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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 24 January 1990
DEFENCE
Z-Berths
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any further reserve Z-berths have been introduced to date, since his answer to the hon. Member for Don Valley of 5 May 1989, Official Report, column 276.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : No. I assume that the hon. Member is referring to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Bow and Poplar (Ms. Gordon) on 5 May 1989 at column 276. Swansea and Tilbury are still under discussion with local authorities as possible venues for visits by nuclear-powered submarines.
Northern Ireland
Rev. Ian Paisley : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will consider paying financial compensation to civilian employees of the Ministry of Defence working in Northern Ireland on the grounds of the special hazards and difficulties of their employment in the Province.
Mr. Neubert : A general principle of Civil Service pay is that compensation is not paid because of exposure to risk. The general conditions of service for staff serving in Northern Ireland are, however, kept under review.
Philippines (Personnel Carriers)
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many Simba armoured personnel carriers have been supplied to the Philippines by GKN ; what assurances have been received as to their proposed use ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) if he will make a statement summarising the main features of the deal involving the sale of armoured personnel carriers to the Philippines, including details of offsetting arrangements.
Mr. Neubert : It has been the consistent policy of successive Administrations not to provide details of defence exports to specific countries.
Namibia
Mr. Carrington : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the British military contingent of the United Nations transition assistance group (UNTAG) in Namibia will return to the United Kingdom ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The majority of the British military contingent will be returning from Namibia towards the end of January. It is planned that the remainder will return by early April in accordance with
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UNTAG's overall withdrawal plan. The contributions of the British armed forces and the civilian election advisers have been widely recognised as key elements in the successful involvement of the United Nations in helping Namibia achieve independence, and the House will wish to pay tribute to those concerned for their dedication and professionalism.THE ARTS
Copyright Act 1911
Mr. Waller : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he has any plans to seek to extend the provisions of the Copyright Act 1911 to cover material published in the form of electronic or audio-visual media.
Mr. Luce : I have no plans to amend the Copyright Act 1911.
Royal Ballet
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Minister for the Arts whether he has received any request from the Royal Ballet for funds to assist it to tour the United States this summer.
Mr. Luce : I have received no such request. Overseas touring is the province of the British Council, which is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.
Arts Council and Crafts Council
Dr. Kim Howells : To ask the Minister for the Arts (1) if he will explain the corporate roles of the Arts Council and the Crafts Council and list the similarities and differences between those roles ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) if he will list the various craftspeople, educationists, retailers, guilds and societies active in the craft business which were consulted by the author of the Wilding report during the preparation of that report ;
(3) if he will make a statement on the comparative performance, in the fields of business and fund-raising, of the Arts Council and of the Crafts Council ;
(4) if he will make a statement on the Government's proposals for merging the Crafts Council with the Design Council.
Mr. Luce : In reaching a decision on the future of the Crafts Council, I am considering carefully the many representations I have received on this subject. I shall announce my conclusions as soon as possible, and I shall write to the hon. Member in more detail when I have done so. Before deciding whether to accept Mr. Wilding's recommendation to merge the Crafts Council with the Arts Council, I shall want to be sure that any new structure of support enables the crafts to continue to flourish. This Government are concerned to see the continued expansion of the crafts in this country.
Dr. Kim Howells : To ask the Minister for the Arts if he will list on a year-by-year basis the number of craftspersons grant-aided by the Crafts Advisory Committee and its successor, the Crafts Council, to help set up new businesses between 1971 and 1989, inclusive.
Mr. Luce : The information is as follows :
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|c|Number of individual craftsmen and women assisted|c| Year |Number ---------------------- 1971-72 |7 1972-73 |14 1973-74 |40 1974-75 |66 1975-76 |68 1976-77 |71 1977-78 |67 1978-79 |33 1979-80 |48 1980-81 |42 1981-82 |47 1982-83 |35 1983-84 |41 1984-85 |39 1985-86 |40 1986-87 |35 1987-88 |39 1988-89 |30 ------- Total |762
CIVIL SERVICE
Statutory Bodies
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister for the Civil Service how many organisations and bodies have been established and taken on staff and premises since 1979 before they were put on a statutory basis by the passage of the authorising legislation through Parliament ; and how much has been spent on this basis.
Mr. Luce : This information is not held centrally.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
The Blooding"
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Attorney-General what reports the Director of Public Prosecutions received concerning the book, "The Blooding" ; and if he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : The Director of Public Prosecutions has received two reports from the police relating to matters connected with the publication of the book "The Blooding".
Sunday Trading
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Attorney-General what representations he has received from the chairman of the Keep Sunday Special Campaign on the enforcement of the Shops Act 1950, in the light of the European Court of Justice's decision on 23 November 1989 ; if he will publish his response ; and if he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Preston (Mrs. Wise) on 17 January 1990 at column 260.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Hong Kong
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proposals the Government have laid down to retrain and re- employ ivory carvers in Hong Kong ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Maude : The Hong Kong Government are currently holding discussions with representatives of the ivory carvers with a view to placing them on suitable retraining courses run by the Vocational Training Council or helping them to find alternative employment. The Hong Kong labour department has opened a special register to help ivory workers seeking new jobs and a number of them have already been placed.
Tibet
Mr. Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Chinese Government to end martial law in Tibet ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maude : We have frequently made clear to the Chinese our concern about human rights in Tibet. We hope that the Chinese Government will follow up the lifting of martial law in Peking by taking further steps to strengthen the protection of human rights throughout China, including the lifting of martial law in Lhasa.
Mr. Andrew Balfour
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects Mr. Andrew Balfour to resume his official duties, and in what capacity.
Mr. Sainsbury : Mr. Balfour has been informed that his future is under consideration.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Corporation Tax
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish the amount of corporation tax paid by manufacturing industry in each financial year since 1978-79 and the proportion of the total corporation tax precept comprised by manufacturing in each of those years.
Mr. Lilley : Information on a comparable basis is available only from 1986-87 and is as follows :
1. Summary
(a) April 1988 (not available for March 1988)
Board area |Total number of full-|Total number of |Percentage
|time teachers in post| promotion allowan-
|ces in payment
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Belfast |3,697 |1,252 |34
North-Eastern |4,113 |1,252 |31
Southern |3,832 |977 |26
South-Eastern |3,356 |972 |29
Western |3,418 |945 |28
Total |18,416 |5,398 |30
(b) March 1989
Belfast |3,656 |1,511 |42
North-Eastern |4,122 |1,522 |37
Southern |3,842 |1,353 |36
South-Eastern |3,374 |1,263 |38
Western |3,444 |1,222 |36
Total |18,438 |6,871 |38
National Savings
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list by month for the last 12 months, the amount of (a) investments and (b) withdrawals made in National Savings.
Mr. Ryder : Figures for National Savings receipts and repayments (including accrued interest) for each of the 12 months of 1989 are as follows :
|Receipts |Repayments
|£ million |£ million
---------------------------------------------
January |534.7 |637.1
February |531.0 |745.3
March |494.8 |744.0
April |482.2 |742.3
May |459.1 |674.2
June |420.4 |652.2
July |399.4 |605.6
August |526.8 |1,084.2
September |476.4 |1,009.7
October |460.3 |776.6
November |414.9 |854.7
December<1> |289.2 |637.0
<1> Provisional.
Taking into account gross accrued interest of £2.2 billion, the Department for National Savings' contribution to the public sector debt repayment in 1989 was £1.5 billion.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT
Eastern Europe
Mr. Paice : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that United Kingdom aid for eastern European countries is invested in activities which are environmentally beneficial or neutral.
Mrs. Chalker : Bilateral British aid is so far confined to Poland. Projects supported there to date comprise mainly training, technical co- operation and consultancy studies which are environmentally neutral. However, the procedures which we use to assess proposals for funding include an explicit consideration of the effects on the environment. We are also discussing with the Polish authorities a programme of assistance in the energy sector, which will look at environmental concerns.
Know-How Funds
Mr. Paice : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish in the Official Report a list of projects approved to date under the know-how funds for Poland and Hungary, giving details of the type of project, the funding in cash and kind and the name of the United Kingdom organising body.
Mrs. Chalker : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Romsey and Waterside (Mr. Colvin) on 18 December. Most activities are being undertaken by firms or institutions engaged directly by the joint FCO/ODA Unit, or by the British Council on the unit's behalf. Additions to the list are given in the table :
Title: Coal industry training
Description: Training in colliery management techniques Status: Under way
Cost: £38,000
Title: Cracow tourism study
Description: Recommendation of immediate measures to help Cracow cope with the coming tourist season,
and development of longer term proposals
Status: Under way
Cost: £37,000
Title: Agros dried vegetables
Description: Recommendations for productivity improvements in this enterprise
Status: Under way
Cost: £55,000
Title: Company doctor training
Description: Training Polish consultants in techniques of company analysis
Status: To be implemented
Cost: £11,000
Title: Conference on demonopolisation
Description: Discussion of methods and experiences of
demonopolisation in relation to the process of economic and political decision making
Status: To be implemented
Cost: £11,000
Title: Book industry training
Description: Pilot project to assess the trainingneeds of the Polish book industry
Status: To be implemented
Cost: £17,200
Poland
Mr. Paice : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will provide details of expenditure approved to date from the £15 million agriculture project fund for Poland.
Mrs. Chalker : No expenditure has yet been approved. We are still at the stage of working out the details of the project.
EDUCATION AND SCIENCE
Engineering Courses
Dr. Bray : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what surveys have been carried out or commissioned by his Department since 1987 to find out why fewer sixth formers were applying for engineering courses ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : The Department and the engineering industry commissioned a survey in 1989 into the factors which influence young people in deciding whether or not to study engineering. It covers both students at school or in further education on A-level mathematics and physics courses, and new entrants to degree courses other than engineering. I expect the results of this survey, which is being carried out by the National Foundation for Educational Research, to be available in March-April this year.
Research Councils
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what resources he expects to make available to the five research councils to enable the re-equipment of laboratories and the replacement of aging apparatus ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : On 15 November at columns 272-76, my right hon. Friend announced that an additional £61 million would be made available for the science budget in 1990-91, together with planning additions for the next two years of £58 million and £59 million. He announced the allocations to the five research councils on 10 January at columns 623-24. It is for the research councils to determine how to spend the additional funds made available to them.
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However, in its advice to the Secretary of State on the allocations, the Advisory Board for the Research Councils advised that a high proportion of these funds should be directed to preserving the quality of United Kingdom science. The ABRC also suggested that the research councils should deploy some of these additional funds to increase equipment provision through research grants, and that funding of new research programmes and interdisciplinary research centres would also include some provision for equipment.Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what are his long-term plans with respect to the formation of a national research council ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what are his plans for reform of the Advisory Board for the Research Councils ; and if he will make a statement ;
(3) what are his proposals for establishing a working group to examine the scope for merging the AFRC and the NERC ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : The proposal for a single national research council was made in the report of a review group established by the Advisory Board for the Research Councils to look at the organisation of council responsibilities for biological sciences. The culmination of this process was the advice offered by the chairman of the board in his letter of 15 November to my right hon. Friend which recommended that the ABRC should be reconstituted as a smaller body specifically charged with promoting greater harmonisation of research council activities. The board also offered advice about improving co-ordination between the AFRC and NERC research programmes, particularly in terrestrial life sciences.
My right hon. Friend wrote to the chairman of the ABRC on 19 January announcing the Government's decision to reconstitute the ABRC from 1 April as recommended by the board ; and noting that he and his colleagues were considering the board's subsequent advice concerning the AFRC and NERC. For the full text of the letter I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend's reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Martin) on 19 January.
Irradiated Rodent Carcases
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when the practice of disposal of irradiated rodent carcases used in research inside human cadavers was stopped by the Medical Research Council ; and where these cadavers were buried.
Mr. Jackson : The Medical Research Council is not aware of the practice of the disposal of irradiated rodent carcases used in research inside human cadavers.
Director of Education, Wandsworth
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he last met the director of education of the London borough of Wandsworth ; and what subjects were discussed.
Mrs. Rumbold : My right hon. Friend and I met Mr. Naismith and other interested parties on 9 January to discuss plans for city technology colleges in Wandsworth. I met Mr. Naismith and Councillor Edward Lister on 11 January to discuss a number of ILEA-owned sites in
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Wandsworth which will be subject to the property transfer orders being made by my right hon. Friend under section 168 of the Education Reform Act.Higher Education (Students)
Mr. John P. Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to increase the number of students in higher education ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : Actively fostered by the Government's education policies and consistent with the general aim of securing further substantial increases in participation above present record levels, we expect to see significant growth in student numbers over the 1990s. Our latest projection indicates full-time equivalent student numbers rising from about 760,000 in 1988 to about 890,000 by the turn of the century.
Interim Advisory Committee
Mr. Geraint Howells : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations he has received from the interim advisory committee.
Mrs. Rumbold : My right hon. Friend asked the interim advisory committee to submit its report by the end of January. He will be arranging for its early publication once he has received it.
Teachers
Mr. Jack : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to recognise teachers of excellence by means of higher salaries.
Mrs. Rumbold : Local education authorities can award incentive allowances to teachers demonstrating outstanding ability in the classroom. The Government hope that they will make full use of this discretion.
Student Loans
Mr. Canavan : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what recent representations he has received about his proposals for a student loan scheme.
Mr. Jackson : Since the publication of the White Paper on top-up loans for students we have received about 5,050 letters, including 64 petitions. Of those, about 700 have been received since publication of the Education (Student Loans) Bill.
Disabled Students' Allowance
Mr. Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) if he will list any additional information his Department plans to take into account when calculating the maximum level of the disabled students' allowance ;
(2) if he will list the information his Department took into account when calculating the maximum level of the disabled students' allowance.
Mr. Jackson : My right hon. Friend continues to take into account all the relevant information available to him, when determining within available resources the rate and conditions of the disabled students' allowance. This year,
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in addition to information about cost increases generally, he has received representations from interested parties and detailed evidence from disablement organisations about students' circumstances and needs, which he is considering carefully.Mr. Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make it his policy that the upper limit of the disabled students' allowance will not be frozen in the event of the introduction of his proposals for student loans.
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