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Column 461
Written Answers to Questions
Monday 8 January 1990
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Taken-over Cases
26. Mr. Allen : To ask the Attorney-General if he will list those cases taken over by the Director of Public Prosecutions since 1987.
The Attorney-General : Statistics concerning private prosecutions are not collected. The CPS has identified 28 private prosecutions conducted by private individuals or bodies which have been taken over by the Crown prosecution service since 1987. I will write to the hon. Gentleman listing the cases.
John Black RN
Mr. Latham : To ask the Attorney-General whether he is now in a position to give a date when the High Court will hear his application for a fresh inquest into the death of the late Petty Officer John Black, RN, in Sabinillas, Spain, in December 1983.
The Attorney-General : No. The case is in the Crown list, but no hearing date has yet been fixed by the court.
Courts and Legal Services Bill [Lords]
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Attorney-General what is the estimated cost of implementing the Courts and Legal Services Bill [Lords].
The Attorney-General : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 7 December 1989 at column 316, and to the explanatory and financial memorandum prefacing the Bill.
TRANSPORT
Cyclists
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will direct British Rail to consider ways in which cyclists can more easily use rail services.
Mr. Portillo : British Rail has regular contact with the cycling organisations and is aware of their needs. I understand that BR's policy is to welcome cyclists and to convey bicycles whenever possible, for an appropriate charge, provided that this will not unduly inconvenience other passengers, or displace other revenue-earning traffic such as parcels.
Motoring Organisations
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which motoring organisations he or his predecessor met over the last year ; and on which dates.
Mr. Atkins : During 1989 Transport Ministers met representatives of motoring organisations as follows :
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The Automobile Association :24 January
14 June
20 June
19 July
31 October
29 November
The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs :
6 September
The Institute of Advanced Motorists :
14 December
The Royal Automobile Club :
26 June
6 September
7 November
Prestwick Airport
Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many flights have been diverted to Prestwick since 1 November.
Mr. McLoughlin : The Civil Aviation Authority has not yet published figures for this period. Preliminary information from Prestwick Airport Limited indicates that, from 1 November to 31 December 1989, the airport handled 144 air transport movements diverted from other airports.
Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which building surveyors, land agents or chartered surveyors were used by his Department or by the British Airports Authority, or by his or their advisers, to value land at Prestwick airport, including land not required for airport operations, when assessing the assets of the British Airports Authority for privatisation.
Mr. McLoughlin : Page 58 of the prospectus offering shares in BAA for sale records that Debenham Tewson and Chinnocks Limited, international property advisers, valued the land at the BAA airports.
Channel Tunnel
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement following the Anglo-French intergovernmental commission announcement that passengers will not leave their cars and coaches when travelling through the Channel tunnel with particular regard to safety aspects in the tunnel.
Mr. Portillo : No. The intergovernmental commission was established by the Channel fixed link treaty to supervise, in the name and on behalf of the two Governments, all matters concerning the construction and operation of the fixed link. On safety matters, it is advised by the independent binational safety authority, also established by the treaty. Parliament has accepted that the safety authority is the right body to oversee tunnel safety standards. I believe that the safety authority will shortly be publishing a report which sets out the information on which its unanimous recommendation to the commission is based.
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the make-up and terms of reference for his Department's working group on the assessment of the impact of railway noise with regard to the Channel tunnel link.
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Mr. Portillo : The aim will be to establish for new railway lines a noise standard at a level which equitably relates to the standard set by regulation for new highways. I hope to make an announcement shortly about the establishment of a departmental committee to carry out this task.LRT (Safety)
Mr. Carrington : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he is yet in a position to announce safety and quality of service objectives for London Regional Transport.
Mr. Parkinson [pursuant to his reply, 20 December 1989, c. 280] : Following is a fuller text of my letter to the chairman of London Regional Transport.
"My predecessor wrote to you on your appointment about the challenges facing London Regional Transport. He asked you to prepare a strategy for the coming years, which could be used as a basis for setting formal objectives for you and your Board.
Your response takes the form of the "Chairman's Planning Statement, " which you are about to publish. In the light of that statement, I am writing to you about the safety and quality of service objectives I wish you to pursue. Before 1 April 1990 I shall settle with you the financial objectives for LRT covering the next three financial years.
Safety
LRT and its subsidiaries are responsible for the safe operation of the services they provide. The Fennell Report on the King's Cross fire underlined the need to give the highest priority to safety and to address safety matters explicitly in all LRT's activities. You have undertaken with vigour the task of implementing the Fennell Report's recommendations. You have already fully implemented 73 of the 127 recommendations addressed to LRT or London Underground, and have in hand action on the remaining 54.
You have also now established a clear framework for collecting statistics on safety performance, setting safety objectives and monitoring and auditing safety performance at every level of the organisation. This should ensure the progressive improvement in the safety of all the services you provide or secure. I welcome the steps you have taken. I hereby endorse the safety objectives set out in Annex A to this letter.
Quality of Service on the Underground
Demand for Underground services has grown by more than 70 per cent. since 1982. This has put the Underground under strain and we are all agreed that the quality of service for passengers is not as good as it should be.
Much of passengers' dissatisfaction stems from overcrowding. The only way to deal adequately with the growth in demand is to invest in increasing the capacity of the system. This is why approval has been given for a massive investment programme, including the £900 million Major Upgrading Programme and the extension of the Jubilee Line to service East London and Docklands. Urgent work is in progress on the options for another major new line to relieve congestion. In the shorter term, we must ensure that the most is made of the existing system. I am therefore setting objectives for improvement in such areas as peak capacity, reliability and the availability of lifts and escalators. I shall look to London Underground to meet these as soon as possible and, in any case, no later than 31 March 1992. These objectives are set out in full at Annex B to the Letter.
Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway has been in operation for just over two years. It is now being extended to the City and to Beckton. Measures are in hand to increase its capacity still further. It is vital that the DLR provides a reliable and high-quality service, as the system is upgraded and capacity increased. I am therefore setting targets for the DLR covering aspects of service similar to those in the objectives set for the
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Underground. These are set out in Annex C. Again, the targets should be met as soon as possible, and no later than 31 March 1992. LRT Bus ServicesDespite increasing difficulties with traffic congestion, there has been a noticeable improvement in the percentage of scheduled bus mileage actually operated, and average waiting time has been stabilised over the past couple of years. You have increased the number of routes let by competitive tender. You have also restructured London Buses Ltd. into smaller, more accountable, subsidiaries. These measures have played a valuable part in securing better quality and value for money. I now think that the time has come to build on that success by setting LRT quality of service targets for all its bus services, including those operated by London Buses and other operators on contract. The objectives are set out in Annex D.
LRT Travel Enquiry Service
It is important that passengers should have ready access to up-to-date information on all LRT's passenger services. I am therefore setting LRT's Travel Enquiry Service the objective of ensuring that 75 per cent. of telephone callers receiving the ringing tone should be answered within 30 seconds and no more than 10 per cent. of callers should receive the engaged tone.
You will report to my Department and to the London Regional Passengers' Committee at quarterly intervals, the performance achieved against the quality of service objectives.
As you know, it is also my intention to set LRT, in good time before 1 April, financial objectives for the next three financial years. These will be designed to ensure that these safety and quality of service objectives are met as efficiently and economically as possible, so that customers and taxpayers, receive proper value for money. Our officials are already in touch about this."
Copies of the annexes to this letter have been placed in the House Libraries.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Elected Executive
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received in favour of electing an executive separately from Parliament.
Written Constitution
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received on the subject of a written constitution.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The Government receive representations from time to time advocating a written constitution. These could be enumerated only at disproportionate cost.
Second Chamber
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received seeking the establishment of a democratically elected second chamber.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The Government receive representations from time to time advocating abolition or reform of the House of Lords. They could be enumerated only at disproportionate cost.
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Prisons (Transfers)
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners were awaiting transfer to Thorp Arch from Durham at the end of the months August through to November.
Mr. Mellor : At the end of the four months for which information has been requested, the numbers of prisoners held at Her Majesty's prison Durham awaiting transfer to Her Majesty's prison Thorp Arch were as follows :
|Number
-----------------------------
August 1989 |38
September 1989 |43
October 1989 |48
November 1989 |54
Shamim Ayaz
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when Shamim Ayaz, Ref. H 162359 ; Imm/15031, is to be issued with a passport to join his father in the United Kingdom ; when the post in Islamabad was instructed by him to issue a visa to Shamim Ayaz ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Mr. Shamim Ayaz's application for entry clearance to settle in the United Kingdom as the dependent son of Mr. Muzaffar Hussain has been referred by the entry clearance officer in Islamabad to the immigration department of the Home Office for consideration under paragraph 56 of the immigration rules and the concession announced by my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr. Hurd) on 14 June 1989 at column 463. The papers arrived on 1 December and a decision will be taken as soon as possible.
Political Refugees
Sir David Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will specify the criteria under which political refugees are now admitted to the United Kingdom.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Applications for asylum on arrival at United Kingdom ports are considered under the criteria of the 1951 United Nations convention and 1967 protocol relating to the status of refugees. Article 1 of the convention defines a refugee as inter alia someone who
"owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country".
If the person has arrived from a safe third country he or she may be returned to that country to pursue an application there. A refugee who has already found protection in another country may be admitted to the United Kingdom if this is a more appropriate country of refuge.
Prisons (Capacity)
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the under or over-capacity of Thorp Arch and Durham prisons at the end of the months August to November.
Mr. Mellor : The details requested are set out in the table.
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|Durham|Thorp
----------------------------------------------------
Certified Normal Accommodation |<1>729|<2>156
Population<3> on:
25 August |1,002 |144
29 September |1,006 |150
27 October |976 |149
24 November |1,019 |146
<1> There was no change to the certified normal
accommodation at Durham Prison during the period in
question.
<2> Available accommodation at Thorp Arch has
effectively been reduced to 150 since August to
allow for a rolling programme of refurbishment,
involving the installation of integral sanitation.
<3> The population details provided refer to the
last Friday in each of the four months.
Brownhills and Heywood High Schools
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to reply to the application by Staffordshire county council for section 11 money in respect of Brownhills and Heywood high schools ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : Additional information submitted by the authority on 8 December is being considered. We hope to be in a position to take a decision on the application shortly.
Alcohol Consumption
Mr. Michael Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any proposals to change the law to promote and encourage non and low-alcohol consumption by young people.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : We very much welcome the introduction, by my hon. Friend the Member for Honiton (Sir Peter Emery) of the Licensing (Low Alcohol Drinks) Bill, which seeks to amend the definition of intoxicating liquor in the Licensing Act 1964 and of alcoholic liquor in the Licensing (Scotland) Act 1976.
Robberies
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will supply statistics of robberies, and attempted robberies involving the confrontation of counter staff in the betting office, banking and building society industries over the past three years.
Mr. John Patten : Information is not available in the form requested. The total numbers of notifiable offences of robbery are published annually, and most recently in table 2.10 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales, 1988" (Cm. 847). Information on the location of notifiable offences of robbery in which firearms were reported to have been used is given in table 3.8 of the same publication. A copy of this publication is available in the Library. Offences of attempted robbery are included in the robbery category and are not separately identified in the figures collected centrally.
Hong Kong
Mr. Marlow : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many visitors there have been to the United Kingdom from Hong Kong, arriving in each of the last 36 months for which he has figures.
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Mr. Peter Lloyd : The latest available information is given in the table for British dependent territories citizens from Hong Kong. Reliable figures of admissions of stateless persons from Hong Kong are not available.
Hong Kong British Dependent Territory Citizens
admitted to the
United Kingdom as ordinary or business visitors,
November 1986 to October 1989
Number of persons
Month |1986 |1987 |1988 |<1>1989
-------------------------------------------------------
January |- |1,890 |1,280 |1,510
February |- |2,230 |3,360 |3,870
March |- |1,570 |1,650 |2,280
April |- |2,010 |2,060 |1,950
May |- |2,640 |2,280 |2,600
June |- |3,560 |3,380 |4,490
July |- |5,370 |4,990 |5,440
August |- |5,280 |4,540 |5,760
September |- |3,210 |3,520 |3,960
October |- |2,850 |2,890 |3,100
November |1,260 |1,760 |1,610 |n.y.a.
December |1,750 |1,980 |1,840 |n.y.a.
|-------|-------|-------|-------
Annual total |27,100 |34,400 |33,400 |n.y.a.
<1> Provisional.
n.y.a.=Not yet available.
Downing Street Railings
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the expected savings to the Metropolitan police following the erection of railings in Downing street.
Ambulance Duties
Mr. Pendry : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what has been the number of police man hours employed in ambulance duties per police authority, to date.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The readily available information is that up to 31 December police forces had provided approximately the number of man hours shown in the table in assisting the ambulance service in their areas.
CApproximate number of man
hours C
|Hours
------------------------------
Bedfordshire |17,700
Derbyshire |6,900
Dorset |9,500
Hampshire |5,100
Hertfordshire |31,600
Lincolnshire |2,600
South Yorkshire |27,300
Staffordshire |1,750
Surrey |850
Warwickshire |460
West Mercia |6,100
West Midlands |35,500
West Yorkshire |20,700
I understand that in the Metropolitan police district about 460 officers are usually employed in each 24-hour period assisting the ambulance service.
Mr. Pendry : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the cost per police man hour of deploying the police on ambulance duties (a) outside London and (b) in London.
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Mr. Peter Lloyd : The charge that is made by the Metropolitan police to the regional health authority for police officers who assist the London ambulance service is £16.20 per hour of normal duty time worked. Information about the charges made outside London is not available centrally ; the level of charge is determined by the relevant police authority.
Visas (Indian Sub-continent)
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are waiting for interview in queues 1,2,3 and 4 at each British post on the Indian sub-continent, and if he will give comparable figures for 1988, 1987 and 1986.
Mr. Peter Lloyd [holding answer 18 December 1989] : The information requested is given in the table.
Estimated numbers of applicants in the Indian
sub-continent awaiting
their first interview for entry to the United
Kingdom
Number of persons
Post<2> Category<3>
|Queue 1|Queue 2|Queue 3|Queue 4
-----------------------------------------------------
Dhaka
End September
1986 |640 |1,900 |130 |2,700
1987 |400 |1,800 |140 |2,600
1988 |230 |1,600 |150 |2,100
1989 |120 |650 |120 |1,400
New Delhi<4>
End September
1986 |70 |210 |460 |180
1987 |40 |320 |600 |90
1988 |- |300 |400 |110
1989 |- |260 |330 |90
Bombay
End September
1986 |120 |450 |480 |130
1987 |560 |460 |40 |140
1988 |30 |350 |480 |50
1989 |- |420 |530 |90
Madras<5>
End September
1987 |<1>- |10 |<1>- |<6>-
1988 |- |- |- |-
1989 |- |20 |10 |<6>-
Islamabad
End September
1986 |880 |610 |2,100 |740
1987 |790 |970 |2,300 |850
1988 |1,200 |1,600 |2,400 |1,000
1989 |250 |2,300 |1,700 |940
Karachi
End September
1986 |20 |60 |100 |<1>-
1987 |10 |80 |190 |10
1988 |10 |180 |210 |<4>-
1989 |<1>- |30 |20 |<1>-
Total Indian sub-continent
End September
1986 |1,700 |3,200 |3,300 |3,800
1987 |1,800 |3,600 |3,300 |3,600
1988 |1,500 |4,100 |3,600 |3,300
1989 |370 |3,600 |2,700 |2,500
<1> 5 or fewer
<2> There were no applicants awaiting for interview
in Calcutta.
<3> Queue 1: Persons with a claim to the right of
abode, dependent relatives over 70 years old, and
special compassionate cases (first-time applicants
for settlement).
Queue 2: Spouses, and children under 18 years old (
first-time applicants for settlement).
Queue 3: Fiance(e)s. and other applicants (
first-time applicants for settlement).
Queue 4: Re-applicants for settlement.
<4> Data exclude persons seeking political asylum in
the United Kingdom.
<5> Madras did not re-open for entry clearance work
until October 1986.
<6> Separate data are not available; re-applicants
are included in the data for first-time applicants.
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have applied over the past year for visas to visit the United Kingdom from British posts on the Indian sub-continent ; how many were (a) granted and (b) refused ; and what was the average waiting time for (i) interview and (ii) secured interview.
Mr. Peter Lloyd [holding answer 18 December 1989] : In the 12 months ending 30 September 1989, 176,500 persons in the Indian sub- continent applied for a visa to visit the United Kingdom ; during the same period 151,800 such applications were granted, including those granted on appeal, and 19,400 were refused initially. Visit applications were considered within 24 hours.
Those applicants who then required a detailed interview were usually seen within the 24-hour period except in Madras and Islamabad where the waiting time for applicants interviewed at the end of October 1989 was two to three and eight days respectively. The average waiting time over the latest 12 months is not available centrally because of incomplete information.
Civil Defence
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total amount of civil defence grant aid for (a) staff costs, (b) building work and (c) other costs in the financial years from 1983-84 to 1988-89 and projected for 1989-90, received by each London borough.
Mr. John Patten [holding answer 14 December 1989] : The information requested in respect of financial years 1985-86 onwards is shown in the table. Comparable figures for 1983-84 and 1984-85 could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Civil Defence Grant Aid received by London Boroughs1989-90
(Estimated)
Borough |Staff |Building|Other
|£ |£ |£
-----------------------------------------------------------
Barking and Dagenham |2,280 |- |3,240
Barnet |- |- |3,070
Bexley |- |- |-
Brent |- |- |-
Bromley |4,350 |- |4,710
Camden |- |- |3,000
City of London |- |9,500 |5,800
Croydon |- |- |2,240
Ealing |- |- |-
Enfield |- |- |-
Greenwich |- |- |1,660
Hackney |- |- |2,240
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |4,669
Haringey |- |- |3,318
Harrow |- |- |8,560
Havering |- |- |-
Hillingdon |- |- |5,265
Hounslow |1,730 |- |2,200
Islington |- |- |-
Kensington and Chelsea |- |4,900 |-
Kingston |- |- |12,500
Lambeth |- |- |6,734
Lewisham |- |- |-
Merton |- |- |-
Newham |- |- |2,810
Redbridge |920 |- |300
Richmond |- |- |1,670
Southwark |- |- |4,650
Sutton |- |- |3,500
Tower Hamlets |- |- |-
Waltham Forest |- |- |-
Wandsworth |- |- |6,074
Westminster |- |- |-
Civil Defence Grant Aid received by London Boroughs1989-90
(Estimated)
Borough |Staff |Building|Other
|£ |£ |£
-----------------------------------------------------------
Barking and Dagenham |2,280 |- |3,240
Barnet |- |- |3,070
Bexley |- |- |-
Brent |- |- |-
Bromley |4,350 |- |4,710
Camden |- |- |3,000
City of London |- |9,500 |5,800
Croydon |- |- |2,240
Ealing |- |- |-
Enfield |- |- |-
Greenwich |- |- |1,660
Hackney |- |- |2,240
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |4,669
Haringey |- |- |3,318
Harrow |- |- |8,560
Havering |- |- |-
Hillingdon |- |- |5,265
Hounslow |1,730 |- |2,200
Islington |- |- |-
Kensington and Chelsea |- |4,900 |-
Kingston |- |- |12,500
Lambeth |- |- |6,734
Lewisham |- |- |-
Merton |- |- |-
Newham |- |- |2,810
Redbridge |920 |- |300
Richmond |- |- |1,670
Southwark |- |- |4,650
Sutton |- |- |3,500
Tower Hamlets |- |- |-
Waltham Forest |- |- |-
Wandsworth |- |- |6,074
Westminster |- |- |-
Civil Defence Grant Aid received by London Boroughs1989-90
(Estimated)
Borough |Staff |Building|Other
|£ |£ |£
-----------------------------------------------------------
Barking and Dagenham |2,280 |- |3,240
Barnet |- |- |3,070
Bexley |- |- |-
Brent |- |- |-
Bromley |4,350 |- |4,710
Camden |- |- |3,000
City of London |- |9,500 |5,800
Croydon |- |- |2,240
Ealing |- |- |-
Enfield |- |- |-
Greenwich |- |- |1,660
Hackney |- |- |2,240
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |4,669
Haringey |- |- |3,318
Harrow |- |- |8,560
Havering |- |- |-
Hillingdon |- |- |5,265
Hounslow |1,730 |- |2,200
Islington |- |- |-
Kensington and Chelsea |- |4,900 |-
Kingston |- |- |12,500
Lambeth |- |- |6,734
Lewisham |- |- |-
Merton |- |- |-
Newham |- |- |2,810
Redbridge |920 |- |300
Richmond |- |- |1,670
Southwark |- |- |4,650
Sutton |- |- |3,500
Tower Hamlets |- |- |-
Waltham Forest |- |- |-
Wandsworth |- |- |6,074
Westminster |- |- |-
Civil Defence Grant Aid received by London Boroughs1989-90
(Estimated)
Borough |Staff |Building|Other
|£ |£ |£
-----------------------------------------------------------
Barking and Dagenham |2,280 |- |3,240
Barnet |- |- |3,070
Bexley |- |- |-
Brent |- |- |-
Bromley |4,350 |- |4,710
Camden |- |- |3,000
City of London |- |9,500 |5,800
Croydon |- |- |2,240
Ealing |- |- |-
Enfield |- |- |-
Greenwich |- |- |1,660
Hackney |- |- |2,240
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |4,669
Haringey |- |- |3,318
Harrow |- |- |8,560
Havering |- |- |-
Hillingdon |- |- |5,265
Hounslow |1,730 |- |2,200
Islington |- |- |-
Kensington and Chelsea |- |4,900 |-
Kingston |- |- |12,500
Lambeth |- |- |6,734
Lewisham |- |- |-
Merton |- |- |-
Newham |- |- |2,810
Redbridge |920 |- |300
Richmond |- |- |1,670
Southwark |- |- |4,650
Sutton |- |- |3,500
Tower Hamlets |- |- |-
Waltham Forest |- |- |-
Wandsworth |- |- |6,074
Westminster |- |- |-
Civil Defence Grant Aid received by London Boroughs1989-90
(Estimated)
Borough |Staff |Building|Other
|£ |£ |£
-----------------------------------------------------------
Barking and Dagenham |2,280 |- |3,240
Barnet |- |- |3,070
Bexley |- |- |-
Brent |- |- |-
Bromley |4,350 |- |4,710
Camden |- |- |3,000
City of London |- |9,500 |5,800
Croydon |- |- |2,240
Ealing |- |- |-
Enfield |- |- |-
Greenwich |- |- |1,660
Hackney |- |- |2,240
Hammersmith and Fulham |- |- |4,669
Haringey |- |- |3,318
Harrow |- |- |8,560
Havering |- |- |-
Hillingdon |- |- |5,265
Hounslow |1,730 |- |2,200
Islington |- |- |-
Kensington and Chelsea |- |4,900 |-
Kingston |- |- |12,500
Lambeth |- |- |6,734
Lewisham |- |- |-
Merton |- |- |-
Newham |- |- |2,810
Redbridge |920 |- |300
Richmond |- |- |1,670
Southwark |- |- |4,650
Sutton |- |- |3,500
Tower Hamlets |- |- |-
Waltham Forest |- |- |-
Wandsworth |- |- |6,074
Westminster |- |- |-
Accountancy Firms
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many outside accountancy firms are employed by his Department ; whether such employment is subject to any guidelines ; and whether he takes steps before employing an accountancy firm to discover whether that firm has been censured by Department of Trade and Industry inspectors in their inquiries under the Companies Act.
Mr. Waddington [holding answer 14 December 1989] : The Home Office is currently employing four accountancy firms. Contracts are awarded which provide value for money from competent firms, after consultations as necessary and where appropriate, in the light of advice given by Her Majesty's Treasury.
Arts and Design
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what expenditure was made by his Department on (a) the arts and (b) design in the last financial year.
Mr. Waddington [holding answer 21 December 1989] : A number of items of my Department's expenditure--for example, the provision and maintenance of prisons and programmes for prisoners, and the production of various publications--contain elements that could be classified as expenditure on arts and--or design, but in general it is not practicable to separate and cost those elements.
All prison education departments provide courses in art and craft work, but, because these courses are part of the total education provision, it is not possible to identify separately expenditure on them. Expenditure on the annual Koestler Trust exhibition of prisoners' art and craft is estimated to have been £20,000 in 1988-89.
ENERGY
Plutonium
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy at what point plutonium created in civil reactors under safeguards becomes no longer subject to safeguards when distributed in
plutonium-contaminated wastes at Sellafield.
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