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Mr. Scott [holding answer 22 January 1990] : The information available is given in the tables. The figures represent the number of loans being repaid on the last day of each month.
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Porthmadog
|Number of |Lone |Disabled<1> |Pensioners |Unemployed
|income support|parents
|claimants
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Budgeting loans
1989
January |147 |58 |12 |13 |57
February |167 |66 |13 |15 |67
March |181 |70 |14 |18 |72
April |193 |79 |14 |17 |77
May |194 |76 |11 |16 |85
June |182 |68 |11 |18 |79
July |184 |67 |13 |16 |81
August |180 |66 |12 |15 |79
September |175 |70 |12 |18 |75
October |174 |72 |11 |17 |69
November |181 |74 |13 |16 |70
December |196 |80 |14 |16 |79
Crisis loans
1989
January |13 |2 |- |- |11
February |19 |4 |- |- |15
March |14 |2 |- |- |12
April |15 |1 |- |- |14
May |2313 |- |- |20
June |17 |1 |- |- |16
July |15 |- |- |- |15
August |13 |- |- |- |13
September |15 |1 |- |- |21
October |22 |1 |- |- |18
November |18 |- |- |- |8
December |15 |1 |- |- |13
<1> Applicants receiving a disability premium. It is not possible to identify separately applicants who
are sick and not receiving a disability premium.
Porthmadog
|Number of |Lone |Disabled<1> |Pensioners |Unemployed
|income support|parents
|claimants
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Budgeting loans
1989
January |147 |58 |12 |13 |57
February |167 |66 |13 |15 |67
March |181 |70 |14 |18 |72
April |193 |79 |14 |17 |77
May |194 |76 |11 |16 |85
June |182 |68 |11 |18 |79
July |184 |67 |13 |16 |81
August |180 |66 |12 |15 |79
September |175 |70 |12 |18 |75
October |174 |72 |11 |17 |69
November |181 |74 |13 |16 |70
December |196 |80 |14 |16 |79
Crisis loans
1989
January |13 |2 |- |- |11
February |19 |4 |- |- |15
March |14 |2 |- |- |12
April |15 |1 |- |- |14
May |2313 |- |- |20
June |17 |1 |- |- |16
July |15 |- |- |- |15
August |13 |- |- |- |13
September |15 |1 |- |- |21
October |22 |1 |- |- |18
November |18 |- |- |- |8
December |15 |1 |- |- |13
<1> Applicants receiving a disability premium. It is not possible to identify separately applicants who
are sick and not receiving a disability premium.
Porthmadog
Number of
income support claimants Lone
parents Disabled Pensioners Unemployed
Budgeting loans--
1989
January 147 58 12 13 57
February 167 66 13 15 67
March 181 70 14 18 72
April 193 79 14 17 77
May 194 76 11 16 85
June 182 68 11 18 79
July 184 67 13 16 81
August 180 66 12 15 79
September 175 70 12 18 75
October 174 72 11 17 69
November 181 74 13 16 70
December 196 80 14 16 79
Crisis loans--
1979
January 13 2 -- -- 11
February 19 4 -- -- 15
March 14 2 -- -- 12
April 15 1 -- -- 14
May 23 3 -- -- 20
June 17 1 -- -- 16
July 15 -- -- -- 15
August 13 -- -- -- 13
September 15 1 -- -- 21
October 22 1 -- -- 18
November 18 -- -- -- 8
December 15 1 -- -- 13
Applicants receiving a disability premium. It is not possible to identify separately applicants who are sick and not receiving a disability premium.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of income support claimants at the social security offices at (a) Caernarfon and (b) Porthmadog were (i) repaying a budgeting crisis loan from their benefit, (ii) repaying a budgeting or crisis loan at 10 per cent. or more of their benefit and (iii) repaying a budgeting or crisis loan at 15 per cent. or more of their benefit for each month since January 1989.
Mr. Scott [holding answer 22 January 1990] : Information regarding the percentage rate at which loans are being repaid is not collected. Information about the national and local income support caseload is collected on a quarterly basis and the number of loans being repaid on the last day of each quarter is shown in the table.
Column 810
Caernarfon<1> |Budgeting |Crisis Loans
|Loans
|per cent. |per cent.
--------------------------------------------------------
February 1989 |6.227 |0.570
May 1989 |6.661 |0.821
August 1989 |6.072 |1.224
November 1989 |6.462 |1.602
Porthmadog<1>
February 1989 |3.560 |0.405
May 1989 |4.534 |0.537
August 1989 |4.391 |0.296
November 1989 |4.728 |0.380
<1> Quarter ending.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the total amount of budgeting or crisis loans out on loan to claimants on income support from the offices of (a) Caernarfon and (b) Porthmadog for each month from January 1989.
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Mr. Scott [holding answer 22 January 1990] : The information available is set out in the table. The information represents the amounts outstanding on the last day of each calendar month.
|Budgeting |Crisis loans
| loans
|£ |£
------------------------------------------------------
Caernarfon
January 1989 |46,358.39 |2,387.73
February 1989 |49,334.83 |2,288.22
March 1989 |50,457.04 |1,935.39
April 1989 |47,202.96 |2,605.87
May 1989 |48,819.33 |2,752.90
June 1989 |49,154.83 |3,487.62
July 1989 |51,045.79 |4,314.49
August 1989 |49,485.72 |4,700.18
September 1989 |49,739.02 |5,657.84
October 1989 |55,007.98 |7,281.69
November 1989 |60,301.21 |7,152.50
December 1989 |59,995.43 |8,261.09
Porthmadog
January 1989 |32,716.58 |967.22
February 1989 |34,936.28 |1,132.00
March 1989 |35,087.15 |1,011.55
April 1989 |36,365.47 |1,079.50
May 1989 |36,476.63 |1,377.96
June 1989 |34,499.69 |1,335.57
July 1989 |33,012.67 |1,162.61
August 1989 |30,578.93 |1,306.96
September 1989 |30,090.01 |1,552.51
October 1989 |29,010.37 |2,176.98
November 1989 |29,286.21 |2,564.60
December 1989 |29,328.03 |2,257.77
LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL
New Parliamentary Building
Mr. Cox : To ask the Lord President of the Council on what date he expects the new parliamentary building in Bridge street, Westminster, to be open for use by hon. Members ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : I have been asked to reply.
As I advised the House on 28 July the contractor, Fairclough Building Ltd., had reported that the work was behind schedule and was not expected to be finished until October 1990.
The latest forecast from the contractor indicates that their revised programme has slipped by a month.
Subject to there being no further slippage the building should be fitted out and ready for occupation around Easter 1991.
Queen's Consent
Mr. Allen : To ask the Lord President of the Council how many Bills in the current Session have required the Queen's consent to proceed ; and how many have received that consent.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : Of the Bills introduced in the Commons and printed so far this Session, one will require the Queen's Consent on Second Reading and six will require the Queen's Consent on Third Reading. Consent has not yet been signified in respect of any Bill during the Session.
Column 812
ENERGY
French Nuclear Power Stations
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he will institute an inquiry into potential dangers posed to the United Kingdom by French nuclear power stations located near to the United Kingdom.
Mr. Baldry : There is no reason to suppose that the standards of safety adopted by the French are any less rigorous than those applied in the United Kingdom. French reactors are built and operated to the highest safety standards. Moreover, the Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate has a formal exchange of information arrangement with the French nuclear safety regulatory body--the Service Central de Surete des Installations Nuclearies (SCSIN). Under this exchange the SCSIN has undertaken to inform the nuclear installations inspectorate of any matters which could affect the safe operation of plant.
Nuclear Power
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what action his Department is taking in respect of the Council for the Preservation of Rural England's complaint to the European Commissioner for competition, seeking an investigation under articles 85, 86, 90, 92 and 93 of the treaty of Rome, of the provisions of the Electricity Act relating to a nuclear levy and associated subsidies, to nuclear power.
Mr. Baldry : As is normal, the Department has been discussing its proposals with the European Commission. We are confident that the arrangements for the new industry will be consistent with the United Kingdom's Community obligations.
Plutonium
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make it his policy to publish the annual plutonium production and storage figures in the Official Report.
Mr. Baldry : The information referred to by the hon. Member is detailed and specialised and is already circulated widely as a press release by my Department.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy in respect of his departmental press release No. 180 of 5 December 1989, how the estimate in paragraph 1.B(a) and (b) of plutonium contents of fuel is made ; how the figures in paragraph 2(C) quoted for plutonium oxide were reached ; why the figures in paragraph 2(d)(i) and (iii) for cumulative stocks of plutonium aggregate BNFL and overseas customers ; what is the reason for the rounding of plutonium figures to 50 kg ; and whether the figures are forwarded to the safeguards authorities with the same rounding.
Mr. Baldry : The estimates in paragraphs 1B(a) and (b) of plutonium contents of fuel are made from a knowledge of the irradiation levels of fuel elements. The plutonium content of these is calculated using standard computer codes and then summed for all the elements in the reactor or in the irradiated fuel stores as appropriate.
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Plutonium oxide which has been separated in the reprocessing operation (paragraph 2(c) is analysed to measure its precise composition and weighed very accurately.The format of the press release and its predecessors followed a recommendation by the Sizewell inquiry that details of plutonium in the United Kingdom's civil reactors should be published. The column of figures at paragraph 2(d) of the release, which shows stocks belonging to BNFL and its overseas customers, is additional information included to indicate the overall stock of safeguarded plutonium held by BNFL at Sellafield. The stock of BNFL's own plutonium is less than 0.5 tonne.
Information on stocks of plutonium, to the nearest gramme, is supplied to Euratom who are aware that some of the figures have been calculated as described above.
Dr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what revisions have been made in the estimates of amounts
Column 814
of plutonium in spent nuclear fuel, as referred to in his Department's press release No. 180 of 5 December 1989, on annual civil plutonium figures.Mr. Baldry : As stated in press release 180, since the figures for 1986-87 and 1987-88 were published some revisions have been made in the estimates provided by the generating boards of the amounts of plutonium in spent fuel. The changes to the estimates of plutonium were :
Reactor discharges estimated kg of plutonium rounded to nearest
50
kg Pu
|Previous figure|Revised figure
----------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87
Heysham 1 |50 |0
1987-88
Heysham 1 |100 |50
Oldbury |350 |300
No amendments have been necessary to any measured quantities of plutonium. All of this material is accounted for and remains under safeguards.
Column 815
Uranium
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what was the level of (a) world uranium consumption and (b) United Kingdom uranium consumption in each year since 1960 ; what has been the percentage annual growth in each case ; and what levels are predicted to be reached by 2000.
Mr. Baldry : For world uranium consumption I refer the hon. Member to the 1986 OECD/IAEA publication "Uranium Resources, Production and Demand". On United Kingdom consumption I am advised by the British Civil Uranium Procurement Organisation (BCUPO), which procures all civil uranium for electricity generation in the United Kingdom, that uranium consumption by the CEGB and the SSEB in the years in question was as follows :
|tu
------------------------------
Pre-1970 |<1>10,000
1970 |900
1971 |1,000
1972 |1,200
1973 |1,300
1974 |1,400
1975 |1,300
1976 |1,400
1977 |1,300
1978 |1,100
1979 |1,900
1980 |1,900
1981 |1,300
1982 |1,300
1983 |1,300
1984 |1,500
1985 |1,500
1986 |1,800
1987 |1,500
1988 |2,000
1989 |1,900
<1> The BCUPO is unable to
provide annual figures for
the period prior to 1970.
Based on the requirements currently advised to the BCUPO by the CEGB and the SSEB, consumption in 2000 is expected to be around 1,200 tonnes.
Nuclear Reactors (Decommissioning)
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many statements he or Ministers in his Department have made since May 1979 (a) in Parliament and (b) outside Parliament on decommissioning of nuclear reactors ; and if he will indicate the source of the outside information relied upon for each statement.
Mr. Wakeham : Department of Energy Ministers have made a number of statements about the decommissioning of nuclear reactors both in Parliament and elsewhere since May 1979. Such statements are not recorded centrally, and the information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
In the majority of cases the source of any outside information relied upon would have been the Central Electricity Generating Board.
Column 816
Magnox Nuclear Plants
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will conduct a comparative costing study of Magnox back-end fuel cycle financial requirements in those OECD countries possessing Magnox nuclear plants.
Nuclear Electric
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will set out the grounds on which he based his estimate that the new nationalised nuclear generation company will be cash positive.
Mr. Baldry : The Government intend that Nuclear Electric will have a positive cash flow. The precise cash position of the company will depend on the outcome of contractual negotiations with the area boards. The initial contracts will be subject to Government approval.
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether he will direct the new nuclear company to make public information currently restricted by commercial confidentiality.
Mr. Baldry : Nuclear Electric plc will be operating in a commercial market. It would not be in the taxpayer's interest to have different practices on commercial confidentiality for the company than for other participants in the market.
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether the new nationalised nuclear company will hold title to all plutonium currently in the civil sector in England and Wales ; and what restrictions will apply to the company's freedom to sign uranium enrichment, fuel fabrication and reprocessing contracts with French or Japanese fuel cycle companies.
Mr. Baldry : Nuclear Electric will take over responsibility for the Central Electricity Generating Board's plutonium. Contracts for nuclear fuel services will be entered into on a commercial basis.
Biblis Nuclear Plant
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what volume of low level wastes will arise from the spent fuel from the Biblis nuclear plant, contracted to British Nuclear Fuels plc by the RWE Electrical Utility in the Federal Republic of Germany.
Mr. Baldry : It is estimated that approximately 1000 cu m of conditioned low-level waste will arise from the reprocessing of the Biblis fuel contracted to British Nuclear Fuels plc.
Energy Efficiency
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he expects to publish the consultation document on the scheme for the promotion of energy efficiency in low-income households.
Mr. Peter Morrison : It is my intention that the consultation document should be available before discussion of clause 10 of the Social Security Bill takes place in Standing Committee.
Column 817
Magnox Reactors
Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will set a maximum operational life period for the Magnox reactors.
Mr. Baldry : I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Energy on 14 December 1989 at column 778.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when the safety audits of the 11 Magnox stations are expected to be completed.
Mr. Baldry : Long-term safety reviews (LTSRs) of Magnox power stations are scheduled to take place as shown in the table. The stations will of course continue to be subject to normal regular inspections by the Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate.
Column 1 |Column 2 |Column 3 Station |Licensee's LTSR |Possible next completion dates |LTSR (note 2) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Calderhall (1956) |1982; 1989 |1996 Chapelcross (1959) |1982; 1989 |1996 Berkeley (1962) |Closed 1989 |- Bradwell (1962) |1987 |1992 Dungeness A (1965) |1990 |1995 Hinkley Point A (1965) |1990 |1995 Hunterston A (1964) |Closing in 1990 |- Oldbury (1967) |1991 |1997 Sizewell A (1966) |1991 |1996 Trawsfynydd (1965) |1990 |1995 Wylfa (1971) |1991 |2001 Notes: 1. ( )=Date of commissioning. 2. If licensees wish to extend the station's operation beyond the date shown in column 3, then, a further LTSR would have to be completed by the licensee and considered by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) by that date.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Bovine Spongiform Encepholopathy
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the number of confirmed cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy for each county of England and Wales for the four-week period ended 16 January.
Mr. Maclean : The information is as follows :
Column 818
County |Number
--------------------------------------
Avon |14
Berkshire |2
Buckinghamshire |3
Cambridge |3
Cheshire |19
Cleveland |3
Clwyd |5
Cornwall |81
Cumbria |16
Derbys |8
Devon |85
Dorset |83
Dyfed |20
Essex |1
Gloucestershire |21
Gwent |2
Gwynedd |1
Hampshire |24
Hereford & Worcestshire |12
Hertfordshire |4
Isle of Wight |9
Kent |11
Lancashire |12
Leicestershire |26
Lincolnshire |4
Norfolk |2
Northamptonshire |3
Northumberland |1
Nottinghamshire |6
Oxon |11
Powys |11
Shropshire |15
Somerset |60
Staffordshire |11
Suffolk |12
Surrey |6
Sussex East |8
Sussex West |13
West Midlands |1
Warwickshire |8
Wiltshire |35
Yorkshire North |23
Yorkshire South |3
Yorkshire West |1
|----
Total |699
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what number of animals were identified at (a) slaughterhouses and (b) livestock markets and for each of 1987, 1988 and 1989 as bovine spongiform encephalopathy suspects ; and how many of those subsequently were confirmed as bovine spongiform encephalopathy infected.
Mr. Maclean : The information is available from 21 June 1988, when BSE became a notifiable disease, up to 30 September 1989, the end of the most recent quarter for which figures are currently available.
Column 817
Slaughterhouses Markets
Period |Reported |Confirmed|Reported |Confirmed
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21 June 1988-31 December 1988 |33 |27 |24 |16
1 January 1989-30 September 1989 |73 |52 |57 |40
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received concerning the banning of ruminant- derived protein for use as animal feed for animals other than ruminants.
Mr. Maclean : I have received a number of representations seeking a ban on the feeding of ruminant
Column 818
derived protein to non-ruminants, and a number pointing out that there is, however, no scientific justification for such action.Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he has taken to ensure that
Column 819
foodstuffs imported into Britain do not contain the bovine offals currently banned from human consumption in the United Kingdom.Mr. Maclean : Such measures are unnecessary as BSE has not been confirmed in any other country except the Republic of Ireland, where the incidence is too low to justify a similar ban.
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