Previous Section Home Page

Mr. Cope : Data for each of the groups requested, on a comparable basis, is available only from the labour force survey. Preliminary estimates from the 1988 LFS are shown in the following table :


16 and 17 year olds-Northern region                                             

Spring 1988, thousands and percent                                              

                                         |000's       |Per cent.<3>             

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(i) employees and self-employed in full-                                        

  time<1> employment                     |15          |16.2                     

(ii) on government employment and                                               

  training programmes                    |16          |17.2                     

(iii) unemployed<2>                      |11          |11.8                     

<1> Based on respondents own assessments, not on the number of hours worked.    

<2> ILO/OECD definition.                                                        

<3> As percentage of all 16 and 17 year olds.                                   

Source : 1988 LFS, Preliminary results. The LFS is a survey of private households based on a sample large enough to provide estimates at national and regional level. However, it cannot provide estimates for smaller areas, such as Durham.

Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish in the Official Report the number and percentage increase or decrease in employment in the United Kingdom and the European Community as a whole between 1979 and the latest year for which figures are available, giving the total, full-time employment and part-time employment separately.


Column 482

Mr. Lee : Employment estimates are not yet available for many EC countries after 1987. The changes in total civilian employment for the United Kingdom and the EC as a whole between 1979 and 1987 are shown in the table. A breakdown of these figures between full-time and part-time employment is not available.


Change in Civilian Employment: 1979 to 1987  

               |Thousand |per cent.          

---------------------------------------------

United Kingdom |-19      |-0.1               

EC12           |+701     |+0.6               

Sources: United Kingdom (ED), Other EC       

countries (EUROSTAT)                         

Youth Training Scheme

Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give, for Great Britain and each training agency area or employment service or careers service area, the number of people of YTS eligible age, at the latest available date, registered with jobcentres or the careers service who were awaiting an offer of a YTS place.

Mr. Lee : Only local careers services hold information on the total number of young people awaiting the offer of a YTS place. There is no central record.

Training and Enterprise Councils

Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if training and enterprise councils may vary the financial terms and conditions of trainees on (i) ET or (ii) YTS ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Cope : The detailed arrangements for ET and YTS under training and enterprise councils are currently under consideration. Announcements will be made in due course.

Construction Training

Ms. Harman : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what were the average earnings for construction workers in the various trades in the south-east London area over the last five years.

Mr. Nicholls : Information is not available at the level of detail requested.

Training (Accidents)

Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the accident rate per 100,000 trainees on employment training.

Mr. Nicholls : The provisional rate for all accidents in employment training is 556 per 100,000 trainees.

TVEI

Mr. Martyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what plans he has for the expansion of the technical and vocational education initiative scheme.

Mr. Cope : The extension of the technical and vocational education initiative (TVEI) was announced in July 1986, setting aside £900 million over a ten-year period. Since 1987, 48 education authorities have already begun to introduce TVEI into their schools and colleges. Another 32 authorities will join this September and by the early 1990s, all schools and colleges will be participating and all pupils aged 14-18 should be influenced by TVEI.


Column 483

Tourist Attractions (Cornwall)

Mr. Mudd : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the top 20 tourist attractions in Cornwall in numbers visiting or attending ; and if he will indicate the numbers, in each instance, for the previous comparable year.

Mr. Lee : The English Tourist Board's annual survey of visits to attractions gives the following figures for Cornwall in 1987 and 1988 :


Number of visits                                          

                                  |1987   |1988           

----------------------------------------------------------

Truro Cathedral                   |250,000|250,000        

Mount Edgcumbe Country Park       |-      |200,000        

St. Agnes Leisure Park            |200,000|200,000        

World in Miniature, Goonhavern    |195,000|200,000        

Dobwall's Theme Park              |135,000|190,000        

Newquay Zoo                       |143,482|186,000        

St. Michael's Mount               |172,975|175,815        

Tintagel Castle                   |135,935|134,386        

Tescan Ltd (Tannery) Redruth      |-      |112,000        

Cotehele House                    |79,937 |81,456         

Trelissick Garden, Nr Truro       |69,522 |75,244         

Pendennis Castle, Falmouth        |63,412 |70,739         

Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station |56,684 |63,000         

Dairyland, Newquay                |60,000 |56,940         

Tintagel Old Post Office          |49,673 |55,048         

Trerice                           |53,241 |52,250         

Callestock Cider Farm, Penhallow  |21,544 |50,000         

Monkey Sanctuary, Looe            |53,700 |48,000         

Padstow Tropical Bird Garden      |30,000 |43,000         

Charlestown Visitor Centre        |38,700 |40,250         


Column 484

Health and Safety

Mr. Terry Davis : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he intends to make any regulations to provide for annual reports published under the Companies Act 1967 to contain information about the arrangements for securing the health, safety and welfare at work of employees of a company and its subsidiaries as provided in section 79 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

Mr. Nicholls : My right hon. Friend has asked the Health and Safety Commission to advise him whether regulations should be made under section 235 of the Companies Act 1985 which replaced the 1967 Companies Act and section 79 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

Employment Training

Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what organisations have been granted ET training agent contracts ; what were the planned volumes of trainees between September 1988 and March 1989 ; what are the planned volumes between April 1989 and August 1989 ; how many trainees have been referred to ET training agents ; and how many action plans have been agreed at the end of each month since September 1989, for each Training Agency area.

Mr. Nicholls [pursuant to his reply, 12 June 1989, c. 285-90] : I regret that there was an error in the original reply. The error is in table 2--Action plans completed by Employment Training training agents : September 1988 to March 1989. The figures provided for Northern region were monthly cumulative figures rather than in-month totals. The correct figures for the table are as follows :


Column 483


Action Plans completed by ET Training Agents: September 1988 to March 1989                                                                                           

                                              Agreed Action Plans                                                                                                    

Area Office                                  |September 1988|October1988   |November 1988 |December 1988 |January 1989  |February 1989 |March 1989                   

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

South East Region                                                                                                                                                    

Berkshire and Oxfordshire                    |242           |798           |0             |922           |514           |450           |418                          

Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire            |219           |294           |763           |411           |429           |520           |500                          

Essex                                        |227           |550           |525           |1,051         |632           |748           |989                          

Hampshire and Isle of Wight                  |411           |487           |679           |409           |717           |670           |772                          

Kent                                         |32            |610           |1,159         |488           |714           |652           |596                          

Surrey                                       |102           |223           |174           |615           |190           |0             |196                          

Sussex                                       |0             |682           |900           |470           |555           |652           |695                          

                                                                                                                                                                     

London Region                                                                                                                                                        

Inner London North                           |505           |1,196         |1,545         |1,606         |1,651         |1,799         |2,090                        

Inner London South                           |510           |655           |616           |539           |645           |718           |736                          

London East                                  |793           |735           |805           |670           |972           |1,117         |1,092                        

London North                                 |732           |857           |935           |846           |858           |970           |996                          

London South                                 |280           |320           |479           |340           |423           |542           |543                          

London West                                  |591           |867           |811           |676           |900           |912           |952                          

                                                                                                                                                                     

South West Region                                                                                                                                                    

Avon                                         |238           |361           |411           |327           |453           |506           |489                          

Devon and Cornwall                           |665           |692           |1,244         |795           |1,294         |615           |1,192                        

Dorset and Somerset                          |418           |478           |386           |332           |342           |516           |471                          

Gloucester and Wiltshire                     |357           |546           |560           |433           |390           |479           |536                          

                                                                                                                                                                     

West Midlands Region                                                                                                                                                 

Birmingham and Solihull                      |935           |1,026         |1,201         |756           |1,553         |1,685         |1,382                        

Coventry and Warwickshire                    |378           |617           |576           |322           |638           |812           |748                          

Dudley and Sandwell                          |818           |769           |899           |1,021         |978           |1,059         |1,416                        

Staffordshire                                |541           |906           |434           |1,145         |1,128         |929           |1,192                        

The Marches, Hereford/Worcester              |0             |710           |677           |954           |406           |613           |1,330                        

Wolverhampton and Walsall                    |0             |1,055         |1,913         |308           |706           |821           |754                          

                                                                                                                                                                     

East Midlands and Eastern Region                                                                                                                                     

Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire              |502           |484           |520           |331           |400           |426           |362                          

Derbyshire                                   |704           |742           |743           |501           |582           |677           |743                          

Leicestershire and Northamptonshire          |499           |607           |604           |551           |718           |719           |736                          

Lincolnshire                                 |192           |251           |267           |154           |296           |359           |313                          

Norfolk and Suffolk                          |586           |625           |652           |426           |753           |641           |961                          

Nottinghamshire                              |602           |909           |853           |669           |937           |923           |851                          

                                                                                                                                                                     

Yorkshire and Humberside Region                                                                                                                                      

Bradford, Calderdale and Kirklees            |758           |944           |1,439         |911           |1,123         |1,186         |1,316                        

Humberside                                   |858           |821           |791           |847           |949           |970           |938                          

North Yorkshire and Leeds                    |621           |826           |752           |743           |777           |1,035         |1,002                        

Sheffield and Rotherham                      |1,078         |1,387         |1,382         |961           |1,459         |1,236         |1,043                        

Wakefield, Doncaster and Barnsley            |861           |1,154         |1,296         |990           |1,501         |1,547         |1,265                        

                                                                                                                                                                     

North West Region                                                                                                                                                    

Cheshire                                     |809           |826           |901           |588           |773           |951           |699                          

Cumbria                                      |267           |280           |406           |269           |315           |377           |373                          

Lancashire                                   |937           |1,050         |955           |943           |1,090         |1,164         |1,279                        

Central Manchester                           |597           |685           |945           |936           |954           |984           |837                          

Greater Manchester North                     |395           |699           |711           |423           |821           |834           |894                          

Greater Manchester East                      |484           |904           |784           |488           |604           |875           |913                          

Merseyside                                   |630           |1,386         |1,715         |1,504         |1,995         |2,315         |2,220                        

                                                                                                                                                                     

Northern Region                                                                                                                                                      

Cleveland                                    |1,404         |1,229         |1,141         |799           |1,624         |1,764         |1,503                        

County Durham                                |1,027         |894           |897           |626           |1,014         |1,254         |1,060                        

Northumberland, North Tyneside and Newcastle |602           |962           |1,104         |849           |1,086         |1,258         |1,275                        

Sunderland, South Tyneside and Gateshead     |1,356         |1,266         |1,325         |1,323         |1,349         |1,536         |1,488                        

                                                                                                                                                                     

Wales                                                                                                                                                                

Dyfed and West Glamorgan                     |524           |759           |922           |749           |909           |930           |949                          

Gwent                                        |268           |348           |536           |282           |747           |779           |681                          

Gwynned, Clwyd and Powys                     |309           |458           |545           |546           |573           |679           |497                          

Mid and South Glamorgan                      |826           |935           |1,073         |856           |951           |1,302         |1,301                        

                                                                                                                                                                     

Scotland                                                                                                                                                             

Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway              |550           |706           |895           |832           |802           |1,003         |826                          

Central and Fife                             |429           |459           |710           |603           |594           |832           |573                          

Glasgow City                                 |828           |958           |1,263         |1,160         |1,198         |1,463         |1,915                        

Grampian and Tayside                         |937           |817           |825           |726           |918           |1,018         |1,267                        

Highlands and Islands                        |158           |207           |301           |351           |397           |400           |308                          

Lanarkshire                                  |301           |649           |710           |480           |639           |800           |803                          

Lothian and Borders                          |604           |766           |1,269         |757           |805           |824           |940                          

Renfrew, Dumbarton and Argyll                |339           |397           |607           |576           |770           |1,000         |1,122                        

Note: Some months show no agreed action plans because of computer difficulties. Action plans agreed in the months are recorded in subsequent months.                 

Table file CW890724.034 not available

Child Care

Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, what measures he is taking to encourage the provision of child care facilities in the work place ; and what information he has on how many firms and Government offices currently provide such facilities.

Mr. Nicholls [holding answer 5 July 1989] : My right hon. Friend takes every opportunity to encourage employers to help employees combine work and family responsibilities. Work place nurseries are one possible way of helping parents with childcare although it will not necessarily be the most appropriate in all cases. Other possibilities include help with childcare costs in the local home area and rearrangement of working hours and holidays to fit in with school hours and terms.

My right hon. Friend does not have comprehensive information on the extent of employer-assisted childcare outside Government Departments but the indications are


Column 486

that such provision is growing. In the Civil Service 15 departments provide holiday play schemes for the children of their staff. Two new inter-departmental schemes began in Westminster during the spring 1989 half-term. In addition two schemes were launched by the DSS during the Easter holidays : one at the Elephant and Castle and one, with the Department of Employment, in Coventry. The Departments of Employment and Social Security have set up "care-parents" schemes and the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office are both developing nursery schemes for the under-fives.

I also take a full part in the ministerial group on women's issues which is currently considering the whole question of childcare provision and which recently issued a five-point plan designed to pave the way for the provision of childcare to suit family needs.


Column 487

NORTHERN IRELAND

Army-Police Operations

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many helicopter flying hours were available during June in support of army police operations from Newtownbutler and Rosslea Royal Ulster Constabulary stations in south-east Fermanagh.

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many helicopter flying hours were required in support of the operation to dismantle the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint.

Mr. Ian Stewart : It is not the practice to comment on operational matters of this sort.

Terrorist Activity (Fermanagh)

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have died as a result of terrorist activity in south-east Fermanagh since 1970.

Mr. Ian Stewart : Since 1970, 30 persons are believed to have died as a result of terrorist activity in the south-east Fermanagh area.

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many terrorists have been convicted of murders in south-east Fermanagh since 1970.

Mr. Ian Stewart : Two.

Helicopters (Fermanagh)

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if there are any plans to increase the number of helicopter flying hours available for army-police operations to be carried out from Newtownbutler and Rosslea Royal Ulster Constabulary stations.

Mr. Ian Stewart : This is an operational matter for local security force commanders, in the light of the current terrorist threat and security force operations to meet that threat. If the threat increases in any given area, additional helicopter hours can be allocated to that area.

Lacky Bridge Checkpoint

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if the opinion of elected representatives or the community leaders in south- east Fermanagh was sought before dismantling the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint.

Mr. Ian Stewart : Operational security matters are not normally the subject of advance public consultation but this matter was given careful consideration and consultation between the chief constable and the general office commanding in the light of all available information.

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what consultation was carried out with the Royal Ulster Constabulary concerning the dismantling of the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint ; and what was the Royal Ulster Constabulary's response to the decision to dismantle.

Mr. Ian Stewart : As in all security issues this matter was the subject of careful consideration between the chief


Column 488

constable and the general office commanding. It is not the practice to comment on the details of consultations on security matters.

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what was the cost (a) to the Army and (b) to the Royal Ulster Constabulary of the operation to dismantle the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint ;

(2) what would be, at current prices, the cost of re-establishing the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint.

Mr. Ian Stewart : It is not the practice to comment on the cost of security operations. But there was no significant additional cost incurred by the Army during the operation to dismantle the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint. The Royal Ulster Constabulary was not involved.

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the Lacky bridge permanent vehicle checkpoint was dismantled ; and which elected representatives in Fermanagh and South Tyrone were notified from the Northern Ireland Office by letter or otherwise of the intention to do so.

Mr. Ian Stewart : The permanent vehicle checkpoint at Lacky bridge was dismantled between 4 and 7 July. It was my intention to speak to the hon. Gentleman prior to this happening but he became aware of it in advance from another source.

Checkpoints (Fermanagh)

Mr. Maginnis : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when permanent vehicle checkpoints were erected in south-east Fermanagh ; and how many terrorist murders have been committed in that area since that time.

Mr. Ian Stewart : Permanent vehicle checkpoints were erected in the south-east Fermanagh area in October 1980 ; since that time six murders are believed to have been carried out by terrorists.

Small Businesses

Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the achievements of his Department and his policies in helping small businesses over the last 12 months compared with the previous 12 months ; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors those achievements and the statistical results of such monitoring.

Mr. Viggers : The Government are committed to maximising the contribution that small firms can make to strengthening the Northern Ireland economy. A major priority is to help the Province's small businesses to prepare for the completion of the single European market. The publicly funded local enterprise development unit (LEDU) offers support to firms employing up to 50 who are establishing or expanding their businesses. For the year ended 31 March 1989, LEDU achieved record levels of activity, surpassing for the eighth successive year the performance of previous years in terms of jobs promoted.

The main performance indicators used, and the results achieved for the past two years, are as follows --


Column 489


                                        |1987-88|1988-89        

----------------------------------------------------------------

Number of jobs promoted                 |4,570  |5,004          

Cost per job promoted                   |£4520  |£4518          

Percentage public contribution to total |36 per |32 per         

  project cost                          |cent.  |cent.          

Trading Standards Officers

Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many trading standards officers there are in each local authority area.

Mr. Viggers : The trading standards service in Northern Ireland is a central Government function and is the responsibility of the Department of Economic Development.

Branch headquarters are located at Newtownbreda near Belfast and there are local offices in Armagh, Ballymena, Coleraine, Enniskillen, Londonderry and Newry. The inspectorate, known as trading standards officers, comprises 20 qualified staff including the chief inspector. Of these, 13 are located at headquarters and the remainder at the outstations.

Permanent Secretaries (Correspondence)

Rev. Ian Paisley : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the people whom he does not permit to correspond with the permanent secretaries of the various Northern Ireland departments.

Mr. Tom King : None. I should however be grateful if, in accordance with the normal well-understood practice, hon. Members who wish to raise with Northern Ireland departmental headquarters matters for which Ministers are responsible to Parliament would correspond with the appropriate Minister rather than with an official. I have requested permanent secretaries to draw this to the attention of an hon. Member if he is not following the usual procedure and to ask him to correspond directly with the responsible Minister. This will ensure that matters which are raised by constituents through their Members of Parliament receive the most prompt and proper attention.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Immigration

Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list for each of the past five years, and the figure for the current year to date, of refusals to enter the United Kingdom in which primary purpose is part or the whole reason for (a) husbands, (b) wives, (c) fiance es and (d) fiance s seeking entry to join their partners with existing rights of stay in the United Kingdom, for each immigration post abroad.

Mr. Renton : The information requested is available only for posts in the Indian subcontinent and is given in the following table. Where the numbers are small, the figures for individual posts have been combined. Information on refusals which takes account of successful appeals is not compiled for periods shorter than 12 months.


Column 490


Spouses and fiance(e)s in the Indian sub-continent       

refused<1> entry clearance to the United Kingdom solely  

or partly                                                

because the primary purpose of the marriage was to       

obtain admission                                         

to the United Kingdom                                    

Number of persons                                        

         |<1>1984|1985   |1986   |1987   |1988           

---------------------------------------------------------

New Delhi (including Calcutta)                           

Husbands |80     |50     |120    |110    |100            

Fiances  |320    |230    |270    |190    |170            

Wives    |-      |-      |<2>-   |<2>-   |10             

Fiancees |-      |-      |20     |40     |50             

                                                         

Bombay (including Madras)                                

Husbands |60     |50     |110    |120    |100            

Fiances  |120    |150    |210    |160    |160            

Wives    |-      |-      |<2>-   |10     |10             

Fiancees |-      |-      |<2>-   |20     |20             

                                                         

Dhaka                                                    

Husbands |20     |50     |30     |30     |80             

Fiances  |<2>-   |<2>-   |10     |<2>-   |10             

Wives    |-      |-      |-      |-      |20             

Fiancees |-      |-      |<2>-   |-      |<2>-           

                                                         

Islamabad (including Karachi)                            

Husbands |70     |50     |120    |270    |480            

Fiances  |310    |320    |350    |320    |430            

Wives    |-      |-      |<2>-   |<2>-   |10             

Fiancees |-      |-      |<2>-   |20     |<2>-           

                                                         

Total Indian sub-continent                               

Husbands |230    |190    |370    |530    |760            

Fiances  |750    |710    |840    |680    |770            

Wives    |-      |-      |10     |20     |40             

Fiancees |-      |-      |30     |80     |80             

<1>Data for 1984 relate to person refused initially;     

data for subsequent years take account of successful     

appeals.                                                 

<2>Five or fewer.                                        

Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many immigration inspectors are employed by his Department and where each is based ; what is the comparable rank of (a) an immigration inspector and (b) officials taking decisions on deportation or leave to remain (i) in Lunar house and (ii) elsewhere within the Home Office ; and what grade officer was required to take a decision to make a deportation order before he delegated his deportation decision-making functions to immigration inspectors.

Mr. Renton [holding answer 17 July 1989] : On 30 June 1989, 52 immigration inspectors were in post at the following locations :


                                 |Number       

-----------------------------------------------

Immigration Service Headquarters |10           

Heathrow Terminal 1              |4            

Heathrow Terminal 2              |4            

Heathrow Terminal 3              |4            

Heathrow Terminal 4              |4            

Intelligence Unit, Harmondsworth |3            

Technical Unit, Harmondsworth    |1            

Appeals Unit, Harmondsworth      |1            

Training Unit, Harmondsworth     |1            

Gatwick                          |4            

Gatwick North                    |2            

Isis House                       |2            

Glasgow                          |1            

Leeds Bradford Airport           |1            

Manchester                       |1            

Birmingham                       |1            

Harwich                          |1            

Dover East                       |3            

Dover West                       |2            

Southampton                      |1            

Cardiff                          |1            

                                 |---          

    Total                        |52           

The level at which decisions are taken in immigration cases varies according to the complexity of the type of case. However, decisions to issue a notice of intention to deport under section 3(5)(a) of the Immigration Act 1971 may be taken by officials of at least inspector level in the immigration service (whose grade equivalent is senior executive officer) or at least higher executive officer level in the deportation section. Similar decisions under section 3(5)(b) and (c) may be taken at not less than senior executive officer level in the deportation section. Decisions to grant further leave to remain may be taken by officials of at least administration officer level in the Immigration and Nationality Department; and decisions to refuse leave to remain may be taken at not less than executive officer level. The levels at which decisions are taken in the deportation section remain the same as they were before the decision to delegate certain functions to immigration inspectors.

Privacy Committee

Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what factors influenced the decision to limit the Privacy Committee's terms of reference to the problems of privacy caused by the press and media; what areas indicated in his original announcement of the Committee on 21 April, Official Report , column 593, are not included; and whether he will make a statement.

Mr. Renton : As I made clear in the debate on 21 April at column 593 the precise terms of reference of the committee to review privacy and related matters were then still under consideration. They have been limited to the press because it is the activities of some sections of that industry that have caused such wide concern recently, and because the Government considered that the review should be carried out speedily.

HIV (Prisons)

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners are known to be HIV positive; and in which prisons they are held.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : On 30 June 1989, 63 prisoners were known to be HIV antibody positive from tests carried out before or after they came into custody. Of these prisoners, nine were located in establishments in the north region, 10 in the Midland region, five in the south-west region and 39 in the south-east region. For reasons of medical confidentiality, it is not our practice to disclose the number of current cases in individual establishments.

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many tests for HIV antibodies were carried out in prisons in England and Wales in the last year for which figures are available ; and how many were positive ;

(2) what steps are taken to encourage prisoners to volunteer for HIV antibody testing ;

(3) what steps are taken to safeguard the confidentiality of the results of HIV positive antibody tests in prisons.


Column 492

Mr. Douglas Hogg : HIV antibody tests are freely available to prisoners, as they are to people in the outside community. Whether a test is advised in an individual case is a matter for the clinical discretion of the prison medical officer. In the 12 months ended 30 June 1989, 30 positive results were reported from tests carried out after the prisoners concerned came into custody. Negative results are not reported. Medical officers and their health care staff apply the normal rules of medical confidentiality to the test results and related diagnoses.

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times the AIDS videos for (a) prison staff and (b) prisoners have been shown in each prison establishment in England and Wales since they have been available.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : Information in the form requested is not available. The staff training video is shown to all new entrant prison officers, and governors have been set a target for the training year ending March 1990 of showing it to all operational staff who have not attended a showing previously. The minimum target for the same year for showing the educational video for prisoners to those who wish to see it is to arrange at least one showing to every prisoner who has been or is expected to be in custody for four weeks or longer.

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if it is his policy to restrict the location and activities of HIV positive prisoners ; and if he will make a statement ;

(2) what is the purpose of current viral infectivity restrictions in Her Majesty's prisons in England and Wales.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : Our policy is to enable identified HIV antibody positive prisoners who are well to play as full a part in prison life as possible. However, having regard to the responsibilities of the prison service towards other prisoners and to staff, it has been thought right in the circumstances obtaining in England and Wales to enable medical officers to take precautions which may limit access to some regime activity. The main recommended restriction is location in single accommodation or communal accommodation shared with other identified HIV antibody positive prisoners. The medical officer may also restrict participation in activities which run the risk of physical injury such as work with machinery or sharp objects, and physical contact sports.

The system of viral infectivity restrictions (VIR), which is also applied to prisoners with other infective conditions, has a secondary purpose of enabling local management to disclose a prisoner's VIR status, but not the actual diagnosis, to operational staff who are considered to have a "need to know". Experience in England and Wales is that this practice has been valuable in giving psychological reassurance to staff.

Further guidance on the application of VIR is planned to encourage local management to place more VIR prisoners in non-specialised locations and to widen opportunities for participation in normal regime activity.

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what arrangements are made for clinical and psychological monitoring and care of HIV positive prisoners in England and Wales ; (2) what arrangements are made for the continuing care of HIV positive prisoners after their release from prison ;


Column 493

(3) what counselling is available for HIV positive and AIDS prisoners.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : The health care management of HIV antibody positive prisoners, including arrangements to ensure as far as possible that appropriate health care continues after release, is a responsibility of prison medical officers which they exercise in consultation with appropriate NHS specialists taking account of broad policy guidelines from the director of prison medical services. For the provision of counselling services they have access both to prison service staff who have been trained in HIV counselling and to outside agencies which provide such services.

The director of prison medical service plans to issue further guidance on the clinical care of HIV infected prisoners. The importance of psychological monitoring will be stressed.

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his policy for the provision of care and support units for prisoners with AIDS-related illness.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : The need is recognised for medical facilities in each prison service region which will be capable of giving short or longer- term care and support to prisoners with AIDS, AIDS-related illness or other infectious illness, whose condition does not require admission to the specialised facilities of the National Health Service. A purpose-designed unit is planned for Brixton prison. Hospital accommodation with suitable facilities at other establishments will also be used to fulfil the care and support function.

Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current programme for training of prison staff at all levels in relation to their responsibilities


Column 494

for the care of prisoners who have been diagnosed HIV positive, including those who may have developed AIDS-related illness.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : Locally organised training programmes directed at operational staff provide basic health and safety information and ana understanding of the nature of AIDS and HIV infection at a level appropriate to their task of managing infected prisoners with no signs or symptoms of illness. Most training of health care staff is also arranged locally but will often include attendance at external courses and detachments to local NHS hospitals. External AIDS counselling courses have been attended by prison service staff from a variety of disciplines.

The director of prison medical services plans to develop further training programmes for medical officers and other health care staff tailored to their specific needs.

Immigration Offences

Mr. Darling : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many suspected immigration offenders against whom action was taken by officers in each month since January 1988, at (a) Isis house and (b) Harmondsworth were (i) alleged illegal entrants, (ii) the subjects of deportation orders, (iii) seaman deserters, (iv) overstayers, (v) people working in breach of conditions and (vi) claimed British nationality ; and how many in each category were served with notices of intention to deport (1) by officers within the immigration service and (2) by officials within the immigration and nationality department.

Mr. Renton : The available information is set out in the table :


Column 493


Isis House                                                                                                                                                                            

                          |(i)                      |(ii)                     |(iii)                    |(iv) (v)                 |(vi)                                               

                          |Illegal entrants         |Deportation orders served|Seaman deserters         |Overstayers and workers  |Notices of intention to                            

                                                                                                        |in breach                |deport served on those                             

                                                                                                                                  |in (iv and v)                                      

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1988                                                                                                                                                                                  

January                   |97                       |19                       |-                        |48                       |27                                                 

February                  |83                       |12                       |1                        |50                       |33                                                 

March                     |82                       |19                       |-                        |61                       |33                                                 

April                     |82                       |8                        |1                        |42                       |25                                                 

May                       |103                      |22                       |3                        |53                       |42                                                 

June                      |82                       |17                       |-                        |52                       |33                                                 

July                      |56                       |5                        |1                        |49                       |33                                                 

August                    |68                       |13                       |-                        |55                       |49                                                 

September                 |57                       |21                       |-                        |65                       |59                                                 

October                   |70                       |16                       |-                        |79                       |69                                                 

November                  |93                       |16                       |2                        |134                      |128                                                

December                  |72                       |12                       |-                        |119                      |106                                                


          (i)  (ii) (iii)(iv) (v)  (vi)          

                                   to deport serv

                                   those in (iv) 

                                  |(iv)|(v)      

-------------------------------------------------

1989                                             

January  |48  |19  |2   |61  |39  |61  |36       

February |96  |12  |1   |68  |71  |66  |68       

March    |78  |17  |-   |81  |28  |76  |27       

April    |99  |20  |2   |70  |30  |69  |28       

May      |67  |19  |-   |59  |27  |58  |22       

June     |63  |17  |-   |46  |20  |46  |15       


Column 495


Immigration Service intelligence and investigation unit           

           (i)    (ii)   (iii)  (iv)   (v)    (vi)                

           IllegalDeportaSeaman OverstaWorkersNotices of intention

                                              to deport served on 

                                              those in            

                                             |(iv)  |(v)          

------------------------------------------------------------------

1988                                                              

January   |73    |13    |0     |24    |25                         

February  |72    |11    |0     |21    |36    |72    |0            

March     |99    |12    |1     |27    |34                         

                                                                  

April                                                             

May       |253   |27    |0     |66    |63    |53    |0            

June                                                              

                                                                  

July                                                              

August    |208   |16    |1     |n/a   |n/a   |94    |(iv+v)       

September                                                         

                                                                  

October                                                           

November  |271   |20    |1     |n/a   |n/a   |185   |(iv+v)       

December                                                          

                                                                  

1989                                                              

January   |108   |5     |0     |37    |57                         

February  |107   |7     |1     |63    |47    |153   |109          

March     |146   |8     |0     |54    |43                         

                                                                  

April     |123   |8     |1     |35    |21                         

May       |76    |13    |2     |41    |14    |99    |40           

June      |101   |10    |1     |27    |23                         

n/a=Not available.                                                

Notes:                                                            

No figures are available to show the number of offenders who may  

have claimed British nationality.                                 

Column (ii) Some of those served with a deportation order may     

also have been served with a notice of intention to deport        

previously but no details are available.                          

Column (vi) All notices were served by members of the Immigration 

Service either before 1 August 1988 on the authority of an        

official in the Immigration and Nationality Department (IND), or  

after 1 August 1988 on the authority of an Immigration Inspector  

or an official within IND. The breakdown of information on a port 

basis is not available and could not be obtained without          

disproportionate cost.                                            

Mr. Darling : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times in each month since January 1988, immigration officers at (a) Isis house and (b) Harmondsworth took action as a result of (i) police call-outs, (ii) denunciations, (iii) Home Office file inquiries, (iv) information provided by other Government agencies,


Column 496

(v) information arising from a major or middle tier operation and (vi) information arising as a consequence of another inquiry.

Mr. Renton : The available information is set out in the table :


Column 495


Isis House                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

                                         Offenders identified from the following sources:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

[NL]                                                                            |(i)                                    |(ii)                                   |(iii)                                  |(iv)                                   |(v)                                                                            

[NL]                                                                            |Police call-outs                       |Denunciations                          |Home Office files                      |Other inquiries and Government agencies|Major or middle tier operations                                                

1988                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

January                                 |80                                     |46                                     |17                                     |21                                     |-                                                                                                                      

February                                |80                                     |51                                     |15                                     |-                                      |4,320                                                                                                                  

March                                   |90                                     |67                                     |17                                     |-                                      |12                                                                                                                     

April                                   |71                                     |47                                     |11                                     |4                                      |-                                                                                                                      

May                                     |70                                     |35                                     |20                                     |11                                     |45                                                                                                                     

June                                    |85                                     |50                                     |16                                     |-                                      |-                                                                                                                      

July                                    |55                                     |30                                     |10                                     |6                                      |-                                                                                                                      

August                                  |73                                     |43                                     |-                                      |20                                     |-                                                                                                                      

September                               |100                                    |30                                     |7                                      |6                                      |-                                                                                                                      

October                                 |100                                    |40                                     |15                                     |10                                     |-                                                                                                                      

November                                |170                                    |49                                     |20                                     |6                                      |-                                                                                                                      

December                                 Information not available                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

1989                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

January                                 |111                                    |13                                     |21                                     |3                                      |21                                                                                                                     

February                                |156                                    |38                                     |18                                     |2                                      |37                                                                                                                     

March                                   |118                                    |29                                     |21                                     |36                                     |3                                                                                                                      

April                                   |137                                    |26                                     |21                                     |40                                     |-                                                                                                                      

May                                     |105                                    |34                                     |25                                     |15                                     |-                                                                                                                      

June                                    |108                                    |19                                     |23                                     |12                                     |-                                                                                                                      

Notes:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Column (iv)-This column relates to both information derived from other Government agencies and from other inquiries.                                                                                                                                                                                                            

Column (v)-Some of these cases were referred for action by the Immigration and Nationality Department headquarters-eg the figure of 4,320 relates to students enrolled at a college under investigation in February 1988.                                                                                                       


Next Section

  Home Page