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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 15 February 1989
HOME DEPARTMENT
Warning and Monitoring Services
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Don Valley of 7 December 1988, Official Report, column 205, whether he will place a copy of the scientific research and development branch's technical review of the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation in the Library.
Mr. John Patten : No. The report is a classified document.
Missing Persons
Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) whether he will meet the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis to discuss the adequacy of the computer system in the missing persons bureau in New Scotland Yard for the tracing of missing persons ; and whether he will place in the Library a copy of the report by the police working party referred to in his answer to the hon. Member for Leicester, West of 19 December 1988, Official Report, column 142 ;
(2) whether he will discuss with chief officers of police the steps to be taken to seek EEC funding in order to comply with the Council of Europe recommendation R(79)6.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : No. We expect to receive a copy of the report commissioned by the Association of Chief Police Officers to review police procedures for dealing with inquiries relating to missing persons shortly. We will be happy to consider any recommendations which the police may put to us.
Publication of the report is a matter for the Association of Chief Police Officers.
Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will publish the names, age and last known whereabouts of all persons missing in the Metropolitan area for more than three months and where such names have already been published by the Metropolitan police.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : No. I understand that the decision to publish details of a missing person would normally be taken by the division concerned and such cases are not separately identifiable from records held centrally by the Metropolitan police.
Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken during each of the years since 1979 to ensure compliance with the Council of Europe recommendation R(79)6.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to him on 19 December 1988 at column 143.
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Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will take steps to require all police authorities to inform the police national computer bureau of every unidentified body found within their jurisdictions.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to him on 19 December 1988 at columns 142-43.
Prisoners
Mr. Redwood : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners are remand prisoners.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : On 31 December 1988 there were about 8,850 untried and 1,490 convicted unsentenced prisoners in prison service establishments in England and Wales. A further 87 prisoners, most of whom were on remand, were held in police cells.
Mr. Redwood : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total number of prisoners.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : On 10 February 1989, 48,925 prisoners were held in prison service establishments in England and Wales. A further 209 prisoners were held in police cells.
Football (Arrests)
Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many arrests were made inside the football grounds of (a) Newcastle United, (b) Sunderland, (c) Hartlepool, (d) Middlesbrough and (e) Darlington football clubs during 1988.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The information relates to all games played at home by the first teams of the football clubs concerned during 1988 :
Club |Arrests --------------------------------- Newcastle United |149 Sunderland |39 Middlesbrough |85 Darlington |2
Information is not available in the same form for Hartlepool where there were 21 arrests at league matches during the 1987-88 season. The figures do not distinguish between arrests made inside the ground and arrests directly connected with those matches made outside the ground. The total of 21 arrests corrects the figure of 12 previously understated in a return from the police to the Association of Chief Police Officers and given on 19 December in a reply to the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East (Mr. Barnes) at columns 55-60.
Child Abuse
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, further to his answer of 7 February, financial resources for the programme of research into child sexual abuse will be backdated to the beginning of the financial year.
Mr. John Patten : Financial resources for the Home Office research and planning unit's programme of research, including those projects concerning child sexual
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abuse, for the financial year 1989-90 are available from 1 April 1989. The allocation of funds for individual projects is dependent on the starting dates of the projects and cannot be backdated.Strip Searches
Ms. Richardson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many strip searches were made of female arrestees in police custody during each month of 1988, giving the number of persons involved ; what items of evidential value used in subsequent proceedings, class A drugs, weapons or things which could have been used to cause physical injury, were discovered in any search ; in how many cases arrestees declined to be strip searched, and with what outcome ; and what were the reasons for each search.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : This information is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Youth at Risk Programme
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the potential for combating juvenile delinquency and application in the United Kingdom of the youth at risk programme, details of which have been submitted to him ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : I have seen a summary of the objectives and content of the youth at risk programme which operates in the United States and Home Office officials have seen a video film. The programme offers a distinctive way of dealing with young offenders and other young delinquents. Intensive intermediate treatment schemes which offer no less constructive and demanding programmes for juvenile offenders are available throughout England and Wales.
Parking Schemes
Mr. Shersby : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made by the working party considering parking problems in outer London and elsewhere ; and when he expects to be able to make a statement of the Government's policy towards the introduction of controlled parking schemes and the employment of traffic wardens by local authorities.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : While I understand that the parking enforcement working party has not yet completed its report, I hope that it will be able to do so shortly.
WALES
Exchequer Grant
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the aggregate Exchequer grant paid to all local authorities in Wales in each financial year since 1978-79 (a) in cash terms and (b) at 1988-89 prices.
Mr. Grist : The information requested is given in the following table for all years from 1981-82 to 1988-89. It is not possible to provide figures on a comparable basis for years prior to the introduction of block grant in 1981-82.
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|c|Aggregate exchequer grant (£ million)|c|
|in cash terms |at 1988-89 prices<1>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1981-82 |873.1 |1,251.9
1982-83 |926.6 |1,239.9
1983-84 |962.9 |1,232.5
1984-85 |992.5 |1,209.1
1985-86 |1,022.7 |1,182.2
1986-87 |1,085.7 |1,214.4
1987-88 |1,167.2 |1,240.2
1988-89 |1,250.7 |1,250.7
<1>Expressed in real terms using the GDP (market prices) deflator.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Laos
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has as to whether the former king and the former crown prince of Laos are still alive or held in captivity ; what representations he has received regarding their fate ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : We have no independent or reliable knowledge as to the fate of the former King and the former Crown Prince of Laos. There have been persistent but unconfirmed reports of their deaths. The Lao Government claim that they are alive and "in retirement".
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received regarding the continued occupation of Laos by Vietnamese troops ; whether he will raise the matter with the Soviet and the Vietnamese governments ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : We received one letter from a member of the public in 1988 on this issue. According to the Vietnamese Foreign Minister, all Vietnamese troops were to be withdrawn from Laos by the end of 1988. We have no independent means of verifying this claim.
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received regarding allegations that Soviet military officers removed certain national treasures from Laos to the Soviet Union in 1975 ; and what response he is able to make.
Mr. Eggar : We received one letter from a member of the public in 1988 alleging that a statue was removed from the palace in Luang Prabang by Soviet military officers. According to a Lao official the statue is still on display in the palace museum.
Petty Officer John Black
Mr. Latham : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) whether Her Majesty's ambassador in Madrid has conveyed to the Spanish Government the report of the Metropolitan police regarding the death of Petty Officer John Black, RN ; whether he has asked the Spanish Government to investigate the circumstances in which the allegedly defective water heater was removed from the apartment in which Mr. Black was found dead ; and what response he has received ;
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(2) whether he will instruct Her Majesty's ambassador in Madrid to ask the Spanish Government to show the Metropolitan police report on the death of Petty Officer John Black to the two Spanish pathologists who gave evidence to the inquest in Portsmouth in May 1985 ; and whether the ambassador will request guidance from the Government of Spain on the conflict of evidence between the pathologists and the Metropolitan police officers.Mr. Eggar : The report prepared by British police officers into the death of Petty Officer Black remains the property of and confidential to the Metropolitan police. It has not therefore been conveyed to the Spanish authorities.
Israel
Mr. Stott : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has on the use by Israeli armed forces of bullets consisting of a large steel ball bearing coated with rubber ; how many fatalities have been caused by such bullets ; and if he will raise the matter with the Israeli Government and the United Nations.
Mr. Eggar : We do not know how many fatalities have been caused by these bullets. The Israeli authorities are well aware of our concern at their use of excessive force against Palestinians in the occupied territories.
DEFENCE
Defence Exports
74. Mr. Nellist : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will now make it his practice to publish figures on individual companies' defence exports.
Nuclear Waste
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy to permit United Kingdom NIREX Ltd. to release its report on the radioactive inventory of nuclear waste produced in Ministry of Defence activities.
Petty Officer John Black
Mr. Latham : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what further action he intends to take in the case of the late Petty Officer John Black, RN following the verdict of the inquest jury that he was unlawfully killed in Spain, and the Metropolitan police report that he died accidentally ; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr. Neubert : Although my Department initiated an investigation into the death of Petty Officer J. A. Black, which was carried out by officers of the Metropolitan police, it has no further standing in the matter.
Defence Export Services Organisation
Mrs. Mahon : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any personnel from the Defence Export Services Organisation visited Turkey, Chile or South Africa during 1988.
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Mr. Sainsbury [holding answer 9 February 1989] : Representatives of DESO travel extensively and visited numerous countries during 1988. Because of the confidentiality of many of the matters involved it is not the practice to list individual countries which have been visited.
Army Equipment Exhibition
Mrs. Mahon : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the British Army equipment exhibition was held in 1988 ; and whether it will be held in 1989.
Mr. Sainsbury [holding answer 9 February 1989] : The British Army equipment exhibition was held at Aldershot during the week 26 June to 1 July 1988. It is a biennial exhibition and will not therefore be held this year.
International Organisations
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those international organisations on which his Department is represented and the total cost of those commitments.
Mr. Archie Hamilton [holding answer 8 February 1989] : The Ministry of Defence is represented at numerous committees meetings under the auspicies of NATO, the independent European programme group, the Eurogroup and the Western European Union. In 1987-88 the MOD paid a contribution of £57,301,000 to the NATO military budget, and a net contribution of £113,640,000 to the NATO infrastructure budget. Other international organisations to which the MOD pays subscriptions or grants are :
European Network of Ocean Stations
FINABEL Secretariat, Brussels
European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites
International Hydrographic Organisation
World Meteorological Organisation
European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts
North Atlantic Ocean Stations Agreement
World Weather Watch Stations Overseas
International Institute for Scientific Studies
Commonwealth Advisory Aeronautical Research Council
International Institute for Strategic Studies
Ergonomics Society
British Commonwealth Ex-Servicemen's League
Inter Allied Confederation of Reserve Officers
In 1987-88 the cost of subscriptions and grants to these organisations was approximately £10,057,000.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Petty Officer John Black
Mr. Latham : To ask the Attorney-General whether, pursuant to recent reports of the Metropolitan police which have been submitted to Ministers, he intends to initiate action under the Coroners Act 1988 to recall an inquest, in the light of the verdict of the coroner's jury in Portsmouth on 23 May 1985 that Petty Officer John Black, RN, was unlawfully killed ; and whether he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : To date, interested parties have neither made any representations to me about the inquest held on 23 May 1985 nor requested my authority under section 13(1) of the Coroners Act 1988 for them to apply
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to the High Court for an order quashing the inquest and requiring a new inquest to be held. I shall give careful consideration to any representations or requests which may be made to me.HOUSE OF COMMONS
European Directives
Dr. Hampson : To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will list all Bills and Statutory Instruments approved by Parliament over the last five years which implement European directives.
Mr. Wakeham : I am arranging for a list of the 149 statutory instruments made under section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 between 1 January 1984 and 20 November 1988 to be placed in the Library of the House. No list of statutes implementing a Community obligation or of statutory instruments implementing such an obligation but made under enabling powers other than section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 exists. This information could be provided only at dispro-portionate cost.
EC Documents
Mr. Dykes : To ask the Lord President of the Council how many European Economic Community documents from the Commission were deposited in Parliament in 1988 or the most recent 12 months for which figures are available ; of these, how many were draft or final regulations, how many draft or final directives and how many draft or final decisions ; and how many of these were debated on the Floor of the House and how many in Committees upstairs.
Mr. Wakeham : In 1988, 770 European Community documents from the Commission and other sources were deposited in Parliament. Of these approximately 45 per cent. were proposals for Council regulations, 15 per cent. proposals for Council directives and 15 per cent. proposals for Council decisions. In the same year, following recommendations from the Commons Select Committee on European Legislation, 31 debates covering 92 documents--some of which would have been deposited before 1988--were held on the Floor of the House and eight debates covering 17 documents were held in Standing Committee.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Manufacturing Productivity
81. Mr. Sumberg : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer by what amount productivity has increased among manufacturing firms in the north- west over the last two years for which figures are available.
Mr. Major : Figures for productivity growth in the north-west are not available. Manufacturing industry throughout the regions has achieved significant improvements in productivity. In the three months up to November 1988, manufacturing productivity in the United Kingdom as a whole was 14 per cent. higher than in the corresponding period two years earlier.
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Productivity
82. Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will make a statement about the trends in productivity in British industry.
Mr. Major : Manufacturing industry has made great efficiency gains in the 1980s. Productivity in the three months up to November 1988 was 58 per cent. higher than its average level in 1980. This is equivalent to an annual average growth rate of 5.6 per cent. significantly higher than the rate of 1.6 per cent. achieved in the 1970s and 3.1 per cent. in the 1960s. Since 1980 United Kingdom manufacturing productivity growth has been higher than in any other major industrialised country.
Balance of Payments
Mr. Ashton : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his latest forecast for the balance of payments in 1989 and 1990.
Mr. Major : The Autumn Statement provided forecasts of the current account for 1988 and 1989 only. This year the current account deficit was forecast to be £11 billion. As usual a new forecast will be published on Budget day.
Information Gathering
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he plans to seek improvements in the information gathered by his Department on the economy.
Mr. Major : The Treasury is directly responsible only for statistics on official reserves, though it is also responsible jointly with CSO for the public sector debt repayment figures. It is always looking to improve its information gathering.
Group of Seven
Mr. Riddick : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on his last meeting with his counterparts in the Group of Seven.
Mr. Lilley : This was a useful meeting at which my right hon. Friend and his colleagues discussed developments in the world economy and the international debt situation.
Cheque Cashing (Controls)
Mr. McTaggart : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has any plans to seek to extend to building societies the controls on cheque cashing which currently apply to banks.
Mr. Lilley : Statutory limitations on banking services also apply to building societies carrying on banking services.
Car Tax
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total revenue from tax on new cars in 1987-88 ; and what is the estimated revenue for 1988-89.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer, 14 February 1989] : The total revenue from tax (VAT and car tax) on new cars in 1987-88 is estimated to have been £3.4 billion. The VAT
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element in this figure has been estimated from consumers' expenditure and businesses' purchases of cars, on which tax is not deductible.Car tax revenue for 1988-89 is estimated at £1.3 billion. An estimate of VAT on new vehicles for 1988-89 is not available.
Value Added Tax
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total revenue from value added tax on fuel in 1987-88 ; and what is the estimated revenue for 1988-89.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 14 February 1989] : The total VAT revenue on road fuel for 1987-88 is estimated from consumers' expenditure statistics to have been £1 billion. An estimate for 1988-89 is not available.
ENERGY
Nuclear Power
75. Mr. Ronnie Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what will be the eventual annual cost to industry of the higher electricity prices arising from the requirement to develop nuclear power.
76. Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what will be the eventual annual cost to industry of the higher electricity prices arising from the requirement to develop nuclear power.
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