| Previous Section | Home Page |
Average daily prison population in Scotland per 100,000 population Year |Convicted|Untried ---------------------------------------- 1986 |94 |16 1987 |92 |15 <1>1988 |89 |14 <1> Provisional.
Law of Damages
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when the Scottish Law Commission will complete its review of the civil law of damages in Scotland.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : I asked the Scottish Law Commission in mid-September to consider the case for amending the law of damages in Scotland having regard to the possibility that there may be an incentive in the present law for a defender to postpone making settlement until after the death of the pursuer to minimise the amount of any compensation. The commission has accorded the matter priority and hopes to issue a discussion paper in 1990. It is too early to say when the commission's report will be completed.
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will introduce interim measures in civil litigation in actions for damages for personal injuries
Column 278
(a) to prevent defenders seeking to delay hearings, (b) to allow courts to increase an award of damages where it is considered that there has been a deliberate use of delay by defenders in preventing cases from coming to a hearing, submissions of appeals on spurious grounds, or otherwise, (c) to encourage realistic settlements of claims at an early stage and (d) to permit executors to pursue claims for personal injuries of a deceased family member.Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : No. Interim measures on these lines would be inappropriate. Under existing provisions, the Court of Session or the sheriff may--by an award of expenses, or otherwise--act to prevent a party abusing court procedures by unreasonable delay. In addition, interest is payable on damages from the date when the claimant's loss occurred. However, the Scottish Law Commission has been asked to consider the case for amending the law of damages in Scotland having regard to the possibility that defenders may delay an action to minimise the amount of compensation payable in the event of the claimant's death before conclusion of the action.
British Medical Association
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will institute an investigation to find out the source of the leak of the confidential British Medical Association correspondence to The Sunday Times, Scotland.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The correspondence concerned was not marked confidential and I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I have given today to the hon. Member for Tayside, North (Mr. Walker).
Employment Training
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many inspectors examine employment training schemes, by region in Scotland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lang : The Training Agency has 115 staff in Scotland monitoring training agents and training managers, and six training standards inspectors. Financial checks on all employment training providers are carried out by the Training Agency's professional accountant. The Training Agency also employs independent consultants to undertake a range of quality development tasks. The activities of many of these staff cross regional boundaries and it is therefore impossible to give a regional breakdown.
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has received any recent representations regarding the operation of the employment training scheme in Scotland.
Mr. Lang : In the last six months my right hon. and learned Friend has received 10 representations about the operation of employment training in Scotland.
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the bodies in Scotland which have been asked to make improvements in their performance to comply with the terms of their contract under the employment training scheme.
Mr. Lang : I cannot provide details of individual training agents and training managers who have been
Column 279
asked to improve their performance because the terms of contract with these organisations require such communications to be treated as commercial in confidence.Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of trainees in the employment training scheme in Scotland go into full-time employment ; what proportion leave the scheme and return to unemployment ; and how many instructors have the appropriate qualifications for the supervisory work that they undertake.
Mr. Lang : At present information about employment training trainees in Scotland who find full-time employment or return to unemployment is unavailable. A 100 per cent. follow-up survey which will provide such data is now under way.
All supervisory staff of employment training providers are required to be competent to undertake such work and these training providers are expected to have plans to develop and update the skills of their staff.
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is taking to monitor the effectiveness of the employment training scheme in Scotland ; and if he has any proposals to improve the current level of accountability of all training agencies in Scotland.
Mr. Lang : Under the approved training organisations scheme, the ability of each training organisation to meet the Training Agency's quality requirements is being assessed. All training organisations that wish to continue as employment training providers will be expected to achieve approved training organisation status.
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how frequently inspections are made of employment training schemes in Scotland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lang : Frequent visits to training agents and training managers are undertaken by Training Agency staff in accordance with a laid down sampling framework. The frequency of visits will vary and will be governed by agency's confidence in the organisations visited.
Rents-into-Mortgages Scheme
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to extend his rents-into-mortgages scheme to local authority tenants.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The rents to mortgages scheme introduced by Scottish Homes is a trial scheme which is intended to run for three years, during which it will be subject to very careful monitoring and a full evaluation to ensure that any changes in content or in application which might be appropriate can be made as soon as possible.
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to use television advertising to promote his
rents-into-mortgages scheme.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : No. The experimental scheme now in operation is restricted in application to a specified group of tenants. Promotion of the scheme will be through a careful targeting of that group of tenants, rather than through the widespread publicity of a television campaign.
Column 280
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the estates owned by Scottish Homes, showing their locations ; and if he will estimate the average income of eligible tenants for participation in the rents-into-mortgages scheme for those estates.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Scottish Homes owns houses in some 600 locations in Scotland. I will write to my hon. Friend with the list shortly.
We have no information on tenants' incomes in these areas on which to base an estimate of the average income of those tenants eligible for participation in the rents to mortgages scheme.
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the number of applications he has received to date from eligible tenants wishing to convert their rents into mortgages.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Applications are made to Scottish Homes which is the body responsible for the operation of the scheme. As at 27 November one application from an eligible tenant has been received by that body.
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the number of inquiries since 30 October which have been received from eligible tenants willing to convert their rents into mortgages.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Since my right hon. and learned Friend's announcement of the formal launch of the scheme on 30 October, at least 360 inquiries have been received.
At this stage we have insufficient information on the persons making these inquiries to enable us to say what percentage are eligible to purchase under the rents to mortgages scheme.
Scottish Homes (Sales)
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of Scottish Homes dwellings were sold prior to 30 October.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The number of Scottish Homes dwellings sold prior to 30 October 1989 was 3,566, representing 4.8 per cent. of the dwellings inherited by that body on 1 April 1989.
Health Service
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects to announce which hospitals are to become independent hospital trusts.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : My right hon. and learned Friend will consider each initial proposal carefully before deciding whether to seek a full application, and announcements will be made as decisions are taken.
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much money was raised in prescription charges in Scotland in each year from 1979-80 to 1987-88 ; and into what fund these receipts are paid.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The total amounts raised from prescription charges in Scotland were as follows :
|£ million
------------------------------
1979-80 |4.247
1980-81 |7.597
1981-82 |9.879
1982-83 |11.805
1983-84 |12.798
1984-85 |13.976
1985-86 |15.313
1986-87 |18.869
1987-88 |17.233
The prescription charges collected in Scotland in the family practitioner services are credited to class XVI, vote 17, subheads A2 and AZ.
Mr. Bill Walker : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give details of his latest negotiations with the British Medical Association with regard to general practitioner contracts in Scotland ; and if he will publish the British Medical Association's latest letters on this matter.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 24 November 1989] : Formal negotiations with the British Medical Association on the new contract for general practitioners culminated in the agreement reached with the GMSC negotiators on 4 May. Since then, and despite the rejection of that agreement by a number of doctors, there has been extensive consultation with the British Medical Association, including the Scottish General Medical Services Committee, on the draft regulations, statement of fees and allowances and other matters relating to the implementation of the new contract. Within the terms of the 4 May agreement, I remain willing to consider any matters affecting the detailed implementation of the contract in Scotland which the SGMSC may wish to draw to my attention to take account of the particular circumstances of doctors in Scotland. These have been the subject of correspondence between me or officials and the British Medical Association. I have arranged for copies of the latest letters from the chariman of the Scottish General Medical Services Committee to be placed in the Library of the House.
Column 282
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Manufactured Goods (Imports)
Mr. Darling : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what was the increase in import penetration of manufactured goods from 1979 until the first quarter of the current year.
Mr. Redwood : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave him on 1 November 1989, at column 258.
Task Force (Leicester)
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the current position of the task force which he established in Leicester.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The Highfields (Leicester) task force closed its doors on 31 October after closure was announced on 9 March this year.
A number of projects will continue to receive financial and other forms of support over the next 12 months. These include a construction skills training centre, and a public-private sector inner city partnership which will act as a focal point for encouraging enterprise development locally. I will be in Leicester on 1 December to launch the partnership.
Trade Deficit (West Germany)
Mr. Watson : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will estimate the manufacturing trade deficit with West Germany.
Mr. Redwood : In the first nine months of 1989 imports of manufactures into the United Kingdom consigned from the Federal Republic of Germany exceeded United Kingdom exports to that country by £7,411 million.
South Africa
Mr. Hanley : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what has been the trend of trade with South Africa in recent years by (a) the United Kingdom (b) Canada, (c) Australia, (d) New Zealand and (e) India.
Mr. Redwood : Shares of these countries in South Africa's total trade in the five years to 1988 are as follows :
Column 281
South Africa Trade <1>
Percentage Shares by Partner Country
|United Kingdom|Australia |New Zealand |Canada |India
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1984 |7.4 |0.9 |0.1 |0.9 |NA
1985 |8.3 |0.8 |0.1 |0.8 |NA
1986 |7.5 |0.7 |0.1 |1.1 |NA
1987 |7.1 |0.6 |0.1 |0.6 |NA
1988 |7.4 |0.4 |0.1 |0.5 |NA
<1>exports plus imports not available
Source: IMF Direction of Trade Statistics.
Shops (Closing Down Offers)
Mr. Gregory : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has received any representations concerning shops which misrepresent their closing down in order to attract custom ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forth : There have been few complaints to date about the misrepresentation of closing down sales.
This term would normally imply a comparison with a previous, higher price at which goods were on offer. Any
Column 282
misrepresentation may therefore be considered an offence under the provisions of part III of the Consumer Protection Act 1987. I believe that this legislation provides sufficient safeguards for consumers.Column 283
Eastern Europe
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what advice his Department is issuing to businesses to help them develop trading links with countries in eastern Europe ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : The advice given depends on the needs and circumstances of individual businesses. My Department provides information about the economic changes in eastern Europe and their implications, and about specific opportunities for business and investment. Companies are encouraged to make full use of existing mechanisms for undertaking market research and pursuing identified opportunities. These include Government- supported joint commissions, sectoral working groups, seminars, missions and exhibitions, as well as the know-how fund for Poland which is administered by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The know-how fund announced for Hungary will open in April.
Giro Bank
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the future of the Giro bank.
Mr. Forth : I have nothing to add to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Riverside (Mr. Parry) on 27 November.
Subsidy
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much direct subsidy was paid by (a) the United Kingdom Government, (b) the Italian Government and (c) the French Government to their domestic industry in 1987.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I regret that comparable figures for 1987 are not yet available. According to the European Commission, in 1986, the United Kingdom gave £1.9 billion, France £3.6 billion, Germany £4.8 billion and Italy £16 billion (or nine times as much as the United Kingdom). Average 1981-86 figures are as follows :
Aids to manufacturing industry (excluding steel and shipbuilding) Average 1981-86 (a) |(b) £ per |(c) ECU per Percentage of |worker |worker value added |France |Italy United Kingdom -------------------------------------------------------- (a) 2.9 |3.6 |15.8 (b) 448 |724 |3,523 (c) 757 |1,223 |5,951 Source: Survey of state aids-European Commission.
European Community
Mr. Skinner : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he next expects to meet European Economic Community Ministers to discuss trade ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : I intend to maintain close contact with all my EC counterparts, and a whole range of matters will be discussed.
Column 284
Footwear and Textiles
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many firms closed in the (a) footwear and (b) textile industry for each year since 1979.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The information is not available.
MFA (Silberston Report)
Mr. Robert Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the Silberston report on the multi- fibre arrangement.
Mr Redwood : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire (Mr. Kirkwood) on 19 October 1989, of column 176. The Government have received comments on the Silberston report from a number of organisations and these are now being considered.
Sales (Capacity Constraints)
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which industries wholly or mainly engaged in manufacturing importable and exportable goods were unable to increase sales to the United Kingdom market in 1988 because of capacity constraints ; and if he will provide similar figures for 1989 to date.
Mr. Redwood : Information on capacity constraints can be found in the results of the quarterly industrial trends surveys carried out by the Confederation of British Industry, copies of which are available in the House of Commons Library. Decisions as to whether to use available capacity to supply the home or the export market are matters for individual firms to decide on commercial grounds.
Estate Agents
Mr Sean Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what would be the cost to the Exchequer of implementing section 22 of the Estate Agents Act 1979 ;
(2) when he expects to give a considered response to the recommendation of Professor Likierman on the implementation of section 22 of the Estate Agents Act 1979 ;
(3) whether he has consulted the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, the National Association of Estate Agents, the Incorporated Society of Valuers and Auctioneers, and the Law Society regarding the main conclusions of the Likierman report ;
(4) whether he plans to implement the recommendation in the Likierman report, that estate agents should be brought under greater control through tests of competence.
Mr. Forth : The arguments for and against implementation of section 22 of the Estate Agents Act 1979 were examined in the review of estate agency which I completed in June. I decided against implementation for reasons which are set out in my report, copies of which are in the Library. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, the National Association of Estate Agents, the Incorporated Society of Valuers and Auctioneers and the Law Society were all consulted in the course of my review. Accordingly, I have no plans to consult these bodies about the
Column 285
recommendation in the Likierman report on section 22. No estimate has been made of the cost to the Exchequer of implementing section 22.European Business Co-operative Network
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information he has on how many companies subscribe to the European business co-operation network.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 27 November 1989] : At the end of each month, the Commission publishes figures on the number and types of companies subscribing to the business co-operation network (BC-Net). The latest set of statistics available, published at the end of October 1989, show that there are currently 5,604 subscribers, of which 23.9 per cent. are United Kingdom companies.
Inspections
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he expects the Guinness plc inspectors to complete their inspection.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 28 November 1989] : Not before the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when the James Ferguson (Holdings) plc inspectors completed their inspection ; and how much it cost.
Column 286
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 28 November 1989] : The inspection is continuing together with that into Barlow Clowes Gilt Managers Limited. Their combined cost to date is £1,216,085.
Regional Assistance
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what regional preferential assistance, including regional selective assistance, is in (a) cash terms and (b) 1988-89 process, as (i) the outturn for each financial year since 1978-79, (ii) plans for 1990-91, (iii) 1991-92 and 1992-93 and (iv) these figures broken down by region.
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much money has been spent in real terms in each eligible standard planning region of the United Kingdom on regional preferential assistance in each year from 1978-79 to 1988-89.
Dr. Kim Howells : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will outline, in constant prices, the total Government spending on regional policy in the United Kingdom for the period 1979 to 1989 inclusive.
Mr. Douglas Hogg [holding answer 24 and 27 November 1989] : The information requested for the financial years 1978-79 to 1988-89 is set out below. Information on provision for future years will be published in the public expenditure White Paper in January 1990.
Column 285
Table 2
Government expenditure on regional preferential assistance to industry at 1988-89 prices<1>,<5>
Region |1978-79 |1979-80 |1980-81 |1981-82 |1982-83 |1983-84 |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |347.9 |277.2 |230.5 |253.4 |214.1 |160.9 |149.9 |110.0 |154.7 |116.3 |133.2
Yorkshire and Humberside |81.9 |60.2 |82.8 |89.1 |71.5 |45.8 |51.4 |40.0 |46.7 |41.3 |49.9
East Midlands<3> |7.4 |7.7 |7.3 |12.4 |18.5 |22.7 |12.4 |9.7 |11.8 |10.0 |8.9
South West |21.0 |20.1 |18.2 |21.4 |22.2 |15.4 |16.8 |13.7 |25.0 |15.7 |14.5
West Midlands<4> |0.9 |0.2 |- |- |- |- |- |6.4 |11.3 |20.1 |25.5
North West |<6>249.6|<6>162.6|<6>206.4|<6>253.0|<6>167.2|<6>134.4|124.7 |100.1 |145.0 |84.1 |82.0
England |708.8 |528.0 |545.2 |629.3 |493.5 |379.2 |355.2 |279.9 |394.7 |287.5 |314.0
Wales |289.2 |188.0 |271.6 |286.7 |246.1 |150.7 |179.2 |160.4 |169.7 |141.4 |147.4
Scotland |336.3 |244.8 |305.7 |335.6 |499.0 |293.9 |219.9 |238.5 |272.6 |162.7 |151.1
Great Britain<2> |1,334.2 |960.8 |1,122.5 |1,251.7 |1,238.8 |823.8 |754.2 |678.8 |837.0 |591.6 |612.5
Northern Ireland |224.7 |203.1 |225.9 |167.4 |207.5 |148.4 |173.6 |184.9 |165.5 |136.1 |125.9
United Kingdom |1,558.9 |1,163.9 |1,348.4 |1,419.1 |1,446.3 |972.2 |927.8 |863.8 |1,002.5 |727.7 |738.4
<1>All figures are gross and include payments to nationalised industries.
<2>The totals do not always equal the sum of the component parts because of rounding.
<3>Includes some minor expenditure in west midlands in respect of Oswestry TTWA which ceased to be an assisted area in 1982-83.
<4>Certain TTWAS in the west midlands were designated as assisted areas on 29 November 1984.
<5>Expenditure on a 1988-89 price basis for each year is calculated by applying the appropriate deflator to expenditure at current
prices.
<6>Includes expenditure in Cumbria, otherwise shown within the totals for the Northern region.
Table 2
Government expenditure on regional preferential assistance to industry at 1988-89 prices<1>,<5>
Region |1978-79 |1979-80 |1980-81 |1981-82 |1982-83 |1983-84 |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |347.9 |277.2 |230.5 |253.4 |214.1 |160.9 |149.9 |110.0 |154.7 |116.3 |133.2
Yorkshire and Humberside |81.9 |60.2 |82.8 |89.1 |71.5 |45.8 |51.4 |40.0 |46.7 |41.3 |49.9
East Midlands<3> |7.4 |7.7 |7.3 |12.4 |18.5 |22.7 |12.4 |9.7 |11.8 |10.0 |8.9
South West |21.0 |20.1 |18.2 |21.4 |22.2 |15.4 |16.8 |13.7 |25.0 |15.7 |14.5
West Midlands<4> |0.9 |0.2 |- |- |- |- |- |6.4 |11.3 |20.1 |25.5
North West |<6>249.6|<6>162.6|<6>206.4|<6>253.0|<6>167.2|<6>134.4|124.7 |100.1 |145.0 |84.1 |82.0
England |708.8 |528.0 |545.2 |629.3 |493.5 |379.2 |355.2 |279.9 |394.7 |287.5 |314.0
Wales |289.2 |188.0 |271.6 |286.7 |246.1 |150.7 |179.2 |160.4 |169.7 |141.4 |147.4
Scotland |336.3 |244.8 |305.7 |335.6 |499.0 |293.9 |219.9 |238.5 |272.6 |162.7 |151.1
Great Britain<2> |1,334.2 |960.8 |1,122.5 |1,251.7 |1,238.8 |823.8 |754.2 |678.8 |837.0 |591.6 |612.5
Northern Ireland |224.7 |203.1 |225.9 |167.4 |207.5 |148.4 |173.6 |184.9 |165.5 |136.1 |125.9
United Kingdom |1,558.9 |1,163.9 |1,348.4 |1,419.1 |1,446.3 |972.2 |927.8 |863.8 |1,002.5 |727.7 |738.4
<1>All figures are gross and include payments to nationalised industries.
<2>The totals do not always equal the sum of the component parts because of rounding.
<3>Includes some minor expenditure in west midlands in respect of Oswestry TTWA which ceased to be an assisted area in 1982-83.
<4>Certain TTWAS in the west midlands were designated as assisted areas on 29 November 1984.
<5>Expenditure on a 1988-89 price basis for each year is calculated by applying the appropriate deflator to expenditure at current
prices.
<6>Includes expenditure in Cumbria, otherwise shown within the totals for the Northern region.
The items included in the expenditure are regional development grants and regional selective assistance ; regional enterprise grants ; expenditure on land and factories by the English Industrial Estates Corporation, the Scottish and Welsh Development Agencies, the Development Board for Rural Wales, and the Highlands and Islands Development Board.
Northern Ireland has a different range of financial incentives available and the items included are Industrial Development Board grants and loans, expenditure on land and factories, standard capital grants and Local Enterprise Development Unit grants and loans.
Israel
Mr. Latham : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the current balance of trade between the United Kingdom and Israel ; what the balance of trade is with other countries in the middle east ; what steps are taken by his Department to encourage United Kingdom/Israel trade ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : For the period January to September 1989, the crude visible trade balance between the United Kingdom and Israel was £7 million. The crude balance of the United Kingdom's trade with other countries in the middle east for the same period was as follows :
---------------- Egypt |86 Syria |-20 Lebanon |21 Jordan |66
Her Majesty's Government encourage trade with overseas countries, including Israel, consistent with our international obligations. My Department provides a grant-in-aid to the British Overseas Trade Group for Israel, and the normal range of the Department's services are available to British exporters to Israel.
Iraq
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much money has been spent on promoting United Kingdom trade with Iraq for each year since 1979.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 24 November 1989] : Details of DTI programme expenditure on promotion of United Kingdom exports to Iraq are not available for the years 1979-80--1983-84. Net promotional expenditure in subsequent years was as follows :
| Next Section
| Home Page |