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Mr. Nellist : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will update tables published in the Official Report on 25 March 1987, columns 171-72, showing for June 1979 and the latest available date, the number of male and female full-time and part-time workers on adult rates and the estimated average earnings in each case, and the number of full- time and part-time workers who were temporarily employed in each case ; and if he will provide what estimate he is able to make of similar data for the self-employed and for workers on non-adult rates.
Mr. Lee : Such estimates as are possible for 1988, the latest available date, are provided in the table.
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Great Britain |Numbers<1> employed |Numbers<2> in temporary |Numbers<3> on adult rates|Gross Average<3> earnings|Numbers<3> not on adult |Gross Average<3> earnings |employment |of those on adult rates |rates |of those not on adult |rates |millions |millions |millions |£ per week |millions |£ per week ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1988 Males Full-time employees |11.0 |0.3 |10.7 |245.8 |0.3 |98.2 Part-time employees |0.9 |0.2 |0.9 |69.8 |- Self-employed |2.2 |0.2 |- |- |- |- Full-time |2.0 |0.1 |- |- |- |- Part-time |0.2 |- |- |- |- Females Full-time employees |5.8 |0.2 |5.5 |164.2 |0.2 |86.7 Part-time employees |4.3 |0.5 |4.2 |62.0 |0.1 |26.4 Self-employed |0.7 |0.1 |- |- |- |- Full-time |0.4 |- |- |- |- Part-time |0.4 |0.1 |- |- |- |- <1>Relates to June 1988. <2>Preliminary 1988 estimates. <3>Relates to April 1988. -Data either not available or no reliable estimate possible. Figures not significant at the level indicated.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many (a) registered disabled persons and (b) disabled persons were seeking employment at jobcentres for each of the standard regions, Scotland and Wales in 1985 to 1987, inclusive.
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Mr. Lee : I regret that this information is not available in the form requested but the numbers of people with disabilities registered for work at jobcentres on 8 March 1985, 4 April 1986 and 3 April 1987 were as follows :
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Region 8 March 1985 4 April 1986 3 April 1987 |(a) |(b) |(a) |(b) |(a) |(b) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Northern |<1>- |<1>- |2,643 |6,804 |2,806 |7,184 North East |2,492 |6,411 |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- Yorkshire and Humberside |2,591 |6,543 |1,975 |4,954 |2,123 |5,126 East Midlands |1,639 |3,631 |2,650 |5,587 |2,570 |5,578 South East |<1>- |<1>- |4,397 |9,454 |3,650 |8,293 Southern |3,677 |7,725 |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- Eastern |3,269 |6,763 |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- London |<1>- |<1>- |1,711 |3,842 |1,533 |3,381 London North |1,399 |3,340 |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- London South and West |924 |2,412 |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- |<1>- South West |2,116 |4,908 |1,806 |4,338 |1,652 |4,391 Wales |2,864 |7,284 |2,371 |6,192 |2,431 |6,830 West Midlands |2,646 |5,991 |2,220 |5,086 |2,112 |4,703 North West |8,228 |15,973|6,647 |13,066|5,697 |11,349 Scotland |3,705 |9,640 |3,177 |8,360 |3,029 |8,537 <1> Regional boundary changes. (a) People with disabilities who were registered at jobcentres as seeking work and who were registered as disabled under the Disabled Persons ( Employment) Act 1944. (b) People with disabilities who were registered at jobcentres as seeking work (including those in column (a)).
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will estimate the number of companies in England, Scotland and Wales covered by the 3 per cent. quota scheme and the percentage of those companies that satisfy the standard.
Mr. Lee : On 1 June 1988, 32,441 employers were subject to the quota scheme. Of these, 23.8 per cent. were employing their full quota of registered disabled people.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many disabled people are known to be seeking work with Remploy but are unable to get jobs.
Mr. Lee : Information about the number of severely disabled people seeking work with Remploy is not held. The company has been recruiting and training between 1,000 and 1,200 disabled people a year.
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Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many disabled workers are employed by Remploy ; in which areas they are located ; and what is their average weekly wage.
Mr. Lee : On 31 May 1989 Remploy employed 8,706 severely disabled workers. The following table gives a breakdown into employment service regions :
Region |Number of severely |disabled workers at 31 |May 1989 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ London and South East |945 South West |523 West Midlands |624 East Midlands and Eastern |642 Yorkshire and Humberside |1,012 North West |1,610 Northern |885 Wales |1,442 Scotland |1,023 |--- Total |8,706
The basic weekly wage is £109.72 for disabled manual workers in London and £96.54 elsewhere. With skill and productivity payments, average weekly earnings are £129.15 in London and £115.97 elsewhere.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are in management jobs in Remploy ; and how many of those are disabled.
Mr. Lee : Comprehensive information is not available, but four of Remploy's factory managers are disabled. It is the company's policy to provide opportunities for people with disabilities to fill jobs at all levels, and, through its development training programme for shop floor workers, to equip more disabled people for opportunities for promotion.
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Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are in supervisory jobs in Remploy ; and how many of them are disabled.
Mr. Lee : Comprehensive information is not available, but 306 (46 per cent.) of the 659 supervisory staff in Remploy factories are severely disabled.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will provide figures for 1985 to 1989 inclusive for each standard region and for Scotland and Wales of the number of sheltered placement scheme places (a) approved and (b) occupied.
Mr. Lee : The information is not available in the form requested. The following table provides information on numbers of places occupied in each employment service region against the number each region had authority to fill in 1986-87, 1987-88 and 1988-89 financial years. Occupancy figures as at the end of financial year 1985-86 are also given. Regions were not given a specified number of places to fill until 1986-87.
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Financial year 1985-86 Financial year 1986-87 Financial year 1987-88 Financial year 1988-89 |Places occupied at 31 |Approved ceiling at 31|Places occupied at 31 |Approved ceiling at 31|Places occupied at 31 |Approved ceiling at 31|Places occupied at 31 |March 1986 |March 1987 |March 1987 |March 1988 |March 1988 |March 1989 |March 1989 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South East |448 |491 |476 |669 |650 |<2>1,529 |<2>1,263 London |124 |226 |168 |319 |259 South West |311 |422 |376 |490 |472 |646 |616 West Midlands |<1>306 |338 |328 |491 |450 |650 |586 East Midlands and Eastern 363 359 522 479 621 590 Yorkshire and Humberside 134 227 209 322 306 465 408 North West |219 |344 |300 |423 |376 |540 |482 Northern |58 |93 |72 |120 |99 |226 |183 Wales |88 |178 |149 |239 |240 |327 |312 Scotland |146 |281 |247 |379 |389 |570 |516 <1> The figure of 306 occupied places relates to the whole of the former Midlands region. <2> The figures of 1,529 and 1,263 relate to the now combined London and South East region.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the expenditure on the sheltered placement scheme in each of the years 1985 -86 to 1988-89 inclusive ; and what is the estimated expenditure in each of the years 1989-90, 1990-91 and 1991-92 for each of the standard regions, Scotland and Wales.
Mr. Lee : The information is not available in the form requested. The following table gives details of the
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estimated expenditure nationally and by employment service regions. Boundary changes arising from the establishment of the employment service in October 1987 means that direct comparison at the regional level should be avoided between the years 1985-87 and 1987-89. Information on expenditure for 1989-90 and beyond is not available.Column 327
£000 Region |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89 |Forecast -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South East |222 |497 |1,400 |2,698 London |284 |409 |558 South West |1,457 |2,545 |1,017 |1,316 West Midlands |123 |264 |969 |1,251 East Midlands and Eastern |382 |510 |1,031 |1,260 Yorkshire and Humberside |249 |473 |659 |871 North West |368 |504 |810 |1,029 Northern |79 |99 |213 |390 Wales |18 |58 |517 |667 Scotland |401 |705 |838 |1,102 |--- |--- |--- |--- Great Britain |3,583 |6,064 |8,012 |10,584
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number of places on the
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sheltered placement scheme in each of the years 1985-86 to 1988-89 inclusive ; and what is the estimated number of places in each or the years 1989-90, 1990-91 and 1991-92 for each of the standard regions, Scotland and Wales.Mr. Lee : The information is not available in the form requested. The following table sets out the number of
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places under the sheltered placement scheme in each of the years 1985-86 to 1988-89 inclusive, and estimated figures for the year 1989-90 for each employment service region. Firm estimates for the years 1990-91 and 1991-92 have not yet been made.Column 329
Employment Service region |Places occupied at 31 |Places occupied at 31 |Places occupied at 31 |Places occupied at 31 |Estimated places occupied |March 1986 |March 1987 |March 1988 |March 1989 |at 31 March 1990 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South East |448 |476 |650 |<2>1,263 |<2>1885 London |124 |168 |259 South West |311 |376 |472 |616 |826 West Midlands |<1>306 |328 |450 |586 |739 East Midlands and Eastern |359 |479 |590 |785 Yorkshire and Humberside |134 |209 |306 |408 |586 North West |219 |300 |376 |482 |676 Northern |58 |72 |99 |183 |297 Wales |88 |149 |240 |312 |428 Scotland |146 |247 |389 |516 |643 |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- Total |1834 |2,684 |3,720 |4,956 |<3>6,865 <1> The figure of 306 occupied places relates to the whole of the former Midlands Region <2> The figures of 1,529 and 1,263 relate to the now combined London and South East Region <3> A further 35 places have still to be allocated.
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people have been granted an enterprise allowance in each year since the enterprise allowance scheme was introduced ; what information he has about (a) the proportion of people who have become self-employed and (b) signed as being available for work at the expiry of the enterprise allowance ; what proposals he has for the future of the enterprise allowance scheme ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Cope : The numbers of people granted an enterprise allowance are as follows :
Total number joined in that period Financial year |Number ------------------------------------------------------------ April 1989 to June 1989 |22,511 1988-89 |98,522 1987-88 |106,305 1986-87 |86,751 1985-86 |60,037 1984-85 |46,037 August 1983 to March 1984<1> |27,629 February 1982 to July 1983<2> |3,331 <1> National implementation. <2> Pilot in five parts of the country.
Information on the proportion of people who signed as being available for work at the expiry of the enterprise allowance is not collected on a regular basis. However, latest survey evidence shows that of businesses completing a full year on the scheme, six months later 74 per cent. were still trading, 9 per cent. were in paid employment or other self- employment, and 15 per cent. were unemployed (the remaining 2 per cent. were sick, retired, or provided no answer).
In the future, responsibility for running the enterprise allowance scheme, along with training and other enterprise measures, will be passed to the training and enterprise councils (TECs).
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Mr. Terry Davis : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many claimants in the west midlands region were suspended from receipt of unemployment benefit during the period from 11 April 1988 to 10 April 1989 for failure to show good cause for the termination of their last employment.
Mr. Lee : Information is not available in the precise form requested.
However, for the period 1 January to 31 March 1989, the number of persons, in the west midlands region, who were disqualified from receiving unemployment benefit because they were considered to have left their employment voluntarily without just cause was 24,302.
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the change in retail prices over the period 1979-1988, measured against the retail price index, of (a) gas, (b) electricity, (c) bread, (d) beer, and (e) four star/premium petrol (i) net of duty and taxes and (ii) including duty and taxes.
Mr. Lee : The information requested is shown in the table :
Percentage changes in retail prices June 1979 to June 1988 |Including tax and duty|Excluding tax and duty |Per cent. |Per cent. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All items |+ 92 |- Bread |+79 |- Gas |+134 |- Electricity |+106 |- Beer |+164 |+147 4/star petrol |+75 |-1
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment which of the seven statutory training boards has made proposals to him on the establishment of the
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industry level training organisation proposed in the White Paper "Employment for the 1990s" ; and when he expects to be in a position to respond to each of the boards.Mr. Nicholls : The chairman of each industrial training board has been asked to submit proposals by the end of this month. To date proposals have been received from the clothing and allied products, engineering, offshore petroleum and road transport industry training boards. I intend to respond to each board's proposals shortly.
84. Mr. Patnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what steps his Department is taking to ensure that small firms are well placed to compete for Government contracts.
Mr. Cope [holding answer 19 July 1989] : I launched a new booklet in June called "Think Big Buy Small", produced by our Department in collaboration with the central unit on purchasing (CUP). It is addressed directly to Government Departments, and advises them on improving the effectiveness and transparency of their purchasing and supply activities. It shows that purchasing officials can help small firms and get the best out of them by simply following good procurement practices. We thought it right to publish the booklet so that small firms themselves could see the advice given to Departments and I am pleased to say that it has been well received.
In addition the small firms service has recently revised and expanded its booklet "Tendering for Government Contracts" which outlines the main purchasing requirements, contract procedures, and special opportunities or simplified procedures for small firms, for all major Departments.
The Government's own purchasing procedures have been simplified so that firms are now usually exempt from normal approval procedures for contracts under £10,000 ; firms not on Departments' approved lists can bid for non-urgent contracts. The general information that firms have to provide for approval has been standardised between Departments which now review their approved lists regularly to encourage new suppliers and rotate invitations to tender. I am satisfied that the effect of these initiatives is to improve the value for money of Government purchasing.
Mr. Lester : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish a table setting out for each of the different employment and training schemes for which he is responsible (a) the administrative costs, (b) the amounts spent on grants/allowances for participants, (c) the total costs and (d) the numbers of participants.
Mr. Cope [holding answer 19 July 1989] : The information requested is mostly in the Department of Employment chapter of the public expenditure White Paper, Cm. 607, published in January 1989, a copy of which is in the Library.
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Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the nuclear non-proliferation treaty was raised during the recent visit of a ministerial delegation from Uganda to the United Kingdom.
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what dates and what locations have been arranged for the second and third preparatory conferences for the fourth review conference of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
Mr. Waldegrave : The second preparatory committee will take place in Geneva from 11-18 September. The third preparatory committee will be held from 23 April--4 May 1990, also in Geneva.
Mr. Tom Clarke : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has any plans to meet the new Argentine President, Seno r Carlos Menem.
Mrs. Mahon : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he intends to send an independent observer to the trial of Mrs. Khalil, the president of In'ash El-Usra, to be held on 20 July.
Mrs. Mahon : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made on behalf of Mrs. Khalil, the president of In'ash El-Usra.
Mr. Waldegrave : We raised the case of In'ash El-Usra with the Israeli authorities at the time of its closure last summer. We have not raised the specific charges brought subsequently against Mrs. Khalil.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visits have been made to Nicaragua by Her Majesty's ambassador accredited to that country since July 1988.
Mr. Eggar : Her Majesty's ambassador to Nicaragua, who is resident in San Jose , has made 10 visits to Nicaragua since July 1988.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if any assistance has been offered to the Nicaraguan Government in connection with the run-up to the elections in February 1990 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : The Nicaraguan Government have not asked us for any assistance in the preparation or conduct of the election due in February 1990.
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Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if any resources have been made available by Her Majesty's Government to opposition parties in Nicaragua during the past five years.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if Her Majesty's Government have requested the new Administration in Washington to cease their economic sanctions against Nicaragua ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : United States bilateral relations with Nicaragua are a matter for the two Governments concerned. We have normal economic relations with Nicaragua.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he has any plans to visit Nicaragua during 1989 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has no present plans to visit Nicaragua.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contacts have taken place between Her Majesty's representatives in Nicaragua and representatives of Nicaraguan opposition parties in the past 12 months.
Mr. Eggar : In the course of their normal duties, Her Majesty's representatives in Managua maintain contact with individuals representing a wide spread of opinion, including the Opposition.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response has been formulated by Her Majesty's Government to the request from President Ortega for an all-party group to visit Nicaragua in the run-up to the 1990 elections in that country.
Mr. Eggar : The question of sending an all-party group of hon. Members is for Parliament rather than the Government to consider. For our part, we indicated on 30 June our willingness to send an official observer. We have just received an invitation and shall accept it.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the last visit was made by a Minister of Her Majesty's Government to Nicaragua.
Mr. Eggar : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment, then Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, visited Nicaragua in May 1980.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if assistance has been offered by Her Majesty's Government to political parties in (a) Poland, (b) Hungary, (c) Yugoslavia and (d) the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in the past two years.
Mr. Waldegrave : We have not offered assistance to political parties in any of these countries.
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Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give details of the staffing and budget of the special task force set up in Hong Kong to investigate and suppress illegal imports and exports of ivory; and how many cases have been investigated and seizures made to date.
Mr. Eggar : The special task force set up by the Customs and Excise Department in Hong Kong consists of one senior superintendent, one assistant superintendent, four senior inspectors and four inspectors. The task force does not have a separate budget but shares the resources of the Customs and Excise Department as is necessary for its duties. Since the task force was established on 1 June 1989, a total of 35 cases have been investigated. Seizures were made in two cases. Two cases are pending.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the current estimated stock of elephant ivory in Hong Kong.
Mr. Eggar : The current estimated stock of ivory imported into and held in Hong Kong under CITES regulations is approximately 500 tonnes of raw ivory and 170 tonnes of worked ivory.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations have been made to the Costa Rican Government concerning ratification of the treaty establishing the Central American Parliament.
Mr. Eggar : We and our EC partners have, on a number of occasions, called on the signatories of the Esquipulas II peace agreement to fulfil their outstanding obligations under the agreement without delay. Ratification of the Central American Parliament treaty is, of course, a matter for national Parliaments rather than Governments.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when representatives of Her Majesty's Government last made representations to the Governments of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador regarding the failure of those countries to abide by the terms of the Esquipulas agreements.
Mr. Eggar : We and our European partners have, on a number of occasions, called on all the signatories of the Esquipulas II peace agreement to fulfil their outstanding obligations under the agreement without delay.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement regarding Her Majesty's Government's relations with Panama.
Mr. Eggar : Relations would be improved if General Noriega were to stand down and open the way to democratic government.
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Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which opposition parties in which countries have received offers of assistance from Her Majesty's Government in each of the past five years.
Mr. Eggar : The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Sir Trevor Skeet : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) since prisoners in Peruvian gaols have to provide for their own upkeep, what steps are being taken by Her Majesty's Government to ensure British nationals detained in Lurigancho prison have sufficient funds to obtain sustenance ; (2) under what circumstances John Boxhall and Brian Tristram could be extradited from Peru and charged with offences in the United Kingdom ;
(3) what information he has about the detention of John Boxhall and Brian Tristram in a Peruvian gaol since 6 December 1988 and the reasons they have been detained without trial ;
(4) what steps are being taken to ensure that John Boxhall and Brian Tristram both of the county of Bedfordshire will be speedily brought to trial in Peru.
Mr. Eggar : The information required is not readily available. A further reply will be sent to the hon. Member as soon as possible.
Mr. Amos : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will have urgent and immediate discussions with the Malaysian Government to save the life of Mr. Derrick Gregory, a British subject.
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