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START Negotiations
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his Department's assessment as to the percentage reduction in the total number of strategic nuclear weapons that would occur as a result of the successful outcome of the current START negotiations.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : It is not possible to forecast the precise percentage reductions in the number of United States and Soviet strategic offensive weapons systems which may result from a START agreement.
Population Decline
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his Department's assessment of the impact upon the armed forces of the decline in the number of 16 to 19-year-old males in the United Kingdom between 1989 and 1993 ; and how great his Department assesses that decline to be.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The greatest impact of the decline in the number of 16 to 19-year-old males will be in the recruiting field. The services expect a drop of 10.8 per cent. in the number of potential male other rank recruits and a drop of 5.7 per cent. in the number of potential male officer recruits between 1989 and 1993. Consequently, competition for suitably qualified young men will increase. The services will continue to make every effort to recruit the numbers they require.
Trained Service Personnel
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his Department's latest assessment of the short-fall in the number of trained service personnel in each of the armed services.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Shortfalls in service manpower are measured by comparing adult trained strengths against trained manpower requirements. As at 30 June 1989, shortfalls were :
Royal Navy 786, Royal Marines 10, Army 4,113, Royal Air Force 3, 566.
In order to encourage greater efficiency in the use of manpower, policy decisions have been taken to aim manpower plans at levels a little below the full requirement. Not all of these shortfalls are, therefore, unplanned.
Column 483
Free-fall Bombs
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether a programme of refurbishment would enable the United Kingdom's WE177 free- fall bombs to be kept in serviceable operation beyond the 1990's.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The existing United Kingdom free-fall nuclear bomb is subject to regular inspection, maintenance and refurbishment, and will remain in service only if it continues to meet the requirements for safety and serviceability.
British Registered Cars
Mr. Speed : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what restrictions there are in British registered cars entering the sovereign base area from (a) north Cyprus, and (b) from the south ; what are the reasons for the differences in such restrictions ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : As long as British-registered vehicles are legally imported to the island of Cyprus, and properly insured in accordance with local legislation, they may freely enter the sovereign base areas.
Loan Service Personnel
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what definition his Department uses of the term loan service personnel ; (2) whether military personnel are seconded to assist in the training of foreign armies or armed units other than as loan service personnel ;
(3) whether special forces may be used as loan service personnel.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Service personnel may be loaned from the United Kingdom Armed Forces for service with a Commonwealth or foreign country on either loan service or secondment terms. The principal difference is that loan service personnel are administered and paid by the United Kingdom authorities in the normal way while seconded personnel are wholly administered and receive their pay and allowances directly from the host nation. Individuals selected for loan service or secondment may be drawn from all parts of the Armed Forces.
Boscombe Down
Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about corrosive liquid alleged to have fallen from aircraft at the aircraft and armament experimental establishment at Boscombe down ; and if he will compensate those whose property has been damaged.
Mr. Neubert : We have received a few reports of car paintwork damaged by droplets of a fluid which may have been discharged from an aircraft operating from the aircraft and armaments experimental establishment at Boscombe down on the afternoon of 25 October. The MOD accepts that it is probable that this damage was caused by the discharge of the fluid, which was a variant of antifreeze. MOD will consider claims for compensation from those whose property has been damaged.
Column 484
SCOTLAND
Woodlands
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list by region those Forestry Commission woodlands disposed of during each of the last three years, stating for each disposal the hectarage involved.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 3 February 1989 at column 415 to a question from him on the same subject. A list of sales of Forestry Commission woodlands between 22 October 1984 and 21 December 1988 was placed in the Library of the House at that time. A re-ordering of that list into separate years could only be carried out at disproportionate cost. The woodlands sold by the commission between 22 December 1988 and 31 March 1989 are as follows :
Name of property |County/region |Area (hectares)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
England
Bushes Wood |Buckinghamshire |5.0
Kings Wood Pentewan |Cornwall |60.0
Pendarves Wood |Cornwall |17.0
Crag Wood Ulpha |Cumbria |3.5
Farleigh Wallop Lot 7 |Hampshire |11.0
Scales Park & East Wood |Hertfordshire |90.0
Hampstead Est. Cpts. 41 & 42 |Isle of Wight |23.0
Broadmeadows |Lancashire |26.2
Pt. Little Wood |Norfolk |1.1
Oxborough Woods |Norfolk |36.5
Oxborough Woods |Norfolk |16.5
Oxborough Woods |Norfolk |9.5
Featherstone Castle Est. |Northumberland |24.0
Titlington |Northumberland |56.1
Plumpton Wood |North Yorkshire |7.7
Hand Leasow Wood |Shropshire |48.0
Stiperstones |Shropshire |1.0
Lordshill |Shropshire |3.0
Whettleton & Rottingwood |Shropshire |37.5
Rough Hill |Warwickshire |9.0
Higher House and Land |West Yorkshire |6.2
Wales
Coednant Barcutan |Clwyd |4.7
Pwll Glas |Clwyd |5.3
Pen-yr-Heol Ddu |Dyfed |10.2
Allt Ty Cam |Dyfed |4.4
Coed Glan Leri |Dyfed |7.2
Talog Package |Dyfed |14.0
Talog Package |Dyfed |11.0
Talog Package |Dyfed |9.0
Talog Package |Dyfed |5.0
Wern Halog Woods |Dyfed |16.3
Trevella Woods |Gwent |25.7
Poolhead Wood |Gwent |5.0
Coed-y-Trauch, Coed Llyneu |Gwent |21.1
Lower Machen |Gwent |7.5
Madryn Castle Woodlands |Gwynedd |82.1
Llwynbedw Isaf |Gwynedd |5.3
Access to Waterloo Wood |Gwynedd |1.0
Dinas Mawddwy Lot 2 |Gwynedd |58.2
Mynogau Cpts. 1-3, 6, 8, & 12 |Gwynedd |318.8
Pentre Tips |Mid Glamorgan |27.8
Moelgilau |Mid Glamorgan |36.0
Scotland
Thicket and Broomy Braes |Borders |31.8
Tir Arthur |Central |74.0
|Dumfries and
Dullarg Wood |Galloway |24.0
|Dumfries and
Lochfergus |Galloway |13.0
|Dumfries and
Barraer Additional |Galloway |6.6
High Valleyfield |Fife |28.0
Auchinroath |Grampian |27.8
Loch Insh Plantation |Highland |19.5
Borthwick |Lothian |29.8
Big Wood Pencaitland |Lothian |32.4
Blackbyres Plantation |Strathclyde |5.0
Morenish |Tayside |20.0
Firbush Plantations |Tayside |113.0
Set-aside Scheme
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will allow fibre-producing or other animals to be added to existing set- aside scheme provision in Scotland.
Column 486
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : No. While Community rules allow member states to permit land fallowed under the set-aside scheme to be used for extensive grazing of agricultural animals, the Government have decided not to take up this option. In arriving at this decision we recognised that the grazing of set-aside land could create unfair competition for existing livestock producers, and particularly for those hill and upland farmers who have few, if any, alternatives to livestock rearing. Community rules do not allow member states to restrict the grazing option to certain types of animals--whether used for fibre, milk or meat--even in cases where these would pose fewer competition problems.
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give figures showing the set-aside take-up in each EEC country.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The latest comparative information available to us is set out in the table as follows :
Column 485
Member State Number of applicArea to be set aProportion of Average set-aside per
(1988-89) (hectares) set-aside area as applicant (hectares)
percentage of
|Arable land |Area in cereals
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Belgium |32 |329 |<1>- |<1>- |10.2
France |1,002 |15,707 |<1>- |0.1 |15.6
Greece |n/a
Ireland |77 |1,310 |0.1 |0.3 |17.0
Italy |<2>9,301 |<2>155,606 |1.8 |3.1 |16.7
Netherlands |195 |2,621 |0.3 |1.3 |13.4
Spain |518 |34,229 |0.3 |0.4 |66.1
West Germany |25,289 |169,729 |2.4 |3.6 |6.7
United Kingdom |1,750 |54,779 |0.9 |1.3 |31.3
|---- |---- |---- |---- |----
Totals |38,164 |434,310 |0.9 |1.3 |11.3
<1> Lower than 0.1 per cent.
<2> Provisional figures.
The scheme was not applied in Denmark or Luxembourg in the 1988-89 agricultural season ; and Portugal is exempt.
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what studies he has commissioned on set-aside and what plans he has to review existing provisions.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The North of Scotland College of Agriculture has been commissioned to carry out a study to evaluate the uptake and economic impact of the set-aside scheme, as part of a United Kingdom-wide study. This will involve on-farm interviews of a sample of participating farmers. Consideration is currently being given to the need for any further research into the agronomic and environmental impact of the scheme, over and above projects already being undertaken by the Scottish agricultural college.
The provisions of the scheme are already under close review, in the light of experience gained during the first year of its operation. My right hon. and learned Friend will in due course consider, with the other agriculture Ministers, whether any changes in the scheme rules are warranted.
Organic Farming
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what action his Department is taking to promote research projects on organic farming, and what funding has been allocated to these projects.
Column 486
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : My Department is currently funding a number of research and development projects by the Scottish agricultural colleges which are both directly and indirectly relevant to organic farming. The cost of this work in 1989-90 is about £200, 000. The Edinburgh university centre for human ecology and the Edinburgh school of agriculture are undertaking a joint pilot project over two years to demonstrate the viability of organic farming. The Scottish Development Agency is contributing £175,000 to this project which is also supported by the European Community and Safeway plc.
Farmers (Surpluses)
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proposals he has to make assistance available to help farmers in Scotland convert from surplus to non-surplus crops and livestock.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Council regulation (EEC) No. 1094/88 requires all member states to introduce aid schemes to encourage the conversion of production towards non-surplus products. A proposal by the EC Commission for a Council regulation listing eligible products and setting out the main conditions for payment of aid is currently before the Agriculture Council. Once a Council regulation is adopted, and the necessary detailed implementing regulation has been made by the EC Commission, the agriculture departments will consider the content of a conversion scheme for the United Kingdom.
Column 487
Local Government Finance
Mr. Wilson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will state what measures he intends to take to protect poll tax payers from increases of more than £3 per week, over previous domestic rates payments.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : My right hon. and learned Friend has announced that a scheme of transitional relief will operate in Scotland. Details of the scheme are at present the subject of discussions with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities. The scheme will be targeted at households comprising former ratepayers, pensioners and the disabled.
Column 488
Sheltered Housing
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will provide a table showing the total provision of sheltered housing by dwellings and by bedspaces, and of amenity housing by dwelling by public agencies on 31 March or the latest available date ; and if he will provide a breakdown of that provision by local authority, Scottish Homes, new towns and housing associations.
Mr. Rifkind : The information requested, at 31 March 1989, is set out in the following table. Scottish Homes did not begin operation until 1 April 1989 so the figures given relate to the Scottish Special Housing Association.
Column 487
Provision of special needs housing at 31 March 1989<1>
|Local authority |New town |SSHA |Housing association|Total
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sheltered housing<2>
Dwellings |14,705 |434 |1,841 |9,650 |26,630
Bedspaces |27,519 |774 |3,220 |15,239 |46,752
Amenity housing dwellings |9,185 |1,581 |292 |1,256 |12,314
<1> Where district information is outstanding for 1989, details for earlier year have been included.
<2> Includes sheltered wheelchair.
Public Sector Landlords
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will provide information showing the total number of applications made to him by public sector landlords under section 69 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 and previously under section 3 of the Tenants' Rights, Etc. (Scotland) Act 1980 and section 1 of the Tenants' Rights, Etc. (Scotland) Amendment Act 1980 ; if he will give his information for each of the years to date since 1980 ; and if he will further give the total number of cases where he has authorised a landlord to serve a notice of refusal for each of the years to date since 1980.
Mr. Rifkind : The information requested is set out in the following table.
Year |<1>Number|<2>Number ---------------------------------------- 1980 |3 |- 1981 |8 |1 1982 |- |- 1983 |4 |2 1984 |4 |2 1985 |12 |7 1986 |5 |3 1987 |15 |7 1988 |36 |22 <3>1989 |18 |10 <1>Applications. <2>Authorisations to serve notices of refusal. <3>To 30 September 1989.
Laboratory and Radiodiagnostic Services
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Council of the British Medical Association about the proposed competitive tendering for laboratory and radiodiagnostic services within Greater Glasgow health board, and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Officials of the Scottish Home and Health Department met representatives of the
Column 488
Scottish Council of the British Medical Association and of the Scottish Joint Consultants Committee on Friday 6 October to discuss a number of matters of mutual concern including competitive tendering in clinically related services.Lithotriptor Centres
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, when he expects the pilot scheme of new invoicing between the Scottish lithotriptor and customer boards to end.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The pilot scheme was introduced for the financial year 1989-90. No decision has yet been made about arrangements for the next financial year.
Substandard Housing
Mr. Maxton : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish a table showing the number of houses that are (a) below the tolerable standard, (b) require comprehensive modernisation, (c) require major repairs and (d) are affected by dampness, in the public and private sectors, respectively, in each district and islands area ; and if he will estimate the cost of carrying out the necessary repairs and improvements.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Returns from local authorities show that the number of houses in Scotland which are below the tolerable standard as at 31 March 1988, in the public and private sectors, is as set out in table 1. Details of local authority stock with dampness and condensation dampness as at 31 March 1988 are set out in Table 2. Comparable information on dampness for other than local authority houses is not held centrally.
The Government have neither information on the number of houses requiring comprehensive modernisation or major repairs, nor information which would allow an estimate to be made of the cost of any necessary works.
Column 489
Table 1
Dwellings below the tolerable standard by tenure
Scotland, as at 31 March 1988
|Public sector<1> |Housing association|Private sector |Tenure not known
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scotland |906 |285 |35,368 |22,318
Borders
Berwickshire |0 |0 |826 |0
Ettrick and Lauderdale |4 |0 |541 |0
Roxburgh |0 |0 |255 |0
Tweeddale |n/a |n/a |n/a |425
Central
Clackmannan |0 |0 |474 |0
Falkirk |43 |0 |435 |0
Stirling |6 |1 |566 |0
Dumfries and Galloway
Annandale and Eskdale |0 |0 |189 |0
Nithsdale |0 |0 |801 |0
Stewartry |0 |0 |159 |0
Wigtown |0 |0 |78 |0
Fife
Dunfermline |10 |0 |406 |0
Kirkcaldy |0 |0 |733 |0
North East Fife |37 |0 |1,361 |0
Grampian
Aberdeen |314 |30 |1,120 |0
Banff and Buchan |1 |0 |1,543 |0
Gordon |0 |0 |408 |0
Kincardine and Deeside |n/a |n/a |n/a |375
Moray |46 |0 |1,170 |0
Highland
Badenoch and Strathspey |0 |0 |253 |0
Caithness |0 |0 |285 |0
Inverness |10 |0 |584 |0
Lochaber |0 |0 |131 |0
Nairn |0 |0 |39 |0
Ross and Cromarty |0 |0 |2,500 |0
Skye and Lochalsh |0 |0 |650 |0
Sutherland |0 |0 |519 |0
Lothian
East Lothian |12 |0 |773 |0
Edinburgh |0 |0 |4,732 |0
Midlothian |6 |82 |464 |0
West Lothian |0 |0 |510 |0
Strathclyde
Argyll and Bute |n/a |n/a |n/a |4,000
Bearsden and Milngavie |3 |0 |26 |0
Clydebank |0 |0 |12 |0
Clydesdale |2 |0 |360 |0
Cumbernauld & Kilsyth |0 |8 |57 |0
Cumnock and Doon Valley |19 |10 |172 |0
Cunninghame |0 |0 |2,118 |0
Dumbarton |9 |0 |100 |0
East Kilbride |0 |0 |103 |0
Eastwood |0 |0 |12 |0
Glasgow |n/a |n/a |n/a |16,010
Hamilton |0 |0 |820 |0
Inverclyde |0 |103 |1,009 |0
Kilmarnock and Loudoun |12 |0 |230 |0
Kyle and Carrick |0 |0 |339 |0
Monklands |0 |0 |222 |0
Motherwell |99 |0 |677 |0
Renfrew |263 |0 |844 |0
Strathkelvin |0 |0 |33 |0
Tayside
Angus |4 |1 |887 |0
Dundee |0 |50 |2,200 |0
Perth and Kinross |0 |0 |668 |0
Orkney Islands |6 |0 |1,134 |0
Shetland Islands |0 |0 |928 |0
Western Isles |n/a |n/a |n/a |1,508
<1> Local authority, new towns, SSHA and Government Departments.
n/a=Not available.
Table 2
Local authority dwellings with dampness
Scotland as at 31 March 1986
|Rising and penetrating|Condensation and damp
|damp only
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCOTLAND |40,476 |77,819
Borders
Berwickshire |0 |0
Ettrick and Lauderdale |0 |300
Roxburgh<1> |- |-
Tweeddale |0 |0
Central
Clackmannan |425 |0
Falkirk |510 |5,560
Stirling |110 |0
Dumfries and Galloway
Annandale and Eskdale |0 |0
Nithsdale |450 |783
Stewartry |0 |0
Wigtown |20 |5
Fife
Dunfermline |18 |0
Kirkcaldy |0 |0
North East Fife |260 |186
Grampian
Aberdeen |Not known |Not known
Banff and Buchan |0 |0
Gordon |0 |238
Kincardine and Deeside |0 |259
Moray |67 |0
Highland
Badenoch and Strathspey |0 |0
Caithness |1 |0
Inverness |0 |242
Lochaber |390 |150
Nairn |0 |0
Ross and Cromarty<1> |0 |95
Skye and Lochalsh |0 |0
Sutherland |0 |0
Lothian
East Lothian |30 |1,418
Edinburgh<1> |620 |1,178
Midlothian |0 |0
West Lothian |0 |0
Strathclyde
Argyll and Bute |Not known |2,669
Bearsden and Milngavie |0 |0
Clydebank |0 |750
Clydescale |35 |786
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth |n/a |n/a
Cumnock and Doon Valley |0 |2,963
Cuninghame |124 |0
Dumbarton<1> |715 |2,490
East Kilbride |0 |0
Eastwood |0 |0
Glasgow<1> |16,485 |15,093
Hamilton |7,721 |7,501
Inverclyde |0 |9,121
Kilmarnock and Loudoun<1> |280 |4,499
Kyle and Carrick |0 |41
Monklands<1> |0 |175
Motherwell |8,564 |6,561
Renfrew |0 |10,300
Strathkelvin |0 |0
Tayside
Angus |0 |0
Dundee<1> |2,300 |2,331
Perth and Kinross |500 |1,000
Orkney Islands |0 |0
Shetland Islands |761 |572
Western Isles |90 |561
<1> Returns with outstanding queries
n/a Not available.
Mr. Maxton : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will show the number of (a) pensioners, (b) families with children and (c) other households living in housing which is below the tolerable standard.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : This information is not held centrally.
Bed and Breakfast Accommodation (Costs)
Mr. Maxton : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the most recent statistics for people in bed and breakfast accommodation in Scotland, paid for out of public funds.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : There are no overall figures for the number of persons in bed and breakfast accommodation paid for out of public funds. It is estimated that the number of households placed in such accommodation by local authorities under the provisions of the homeless persons legislation in Scotland at 30 June 1989 was 270.
Gaelic Broadcasting
Sir Russell Johnston : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what conclusions he has now reached on Comunn Na Gaidhlig's proposal for a Gaelic broadcasting council.
Mr. Lang : No decision has yet been taken on proposals for the establishment of a Gaelic broadcasting council. The Government are currently giving very careful consideration to the future of Gaelic broadcasting and an announcement of their conclusion will be made shortly.
Sir Russell Johnston : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met representatives of Comunn Na Gaidhlig to discuss Gaelic television.
Column 493
Mr. Lang : The Secretary of State met representatives of Comunn Na Gaidhlig on 17 April 1989 to hear their views on the future of Gaelic broadcasting.
Nuclear Waste (Dounreay)
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what progress has been made in the geological investigations at Dounreay for a deep repository for low and intermediate level radioactive wastes.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Investigations have not yet commenced. An application by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority on behalf of Nirex for planning permission to conduct test boring was refused by the planning authority, Highland regional council, on 12 July. An appeal was lodged by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority on 24 August and is at present under consideration by my right hon. and learned Friend.
Whitson-Fairhurst Houses
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the number and location of Whitson-Fairhurst houses in Scotland ; and what funds his Department has allocated to alleviate the problems inherent in this type of construction.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Information on Whitson-Fairhurst houses built for the private sector in Scotland is not held centrally. The number and location of such dwellings originally built for the public sector, including houses subsequently sold under right to buy, are shown in the following table.
Aggregate capital allocations are made to local authorities to enable broad programmes of work to proceed ; funds are not allocated specifically for work on any one type of house. It is for individual local authorities to determine their own policies and priorities for investment in their own housing stock and for assistance to the private sector ; and to programme capital expenditure accordingly within the resources made available. If councils identify a particular need for resources to cope with the inherent structural problems found in Whitson-Fairhurst houses then they should in the first instance include proposals for alleviating these problems in their housing capital programmes.
Whitson-Fairhurst houses in Scotland
originally built for the public sector
District |Number of houses
----------------------------------------------------------
Ettrick and Lauderdale |50
Roxburgh |50
Falkirk |100
Nithsdale |46
Wigtown |50
Dunfermline |154
Aberdeen |204
Inverness |100
Edinburgh |101
Bearsden and Milngavie |56
Clydebank |692
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth |84
Dumbarton |385
Hamilton |140
Kilmarnock and Loudoun |100
Monklands |200
Motherwell |179
Renfrew |80
Strathkelvin |66
Dundee |128
Perth and Kinross |150
|-------
Scotland Total |3,115
Note: These figures are estimates based on returns by
local authorities as at February 1985.
Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what research his Department has undertaken into methods of repairing or reinstating Whitson-Fairhurst houses ; and what advice his Department gives to local authorities regarding approved methods of dealing with this type of house.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The Scottish Development Department has no programme of research into methods of reinstating Whitson-Fairhurst houses. The work which must be done to rectify the inherent defect in such houses is well known. The Scottish Development Department does not directly advise local authorities of approved methods of repairing such houses : authorities are aware that such advice is available from PRC Homes Ltd.
Channel Tunnel
Mr. Darling : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations has he received with regard to railway links in Scotland and those between Scotland and the Channel tunnel.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland has received a number of representations from individuals, Members of Parliament and organisations on rail links within Scotland and between Scotland and the Channel tunnel. The provision of such links is however a matter for British Rail and the terms of the representations have been made known to BR through contact at either ministerial or official level.
Lowland Airports Policy
Mr. Bill Walker : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what evidence he has received from businesses in Scotland concerning Scottish lowland airports policy.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State is presently receiving, from businesses in Scotland, copies of their responses to the Secretary of State for Transport's consultative document on Scottish lowland airports policy. The consultation exercise ends on 29 November and any submissions received will be taken fully into account in the review now in progress.
YTS
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many (a) 16-year-olds and (b) 17-year-olds there are in Scotland ; and how many in each of those age groups have secured a training placement under the youth training scheme.
Mr. Lang : The projected Scottish populations of 16 and 17-year-olds in 1989 are :
Column 495
|Numbers
---------------------------------
(a) 16-year-olds |71,378
(b) 17-year-olds |76,716
|----
Total |148,094
At September 1989 there were 50,708 YTS trainees in Scotland. This figure is made up primarily of 16 and 17-year-olds but will include some 18-year- olds. The training agency no longer collects data on numbers of YTS trainees by age.
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many YTS places have been contracted with managing agents in Scotland ; and if he will list them by regional council area.
Mr. Lang : The numbers of YTS places contracted with managing agents in Scotland in total and by regional council area are set out in the table :
Regional Council area |Number of YTS places
|contracted
------------------------------------------------------------------
Strathclyde |29,101
Dumfries and Galloway |1,705
Grampian |4,757
Tayside |4,280
Lothian |6,719
Borders |864
Central |4,164
Fife |5,133
Orkney |244
Shetland |204
Western Isles |290
Highland |2,565
|---
Total |60,026
Scottish Development Agency
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is considering realising the assets of the Scottish Development Agency.
Mr. Lang : At the request of my right hon. and learned Friend the agency has submitted proposals for the disposal of parts of its property and investment portfolios. Discussions on these proposals are progressing satisfactorily with the aim of ensuring that any disposals are carried out in an effective manner consistent with Government policy. The agency has disposed of properties and investments on an individual basis for a number of years.
Schools (Spending)
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the capital spend on (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools within the local authority education system in Scotland in each year since 1978 to 1989 up to and including 1988-89 ; and give these figures both at outturn prices and expressed at 1988-89 prices.
Mr. Lang : The information available is given in the following table, which has been compiled from local authority financial returns. Expenditure on primary and secondary schools is not separately identified in these returns. The reduction in expenditure in real terms during the period reflects a substantial and progressive decline in pupil numbers.
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Capital expenditure by local authorities on primary and secondary
schools
|£ million
Year |At outturn prices|At 1988-89 prices
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1978-79 |49.503 |108.608
1979-80 |44.958 |84.563
1980-81 |49.637 |78.752
1981-82 |55.165 |79.749
1982-83 |49.728 |67.135
1983-84 |43.359 |55.945
1984-85 |43.431 |53.399
1985-86 |48.368 |56.371
1986-87 |43.011 |48.570
1987-88 |44.340 |47.576
<1>1988-89 |57.157 |57.157
<1> provisional
Note: The outturn figures have been converted to 1988-89 prices using
the GDP deflator.
Local Government Finance
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will set out the policy considerations on which he based his recent decisions to amend provisions relating to the poll tax ; and what consideration he gave to alternative amendments.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Experience of the operation of the community charge in Scotland has enabled us to identify improvements which will result in chargepayers being treated more equitably. We are therefore making a number of changes to the legislation. These include changes to the standard community charge arrangements, widening of the exemption for people who are severely mentally impaired and the introduction of a transitional relief scheme to assist people who have faced a significant increase in expenditure as a result of replacing domestic rates with the community charge.
Pentland Firth (Crossing)
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations he has received from Orkney Islands council regarding the construction of infrastructure for the proposed short sea crossing of the Pentland firth between Burwick and Gills bay.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Orkney Islands council has applied to the Secretary of State for a harbour empowerment order to operate as a harbour authority at Gills bay. They already hold such powers at Burwick. The council has also inquired about the availability of ERDF funds for the terminals and has been told that no such funds are available.
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether his Department has received any request for support for the proposed short sea crossing of the Pentland firth between Burwick and Gills bay, and the associated infrastructure developments.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : No request has been received for central Government grant towards the Burwick and Gills bay terminals. In January 1989 Orkney Ferries plc requested to be considered for a tariff subsidy similar to that paid to P & O Ferries by my Department. I said at that time that I would want to see the ferry service in operation before considering such a request.
Column 497
Prisons
Mr. Mallon : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give (a) the optimum operational capacity of each prison in Scotland and (b) the actual numbers of prisoners currently housed in each prison in Scotland.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The information is set out in the table :
|Design capacity|Prisoners<1>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HMP Aberdeen |139 |132
HMP Barlinnie |979 |812
HMYOI Castle Huntly |144 |110
HMI Cornton Vale |225 |125
HMYOI Dumfries |144 |137
HMP Dungavel |147 |118
HMP Edinburgh |547 |514
HMP Friarton |82 |48
HMP & Detention Centre Glenochil |678 |415
HMP Greenock |176 |161
HMP Inverness |84 |94
HM Remand Institution Longriggend |176 |228
HMP Low Moss |400 |307
HMP Noranside |119 |111
HMP Penninghame |73 |71
HMP Perth |510 |426
HMP Peterhead |183 |122
HMYOI Polmont |408 |390
HMP Shotts |528 |459
<1> Housed as at 27 October 1989.
Mr. Mallon : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total prison population in Scotland, in each of the years since 1980.
Column 498
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The average daily prison population in 1988 is provisionally estimated as 5,229. For earlier years, corresponding figures are given in appendix 2 of the annual report "Prisons in Scotland Report for 1987" (Cm 551) copies of which are available in the Library.
Schoolchildren (Clothes)
Mr. Steel : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish in the Official Report a list of expenditure by local education authorities in Scotland on clothes for schoolchildren.
Mr. Rifkind [holding answer 3 November 1989] : The latest available figures from local authorities are in respect of financial year 1987-88 and are as follows :
Education Authority |Expenditure (£'000) ------------------------------------------------------------- Borders |53 Central |367 Dumfies and Galloway |2 Fife |390 Grampian |78 Highland |133 Lothian |847 Strathclyde |3,321 Tayside |260 Orkney |6 Shetland |- Western Isles |7
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