxable income ; and what would be the effect on the net income of (i) a single person, (ii) a couple where the wife is not working and (iii) a couple where the wife is working and paying tax.
Mr. Norman Lamont : In 1989-90 the full year income tax cost of a reduced rate of 20 per cent. on the first £1,500 of taxable income would be about £1.7 billion. A reduced rate of 15 per cent. for the same band of taxable income would cost about £3.4 billion in a full year.
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Estimates are based on a projection of the 1986-87 survey of personal incomes and are provisional. The costings assume that 1988-89 tax allowances are indexed to 1989-90 by 6.25 per cent. in accordance with the assumption in the Autumn Statement.The effects on the net incomes of different types of family are given in the table. It is assumed in each case that earnings are sufficient to use the whole of the £1,500 reduced rate band.
Increase in net income from introduction of reduced rate tax bands
in 1989-90
£ per week
Family type |(a) Reduced rate of 20 |(b) Reduced rate of 15
|per cent. on first |per cent. on first
|£1,500 of taxable income|£1,500 of taxable income
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(i) Single person |1.44 |2.88
(ii) Married couple
with wife not
working |1.44 |2.88
(iii) Married couple
with wife
working and
paying tax |2.88 |5.77
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