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British National Space Centre
Dr. Hampson : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what payments have been made to British Telecom International from the British National Space Centre budget ; and for what purpose.
Mr. Atkins : None, except for services purchased on a commercial basis. However, under arrangements instituted at the time of formation of Eutelsat in 1978, the BNSC shares the United Kingdom subscription to that body with
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British Telecom International. The BNSC payments, which are made through the European Space Agency, have so far amounted to £7.99 million.Dr. Hampson : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the value of the activity undertaken by the United Kingdom space industry as a direct output of the British National Space Centre civil space budget for the financial years 1988-89 and 1989-90, excluding the value of sub-contracts placed outside the United Kingdom.
Mr. Atkins : Space expenditure falls to the budgets of the individual Departments and research councils who are partners in the BNSC. Their total contributions to the European Space Agency's programmes are estimated at £90 million in 1988-89 and £82 million in 1989-90. Some 80 per cent. of these contributions will, in accordance with ESA rules, return to United Kingdom industry in the form of contracts. In addition, the national programmes of BNSC partners amount to about £50 million per year. These include expenditure on space science in universities and research institutes. The proportion spent in industry is between 40 and 50 per cent.
Iraq
Mr. Meale : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the current rating of Iraq in respect of the export credit guarantee scheme ; what consideration is being given to increasing cover to Iraq ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Alan Clark : ECGD cover for Iraq is presently available for United Kingdom exports ranging from consumer goods and raw materials to capital goods and projects.
The United Kingdom/Iraq financial protocol, negotiated on an annual basis, governs the level of support for contracts eligible for extended credit terms. The last protocol was signed by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in November 1988. This provided additional United Kingdom credits of £340 million for contracts placed in 1989. These facilities have yet to be utilised and no further increase in support is presently being considered.
Harmonisation
Mr. Meale : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what steps he has taken to assemble any observations sent by British enterprises, trade associations, or similar bodies to the Commission of the European Economic Community for consideration during the pre-publication stage of the proposals it plans to present to the Council of Ministers within the scheduled programme of harmonisation.
Mr. Maude : It is most important that business makes its concerns known to the Commission, both directly and through Government channels, if possible before particular proposals are published. Business usually keeps Departments informed of direct contacts with the Commission, and this is extremely helpful. My Department and other Departments with responsibilities in this area take business concerns fully into account in our contact with the Commission before the publication of proposals and during subsequent negotiations.
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Licensed Trade
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report into licensed trade will be published.
Mr. Maude : The report will be published as soon as possible.
Chlorofluorocarbons
Ms. Walley : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what is his best estimate of the amount of chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants under the control of his Department ;
(2) what plans there are to minimise the risk of leaks of chlorofluorocarbons from refrigeration and air conditioning systems under his Department's control.
Mr. Forth : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the hon. Member for Merionnydd Nant Conwy (Dr. Thomas) today.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT
Aid (Environmental Factors)
55. Mr. Lord : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how environmental factors are assessed in consideration of overseas aid projects.
Mr. Chris Patten : All programme managers in the Overseas Development Administration are required to ensure the environmental soundness of projects. A manual is being published this week to help them to do this. I shall place a copy in the Library.
Lome IV (Negotiations)
56. Ms. Armstrong : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the outcome of the European Community, African, Caribbean and Pacific ministerial negotiating meeting on Lome IV in Brazzaville.
Mr. Chris Patten : The meeting, which I attended, identified the main areas of agreement and disagreement and set a framework for the next stage of the negotiations.
61. Dr. Twinn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the progress of negotiations for a successor to the third Lome convention.
Mr. Chris Patten : The ministerial negotiating meeting on a successor to Lome III in Brazzaville on 16 and 17 February identified the main areas of agreement and disagreement and set a framework for the next stage in the negotiations.
Development Budget
59. Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the level of the United Kingdom overseas development budget at current prices in 1979 ; and what is the planned level for 1989-90.
Mr. Chris Patten : At today's prices the net aid programme stood at £1,489 million in 1979-80. The aid
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budget for next year will be £1,430 million plus additional provision for Nigeria which I currently expect to be a further £47 million.Iodine Deficiency
60. Mr. Bowis : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contribution the British aid programme is making to cure the problem of iodine deficiency in developing countries.
Mr. Chris Patten : Both UNICEF and the World Health Organisation support work to prevent and control iodine deficiency disorders. During this financial year we have contributed £7.5 million to UNICEF's general resources, from which projects to correct iodine deficiency disorders will be funded.
AIDS
58. Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what projections his Department has made of the impact of AIDS in assessing the overseas aid needs of central African countries.
Mr. Chris Patten : More research is needed before we can estimate the impact of AIDS on developing countries. We are supporting work in this field. It is one element among many which we use in assessing a country's assistance needs.
SCOTLAND
Information Technology
Mr. Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement of progress on the introduction of information technologies to facilitate internal communications in his Department and the provision of information to the public concerning those areas for which he is responsible ; and if he has any further plans to apply the newest technologies in these fields.
Mr. Rifkind : The Scottish Office has made steady progress with its strategy of exploiting information technologies to improve its efficiency by developing systems which support the management and policy priorities which are identified in departmental and divisional management plans.
Communications have been improved by the introduction of an office automation system providing word processing and electronic mail facilities linking the offices of Ministers and senior officials in Edinburgh, London and Glasgow, and by the installation of a digital telephone system covering the main Scottish Office buildings in Edinburgh and linked to the Government telephone network. Computer systems have been developed to support financial and personnel management and the diverse needs of the office. Some 500 microcomputers are in use together with 600 visual display units linked to the mainframe computer in Edinburgh. A number of these visual display units enable officers who are in direct contact with the public to provide an improved service.
The Scottish Office strategy for information technology is endorsed by its top management and subject to refinement, monitoring and review by the standing
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committee on information technology services. That committee considers plans and proposals for further projects as necessary.Working Hours
Mr. Wray : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what information he has on the average number of hours worked per week in Scotland by (a) primary school teachers, (b) secondary school teachers, (c) National Health Service doctors, (d) National Health Service nursing staff, and (e) employees of the Scottish Development Agency.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The available information is as follows :
|Average hours per week
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(a) Primary school teachers |25.9
(b) Secondary school teachers |27.4
(c) National Health Service doctors |n.a.
(d) National Health Service nursing staff |32.0
(e) Employees of the Scottish Development Agency |n.a.
Notes:
Figures at (a) and (b) are from 1984 and relate only to the timetabled working hours in school
in a normal working week. Due to industrial action schools comprehensive data for subsequent
years was not collected. Data from the 1988 School Census will become available later this
year. In January 1987 new conditions of service for teachers, including working hours, were
agreed in the Scottish Joint Negotiating Committee for Teaching Staff in School Education.
Figures shown at (d) are estimates based on recorded hours worked in the period ended 30
September 1988. They include data for part-time staff and staff in training. No corresponding
information is available for doctors.
Comparable figures are not available for staff of the Scottish Development Agency. The
majority of SDA staff are in salaried non-overtime grades and usually work considerably more
than their contracted 35 hours. All but the most junior grades are contracted to work 35 hours
per week plus hours governed by the exigencies of the work.
DEFENCE
Chemical Weapons
Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the accuracy of Mr. Gorbachev's estimate of the Soviet chemical weapons stockpile as 50,000 tonnes.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The Soviet claim that its stockpile of chemical warfare agents is no larger than 50,000 tonnes has not been backed up by any supporting data. We assess, in common with other Western estimates, that total Soviet chemical warfare stocks are several times higher.
Nuclear Submarines
Mr. John Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions nuclear submarines docked in British ports in the last three years ; and if he will list those ports.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The numbers of occasions during the last three years on which nuclear-powered submarines have docked in British civil ports are as follows :
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"
|c|Days in use|c|
|1986|1987|1988
----------------------------------
Rothesay |4 |7 |8
Loch Striven |13 |0 |0
Loch Goil |0 |0 |1
Brodick Bay |7 |1 |3
Portree |6 |2 |15
Broadford Bay |0 |2 |6
Torbay |0 |3 |6
In addition nuclear-powered submarines have made use of offshore berths at the locations listed below. Data on the use of these is recorded as an aggregate of numbers of days rather than by number of visits :
"
|c|Days in use|c|
|1986|1987|1988
----------------------------------
Rothesay |4 |7 |8
Loch Striven |13 |0 |0
Loch Goil |0 |0 |1
Brodick Bay |7 |1 |3
Portree |6 |2 |15
Broadford Bay |0 |2 |6
Torbay |0 |3 |6
Offshore berths are covered by public safety schemes or special safety schemes, as are all ports where nuclear-powered submarines actually dock.
Obsolete Nuclear Shells
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether, pursuant to his reply of 9 February, Official Report, column 767, he will discuss with the United States Government plans to scrap obsolete nuclear shells held in Great Britain and with the British armed forces in NATO ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My right hon. Friend has no plans to do so at present.
Low Flying
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measurements have been made of noise levels on the ground caused by military jet aircraft overflying at 100 ft and speeds of up to 550 knots within 20 miles of the RAF station at Finningley ; and what compensation has been paid where dwellings are subject to noise levels from military aircraft of 125 db(A) or more in that area.
Mr. Neubert : No such noise measurements have been made within 20 miles of RAF Finningley, but I refer the hon. Member to my replies of 26 January to the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy (Dr. Thomas) at column 753 and of 6 February to the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire (Mr. Kirkwood) at columns 447-48.
Royal Navy Mechanics
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Royal Navy mechanics served in each of the following branches : (a) air engineering, (b) marine engineering and (c) weapon and electrical engineering, in each year since 1983.
Mr. Neubert : The numbers of Royal Navy mechanics serving in air engineering, marine engineering and weapon and electrical engineering each year since 1983 are given in the table. All figures are at the 1 January point.
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Year |Air engineering |Marine engineering |Weapon and Electrical
|engineering
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1983 |1,915 |6,561 |8,803
1984 |2,079 |6,275 |8,937
1985 |1,979 |6,046 |8,929
1986 |1,721 |5,512 |8,579
1987 |1,639 |5,248 |8,262
1988 |1,654 |5,103 |7,954
1989 |1,665 |5,079 |7,799
Note: Weapon and electrical engineers include air and marine engineers with electrical qualifications.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the total outflow of Royal Navy mechanics in each of the following branches in 1988 and how many of these left prior to the completion of their engagements : (a) air engineering, (b) marine engineering and (c) weapons and electrical engineering.
Mr. Neubert : The total outflows of Royal Navy mechanics from the air engineering, marine engineering and weapon and electrical engineering branches during 1988 were as follows :
Air engineering |Marine engineering |Weapon and Electrical
|engineering
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
203 |548 |790
Of these, the numbers who left to completing their engagements were :
Air engineering |Marine engineering |Weapon and Electrical
|engineering
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
158 |433 |576
Engagements for naval ratings are generally open ended, up to a maximum of 22 years and ratings may leave at any time after an initial period at 18 months notice.
Note :
1. Weapon and electrical engineers include air and marine engineers with electrical qualifications.
2. Promotions to officer have been excluded.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many mechanics qualified to serve in the following branches of the Royal Navy in 1988 (a) air engineering, (b) marine engineering and (c) weapons and electrical engineering.
Mr. Neubert : The numbers of Royal Navy mechanics who qualified to serve in the air engineering, marine engineering and weapon and electrical engineering branches in 1988 were as follows :
|Number
------------------------------------------------
Air engineering |91
Marine engineering |345
Weapon and electrical engineering |659
Notes:
1. Weapon and electrical engineers include air
and marine engineers with electrical
qualifications.
2. These figures may be incomplete due to
reporting delays.
Aldermaston and Burghfield (Audit)
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what methods of communication and consultation were
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used between his officials and the British Nuclear Fuels plc team carrying out the audit at Aldermaston and Burghfield during the month of January 1986.Mr. Sainsbury : I refer the hon. Member to the replies that I gave him on 22 December 1988 at column 380 and on 18 January 1989 at column 199.
Soviet Naval Activity
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has on changes in the level of Soviet naval activity in the last three years ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Since the end of 1985, there has been a significant reduction in the overall deployment level of Soviet naval combatants away from home fleet waters world wide. We believe, however, that in home waters the level of naval activity has remained at least constant, or indeed may have increased. The modernisation of the Soviet fleet has also continued, and its ability to conduct wartime operations has not diminished.
Royal Navy (Training)
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the total number of man weeks allocated to formal individual training in 1979 and 1974, across all categories of Royal Navy personnel, for each of the following areas : (a) new entry training, (b) specialisation training, (c) sub-specialisation training and (d) routine top-up training.
Mr. Neubert : Information on man weeks allocated to individual training was not produced in the form requested for the years up to and including 1979. Much of the detailed information over this period is no longer held. So far as later years are concerned, I refer the hon. Gentleman to answer 6 provided to the Defence Committee on 3 February 1988, reproduced on page 25 of the Committee's sixth report of Session 1987-88.
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