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Housing Revenue Accounts
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish in the Official Report the percentages of housing revenue accounts constituted by rate and revenue fund contributions and the actual levels of revenue fund contributions in (a) Dundee district council and (b) all Scottish district councils in each of the past 10 years for which figures are available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The amounts of rate fund contributions made to local authority housing revenue accounts by Dundee district council and by district councils in Scotland as a whole are shown in the table, together with the expression of these amounts as a percentage of total housing revenue account income :
Dundee Scotland
|Contributions|Percentage |Contributions|Percentage
|£ million |of income |Per cent. |£ million
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1979-80 |1.485 |7.3 |72.924 |14.1
1980-81 |- |- |79.403 |12.9
1981-82 |5.438 |22.9 |106.275 |17.3
1982-83 |6.081 |25.5 |124.708 |18.5
1983-84 |6.976 |28.5 |123.196 |18.5
1984-85 |8.057 |29.9 |139.019 |19.9
1985-86 |6.754 |24.1 |98.393 |14.1
1986-87 |3.962 |13.9 |75.704 |10.4
1987-88 |2.252 |7.4 |41.049 |5.5
1988-89 |1.042 |2.9 |24.076 |3.0
Note: Figures are based on the gross contributions made to housing revenue accounts
from rate funds; these have not been netted against contributions made to rate
funds from housing revenue accounts.
Source: Audited financial returns for 1979-80 to 1986-87; provisional outturns for
1987-88 and 1988-89.
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Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what were the levels of outstanding debt on the housing revenue accounts of (a) Dundee district council and (b) all Scottish district councils in each of the past 10 years for which figures are available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The amounts of outstanding capital debt relating to local authority housing revenue accounts at 31 March of each year are shown in the table :
£ million Year |Dundee district council|Scotland ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1980 |96.4 |2,578.7 1981 |101.7 |2,738.2 1982 |103.9 |2,848.2 1983 |107.2 |2,945.6 1984 |111.2 |3,026.3 1985 |112.1 |3,073.0 1986 |114.8 |3,164.2 1987 |119.2 |3,297.2 1988 |127.0 |3,475.3 1989 |129.2 |3,580.2 Source: Audited financial returns for 1980 to 1987; provisional outturns for 1988 and 1989.
TVEI
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what provision has been envisaged for pupils studying standard grade subjects in which the minimum time of four times 40 minutes per week for two years cannot be found because of time required to complete the residential and work experience elements of TVEI.
Mr. Lang : The guidelines on curriculum design in secondary education issued by the SCCC with the approval of my right hon. and learned Friend in July take full account of the requirements of TVEI, and no such problem as the hon. Member envisages should arise.
Young Homeless
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what record he maintains of those under 18 who are homeless ; and if he will publish in the Official Report the statistics showing the level of homeless among (a) 16-year-olds and (b) 17-year-olds in (i) Dundee and (ii) Scotland in each of the past 10 years.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information requested is not available. Information is collected centrally, based on returns from local authorities, on households which apply to local authorities under the homelessness legislation, but the age of applicants is not included.
School Curriculum
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the cost of the activities of the Scottish Central Council on the curriculum in each year since 1985.
Mr. Lang : The information requested is as follows :
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Year |£000 -------------------- 1985-86 |831 1986-87 |961 1987-88 |963 1988-89 |1,068
Council Rents
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what were the average council rents in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland in each of the past 10 years for which figures are available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information requested is set out in the table :
Average annual local authority
standard rent as at 30
September
|Dundee
|£
--------------------------------
307.18
307.12
377.38
419.45
457.42
510.59
604.63
707.62
843.84 |842.38
Housing Support Grant
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what were the levels of housing support grant allocated to (a) Dundee district council and (b) all Scottish district councils in each of the past 10 years for which figures are available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information requested is shown in the table :
£ million Year |Dundee |Scotland ------------------------------------ 1979-80 |7.7 |213.4 1980-81 |8.6 |228.2 1981-82 |5.3 |161.9 1982-83 |1.8 |104.6 1983-84 |- |72.1 1984-85 |- |67.2 1985-86 |- |64.2 1986-87 |- |44.5 1987-88 |- |41.9 1988-89 |- |54.6 1989-90 |- |60.4
Housing
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what were the numbers of houses completed in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland by (i) district councils,(ii) housing associations, (iii) the private sector and (iv) the housing co-operatives in each of the past 10 years for which figures are available.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The available information is set out in the table.
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House completions 1979-88
District councils Housing associatioPrivate sector
|Dundee |Scotland|Dundee |Scotland|Dundee |Scotland
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1979 |221 |4,755 |9 |544 |261 |15,175
1980 |82 |5,048 |79 |881 |244 |12,242
1981 |163 |3,770 |74 |1,928 |160 |11,021
1982 |55 |2,342 |100 |1,167 |162 |11,529
1983 |80 |2,311 |34 |1,271 |469 |13,178
1984 |5 |2,120 |101 |2,076 |470 |14,118
1985 |57 |1,989 |127 |1,148 |250 |14,445
1986 |0 |1,733 |83 |1,466 |179 |14,812
1987<1> |0 |1,710 |193 |1,169 |179 |13,798
1988<1> |5 |1,933 |235 |1,278 |269 |14,063
<1> Private sector figures based on incomplete returns.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list by district the proportion of land in Scotland designated as sites of special scientific interest or otherwise protected.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 20 July 1989] : The following table lists by district the proportion of land in Scotland designated as sites of special scientific interest. This information has been provided by the Nature Conservancy Council.
District |SSSI area (HA) |SSSI proportion
|per cent.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aberdeen |41 |0.2
Angus |7,418 |3.6
Annan and Eskdale |20,004 |12.8
Argyll and Bute |45,838 |6.9
Badenoch and Strathspey |63,583 |26.9
Banff and Buchan |3,097 |2.0
Bearsden and Milngavie |57 |1.5
Berwickshire |2,033 |2.3
Caithness |19,384 |10.7
Clackmannan |465 |2.9
Clydebank |1 |0.0
Clydesdale |4,863 |3.7
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth |14 |0.1
Cumnock and Doon Valley |521 |0.6
Cunninghame |14,639 |16.6
Dumbarton |4,672 |8.8
Dundee |845 |3.6
Dunfermline |1,031 |3.4
East Kilbride |11 |0.0
East Lothian |4,660 |6.5
Eastwood |53 |0.4
Edinburgh |1,223 |4.6
Ettrick and Lauderdale |10,678 |7.8
Falkirk |1,451 |4.8
Glasgow |150 |0.7
Gordon |5,465 |2.5
Hamilton |415 |3.1
Inverclyde |138 |0.9
Inverness |24,952 |8.6
Kilmarnock and Loudoun |0 |0.0
Kincardine and Deeside |35,274 |13.7
Kirkcaldy |118 |0.5
Kyle and Carrick |3,486 |2.6
Lochaber |62,693 |13.5
Midlothian |1,008 |2.8
Monklands |159 |0.9
Moray |16,092 |6.9
Motherwell |16 |0.1
Nairn |5,105 |12.0
Nithsdale |2,370 |1.6
North East Fife |5,035 |6.6
Orkney |19,888 |19.7
Perth and Kinross |48,964 |9.1
Renfrew |781 |2.5
Ross and Cromarty |90,882 |17.6
Roxburgh |4,768 |3.1
Shetland |15,645 |10.7
Skye and Lochalsh |28,617 |10.5
Stewarty |8,527 |5.0
Stirling |15,586 |7.0
Strathkelvin |78 |0.5
Sutherland |75,756 |12.5
Tweeddale |7,309 |8.1
West Lothian |689 |1.6
Western Isles |31,352 |10.2
Wigtown |16,745 |9.7
|------- |-------
Total |734,645 |9.3
DEFENCE
Soviet Air Force
Mr. Jack : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has any evidence that the Soviet Air Force has reduced its nuclear capability.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : We have no evidence that the Soviet Air Force has reduced its nuclear capability. Although the Soviets have indicated that they will withdraw some nuclear bombs from the forward area, it must be remembered that these weapons could be redeployed at short notice and overall numbers would not be reduced.
Ethnic Minorities
Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to receive the result of the consultancy study commissioned into the recruitment of ethnic minorities, into the armed services following the recommendations of the Marilyn report ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The report on the study into ethnic minority recruitment to the armed services was received in July. The report is being considered within the Ministry of Defence and an announcement will be made shortly.
Trident
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the management of, and current progress with, the design and production of the
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warheads for the Trident missile system, undertaken at the atomic weapons establishments at Llanishen, Aldermaston and Burghfield.Mr. Alan Clark : Work undertaken at the various sites of the atomic weapons establishment is progressing satisfactorily towards the Trident in- service date of the mid-1990s. Design of the warhead is now complete and production of both fissile and non-fissile components has begun.
AWRE Workers (Retraining)
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what schemes are available for retraining plutonium warhead fabrication and design workers at atomic weapons research establishments, Aldermaston and Burghfield, to work on civil projects.
Nuclear Test Ban (Verification)
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on current progress in research undertaken in the United Kingdom to support the verification requirements of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty ; how much is allocated annually by Her Majesty's Government to such verification research ; and what collaboration on such verification is undertaken with other countries.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The MOD's research establishment at Blacknest near Aldermaston undertakes seismological research which could be used in establishing the requirements of a verification regime for further constraints on nuclear testing. The cost of this work for the financial year 1988-89 was some £1.5 million.
Scientists from Blacknest have international standing and co-operate with representatives of a number of countries on a bilateral basis. They also provide the United Kingdom's representatives to the conference on disarmament's ad hoc group of scientific experts to consider international co-operative measures to detect and identify seismic events.
Warstocks
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence during what periods in the past year the Royal Navy's warstocks did not meet national and NATO requirements.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Detailed information on the level of warstocks is classified, but in the past year naval stock levels have met NATO and national requirements in all but a few areas.
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence during what periods in the past year the RAF warstocks did not meet national and NATO requirements.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Detailed information on the level of warstocks is classified but in the past year RAF stock levels have met NATO and national requirements in all but a few areas.
Defence Export Services Organisation
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many persons are employed by the Defence Export Services Organisation ; and what is its total budget.
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Mr. Alan Clark : Some 200 staff are employed within the Defence Export Services Organisation in support of defence exports and in the administration of export control regimes. Export promotion costs such as exhibition expenditure and the loan of personnel and equipment are self- financing, and the net cost to defence votes of the support to defence exports is of the order of £6 million. A further 50 staff within DESO are engaged in the disposal of surplus MOD equipment and stores which it is estimated will generate net receipts of some £23 million in the current financial year.
Holy Loch Base
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many visits to the Holy Loch base have been made by United States vessels carrying SLCMs.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The United States Navy does not confirm or deny the presence of submarine-launched cruise missiles on board particular vessels.
New Works
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much will be spent in (a) Scotland and (b) the south-east of England in 1989-90 for new works gross total as indicated in table 2.4 of Cm. 675-II.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The Ministry of Defence does not routinely account for expenditure on a regional basis and such a breakdown could not be produced without incurring disproportionate cost.
Equipment Exports (Africa)
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all African countries to which export of defence equipment took place in 1987.
Mr. Alan Clark : It has been the practice of successive Administrations not to publish such detailed lists but statistics of United Kingdom defence sales from 1983-88 by broad geographic regions are set out in volume 2 of the "Statement on the Defence Estimates 1989".
Service Personnel (Loan Service)
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the countries to which service personnel were on loan service in 1987- 88, showing numbers and ranks of personnel.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : During 1987 and 1988 British service personnel served on loan to the following countries :
Australia
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
Brunei
Dominica
Fiji
Gambia
Ghana
Hong Kong
Indonesia
Jordan
Kenya
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KuwaitLesotho
Malaysia
Mauritius
New Zealand
Nigeria
Oman
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
St. Lucia
St. Vincent
Singapore
Sudan
Swaziland
Uganda
United Arab Emirates
Zimbabwe
Since January 1986 a wing of the British military advisory and training team has been specifically allocated to train Mozambican troops in Zimbabwe.
Information on the numbers and ranks of loan service personnel is confidential between Her Majesty's Government and the Governments of the countries concerned.
West Germany (Co-operation)
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in what areas other than training and logistics the United Kingdom is currently engaged in bilateral co-operation with the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : We co-operate closely with the Federal Republic of Germany on a broad range of defence matters of mutual interest as a contribution to our joint commitment to the NATO Alliance. In addition to training and logistics, these include defence policy questions, operational planning, defence procurement matters, and concepts. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and his German counterpart have recently agreed on a number of measures to extend Anglo-German bilateral co- operation within the Alliance and are considering the establishment of a joint air defence unit in Germany.
Nuclear Artillery
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the extent of deployment at the latest available date of nuclear artillery by North Atlantic Treaty Organisation forces.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Information on the deployment of nuclear- certified artillery by North Atlantic Treaty Organisation forces is provided in chapter 6 and figure 12 of the "Statement on the Defence Estimates 1989" (Cm. 675-I).
Brunei
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the purpose of maintaining a garrison in Brunei.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The presence of the Gurkha battalion in Brunei, which is by the mutual agreement of the two Governments, contributes to the stability of Brunei and the surrounding area. In addition, the battalion, which is normally found in rotation from the Hong Kong garrison, has in Brunei opportunities for training which are not available in Hong Kong.
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Cruise Missiles
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to locate sea-launched cruise missiles at bases in Scotland.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : It has been the policy of successive Governments neither to confirm nor deny the presence of nuclear weapons at particular locations.
Major Equipment Orders
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the expenditure for each of the three services separately on major equipment orders as set out in table 5, page 30 of Cm. 675-I ; and what was the share taken up in Scotland as a proportion of each service expenditure and of the total for all three.
Mr. Alan Clark : The comprehensive and consistent information required in answer to the first part of the hon. Member's question could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to the hon. Member for Fife, North-East (Mr. Campbell) on 5 December 1988 at column 73 in answer to the second part of his question.
Royal Navy (External Contractors)
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the Royal Navy's expenditure in the latest available year on using external contractors' aircraft, aircrew and maintenance personnel in target simulation and electronic warfare training ; and what proportion was taken up by companies registered in Scotland.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Because these tasks are undertaken by a single contractor, the information requested is commercial in confidence between the Ministry of Defence and the contractor concerned and cannot be divulged to a third party. No
Scottish-registered companies received any portion of this work.
Chemical Weapons
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which members of the Warsaw pact other than the Soviet Union produce chemical weapons.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : All non-Soviet Warsaw pact countries have civil chemical industries capable of producing chemical warfare agents and their pre-cursors. We have good reason to believe that several non-Soviet Warsaw pact countries have undertaken offensive chemical warfare research and development programmes and that in some cases these have been taken forward to the production stage.
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which NATO countries have chemical warfare stocks.
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