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National Girobank
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when his Department expects to announce a buyer for National Girobank.
Mr. Forth : Discussions with potential purchasers are continuing and we have set no timetable for completing the sale.
Shipbuilding
Dr. Godman : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many merchant vessels of more that 500 gross registered tonnage were built outwith the United Kingdom for United Kingdom shipping firms in each of the past 10 years ; what types they were ; and in which countries they were built.
Mr. Atkins : The information available, which relates to vessels built overseas for United Kingdom registration, is shown in the table.
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|c|Merchanted vessels built overseas for United Kingdom registration|c| |c|By type of vessel|c| Number Year |Tanker |Bulk carrier |Cargo |Supply vessels|Container ship|Other |Total --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1979 |6 |1 |13 |6 |2 |6 |34 1980 |12 |- |7 |5 |1 |5 |30 1981 |4 |10 |2 |- |1 |3 |20 1982 |4 |5 |5 |3 |1 |4 |22 1983 |- |1 |2 |2 |1 |5 |11 1984 |- |3 |2 |2 |1 |3 |11 1985 |2 |- |1 |3 |- |2 |8 1986 |- |- |1 |3 |- |3 |7 1987 |- |- |- |1 |- |5 |6 <1>1988 |- |- |- |- |- |1 |1 <1>First nine months.
|c|By country of build|c| Number Year |Japan |Denmark |Netherlands|Poland |Germany |Other |Total ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1979 |17 |3 |2 |2 |10 |34 1980 |11 |6 |4 |4 |5 |30 1981 |6 |5 |3 |6 |20 1982 |4 |2 |4 |2 |1 |9 |22 1983 |1 |2 |1 |7 |11 1984 |2 |1 |1 |7 |11 1985 |1 |2 |1 |4 |8 1986 |4 |3 |7 1987 |1 |3 |2 |6 <1>1988 |1 |1 <1>First nine months. Note: Only vessels of over 500 gross tonnes are included.
Mr. McCrindle : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will press for international action to eliminate excessive shipbuilding credit arrangements and for the rationalisation of the world shipping industry ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Atkins : The Government's objective is to achieve a reduction in subsidies across the range of officially supported export credits on a multilateral basis. Any consequent reduction in shipbuilding credits should contribute to the rationalisation of world shipping.
Fur and Fur Products
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Caerphilly, Official Report, 12 January, column 733 (a) what were the species whence the fur and fur products were derived, and (b) what were the quantities of red fox pelts involved.
Mr. Alan Clark : The species were :--
mink
rabbits and hares
Persian, Astrakhan, Caracul and similar lambs
Indian, Chinese, Mongolian and Tibetan lambs
sea-lions, fur seals and other seals
sea otters, nutria and beaver
musk-rats and marmots
wild felines
sheep
other animals.
The quantities of red fox pelts are not identified separately in the "Statistics of Overseas Trade".
Post Office Board (Bonuses)
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how much has been paid as profit-related bonuses to the chairman and members of the Post Office Board ; and if he will list such payments.
Mr. Forth : In 1987-88 performance-related bonuses were paid to the chairman and members of the Post Office Board against a range of targets including profit. Profit-related payments amounted to £11, 240.
UK Goods
Mr. Amess : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what steps he has taken to encourage people to purchase goods made in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Alan Clark : Ministers repeatedly point out the advantages of buying United Kingdom goods where they
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are well designed, of good quality and competitively priced. My Department's policies are geared to helping businesses achieve this.NORTHERN IRELAND
Industrial Development (Grants)
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the terms of the package of grant assistance promoted by the Industrial Development Board, Northern Ireland, available to investors in Northern Ireland and the investment grants available in all other regions of the United Kingdom.
Mr. Viggers : A wide range of support is available to companies and individual investors in Northern Ireland including :
Accommodation :-- Stocks of land and industrial premises for purchase or lease.
Capital Grants :-- Up to 50 per cent., depending on location within Northern Ireland, of the cost of new buildings, machinery and equipment whether purchased or leased.
Employment Grants :-- Paid on a per capita basis over, typically, 3-5 years.
Rent Grants :-- Paid for up to five years towards the cost of renting privately-owned industrial premises or property leased on commercial terms from the IDB.
Interest Relief Grants :-- In respect of loans obtained from the private sector.
Loans :-- Against approved security.
Share Capital :-- Through ordinary or preference shares, often with a buy- back option or redemption terms.
Management Incentive Grants : --Paid to help companies overcome exceptional management recruitment problems.
All of the above assistance is subject to certain limits and to constraints applied by the European Commission.
In addition, eligible companies can apply for the following assistance :
R and D Grants :-- Up to 50 per cent. of expenditure on approved projects for research and development work related to new products or processes for manufacture or application in Northern Ireland. Marketing Development Grants :-- Grant can amount to 40 per cent. of eligible marketing costs incurred in implementation of a marketing plan, up to a maximum of £60,000 in one year.
Alternatively, companies may receive 40 per cent. of eligible identifiable costs, up to a maximum of £30,000, to help develop a strategic approach to their marketing planning and implementation. Grants available to industry in Great Britain are the responsibility of my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Trade and Industry, Wales and Scotland.
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St. Vincent de Paul Society
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will raise the subject of support by the Republic of Ireland Government for the St. Vincent de Paul Society in Northern Ireland at the next meeting of the Anglo-Irish Conference.
Mr. Ian Stewart : No. I do not regard this as a matter which falls within the scope of the Anglo-Irish Agreement.
Water Courses
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland under what circumstances a designated water course is de-designated ; and in what state of maintenance such water courses are handed over to those landowners with riparian rights.
Mr. Viggers : Water courses are de-designated by the Northern Ireland Drainage Council in circumstances where their maintenance at public expense is no longer justified. Such water courses become the responsibility of the riparian landowners in their existing condition.
ENVIRONMENT
Local Authority Finance
Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those local authorities which have received allocations under the Estate Action funding scheme for 1988-89 and the proposals for 1989-90 ; and if he will indicate the figures in each case.
Mr. Trippier : At 23 January 1989, the following local authorities in the regions indicated had received allocations of extra resources under the Department's Estate Action programme for 1988-89. For 1989-90, local authorities are currently working up their detailed proposals and allocations have not yet been made.
|Figures
---------------------------------------------
North-West
Allerdale |451,000
Barrow-in-Furness |1,920,000
Blackburn |1,460,000
Blackpool |270,000
Bolton |17,000
Bury |100,000
Chorley |200,000
Copeland |387,000
Hyndburn |750,000
Lancaster |1,558,000
Manchester |3,816,000
Oldham |1,802,000
Pendle |1,001,000
Preston |1,919,855
Rochdale |5,634,000
Rossendale |1,671,000
Salford |4,716,932
Stockport |2,470,000
Trafford |264,000
Vale Royal |750,000
Warrington |751,701
West Lancashire |1,264,000
Wigan |3,586,042
London
Brent |289,000
Camden |632,000
Enfield |790,000
Greenwich |4,490,690
Hammersmith |141,000
Haringey |1,585,000
Islington |850,000
Kensington |1,228,000
Lewisham |1,985,379
Newham |3,712,545
Southwark |3,257,500
Tower Hamlets |4,073,000
Waltham Forest |1,460,000
Wandsworth |781,000
Westminster |61,530
East Midlands
Bassetlaw |193,581
Chesterfield |175,000
Derby |2,478,909
High Peak |152,000
Leicester |2,236,769
Mansfield |1,347,027
Nottingham |962,688
South Holland |422,000
South Kesteven |641,269
West Midlands
Birmingham |690,000
Bromsgrove |200,000
Cannock |881,000
Coventry |2,856,890
Dudley |1,733,500
East Staffordshire |433,000
Redditch |554,500
Solihull |644,560
Stoke |1,076,000
Walsall |1,292,000
Wolverhampton |714,000
Worcester |528,000
Wyre Forest |825,133
Northern
Chester-le-Street |277,550
Derwentside |446,333
Easington |433,318
Gateshead |2,307,343
Hartlepool |1,446,107
Langbaurgh |474,000
Middlesborough |810,177
Newcastle |2,144,547
North Tyneside |569,723
South Tyneside |744,650
Stockton |472,000
Sunderland |1,224,654
Yorkshire and Humberside
Barnsley |927,358
Bradford |2,595,632
Calderdale |76,500
Hull |1,307,227
Kirklees |840,000
Leeds |820,825
Sheffield |5,780,357
Wakefield |730,161
Merseyside
Halton |1,162,245
Knowsley |3,201,411
Sefton |617,048
St. Helens |1,330,633
Wirral |3,052,400
South East
Brighton |343,000
Spelthorne |1,772,000
Eastern
Harlow |222,000
Milton Keynes |430,000
South West
Salisbury |264,000
Geomorphological Surveys
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to receive the geomorphological surveys for (a) Ventnor and (b) Luccombe ; and whether he intends to publish the findings.
Mr. Chope : I expect to receive a report of geomorphological studies for Luccombe in mid-March and for Ventnor in January 1990. The results will be published as soon as possible thereafter.
Chief Officers
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance he gives to local authorities on the extent to which more than one chief officer post should be held by the same individual.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : Subject to a few statutory exceptions, local authorities are free to appoint such officers as they think necessary for the proper discharge of their functions. The Government propose in the Local Government and Housing Bill to require each council to appoint a head of its paid service, who will be responsible for advising the council on the organisation, appointment and proper management of the council's staff.
Chandeliers
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Nottingham, North of 1 February, Official Report, column 212 regarding chandeliers, when he anticipates (a) completing the research necessary and (b) forwarding his advice to the Select Committee.
Mr. Chope : I expect that the results will be available by Easter.
Warrington and Runcorn New Town
Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether details of changes in the cost-floor calculations have been made available for Warrington and Runcorn new town development corporation.
Mr. Trippier : No changes have yet been made. Section 122 of the Housing Act 1988 is to be brought into effect shortly.
Brodsworth Hall
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list his full day's itinerary during his recent visit to Brodsworth hall, near Doncaster, in South Yorkshire ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Ridley : I paid a private visit to Brodsworth hall on 4 January when passing through the area.
Council House Sales (Torbay)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will introduce legislation in respect of
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the sale of council housing stock, in the light of Torbay council's decision to reject his advice to hold another ballot.Mr. Trippier : We have no plans to do so.
Yorkshire Water Authority (Chairman)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement as to what performance targets the chairman of the Yorkshire water authority achieved to receive a bonus for the year 1987-88 ; if he will list for the four previous years the annual bonus the chairman received ; and if he will list by year for the past five years his basic salary.
Mr. Moynihan : In response to the first and second parts of the hon. Member's question I refer him to the answer I gave to his earlier question on 7 February at column 598.
The basic salary of the chairman of the Yorkshire water authority in each of the past five years has been as follows :
Year |Salary (£) -------------------------------------------------------- 1 July-30 June 1984-85 |26,093 1985-86 |35,424 1986-87 |37,548 1987-88 |41,724 1988-89 (up to 30 September 1988) |45,900 1988-89 (from 1 October 1988) |51,000
The chairman increased his time input on 1 July 1985 and has served on a full-time basis since 1 October 1988.
Archaeology
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the current archaeological funding being paid to archaeological societies in the three counties of Yorkshire ; what was the comparable figure (a) five and (b) 10 years ago ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : This is a matter for English Heritage.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received concerning the level of funding provided to English Heritage for rescue archaeology ; if he has any proposals to increase funding ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley [holding answer 9 February 1989] : I am aware of no recent specific representations concerning the level of funding to English Heritage for rescue archaeology. It is for English Heritage to determine priorities within its overall resources.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to introduce legislation to enable him to serve an order prohibiting development on sites of archaeological significance.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley [holding answer 9 February 1989] : Provision already exists, under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to schedule any monument which appears to him to be of national importance. The provisions of that Act also control
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development by making it an offence for any person to execute or cause to execute specified works to a scheduled ancient monument without the written consent of the Secretary of State.Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what archaeological mapping vertical aerial photographs have been taken in the three counties of Yorkshire ; where these are stored ; and what facilities are available for members of the public and students of archaeology to study them.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley [holding answer 9 February 1989] : An extensive collection of archaeological aerial photography material is held by the Royal Commission on historical monuments of England and is available for public consultation at the commission's London headquarters. I have asked the secretary to the commission to write to the hon. Member to explain what material is available on Yorkshire.
Football Clubs (Membership Scheme)
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations his Department has received from (a) Darlington football club, (b) Leeds United football club, (c) Middlesbrough football club and (d) York City football club concerning the proposed football identity card scheme.
Mr. Moynihan : I have not received any direct written representation from these football clubs. However, a letter from the chairman of Darlington football club to the Football League expressing concern about the proposed national membership scheme for football spectators was brought to my attention by my hon. Friend the Member for Darlington (Mr. Fallon). I have replied to him. The chairmen of Darlington, Leeds United and York City attended a meeting which the Secretary of State for the Environment and I held with Football League club chairmen in the House on 17 January.
Water Pollution (North Yorkshire)
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list in the Official Report the location and ownership of all boreholes on agricultural land in North Yorkshire that have been shut by his Department as a result of excess nitrates in the water supply.
Mr. Moynihan : I understand from the Yorkshire water authority that the only public water supply boreholes which it has closed on the grounds of high nitrate concentrations are Kirby Hill borehole, Boroughbridge, in 1985 ; Baldersby-St-James borehole, Baldersby, early in 1988.
Use Classes Order
Sir Neil Macfarlane : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will review the workings of the Use Classes Order between his Department and planning authorities ; and if he will make a statement on any callings currently before his Department.
Mr. Howard : We propose to commission research later this year on the impact of the Use Classes Order 1987, and I am interested to receive any relevant information about
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its effects. I cannot comment on individual planning applications called in for my right hon. Friend's decision ; applications are normally called in only if they raise planning issues of more than local importance.Disconnections
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about disconnections from households with persons of pensionable age and young children.
Mr. Moynihan : The National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux has made representations on how customers, particularly the elderly and those with young children, could be further protected from any risk of disconnection of water supply for non-payment of bills. Since then the water industry has announced important additional customer safeguards in its proposed revised code of practice on disconnections, to which my hon. Friend the Minister for Water and Planning referred in his parliamentary answer of 9 February at columns 772-73.
Private Sewers
Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has made any assessment of the potential costs to water authorities of being obliged to adopt private sewers connected to a public main in cases where the private sewers have proved to be defective, and no liability can be exercised upon the original construction.
Mr. Moynihan : No precise estimate of these costs would be practicable, but the results of a sample survey of private sewers in one water authority area suggest that if water authorities were required to adopt all private sewers, they would incur annual renewal costs, excluding normal maintenance, in the region of £75 million.
67 Tufton Street
Mr. Campbell-Savours : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the increase in the weekly rent paid by the Property Services Agency to Bourne Association Ltd. for the lease of 67 Tufton street, Westminster, which resulted from the new letting agreement, reached during August 1979, that the Property Services Agency should pay an increased rent of £10 per sq ft per week.
Mr. Chope : The rental charges paid by the PSA on leasehold buildings are determined on a strictly commercial, and therefore confidential, basis.
Mr. Campbell-Savours : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the unexpired term of the leasehold agreement made between the Property Services Agency and Bourne Association Ltd. for the rent of 67 Tufton street, Westminster, in August 1979 before new terms were negotiated.
Mr. Chope : There was no unexpired term of the leasehold agreement in August 1979. At that time, negotiations were in progress about the renewal of the previous lease which had expired in June that year.
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Homelessness
Sir Antony Buck : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when Birmingham university research report on local authority policy and practice on homelessness will be published ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : Copies of the report have been placed in the Library today. It highlights the variation between authorities, both in how they interpret the legislation and in the efficiency and procedures they adopt in providing assistance to the homeless.
The research shows that people applying to local authorities for help find the system bewildering and often feel they are kept in the dark about what is happening. Some authorities take an excessive time to process applications, which sometimes become entangled in long-drawn-out and complicated checking processes. Others deal with applicants quickly, thus reducing the time that families spend in temporary accommodation.
In some cases, staff have genuine difficulties in interpreting the legislation. This can lead to uneven treatment, so that households with similar problems may be dealt with in a completely different way in one part of the country compared with another.
There is also room for improvement in the allocation of permanent housing. Systems for allocating homes for homeless people are not always properly integrated into general allocation and waiting list systems, meaning that people in the greatest housing need sometimes have to wait longer in temporary accommodation. Nor is best use made of housing association properties, and there are problems in fitting in with their allocation systems.
The report identifies a number of key areas in which local authorities could improve their performance to provide a more consistent and efficient service to the homeless. The research findings provide a valuable input into our current review of the homelessness legislation.
New Housing (North-West)
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the average cost of building a new two-bedroom two-storey house in the north-west during 1987, and estimated for 1988 by (a) local authorities and (b) housing associations ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier [holding answer 3 February 1989] : Information provided by those local authorities in the north-west region which have so far made returns to the Department show that the average of tenders accepted for the building of new two-storey two-bedroom houses, including all works but excluding professional fees and land, was £17,546 in the financial year 1987-88 and £20,816 in the first half of the financial year 1988-89.
Comparable information for housing associations is not available.
Water
Mr. Goodlad : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) under what arrangements and for what purpose the Southern water authority has purchased shares in the Folkestone water company ; (2) under what arrangements and for what purpose the Southern water authority has purchased shares in the Eastbourne water company ;
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(3) under what arrangements and for what purpose the Southern water authority has purchased shares in the West Kent water company ; (4) under what arrangements and for what purpose the Southern water authority has purchased shares in the Mid Sussex water company.Mr. Moynihan [holding answer 3 February 1989] : Southern water authority purchased shares in these companies under the powers available to it under the Water Act 1973. I understand that Southern hopes to use its shareholding to promote co-operation with the companies to reduce costs.
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