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Miss Widdecombe : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he intends to make the regulations to implement in the United Kingdom the European Community directive on toy safety.
Mr. Forth : I am pleased to inform my hon. Friend that I made the Toys (Safety) Regulations 1989 on 25 July and they are being laid before the House today.
Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he made to Rover Group, British Aerospace or Honda in relation to the location of the proposed car production plant at Swindon.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The location of Honda's proposed car production plant was a matter for the company, but the Government made clear their welcome for Honda's decision to develop its existing engine facility at Swindon to full vehicle manufacture.
Mr. John Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter he received recently from the chairman of FIMBRA as referred to during the proceedings of the Standing Committee of the Companies Bill by the hon. Member for Beaconsfield (Mr. Smith), column 619.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 25 July 1989] : It is not my right hon. and noble Friend's normal practice to place in the Library correspondence which he receives from third parties simply because it is referred to by an hon. Member in debate. However, since I understand that the chairman of FIMBRA provided copies of the letter in question to hon. Members serving on Standing Committee D at the time, I am, with the agreement of the chairman, placing a copy in the Library.
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Attorney-General if he has received any representations about the covenant on Birtenshaw farm, Bolton ; and if he will make a statement.
The Solicitor-General : The Attorney-General has received an application for his consent to realtor proceedings in respect of a proposed development at Birtenshaw farm. This application is now being considered.
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Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister how many football matches she has attended in an official capacity in the past 10 years.
The Prime Minister : I have attended four matches in my official capacity over the past 10 years. In addition, since his appointment, my hon. Friend the Minister for Sport has attended 25 domestic and international matches.
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister if she will list the numbers and types of gifts she has received on her official visits abroad ; and where these gifts are currently stored.
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Prime Minister how many representations she has received from (a) the United Kingdom and (b) Norway regarding Nirex proposals for radioactive waste disposal at Sellafield and Dounreay.
The Prime Minister : I have so far received two representations from United Kingdom residents and approximately 2,400 from Norway.
Mr. Jack : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he has taken to recognise above-average teacher performance in any plans he has for the future determination of teachers' pay.
Mrs. Rumbold : Local education authorities can already award incentive allowances to teachers who have demonstrated outstanding ability in the classroom. It is important that any new pay arrangements continue to allow for classroom excellence to be rewarded.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Blackburn of 29 June, Official Report , column 536 , what information or estimates he now has as to the number of resignations submitted by teachers as at 31 May ;
(2) what inquiries he has been able to make as to the number of (a) teachers and (b) head teacher resignations and the likely level of vacancies in September 1989 ; and with what result.
Mr. Rumbold : Comprehensive data are not available. My officials telephoned a number of local education authorities to ask about the level of teacher resignations. Separate information on head teachers was not collected. Information from those authorities suggests that the position is little changed from that in recent years. As local authorities and schools are still recruiting teachers to take up posts in September, it is too early to make estimates of likely vacancies.
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Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what will be the benefit to primary schools of the introduction of the national curriculum and pupil assessment.
Mrs. Rumbold : The national curriculum will assist all primary schools to reach the standards currently found in the best. Its framework of targets with linked assessment will enable primary schools to judge their pupils' achievements against objective standards and to identify their needs accordingly. This will give pupils the best possible foundation for their future education.
Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science on what basis postgraduate grants will be calculated once the link with the undergraduate grant comes to an end ; and what compensation postgraduate students, especially those in high rent areas, will receive for the removal of benefits.
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Mr. Jackson : The levels of postgraduate studentships will in future be determined by the award-making bodies, consulting among themselves and with the Department as appropriate, in the light of all relevant factors, including the number and quality of applications for support and other claims on their resources. Students who face financial difficulties when they are no longer eligible for social security benefits will be able to seek supplementary assistance from their higher education institutions from the access fund for postgraduate students.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give the latest information relating to school closures for the current year to date on a basis consistent with the table in his answer to the hon. Member for Blackburn, Official Report, of 29 June, column 536.
Mrs. Rumbold : The information is given in the table.
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Calendar year |Number of proposals |Number of places to be |Number of proposals in |Number of surplus places |decided |taken out of use by |column 2 approved |to be taken out of use |proposals in column 2 |as a result of approved |proposals (1) |(2) |(3) |(4) |(5) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1989<1> |84 |34,992 |73 |24,981 <1> 1 January 1989 to 30 June 1989.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list in the Official Report the expected dates for the publication of any report of any committee of Her Majesty's inspectors and of other documents of significance, during the next six months, with brief details of each publication.
Mrs. Rumbold : There are no reports of Her Majesty's Inspectorate committees published. Her Majesty's Inspectorate publications are based on the findings and messages from inspections and as such are planned and produced by Her Majesty's inspectorate and it is the senior chief inspector who decides where and when what is to be put to the Secretary of State for his agreement to publish.
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science, whether he has yet an indication of the effect of the GCSE examinations on staying on in full-time education and on the attainments of those taking the examination ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Rumbold [pursuant to the reply, 10 February 1989, c. 846-48] : Provisional statistics collected by my Department indicate that in January 1989 there were some 382,000 pupils aged 16 and over in maintained and independent schools in England, an increase of 5 per cent. on the previous year. This represents a staying-on rate of 32.4 per cent. in all schools (29.5 per cent. in maintained schools alone) compared with 29.4 per cent. and 26.6 per cent. respectively in 1987-88. These are the highest- ever rates for staying on in school. Of these pupils, some 314,000 are following A-level courses, an increase of 8 per cent. on the previous year.
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The proportion of the age group on first year A-level courses in schools has risen by 3 percentage points to just under 24 per cent. ; again, the highest figure ever.These are encouraging figures, particularly given the decline in the age cohort. They represent a 10 per cent. increase in the staying-on rate, the highest increase ever. In particular they strengthen the earlier evidence that the GCSE has raised the sights of many pupils and encouraged them to stay on for more advanced study.
Comparable figures for enrolments in further education are not yet available.
The following tables set out the relevant information.
Table 1 Pupils aged 16 and over in maintained secondary and independent schools |1987-88 |1988-89 |Percentage change |actual |estimated ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Pupils 16 to 18 Boys |182,138 |190,187 |+4 Girls |178,553 |189,686 |+6 |------- |------- |------- Total |360,691 |379,873 |+5 Pupils by age 16 |212,427 |218,251 |+3 17 |132,313 |145,150 |+10 18 |15,951 |16,472 |+3 16 to 18 |360,691 |379,873 |+5 19 plus |2,378 |2,497 |+5 |------- |------- |------- Total |363,069 |382,370 |+5 Pupils by course of study<1> A' level |291,474 |313,872 |+8 GCSE |53,556 |49,810 |-7 AS' level<2> |481 |968 |- All other |17,558 |17,720 |+1 |------- |------- |------- Total |363,069 |382,370 |+5 <1>Pupils may be taking more than one course but they are only counted once at the highest level course. <2>One year group in 1987-88. Two year groups in 1988-89.
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Staying on rates at maintained secondary schools<1> January each year |1984 |1985 |1986 |1987 |1988 |1989 (provisional) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pupils aged 16 Boys |25.4 |25.2 |25.5 |25.0 |25.4 |27.8 Girls |29.4 |28.3 |28.3 |27.5 |27.9 |31.2 |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- Total |27.4 |26.7 |26.9 |26.3 |26.6 |29.5 |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- Pupils aged 17 Boys |16.6 |16.0 |15.9 |15.9 |15.7 |16.7 Girls |18.0 |17.2 |16.7 |16.8 |16.4 |17.9 |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- Total |17.3 |16.6 |16.3 |16.3 |16.0 |17.3 <1> Ages at previous 31 August. The number of pupils aged 16 and 17 expressed as a percentage of the 15 year olds one and two years earlier.
Table 3 Participation of 16 year olds in full-time education 1983-84 to 1988-89-Place and type of study-Males and Females Percentage of estimated population aged 16 England Academic year |1983-84 |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Place and type of study A-level study Maintained secondary and independent schools<1> |19.7 |19.4 |19.4 |19.4 |20.8 |23.8 Tertiary colleges |0.5 |0.7 |0.7 |0.8 |1.1 |n/a Total |20.2 |20.1 |20.1 |20.2 |22.0 |n/a Other establishments |1.6 |1.6 |1.6 |1.8 |1.8 |n/a All establishments |21.8 |21.6 |21.7 |21.9 |23.7 |n/a O-level study<2> Maintained secondary and independent schools<1> |7.8 |8.0 |7.9 |7.4 |6.6 |6.5 Tertiary colleges |0.3 |0.4 |0.4 |0.4 |0.5 |n/a Total |8.0 |8.3 |8.3 |7.8 |7.1 |n/a Other establishments |2.0 |1.8 |1.8 |1.9 |1.8 |n/a All establishments |10.0 |10.2 |10.1 |9.7 |8.9 |n/a Other non-advanced study Maintained secondary and independent schools<1> |2.0 |1.7 |1.9 |1.8 |2.0 |2.1 Special schools<3> |0.6 |0.6 |0.6 |0.6 |0.6 |n/a Tertiary colleges |0.8 |1.2 |1.3 |1.3 |1.6 |n/a Total |3.4 |3.5 |3.8 |3.7 |4.2 |n/a Other establishment |12.6 |11.6 |11.8 |11.4 |11.6 |n/a All establishmentss |16.1 |15.1 |15.6 |15.1 |15.8 |n/a All types of non-advanced study Maintained secondary and independent schools<1> |29.5 |29.1 |29.2 |28.6 |29.4 |32.4 Special schools |0.6 |0.6 |0.6 |0.6 |0.6 |n/a Tertiary colleges |1.6 |2.2 |2.4 |2.5 |3.2 |n/a Total |31.7 |31.9 |32.2 |31.7 |33.2 |n/a Other establishments |16.2 |15.0 |15.2 |15.1 |15.2 |n/a All establishments |47.9 |46.9 |47.4 |46.8 |48.4 |n/a Population aged 16 (thousands) |759.6 |742.7 |733.7 |713.9 |722.6 |673.2 Notes: <1>Estimated as no age split is available. <2>Including those on CSE, GCSE and CEE courses. <3>No details by type of course are available for special schools. n/a=Not available.
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Mr. John Marshall : To ask the right hon. Member for Selby, as representing the Church Commissioners, if he will publish the details of the scheme operated by the Church Commissioners, in conjunction with dioceses of the Church of England, to assist clergy with car purchase and operation.
Mr. Alison : The car loan scheme operated by the commissioners enables all serving clergy, deaconesses and licensed lay workers on the commissioners' payroll to apply, through their diocesan office, for an interest free loan towards the purchase of a car. The loan is normally repayable over four years and, for parochial clergy, has a current ceiling of £4,550.
The scheme was introduced on 1 July 1988 and has proved extremely popular ; to date 2,798 loans have been granted, the total sum involved being £9.9 million.
Parochial church councils are expected to reimburse the clergyman in full for those expenses which relate to parochial duties. These include car expenses, which the commissioners recommend be met by a mileage rate which includes elements for running costs, insurance, tax and depreciation.
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Sedgefield (Mr. Blair) of 10 July, Official Report, column 380, if he will set out a detailed breakdown of the expenditure listed for 1988-89 nuclear, under the column headed "Other"; and what are the reasons for the increase from 1987-88 to 1988-89.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The information requested is set out in the table. It should be noted that the figures are based on estimated outturn. Final outturn figures for 1988-89 are not yet available and will be published in the appropriate accounts in the usual way. The increase from 1987-88 is largely accounted for by decommissioning and radioactive waste management operations (Drawmops), the purpose of which is to enable the UKAEA to do the work needed to ensure that the Department's liabilities for radioactive waste management and decommissioning work are properly and safely met. The 1988-89 main estimates provision for Drawmops was some £10 million higher than in 1987-88. Drawmops is an operational programme where the work in any particular year is determined in the light of safety factors and the need to carry out work at least overall cost to the taxpayer. The Drawmops figure in the table also includes the provision of £51.4 million made in a spring supplementary
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Estimate for outstanding UKAEA liabilities to British Nuclear Fuels plc for decommissioning and radioactive waste operations. As explained in the Department's 1988 main Estimates (HC 339- vi), some £18 million of overall expenditure with the UKAEA in 1988-89 represented a technical adjustment to the timing of payments made by the Department (offset by a corresponding reduction in the UKAEA's external financing limit to leave no net change in public expenditure). This adjustment accounts for some £5 million of the expenditure in the "Other" column.The remainder of the increase on the 1987-88 total is accounted for by small increases in other programmes.
Breakdown of Department of Energy 1988-89 expenditure under "Other" heading in table at column 380, Official Report 10 July 1989 |£ million ---------------------------------------------------------------- General Nuclear Safety Research |6.6 Radiological Protection Research |0.5 Safeguards |1.2 Radioactive Waste Management Research |2.4 NIREX |1.2 Nuclear Materials Management |4.5 Decommissioning and Radioactive Waste Management Operations |84.7 Winfrith |6.3 Public Information |3.0 Advisory Services and Other |3.9 Contribution to UKAEA's Underlying Research Programme |17.1 Miscellaneous |0.5 |------- Total |131.9
Mr. Cran : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what progress is being made in his Department's review, in line with Treasury guidelines, of the potential for the further relocation of Civil Service posts outside London and the South East ; and when he expects the review to be completed.
Mr. Wakeham : As my predecessor told my hon. Friend on 15 February 1988 at column 513, there are no current plans for such relocation.
The position will be reviewed at the end of 1990-91, when the Department has had some 18 months' experience of working in its new headquarters building.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is the total expenditure on energy in the United Kingdom by end users for each of the last three years ; what proportion of that expenditure was tax ; and what proportion that expenditure was of gross domestic product.
Mr. Wakeham : Figures for the United Kingdom for the years 1986 to 1988 are shown in the following table :
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Year |Expenditure on energy by|Tax as a proportion of |Energy expenditure as a |final users |expenditure on energy |proportion of GDP<1> |£ million |Per cent. |Per cent. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1986 |37,950 |22.6 |10.0 1987 |38,530 |23.4 |9.3 1988 |38,910 |24.9 |8.5 <1>Calculated using the average measure of GDP at current market prices. Source: Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics and Central Statistical Office figures for GDP.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what was the budget for the Energy Efficiency Office for each year since its inception.
Mr. Peter Morrison : The Energy Efficiency Office was established on 31 October 1983. Actual expenditure in each year has been as follows :
Year |£ million ------------------------------ 1984-85 |17.5 1985-86 |22.5 1986-87 |24.5 1987-88 |18.6 1988-89 |18.5
Budget allocation for 1989-90 is £15 million.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what research has been, and is being, undertaken to investigate the possible detrimental effects to health of overhead electricity power lines, specifically the alleged link between electromagnetism and childhood cancer ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The Central Electricity Generating Board has been carrying out research into the health effects of power frequency electromagnetic fields produced by overhead lines since the late 1970s.
Independent work has also been carried out under contract at hospitals and universities in the United Kingdom and has included a detailed case/control study to investigate any possible links with childhood cancer. So far, the results have revealed no association between childhood cancers and overhead power lines. Research is continuing.
Mr. Conway : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the report of the chief electoral officer for Northern Ireland for 1988-89 will be published.
Mr. Tom King : The chief electoral officer's report was laid before the House today and is published as a House of Commons paper (No. 497). Copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses of Parliament.
Mr. David Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the status, after the company is sold to Bombardier, of the Government's assurances to creditors of Short Brothers plc that Her Majesty's Government would, in the last resort, ensure that their claims were fully met.
Mr. Tom King : After the date of completion of the sale of Short Brothers plc to Bombardier, no new obligations incurred by the company will be covered by any such assurances which have been given on a number of
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occasions, most recently on 21 July 1988. Obligations incurred between the signature of the contract and the completion date will cease to benefit from the assurances on completion.Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with organisations of and for disabled people on the findings of the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys surveys.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 24 July 1989] : None.
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made on assessing the financial implications of the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys surveys and of the Disabled Persons (N.I.) Act 1989.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 24 July 1989] : As the hon. Member is aware, the findings of the OPCS surveys relate only to Great Britain. The financial implications of the comparable Northern Ireland surveys will be considered when the relevant information is available. As to the Disabled Persons (Northern Ireland) Act 1989, the Department of Health and Social Services is currently consulting health and social services boards about the financial implications of its implementation.
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proposals he has formally, to consult organisations of and for disabled people about the overall structure of the disability benefits review.
Mr. Needham [holding answer 24 July 1989] : Now that the sixth and final report of the OPCS survey of the disabled in Great Britain has been published, I understand that my hon. Friend the Minister for the Disabled will be announcing a timetable for further action once proper consideration of these surveys has been completed. The need for consultation with organisations of and for disabled people in Northern Ireland about any Government proposals arising from the exercise and from the parallel surveys now being conducted locally will be considered at the appropriate time.
Mr. Cran : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters were received from, and sent to, hon. Members by his Department in (a) January and (b) the whole of this session up to 1 July.
Mr. Sainsbury : The records show the following :
|(a) |(b) ------------------------------ Received |1,149 |10,142 Sent |943 |8,883
Mr. Hill : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the present state of deliberations in the Western European Union Council of Ministers on the establishment of a European institute for advanced security studies as proposed by the Western European Union parliamentary assembly.
Mr. Waldegrave : The Permanent Council is continuing to study this question. A report will be made to the next meeting of the Council of Ministers.
Mr. Hill : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what specific measures the Government considers are necessary to ensure the progress of negotiations on the limitation of conventional armaments, and to link all initiatives in regard to short- range nuclear weapons with their success, as recommended by the Western European Union Parliamentary Assembly.
Mr. Waldegrave : Alliance proposals for progress in the conventional armed forces negotiation were tabled in Vienna on 9 March and 13 July. The Alliance position on the relationship of SNF to conventional arms control was set out in the comprehensive concept issued by the NATO heads of Government summit meeting on 29-30 May.
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish the names of the British delegations to each meeting of the General Assembly of the United Nations in the past two years.
Mr. Sainsbury : A list of accredited delegations to the United Nations General Assembly is published each year by the United Nations. I have arranged for copies of the list for 1987 (UNGA 42) and 1988 (UNGA 43) to be placed in the Library.
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his Department's estimated expenditure in the current year on hosting official visitors from foreign countries.
Mr. Sainsbury : Since January there have been 15 guest of Government visits initiated by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1989. These were :
|Number -------------------------------------------------- Presidential |3 Prime Ministers |2 Foreign Ministers/Minister of State |10 |--- |15 Total expenditure to date=£215,000. Estimated total expenditure for 1989=£350,000.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last made representations to the South African Government for the
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release of (a) Walter Sisula, (b) Elias Motsoaledi, (c) Andrew Mlangeni, (d) Ahmed Kathrada, (e) Wilton Mkwayi and (f) Nelson Mandela ; what reply he has received ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Waldegrave : We have made frequent representations to the South African Government calling on them to release Mr. Mandela and all other political prisoners. Most recently, on 23 June, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister raised the subject with the new leader of the South African National party, Mr. F. W. de Klerk. We continue to look for a positive response from the South African Government.
Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on relations between Her Majesty's Government and Grenada.
Mr. Sainsbury : Our relations with Grenada are close and friendly.
Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has about the export of chemicals from India which may be used for the production of chemical weapons.
Mr. Sainsbury : India has a growing chemical industry and exports a number of chemicals. We understand that the Indian Government are reviewing the country's chemical export practices to ensure that chemicals exported from India cannot be diverted into the manufacture of chemical weapons.
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations he has made complaining about the denial of human rights in the last five years in Colombia.
Mr. Sainsbury : We have made a number of representations about human rights to the Colombian authorities over the last five years. The precise information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations he has made complaining about the denial of human rights in the last five years in Bahrain.
Mr. Waldegrave : We have made a number of representations to the Bahraini authorities about human rights over the past five years but the precise information required is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations he has made complaining about the denial of human rights in the last five years in French Polynesia.
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Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many representations he has made complaining about the denial of human rights in the last five years in Andorra.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Kenya concerning that Government's practice that British nationals of Asian Kenyan origin require visas to enter Kenya while other British nationals do not.
Mr. Waldegrave : Immigration procedures for entry into Kenya are a matter for the Kenyan Government. However, our High Commission has made regular representations to the Kenyans on this subject since Kenya introduced revised visa regulations in 1986.
Mr. Hayes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will announce a scheme of assurances to encourage Hong Kong people to remain in the territory.
Mr. Major : The Government are continuing their urgent work on the scheme and an announcement will be made as soon as this work is completed.
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