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Mr. Colin Wallace
Mr. Livingstone : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will review the conviction of Mr. Colin Wallace for manslaughter in the light of the evidence of a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice set out in the book entitled "Who Framed Colin Wallace" by Mr. Paul Foot ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : We will consider, in accordance with normal policy, whether Mr. Foot's book contains any evidence or other consideration of substance which might call into question the safety of Mr. Wallace's conviction and which has not been considered by the courts.
Electoral Registers
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision exists for public access to the marked electoral registers used by presiding officers in parliamentary and local elections ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Under the appropriate elections rules, the marked copies of the registers used by presiding officers at a parliamentary or local government election are open to public inspection, on payment of a fee, after the close of the poll at such time and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed, though not on the day of the poll itself. Also a candidate, his appointed election agent or polling agent may, within the polling station, mark on his own copy of the register the name of each elector who receives a ballot paper.
Advertising
Mr. Grocott : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how much advertising air time his Department purchased with each commercial television company in each of the last five years ; (2) how much has been spent by his Department on advertisements on commercial television in each of the last five years, listed by each television company.
Mr Hurd : Information on TV expenditure in the form requested is not held by my Department, and I understand that it is not available centrally through the Central Office of Information.
Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Nottingham, North of 9 March, Official Report, column 607, whether he has received Her Majesty's inspectorate of constabulary's report ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My right hon. Friend receives a report on the implementation of Home Office circular 52/1988 in each force area as part of Her Majesty's inspectorate of constabulary's annual inspection report of the area.
Child Sexual Abuse
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will update his answer of 26 January, Official Report, columns 670- 71, showing the total amount spent by his Department on research into the sexual abuse of children in each of the years since 1979, listing the name of each project, its cost and completion date.
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Mr. John Patten : The only information additional to my answer of 26 January is that the research project on children as victims of crime will be completed in September 1989 at a total cost of £98,000 for which the sums of £7,265 and £50,743 were spent respectively in the financial years ending March 1988 and 1989. The research project to examine the effectiveness of live TV links for child witnesses began on 1 February 1989 and will be completed in January 1990 at a cost of £45,000.
Pet Animals (Protection)
Mr. Corbett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will make it his policy to ban tail docking, ear cropping, debarking and declawing of dogs in accordance with article 8 of the European convention on the protection of pet animals ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The representations that we have received about article 10 of the European convention for the protection of pet animals have all been opposed to the ear cropping, devocalisation, declawing and defanging of dogs. The Government's decision about this and the tail docking of dogs will be announced when the current consultations have been completed.
London Transport (Violence)
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps have been taken by the Metropolitan police to arrest and prosecute the persons referred to in the House of Lords Hansard , 4 April, column 1003, who threatened violence against London Transport unless posters advertising holidays in northern Cyprus were withdrawn.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The Metropolitan police have not been asked to undertake any investigations into this matter. The policing of London Transport is a matter for the British Transport police, who are the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport.
Prison Medical Service
Mr. Robin Cook : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the complement of medical officers at the Risley remand centre ; what is the actual number of staff in post ; and if he will give comparable figures for (a) five years ago and (b) 10 years ago.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The information is as follows :
Authorised strength |Staff in post
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 January 1979
One Senior Medical Officer |1
Four Medical Officers (full-time) |3
Two Medical Officers (part-time) |2
1 January 1984
One Senior Medical Officer |1
Three Medical Officers (full-time) |2
Two Medical Officers (part-time) |2
1 January 1989 (to date)
One Senior Medical Officer |1
Three Medical Officers (full-time) |2
Two Medical Officers (part-time) |2
Mr. Robin Cook : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make further funds available for the prison department to train medical officers.
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Mr. Douglas Hogg : The funds available in the present financial year for in-service training of prison medical officers will enable the Department to maintain a programme broadly commensurate with that undertaken in 1988-89. Many of the training needs of this specialist group are best met by facilitating attendance at externally organised courses. The financial allocation to the director of prison medical services to meet the cost of course fees of health care staff, including medical officers, will allow for expansion of this important area of training. Governors, who are responsible for meeting some of the travel and subsistence costs of training for field staff, have been reminded that specialist training is a high priority.
Mr. Robin Cook : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the numbers of inmates in the Risley remand centre known to have received in-patient treatment for psychiatric illness (a) 10 years ago, (b) five years ago and (c) in 1988.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I regret such statistics are not routinely collated and are not available in respect of past years.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list by prison and remand centre in England and Wales (a) the number of permanent nursing staff in post and (b) where these are below establishment post and by how many ; what recruitment programmes are in progress or being planned ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The latest available staffing information is given in the following table. A national campaign to recruit men and women with a nursing qualification to train as hospital officers is planned for the near future. Further campaigns will be mounted as necessary. Twenty- three nurses already so recruited are in training. In addition, 75 prison officers have been accepted for hospital officer training. Further volunteers will be sought as required. Locally targeted campaigns to recruit nurses for Holloway prison and Risley remand centre are being progressed separately.
Establishment |Approved strength|Staff in post |Vacancies --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Acklington |5 |6 |- Albany |5 |4 |1 Aldington |2 |2 |- Ashford<1> |15 |13 |2 Ashwell |2 |2 |- Askham Grange |8.5 |8 |0.5 Aylesbury |4 |3 |1 Bedford<1> |10 |9 |1 Birmingham<1> |31 |27 |4 Blantyre House |2 |2 |- Blundeston |5 |4 |1 Bristol<1> |18 |16 |2 Brixton<1> |93 |64 |29 Brockhill/Hewell Grange<1> |7 |6 |1 Buckley Hall |2 |2 |- Bullwood Hall |11 |8 |3 Camp Hill |6 |6 |- Canterbury<1> |10 |7 |3 Cardiff<1> |16 |17 |- Channings Wood |4 |4 |- Chelmsford<1> |15 |14 |1 Coldingley |4 |4 |- Cookham Wood |5 |4 |1 Dartmoor |11 |10 |1 Deerbolt |4 |4 |- Dorchester<1> |3 |3 |- Dover |3 |3 |- Drake Hall |9 |7 |2 Durham<1> |27 |27 |- Down View<1> |6 |2 |4 East Sutton Park |2.5 |2.5 |- Eastwood Park |2 |2 |- Erlestoke |2 |2 |- Everthorpe |4 |4 |- Exeter<1> |13 |13 |- Featherstone |3 |3 |- Feltham |30 |25 |5 Ford |4 |4 |- Frankland |14 |12 |2 Full Sutton |10 |10 |- Gartree |12 |11 |1 Garth |7 |7 |- Glen Parva<1> |29 |27 |2 Gloucester<1> |5 |5 |- Grendon/Spring Hill |55 |37.5 |17.5 Guys Marsh |2 |2 |- Haslar |2 |2 |- Hatfield |2 |2 |- Haverigg |3 |3 |- Highpoint |8 |8 |- Hindley<1> |8 |7 |1 Hollesley Bay |6 |5 |1 Holloway<1> |84 |48.5 |35.5 Hull<1> |18 |17 |1 Huntercombe/Finnamore Wood |4 |3 |1 Kingston-Portsmouth |2 |2 |- Kirkham |2 |2 |- Kirklevington |2 |2 |- Lancaster |2 |2 |- Latchmere House<1> |2 |2 |- Leeds<1> |25 |25 |- Leicester<1> |12 |12 |- Lewes<1> |13 |13 |- Leyhill |3 |2 |1 Lincoln<1> |21 |19 |2 Littlehey |10 |9 |1 Liverpool<1> |49 |44 |5 Long Lartin |7 |7 |- Lowdham Grange |2 |2 |- Low Newton<1> |10 |10 |- Lindholme |10 |9 |1 Maidstone |8 |6 |2 Manchester<1> |35 |32 |3 The Mount |6 |5 |1 New Hall<1> |10 |6 |4 Northallerton |2 |2 |- Northeye |4 |4 |- North Sea Camp |1 |1 |- Norwich<1> |26 |25 |1 Nottingham |3 |3 |- Oxford/Campsfield House<1> |8 |5 |3 Parkhurst |50 |50 |- Pentonville<1> |20 |20 |- Preston<1> |6 |6 |- Pucklechurch<1> |16 |11 |5 Ranby |3 |3 |- Reading<1> |7 |7 |- Risley<1> |50 |43 |7 Rochester<1> |12 |11 |1 Rudgate |2 |2 |- Send |2 |2 |- Shepton Mallet |2 |2 |- Shrewsbury<1> |3 |3 |- Stafford |15 |15 |- Standford Hill/Swaleside |11 |9 |2 Stoke Heath |4 |2 |2 Styal |16 |13 |3 Sudbury/Foston Hall |4 |4 |- Swansea<1> |9 |9 |- Swinfen Hall |3 |3 |- Thorn Cross |3 |3 |- Thorp Arch |2 |2 |- Usk |2 |2 |- The Verne/Portland |4 |4 |- Wakefield |24 |24 |- Wandsworth<1> |48 |40 |8 Wellingborough |5 |5 |- Werrington |2 |2 |- Wetherby |2 |2 |- Whatton |3 |3 |- Winchester<1> |21 |21 |- Wormwood Scrubs<1> |27 |23 |4 Wymott |6 |5 |1 Wayland |4 |3 |1 <1> Establishments taking unconvicted/unsentenced prisoners or Immigration Act detainees.
Prisons and Remand Centres (Food Poisoning)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list by prison and remand centre in England and Wales for the last 12 months, the number of occasions that food poisoning has been reported ; what action was taken ; when was the last occasion that they had been inspected by an outside health inspector ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Since 1 May 1988 there have been four reported outbreaks of suspected food poisoning at prison service establishments. These were as follows :
|Date
-------------------------------------------------------
HMP Cardiff |March 1988
HMP Lincoln |July 1987
HMYOI Hollesley Bay Colony |December 1988
HMP Ashwell |November 1988
The local authority environmental health officers (EHOs) attended each establishment to help in tracing the source of the outbreak and to suggest measures to prevent further spread of infection. Informal visits to establishments by local authority EHOs are encouraged, but no central record of these visits is maintained. None of the four establishments had been visited by local authority EHOs prior to the reported outbreaks of food poisoning. Each establishment had, however, been visited by Home Office health and safety officers or officers from the Home Office supply and transport catering group. All officers carrying out these inspections are professionally qualified. Their visits took place on the following dates :
|Date
-------------------------------------------------------
HMP Cardiff |March 1988
HMP Lincoln |July 1987
HMYOI Hollesley Bay Colony |December 1988
HMP Ashwell |November 1988
ENERGY
Insulation
7. Mr. George Howarth : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he has completed his plans to revive the neighbourhood energy action programme for community insulation schemes ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Michael Spicer : Information is still being collected, but we believe that the special measures introduced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment are having a positive impact. We will continue to monitor the position closely.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what assessment he has made of the contribution to Britain's energy requirements resulting from draught proofing and loft insulation in each of the past 10 years ; and what targets he has set for such work in each of the next five years.
Mr. Peter Morrison : The extent to which improved loft insulation and draught proofing lead to lower demand for energy depends upon a number of factors including the extent to which consumers opt at least in part for greater warmth rather than simply saving energy. An assessment of the sort requested is not available.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy, what steps he has taken to ensure that adequate numbers of operatives and trainees are available to undertake community energy action work in draughtproofing and loft insulation.
Mr. Peter Morrison : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment, who has responsibility for employment training, announced on 10 February a special package of measures to help community insulation projects. Those measures now appear to be having a positive impact.
53. Ms. Mowlam : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is his Department's estimate of the energy savings that would accrue if all existing buildings were retro-fitted to bring them up to the standard of the proposed new building regulations.
Mr. Peter Morrison : In theory bringing all existing domestic buildings up to the standards of thermal insulation set out in the proposed new building regulations would lead to a reduction in demand of approximately 9 million tonnes of oil equivalent. However, achievement of such standards would not be cost effective or possible in many cases, particularly with older buildings. Equivalent estimates for reductions in demand in respect of non-domestic buildings are not available.
44. Mr. Ray Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is his Department's estimate of the potential savings in energy demand, if all United Kingdom residential properties had 6 in of roof insulation.
Mr. Peter Morrison : In theory the installation of 6 in of insulation in all domestic buildings with accessible lofts could lead to a potential annual saving of some 1.3 million tonnes of oil equivalent. However, as householders would be likely to take part of the potential saving in greater warmth the actual saving would be lower.
Grimethorpe Reactor
11. Mr. Illsley : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to announce his decision on funding the next stage of research and development into the Grimethorpe pressurised fluidised-bed reactor.
Mr. Michael Spicer : British Coal is presently seeking further private sector support for this project. In the light of the outcome of this, the Government will make a final decision on funding.
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Subsidence (Compensation)
18. Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what resources he has agreed with the National Coal Board to allocate for compensation for subsidence.
Mr. Michael Spicer : It is a matter for British Coal to determine the allocation of resources within the external finance limit agreed with Government. At the end of 1987-88 the provision in its accounts for subsidence compensation stood at £260 million. In 1987-88 repair of and compensation for subsidence damage cost the corporation almost £50 million.
Hinkley C Inquiry
19. Mr. Stern : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to receive the report of the Hinkley C inquiry.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The timing of his report is a matter for the inquiry inspector.
Nuclear Power
20. Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what representations he has received about the environmental benefits of nuclear power.
16. Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what recent representations he has had in favour of expanding nuclear power on environmental grounds.
32. Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what recent representations he has had from people opposed to expanding nuclear power on environmental grounds.
Mr. Parkinson : I have received a number of representations on all aspects of nuclear power.
50. Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will estimate the percentage of electricity to be generated by nuclear power by 1995 ; and what is the current figure.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The percentage of electricity generated by nuclear power in England and Wales in 1987-88 was 14.4 per cent. The percentage for 1995 will depend on a number of factors, including the load factor of individual nuclear power stations and operational decisions taken by the CEGB's successors.
Energy Use
21. Mr. Ward : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make a statement on trends in the ratio of energy usage to gross domestic product since 1973.
Mr. Parkinson : In terms of primary energy, in 1973 the United Kingdom consumed 1.36 tonnes of coal equivalent per £1,000 of GDP (at 1985 factor cost). In 1988 the ratio had fallen to 1 tonne of coal equivalent per £1,000 of GDP in the same price terms. This represents a reduction of 26.5 per cent. or 2 per cent. per annum.
Electricity Generation
22. Dr. Kim Howells : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is his Department's latest estimate of the fuel cycle costs of (a) nuclear and (b) coal-fired electricity generation in the present financial year.
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Mr. Michael Spicer : I have been advised by the Central Electricity Generating Board that, for 1987-88, their estimate of fuel cycle costs for nuclear generation was 1.77 p/Kwh and coal-fired generation 1.97 p/Kwh.
55. Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy on what date Her Majesty's Government first made public that the cost of electricity from the Central Electricity Generating Board nuclear stations exceeded that of coal-fired generation.
Mr. Michael Spicer : This was first made public in the answer that I gave to my right hon. Friend the Member for Bedfordshire, North (Sir T. Skeet) on 15 December 1988 at column 680.
42. Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what proposals he expects to bring forward to change the mix of fuels used in electricity generation (a) before that industry is sold, (b) while it is in the course of being sold and (c) after it has been sold.
Mr. Michael Spicer : Changes to the mix of fossil fuels used in electricity generation will remain a matter for the industry, as will the choice of non-fossil fuels used to meet the major part of the non-fossil fuel obligation provided for the Electricity Bill now before Parliament. I announced on 5 April the Government's intention that up to 600 MW of the non-fossil fuel obligation should be set aside specifically for renewables.
Energy Technology Support Unit
23. Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make a statement on the conclusions of the report of Dr. Barry Dale of the Energy Department's energy technology support unit.
Mr. Parkinson : I believe that the report to which the hon. Member is referring is a paper presented by Dr. Dale to an International Energy Agency experts seminar in Paris on 12 to14 April.
He concluded that it appeared to be technically feasible to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by a significant amount but that this would not be an easy task and a combination of measures and technologies would be required.
Sizewell B Power Station
24. Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is the cost per megawatt saved of energy efficiency measures ; and what is the cost per megawatt of the Sizewell B nuclear power station.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The cost of saving a megawatt by investment in energy efficiency schemes varies widely. Investment in energy efficiency is not a direct substitute for investment in energy supply ; improvements in energy efficiency may be taken by domestic consumers in increased levels of comfort. The CEGB have advised us that the expected cost in real terms of Sizewell B remains at the level shown in the 1986-87 accounts which is £1.45 million/megawatt.
Neighbourhood Energy Action
25. Mr. McAvoy : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to announce firm proposals for the neighbourhood energy action programme.
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Mr. Michael Spicer : The measures announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Employment on 10 February were designed to help overcome the difficulties which some community insulation projects faced in making the transition to employment training. We are now in the process of monitoring the impact of those measures on the project network.
Gas Supply
26. Mr. Ernie Ross : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he last met the Director General of Gas Supply ; and what matters were discussed.
Mr. Peter Morrison : My right hon. Friend and I met the Director General of Gas Supply last month and we discussed a range of issues of mutual interest.
52. Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he last met the chairman of British Gas to discuss the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report on gas supply.
Mr. Peter Morrison : My right hon. Friend last met the chairman of British Gas in November when a range of issues were discussed.
Global Warming
17. Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he will review his Department's spending on energy conservation in the light of the continuing fears of global warming.
Mr. Parkinson : The budget of the energy efficiency office, like all Government expenditure, is reviewed annually in the public expenditure survey.
27. Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is his Department's latest estimate of potential for reducing carbon dioxide emissions by the year 2000, 2010 and 2020 in the energy sector.
48. Mr. Martyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is his Department's latest estimate of the potential reduction in the output of greenhouse gases by the United Kingdom energy sector by the years 2000, 2010 and 2020.
Mr. Michael Spicer : Future emissions will depend on many factors, which are hard to predict, such as economic growth, developments in technology, investment patterns and consumer choice. A broad analysis by the energy technology support unit, presented at the Prime Minister's recent seminar on climate change, indicated both the possibilities and difficulties of reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
8. Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what assessment his Department has made of the different contributions to reducing global warming of energy conservation and nuclear power.
Mr. Parkinson : I believe that both nuclear power and improved energy efficiency have an important role to play in reducing emissions of carbon dioxide. No single solution is sufficient.
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Energy Efficiency
28. Mr. Speller : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what measures he is taking, and what further measures he proposes, to reduce energy consumption and to promote energy efficiency.
30. Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to publish proposals to encourage energy efficiency and conservation.
Mr. Peter Morrison : The energy efficiency office will be targeting its activities on key areas of energy use and offering advice backed by technical support. In particular it will be emphasising the work of regional energy efficiency officers at the local level. The EEO will also be offering a new best practice programme which will give industrial and commercial consumers authoritative and independent advice on how efficiently they use energy and how they can improve to match the best in their sector. In addition the Secretary of State for Energy is leading a campaign to increase the efficiency of energy use in the public sector.
In the domestic sector the Government continue to help pensioners and low- income households through the community insulation programme and the homes insulation scheme.
Further measures to encourage energy efficiency are included in the Electricity Bill. The Secretary of State and the Director General of Electricity Supply will have a duty to promote energy efficiency and economy on the part of licensed electricity suppliers who will be required to provide guidance on the efficient use of electricity.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what proposals he has for energy conservation arising from the Downing street seminar on 26 April.
Mr. Peter Morrison : I have described the new approach of the energy efficiency office in my replies to the hon. Member for Truro (Mr. Taylor) on 30 January at column 13, and my hon. Friend the Member for Poole (Mr. Ward) on 7 March at column 480.
Electricity Privatisation
29. Mr. Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what proportion of the United Kingdom's total national energy needs he expects to be met by the private sector following privatisation of the electricity industry.
Mr. Michael Spicer : If the market shares held by the various fuel producers remain unchanged, then some 88 per cent. of final energy consumption will be met by the private sector after privatisation, compared with 74 per cent. in 1988.
3. Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will estimate the latest cost of advertising, publicity and public relations for the electricity industry generally and for its privatisation up to the date of the proposed share issue.
Mr. Parkinson : Expenditure by the industry on advertising, publicity and public relations is a matter for the industry itself. Total costs up to the date of the proposed share issue will depend on many factors yet to be decided, and cannot therefore reasonably be forecast at this stage.
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British Coal
31. Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he last met the chairman of British Coal ; and what matters were discussed.
34. Dr. Moonie : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he next expects to meet the chairman of British Coal ; and what matters he expects to discuss.
51. Mr. Jack Thompson : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he next expects to meet the chairman of British Coal ; and what matters he expects to discuss.
54. Mr. Skinner : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he next expects to meet the chairman of British Coal ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Spicer : My right hon. Friend and I meet the chairman of British Coal regularly to discuss all aspects of the coal industry.
9. Mr. Hood : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he next expects to meet the manager of British Coal, Scotland ; and what matters he expects to discuss.
Mr. Michael Spicer : My right hon. Friend and I regularly meet the chairman of British Coal. We have no plans to meet British Coal's Scottish manager at present.
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