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Medical Laboratory Scientific Officers
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland at what level within health and social services boards responsibility for the grading of medical laboratory scientific officers lies.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 12 June 1989] : The Professional and Technical Staffs joint council agreement, under which the grading of medical laboratory scientific officers is currently being reviewed, does not specify the management level at which the review should be conducted. This is a matter for each health and social services board to decide.
Income Support
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will commission independent research to ascertain the extent to which income support levels are adequate to meet the needs of elderly people in residential and nursing homes in Northern Ireland and to gather information on the practices of using personal expenses allowances to augment income support and other state provision in meeting the costs of staying in such accommodation ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 12 June 1989]. No such research is proposed. As the hon. Member will know, income support levels in Northern Ireland are kept in line with those applying generally in Great Britain. The Government are currently considering the arrangements for assisting people in residential care in the light of the Griffiths report.
Health (Grading Review Teams)
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects area health and social services boards to begin work on grading review teams.
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Mr. Needham [holding answer 12 June 1989] : All the health and social services boards are already working on the grading of medical laboratory scientific officers. It is up to each board to decide how it carries out the grading exercise and whether or not it sets up a specific grading review team.
Clinical Regrading
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will instruct area boards to adhere to the job descriptions outlined in paragraphs 3 and 4 of annex B of the national agreement on clinical regrading ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 12 June 1989] : The paragraphs referred to by the hon. Member do not outline job descriptions. They refer to the use of job descriptions and set out the factors to be considered when grading a post. This guidance has already been issued to the health and social services boards.
School Buses (Accidents)
Mr. Hume : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what possible measures have been considered to help reduce road traffic accidents involving children disembarking from school buses ; whether a cost-benefit analysis was conducted of each possible measure ; and what decisions have been made as a result of such appraisals.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 16 May 1989] : The following measures have been considered and implemented to help reduce road traffic accidents involving children disembarking from school buses : (
(a) Rule 24 of the current edition of the Northern Ireland Highway Code sets out the safety rules for getting on or off buses. (
(b) Rule 53 of the Highway Code warns drivers to look out for children getting on or off buses.
(c) Every year since 1973 the Department of the Environment has provided a free copy of a road safety teaching calendar to every primary school teacher in Northern Ireland. This teaching aid always has at least one road safety lesson about getting on and off school buses safely.
(d) In conjunction with the Education and Library boards the Department's road safety education branch produced a leaflet for parents about safety of children on school buses which has been distributed with bus passes.
(e) In consultation with road safety education branch the transport officers of the Education and Library boards have issued a safety manual to all board drivers, which includes instructions about the safety of children entering and leaving school buses.
Suggestions about Education boards employing bus wardens and about traffic being required to stop in rural areas when the school bus stops and a flashing roof light is operating, have been examined but were considered to be impractical or unlikely to be effective. No cost benefit analyses have been conducted on any of these measures.
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HOME DEPARTMENT
Passports
Mr. Buchanan-Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for passports at the Glasgow passport office are currently outstanding ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Renton : There are about 80,000 applications for passport services at the various states of processing within the Glasgow passport office. Applications are being processed at a rate of around 8,500 a week, according to the applicant's travel requirements, with priority being given to urgent cases. My right hon. Friend announced on 6 June in reply to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, South-East (Mr. Young) at columns 47-48, a number of measures which are being taken to ease the present problem of delays at the passport offices.
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish in the Official Report, for each passport office (a) the number of telephonists manning the switchboard, (b) the number of telephone calls handled per day and (c) the average waiting time for callers before the call is answered.
Mr. Renton : Details of the number of staff engaged on telephone answering duties at the six United Kingdom passport offices during May this year, together with the average number of calls dealt with daily, are shown in the table below.
Passport officDaily average number
of answering duties
-------------------------------------
London |5 |465 |2,913
Glasgow |5.5 |567 |1,895
Peterborough |8 |817 |2,068
Newport |6 |311 |3,148
Liverpool |<1>10|449 |4,172
Belfast |1 |166 |355
<1> Since the start of industrial
action at Liverpool on 30 May it has
not been possible to staff all the
telephone inquiry points.
Waiting times for responses to telephone calls are not recorded at all passport offices. The available information shows that at Peterborough and Belfast all connected calls were answered in under five minutes, while at London, on average, all but 10 connected calls a day were so answered.
Improved telephone facilities to enable more calls to be handled are due to be installed at Newport later this month and at Liverpool during next month.
Education Schemes
Mr. Cartwright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether local authorities who claim grant for education schemes under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966 will be able to continue to do so under local management schemes without having to resubmit their schemes for further approval ; and whether there are any plans to alter the mechanism which operates under section 11.
Mr. John Patten : The introduction of local management schemes under the Education Reform Act 1988 will
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not require local authorities to resubmit posts already approved for grant under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966 to the Home Office for reapproval unless the duties of the posts concerned change. The Government are at present considering the report of an efficiency scrutiny of the section 11 grant scheme.Breath Tests
Mr. Home Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the responses to his consultation on possible changes to the breath testing legislation favoured (a) random breath testing or highly visible mass testing at a roadside checkpoint aimed principally at deterring excess alcohol offenders and (b) unfettered police powers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to his question on 8 May 1989, at column 284.
Chinese Nationals
Mr. Marlow : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to advise Chinese nationals resident in the United Kingdom that activity antagonistic to the Chinese Government within the United Kingdom will not enhance or effect their potential entitlement to refugee status.
Mr. Renton : No. Any applications for asylum will be considered in accordance with our obligations under the 1951 convention and 1967 protocol relating to the status of refugees ; and all relevant circumstances will be taken into account.
Police Complaints Authority
Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any new appointment has been made to the Police Complaints Authority.
Mr. Hurd : Mr. Gordon Marsh, who has recently retired from his post as Deputy Health Service Commissioner with the office and the Health Service Commissioner for England, has accepted my invitation to serve as a member of the authority. He will take up his post on 3 July. The appointment is being made in order to fill an existing vacancy.
Broadcasting
Mr. Robert G. Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he envisages, under his broadcasting proposals, that applicants will be permitted to bid for more than one Channel 3 licence.
Mr. Hurd : Under the ownership proposals which I announced on 19 May in answer to a written question from my hon. Friend at columns 317-19, an individual licensee will be able to own two Channel 3 licences provided they are not both large or contiguous. The definition of large will be given in subordinate legislation. Applicants for Channel 3 licences will be permitted to apply for any number of licences provided they make clear their order of preference. Those who are successful in the bidding for more than the two licences to which they are entitled will be awarded the relevant licence or licences on the basis of their declared preference.
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Asylum
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are currently seeking asylum.
Mr. Renton : Information on the number of persons applying for refugee status and whose applications were awaiting a decision at the end of a year is published annually in Home Office statistical bulletin "Refugee Statistics United Kingdom". The latest, issue 16/88 relates to 1987, a copy of which is in the Library ; that for 1988 will be published within the next month.
May Bank Holidays
Mr. Hayward : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has considered the possibility of moving one of the May bank holidays to September or October.
Mr. Nicholls : I have been asked to reply.
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 16 May at columns 160-61, to my hon. Friend the Member for York (Mr. Gregory).
Night Sanitation (Prisons)
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many places in each prison in England and Wales (a) do and (b) do not have access to night sanitation ; (2) how many places in each prison in England and Wales (a) will and (b) will not have access to night sanitation by 1995.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The current position is set out in the table. Equivalent figures cannot be given for individual establishments in 1995 because specific building plans are not approved more than two years ahead and may be subject to change. The total number of places without access to night sanitation will, however, be substantially reduced by 1995 on the lines described by my right hon. Friend in response to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Boothferry (Mr. Davis) on 20 February 1989 at column 61.
Access to night sanitation
Establishment |A |B
Number of places with |Number of places without
access now |access now
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Acklington |448 |0
Albany |0 |389
Aldington |100 |0
Ashford |0 |348
Ashwell |404 |0
Askham Grange |134 |0
Aylesbury |0 |286
Bedford |0 |167
Birmingham |0 |592
Blantyre House |87 |0
Blundeston |192 |214
Bristol |192 |360
Brixton |0 |729
Brockhill |14 |144
Buckley Hall |100 |0
Bullwood Hall |0 |120
Camp Hill |24 |437
Campsfield House |70 |0
Canterbury |0 |213
Cardiff |0 |338
Castington |300 |0
Channings Wood |538 |0
Chelmsford |0 |242
Coldingley |296 |0
Cookham Wood |120 |0
Dartmoor |8 |643
Deerbolt |240 |180
Dorchester |0 |145
Dover |0 |246
Drake Hall |288 |0
Durham |0 |715
East Sutton Park |84 |0
Eastwood Park |146 |0
Erlestoke |218 |0
Everthorpe |6 |294
Exeter |0 |312
Featherstone |509 |0
Feltham |846 |0
Ford |536 |0
Frankland |447 |0
Full Sutton |432 |0
Garth |512 |0
Gartree |0 |320
Glen Parva |600 |0
Gloucester |0 |200
Grendon |64 |185
Guys Marsh |180 |0
Haslar |100 |0
Hatfield |180 |0
Haverigg |325 |0
Hewell Grange |136 |0
Highpoint |821 |0
Hindley |0 |308
Hollesley Bay Colony |569 |0
Holloway |515 |0
Hull |20 |386
Huntercombe-Finnamore
Wood |176 |122
Kingston |0 |150
Kirkham |632 |0
Kirklevington |150 |0
Lancaster |103 |83
Latchmere House |0 |121
Leeds |0 |604
Leicester |5 |199
Lewes |0 |369
Leyhill |410 |0
Lincoln |0 |382
Lindholme |901 |0
Littlehey |484 |0
Liverpool |282 |686
Long Lartin |417 |0
Low Newton |92 |103
Lowdham Grange |304 |0
Maidstone |0 |549
Manchester |0 |896
Morton Hall |192 |0
Mount |484 |0
New Hall |36 |86
North Sea Camp |202 |0
Northallerton |15 |112
Northeye |233 |0
Norwich |60 |421
Nottingham |4 |239
Onley |0 |420
Oxford |6 |120
Parkhurst |0 |261
Pentonville |8 |645
Portland |0 |527
Prescoed |110 |0
Preston |8 |420
Pucklechurch |0 |159
Ranby |365 |0
Reading |0 |178
Risley |0 |486
Rochester |0 |374
Rudgate |378 |0
Send |101 |0
Shepton Mallet |6 |161
Shrewsbury |12 |152
Spring Hill |210 |0
Stafford |270 |179
Standford Hill |500 |0
Stocken |300 |0
Stoke Heath |60 |300
Styal |237 |0
Sudbury |625 |0
Swaleside |504 |0
Swansea |0 |225
Swinfen Hall |8 |152
Thorn Cross |300 |0
Thorp Arch |72 |84
Usk |0 |128
Verne |595 |0
Wakefield |30 |718
Wandsworth |8 |1,226
Wayland |484 |0
Wellingborough |120 |224
Werrington |110 |0
Wetherby |0 |196
Whatton |84 |145
Winchester |0 |471
Wormwood Scrubs |0 |1,206
Wymott |816 |0
|------- |-------
Totals |22,310 |22,792
Cash-point Thefts
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cash-point thefts there have been in the United Kingdom for each year since 1979 and for 1989 to date.
Mr. John Patten : The information requested is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Hong Kong
Mr. Marlow : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his assessment of the readiness of the British people to accept a significant level of net migration from Hong Kong.
Mr. Renton : Any substantial increase in immigration to this country would of course present major problems. However, the uncertainties facing the people of Hong Kong are well known. In the light of the recent events in China, we are therefore considering what changes are called for in the immigration arrangements as they relate to British dependent territory citizens in Hong Kong. We shall bring forward proposals in due course.
Prisons (Dormitory Accommodation)
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many prisoners on remand awaiting trial or sentence are confined in dormitory accommodition ;
(2) in how many prisons in each security category prisoners are confined in dormitory accommodation ; and how many prisoners are so confined in each prison.
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Mr. Douglas Hogg [holding answer 6 June 1989] : The available information relates to prisoners held in rooms defined as "any unit of accommodation whether secure or otherwise designed for 2 or more persons excluding accommodation defined as a double cell". This definition encompasses accommodation conventionally known as dormitories. The available information does not distinguish between classes of occupant but unsentenced prisoners are not normally held in dormitories.
Prisoners accommodated in rooms/dormitories on 9 April 1989
Establishment |Number of inmates
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Local prisons and remand centres
Ashford |11
Bedford |10
Birmingham |73
Bristol |106
Brixton |73
Canterbury |14
Cardiff |4
Dorchester |8
Durham |0
Exeter |3
Feltham<1> |64
Hindley |0
Hull |210
Leeds |0
Leicester |15
Lincoln |22
Liverpool |45
Norwich |18
Oxford |13
Pentonville |4
Rochester |0
Shrewsbury |0
Swansea |30
Wandsworth |160
Winchester |26
Closed training prisons
Category B
Blundeston |105
Grendon |9
Maidstone |0
Nottingham |14
Category C
Aldington |58
Blantyre House |24
Camp Hill |126
Featherstone |73
Haverigg |308
Highpoint |454
Lancaster |107
Lindholme |661
Northeye |215
Norwich |196
Ranby |165
Send |72
Shepton Mallet |0
The Verne |106
Open training prisons
Ford |383
Highpoint |61
Kirkham |573
Leyhill |371
Morton Hall |174
North Sea Camp |92
Rudgate |339
Spring Hill |80
Standford Hill |427
Sudbury |426
Young offender institutions
Buckley Hall |87
Campsfield House |49
Eastwood Park |0
Feltham |32
Finnamore Wood |8
Glen Parva |55
Haslar |54
Hewell Grange |101
Hollesley Bay |38
Huntercombe |0
Kirklevington |105
Lowdham Grange |116
Swinfen Hall |6
Thorn Cross |0
Usk (Prescoed) |12
Werrington |89
Wetherby |0
Whatton |131
Female prisons
Askham Grange |96
Drake Hall |185
East Sutton Park |79
Holloway |146
New Hall |18
Risley |38
<1> Also functions as Young Offenders Institution.
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SCOTLAND
Food Poisoning (Untreated Milk)
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many cases of food poisoning associated with untreated milk occurred in Scotland in each of the years from 1978 to 1982 ; and how many have occurred in each year since the ban on commercial sales of untreated milk introduced in August 1983.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The numbers of reported cases of food poisoning associated with the consumption of untreated milk for each year since 1978 are as follows :
Year |Number of cases ------------------------------------------------ 1978 |<1>251 1979 |<1>155 1980 |103 1981 |782 1982 |539 1983 |29 1984 |27 1985 |74 1986 |10 1987 |26 1988 |5 <1> Figures for salmonellosis only. Figures for other diseases not available.
Press Briefings
Mr. Grocott : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what guidelines he follows in determining which journalists are invited to press briefings by his Department.
Mr. Rifkind : This depends upon the matter under discussion.
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Dornie Bridge
Mr. Kennedy : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he anticipates the construction work on the new Dornie bridge, Ross-shire, to commence ; and if he will make a statement.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The work on the new Dornie bridge carrying the A87 trunk road to the Skye ferry terminal at Kyle of Lochalsh will start on 10 July 1989 following the award of tender to Harbour and General Works Ltd. on 16 May 1989
New Towns
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he can now give a date for the expected publication of the White Paper on the future of the Scottish new towns.
Mr. Lang : The White Paper detailing the Government's firm policy proposals on the future of the Scottish new towns will be published shortly.
Fire Civil Defence
Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list for each fire authority (a) the date of first appointment of a brigade emergency planning officer and (b) the expenditure incurred on fire civil defence activities and the amount of grant aid paid towards that expenditure for each year from 1979.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The dates of first appointments of brigade emergency planning staff officers are as shown. Figures for the expenditure incurred by each fire authority on civil defence activities and the amount of grant aid paid towards that expenditure for each year since 1979 could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Amounts for 1987-88, the last year for which all audited claims have been received, are as follows :
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Expenditure claimed for Grant Aid in 1987-88
Fire Authority |Date of first appointment|Total expenditure |Grant aid paid
|reported
|£ |£
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Central |21 June 1985 |27,317 |27,317
Dumfries and Galloway |1 July 1987 |33,393 |33,393
Fife |4 July 1986 |21,450 |21,450
Grampian |15 May 1985 |20,694 |20,694
Highland and Islands |4 July 1985 |36,249 |36,249
Lothian and Borders |3 February 1985 |46,870 |46,870
Strathclyde |30 November 1987 |16,714 |16,714
Tayside |19 March 1985 |32,677 |32,677
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met the chairman and chief executives of the Scottish new towns ; and if he will make a statement on the items discussed at the meeting.
Mr. Lang : I met the chairman and chief executives of the Scottish new town development corporations on Thursday 1 June 1989, when we discussed a range of matters concerning the new towns.
Scottish Homes
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the capital programme for Scottish Homes for the current financial year.
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Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The gross capital programme figure is dependent on Scottish Homes achieving the projected capital receipts figure for this year. Assuming that figure is achieved, the gross capital programme will be £299 million.
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the projected capital receipts from the sale of houses for the current financial year for Scottish Homes.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The projected net capital receipts figure, which has been agreed with Scottish Homes, is £110 million. This sum is expected to be made up largely from receipts from the sale of Scottish Homes'
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own stock but also includes receipts expected from the sale of housing association property and a small amount from repayments of grant or bridging finance.Council House Sales
Mr. Home Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the number and total value of council houses sold by each district council since the start of the current financial year.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Information on the sale of council houses is collected centrally from local authorities on a quarterly basis. Information relating to the current financial year is not yet available.
Nature Reserves
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the Forestry Commission's proposals to designate sites as nature reserves ; and if he will list the sites proposed for such designation.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The Forestry Commission has chosen 46 forest nature reserves from the hundreds of conservation sites on its land. They have been managed by the Commission for conservation purposes for many years, and are accessible and open to everyone. They are listed in the Commission's leaflet entitled "Forest Nature Reserves", which is available in the Library.
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Nature Conservation
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what advice he has received from the Nature Conservancy Council concerning the practice of blocking of badger sets and digging of fox-earths by fox hunters on Forestry Commission land.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : My right hon. and learned Friend has not received any recent advice from the Nature Conservancy Council on this subject.
EMPLOYMENT
Employment Schemes
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, for each of the Training Agency's areas within Greater London, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Glasgow, Sheffield, Birmingham and Solihull, Coventry and Warwickshire, and for each of the latest four three monthly periods available, how many unemployed people have (a) been called in for a restart interview, (b) attended a restart interview, (c) been referred to unemployment benefit offices for failing to attend their interview, (d) had their benefit or national insurance credits disallowed for failing to attend their interview, (e) been called in for a restart follow up interview, (f) attended a restart follow up interview, (g) been referred to unemployment benefit offices for failing to attend their follow up interview and (h) had their benefit or national insurance credits disallowed for failing to attend their follow-up interview.
Mr. Lee : The information as requested is not available. however, the following table gives the information for the relevant employment service areas.
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Restart counselling-numbers interviewed and failure to attend outcomes
|Greater London Areas<1> |Merseyside Areas<2> |Greater Manchester |Glasgow Areas<4> |Sheffield Areas<5> |Birmingham and Solihull |Coventry and Warwickshire
|Areas<3> |Areas<6> |Areas<7>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
April-June 1988
All Restart Interviews
(a) Called for Restart interview |91,071 |35,468 |42,934 |19,371 |14,194 |20,883 |9,015
(b) Attended a Restart interview |66,747 |30,743 |33,594 |16,051 |10,490 |15,312 |7,191
(c) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend interview |19,568 |5,881 |5,973 |1,796 |989 |2,502 |577
(d) Disallowed Figures not available
Restart follow-up interviews (also included in figures above)
(e) Called for Restart follow-up interview |3,307 |468 |1,052 |59 |263 |160 |0
(f) Attended Restart follow-up interview |1,703 |246 |753 |28 |251 |61 |0
(g) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend follow-up
interview |723 |55 |125 |0 |25 |0 |0
(h) Disallowed Figures not available
July-September 1988
All Restart Interviews
(a) Called for Restart interview |106,809 |43,251 |45,784 |15,956 |18,934 |29,740 |9,657
(b) Attended a Restart interview |68,293 |33,034 |36,712 |15,034 |14,056 |16,914 |7,242
(c) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend interview |19,072 |5,038 |6,505 |1,565 |1,526 |1,408 |555
(d) Disallowed Figures not available
Restart follow-up interviews (also included in figures above)
(e) Called for Restart follow-up interview |5,980 |1,608 |3,144 |156 |784 |2,451 |1,494
(f) Attended Restart follow-up interview |3,371 |795 |1,724 |144 |578 |1,823 |696
(g) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend follow-up interview |996 |90 |340 |0 |54 |7 |9
(h) Disallowed Figures not available
October-December 1988
All Restart interviews
(a) Called for Restart interview |121,454 |45,519 |48,896 |27,792 |21,415 |32,971 |11,693
(b) Attended a Restart interview |76,389 |31,761 |33,315 |19,768 |14,337 |20,520 |7,897
(c) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend interview |22,172 |5,751 |6,266 |2,130 |1,265 |1,099 |387
(d) Disallowed Figures not available
Restart follow-up interviews (also included in figures above)
(e) Called for Restart follow-up
interview |9,280 |3,485 |3,384 |842 |1,232 |4,997 |2,516
(f) Attended Restart follow-up
interview |5,211 |2,128 |1,991 |570 |1,066 |4,462 |1,646
(g) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend follow-up interview |1,212 |366 |441 |79 |144 |13 |41
(h) Disallowed Figures not available
January-March 1989
All Restart Interviews
(a) Called for Restart interview |83,811 |44,621 |45,398 |29,755 |18,082 |32,714 |11,823
(b) Attended a Restart
interview |78,161 |33,420 |33,838 |22,616 |12,461 |26,688 |8,352
(c) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend interview |18,714 |5,270 |6,097 |2,524 |972 |2,222 |754
(d) Disallowed Figures not available
Restart follow-up interviews (also included in figures above)
(e) Called for Restart follow-up
interview |17,304 |3,383 |2,870 |2,344 |1,077 |10,470 |3,565
(f) Attended Restart follow-up
interview |10,486 |2,951 |2,264 |1,662 |1,463 |9,563 |2,555
(g) Referred to UBO for failing
to attend follow-up interview |2,649 |513 |548 |265 |149 |45 |125
(h) Disallowed Figures not available
<1> London South East, Inner London South, Inner London East, Inner London Central, Inner London West, London North West, London East, London South, London South West, London West.
<2> Liverpool and Wirral, Merseyside North, Merseyside South.
<3> Manchester City, Manchester North East, Manchester North West, Manchester South, Manchester West.
<4> Glasgow North, Glasgow South.
<5> Sheffield.
<6> Birmingham (including Solihull).
<7> Coventry/Warwickshire.
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, for Great Britain and each standard training region, and for each of the latest four three monthly periods available, how many unemployed people have (a) been called in for a restart interview, (b) attended a restart interview, (c) been referred to unemployment benefit offices for failing to attend their interview, (d) had their benefit or national insurance credits disallowed for failing to attend their interview, (e) been called in for a restart
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up interview, (f) attended a restart follow-up interview, (g) been referred to unemployment benefit offices for failing to attend their follow up interview and (h) had their benefit or national insurance credits disallowed for failing to attend their follow up interview. Mr. Lee : The information as requested is not available.however information for Great Britain and the relevant employment service regions is given in the following tables.
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Restart Counselling-Numbers interviewed and failure to attend outcomes
|Northern |Yorkshire and Humberside|East Midland and Eastern|London and South East |South West |Wales |West Midlands |North West |Scotland |Great Britain
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
April-June 1988
All restart interviews
(a) Called for Restart
interview |46,432 |67,007 |60,405 |160,641 |39,496 |39,909 |68,667 |113,418 |83,641 |679,616
(b) Attended Restart
interview |38,818 |50,986 |47,314 |116,983 |26,932 |30,919 |53,275 |89,906 |68,516 |523,649
(c) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |4,478 |4,442 |6,327 |28,586 |4,500 |4,308 |6,323 |14,887 |6,793 |80,644
(d) Disallowed for
failing to attend |283 |342 |482 |2,197 |278 |282 |483 |856 |552 |5,755
Restart follow-up interviews (figures also included in totals above)
(e) Called for Restart
interview |1,468 |3,196 |2,382 |8,454 |943 |2,128 |1,298 |2,691 |792 |23,352
(f) Attended Restart
interview |1,085 |2,545 |1,468 |4,219 |530 |1,518 |561 |1,706 |438 |14,070
(g) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |103 |316 |134 |1,136 |52 |44 |37 |272 |26 |2,120
(h) Disallowed for
failing to attend Not available in form requested included in (d) above
July-September 1988
All restart interviews
(a) Called for Restart
interview |59,984 |81,131 |73,102 |187,388 |36,988 |40,500 |89,663 |121,751 |78,135 |768,642
(b) Attended Restart
interview |45,212 |59,424 |51,230 |129,230 |25,396 |30,135 |61,282 |95,760 |65,167 |562,836
(c) Referred to UBO
for failing to attend
interview |4,691 |5,448 |6,441 |30,694 |4,085 |5,029 |5,810 |14,741 |6,067 |83,006
(d) Disallowed for
failing to attend |292 |428 |499 |2,295 |242 |296 |413 |1,030 |505 |6,000
Restart follow-up interviews (figures also included in totals above)
(e) Called for Restart
interview |3,218 |4,376 |6,689 |20,338 |1,194 |6,794 |11,335 |6,689 |1,610 |62,243
(f) Attended Restart
interview |2,428 |3,226 |4,029 |12,521 |721 |5,518 |7,027 |3,946 |1,146 |40,562
(g) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |295 |376 |289 |2,467 |158 |344 |223 |626 |48 |4,826
(h) Disallowed for
failing to attend Not available in form requested included in (d) above
October-December 1988
All restart interviews
(a) Called for Restart
interview |54,604 |85,627 |69,492 |176,428 |43,417 |45,715 |100,086 |126,956 |105,594 |807,919
(b) Attended Restart
interview |40,492 |58,659 |50,712 |125,934 |27,480 |34,089 |66,062 |90,184 |73,306 |566,918
(c) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |4,174 |5,713 |6,467 |29,136 |4,122 |5,277 |6,085 |15,234 |7,222 |83,432
(d) Disallowed for
failing to attend |360 |462 |416 |1,941 |241 |460 |537 |1,165 |690 |6,272
Restart follow-up interviews (figures also included in totals above)
(e) Called for Restart
interview |4,910 |7,361 |11,955 |31,013 |2,708 |6,001 |15,922 |9,623 |3,017 |92,510
(f) Attended Restart
interview |3,257 |4,745 |8,068 |20,293 |1,484 |5,112 |13,657 |6,905 |2,149 |65,670
(g) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |348 |491 |585 |3,281 |149 |554 |385 |1,252 |205 |7,250
(h) Disallowed for
failing to attend Not available in form requested included in (d) above
January-March 1989
All restart interviews
(a) Called for Restart
interview |58,769 |76,508 |73,693 |178,648 |41,278 |46,605 |93,470 |121,360 |114,048 |804,379
(b) Attended Restart
interview |41,890 |57,055 |49,052 |131,882 |28,834 |36,314 |72,439 |89,602 |84,208 |591,276
(c) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |3,810 |5,387 |5,917 |25,979 |3,549 |4,651 |6,893 |14,027 |8,252 |78,465
(d) Disallowed for
failing to attend |365 |519 |623 |2,370 |311 |468 |719 |1,177 |808 |7,360
Restart follow-up interviews (figures also included in totals above)
(e) Called for Restart
interview |5,023 |8,886 |12,812 |40,604 |6,523 |8,217 |21,030 |8,177 |11,711 |122,983
(f) Attended Restart
interview |4,591 |7,179 |9,801 |28,577 |4,867 |6,816 |22,397 |6,947 |8,730 |99,905
(g) Referred to UBO for
failing to attend
interview |453 |828 |1,172 |4,875 |309 |714 |1,200 |1,301 |667 |11,519
(h) Disallowed for
failing to attend Not available in form requested included in (d) above
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, for Great Britain and each training Agency area, how many individual child care allowances are being received by lone parent ET participants ; and how many were granted or refused for each of the latest available three months.
Mr Nicholls : I refer the hon. Member to my reply of 16 May 1989, at columns 177-79, which is the latest information available. Information about lone parents receiving child care allowances before April and those refused the allowance is not available and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Dockers
Mr. Ian Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many dockers are employed in non-dock labour scheme ports and in dock labour scheme ports currently ; how many were employed in 1979 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nicholls : The number of dock workers in scheme ports has fallen from 25,770 in 1979 (NDLB annual report) to 9,280 on 30 May 1989 (NDLB figures). There are no comparable figures for the number of dock workers in non-scheme ports in 1979 and currently. The most recent available figures show that in 1987 there were 3,900 dock workers in non-scheme ports, 10 per cent. more than in 1983. Scheme ports are continuing to lose business and jobs to ports outside the scheme, free from its restrictions. The abolition of the scheme will enable all our ports to compete on equal terms.
Dock Labour Scheme
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment to how many acres of land in the ports of London, Glasgow, Liverpool and Hull the dock labour scheme applies ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nicholls : Questions about authorities' landholdings are for them to answer. The Department of Employment does not have this information.
The dock labour scheme has acted as a disincentive to investment and has caused a decline in employment both in the ports in which it operates, and in the surrounding areas. This has affected not only registered dock workers but those people living near the docks who could otherwise have been employed by companies investing in the port area.
Column 382
Prices and Costs
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how his Department monitors movements in the prices and costs of particular goods and services purchased ; and how such movements in prices and costs have differed from the gross domestic product deflator.
Mr. Cope : The Department began to introduce a computerised management information system designed to record all purchases at the beginning of 1988. This database makes possible more detailed comparative analysis of spending patterns, but so far insufficient data has been collected to compare the change in the cost and prices of goods and services purchased by this Department with the gross domestic product deflator.
North-West Tourist Board
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what grants were made to the north-west tourist board from the English tourist board in the years 1987 and 1988.
Mr. Nicholls : The English tourist board has made the following subventions from its grant in aid provision to the north-west tourist board :
Financial year |Total subvention
|£
---------------------------------------------------
1986-87 |198,000
1987-88 |214,154
1988-89 |227,500
Training Schemes
Mr. John Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people have passed through Government employment training schemes in the last 10 years.
Mr. Nicholls : Just over 5 million people started Government employment training schemes funded through the Training Agency (formerly Training Commission, formerly Manpower Services Commission) in the 10 years from April 1979 to March 1989.
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