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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 7 February 1990
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Civil Legal Aid
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Attorney-General (1) how many applications for civil legal aid certificates were (a) granted and (b) refused ; and what percentage this was of the whole in 1987, 1988 and 1989 ;
(2) how many applications were received for civil legal aid certificates in 1987, 1988 and 1989.
The Attorney-General : All information about civil legal aid is contained in the legal aid annual reports which are laid before Parliament each year and are available in the Library. The most recent report provides information to 31 March 1989.
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Attorney-General how many prosecutions have taken place in each of the last five years for fraudulent completion of legal aid certificate applications.
The Attorney-General : The legal aid board took over responsibility from the Law Society on 1 April 1989. Since that date there has been one prosecution for fraudulent completion of a legal aid certificate application, mounted by the legal aid board. There were no prosecutions in the preceding four years. The legal aid authorities do not maintain records of police prosecutions.
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Attorney-General (1) how many complaints his Department has received regarding erroneous or fraudulent applications for assessments of grant for legal aid ;
(2) how many revocations of civil legal aid certificates there were during (a) 1987, (b) 1988 and (c) 1989 as a result of reassessment following information or complaints received.
The Attorney-General : Complaints regarding erroneous or fraudulent applications for assessment of grant for legal aid are dealt with either by the legal aid board or by the legal aid assessment office, Department of Social Security, Preston. Any allegation will lead to a re-examination of the application. Statistics about complaints and any consequent revocations of civil legal aid certificates are not at present maintained, but the legal aid board is introducing new management information and computer systems.
Judges
Mr. Grocott : To ask the Attorney-General how many judges have been removed from office for each year since 1980 for (a) incapacity, (b) misconduct and (c) any other reason.
The Attorney-General : One circuit judge was removed from office in 1983 for misconduct under the powers given to the Lord Chancellor in section 17(4) of the Courts Act 1971.
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Criminal Cases
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Attorney-General if, pursuant to his answer of 29 January, he will give the nature of the charge before the court in relation to each of the criminal cases in the Crown court, to the legal aid costs of which he refers.
The Attorney-General : The highest payments, referred to in the answer of 29 January, to a solicitor and counsel were in respect of offences of fraud.
PRIME MINISTER
Germany (Unification)
Sir Michael McNair-Wilson : To ask the Prime Minister what steps are required to be taken by the Governments of the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, France and the United Kingdom in drawing up a peace treaty with Germany in the event of reunification ; and if she will list the treaty or other provisions governing the changes which may take place in the status of the Federal and Democratic Republics of Germany in advance of a peace treaty.
The Prime Minister : A number of agreements and treaties would need to be amended or abolished in the event of unification of the two German states. The precise details would need to be discussed with our partners and allies.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Audit Policy
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has any proposals for investigating the validity of audit opinions, in the light of the Ferranti, Barlow Clowes, Johnson Matthey and de Lorean affairs.
Inward Investment
Mr. Hayward : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will identify the amount of inward investment announced to all areas of the United Kingdom by economic region in each of the last three years for which he has figures available.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Garscadden (Mr. Dewar) on 1 February at column 290, which contains the information sought.
Manufactured Exports
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will show by volume and value British manufactured exports in the last available quarter going to (a) the European Economic Community, (b) West Germany, (c) the United States of America, (d) the European Free Trade Association, (e) France and (f) the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance.
Mr. Redwood : Information on exports of manufactures from the United Kingdom is published in table V of
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Business Monitor MM20 "Overseas Trade Statistics of the United Kingdom" held in the House of Commons Library.Manufacturing Imports
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what was the share of British manufacturing imports in the last available quarter of 1989 coming from (a) the European Economic Community, (b) West Germany, (c) the United States of America, (d) the European Free Trade Association, (e) France and (f) the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance.
Mr. Redwood : Information on imports of manufactures by the United Kingdom is published in table II of Business Monitor MM20 "Overseas Trade Statistics of the United Kingdom" held in the House of Commons Library.
Regional Policy
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when his review of regional policy will be completed ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Regional policy is kept under continuing review. As already announced a consultant's study is currently looking at various aspects of English Estates' activities. The House will be kept informed.
Computer Security
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps his Department has taken, and is taking, to improve the security of its computer systems.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : My Department follows CCTA advice on analysis of security risks and requirements using structured methods such as CCTA's risk analysis and management and methodology (CRAMM) which has also been made commercially available. A departmental IT security steering group was established in 1988 to assess requirements and determine policy. For unclassified but sensitive systems a review was carried out recently and the results are now being implemented. More stringent conditions apply to classified systems.
Textiles
Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the current balance of trade in the textile industry.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Latest available figures show that imports of textiles (SITC division 65) exceeded exports by £1,576 million in the 12 months to November 1989.
Mr. Henderson : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he has any plans to meet other European Community Ministers to discuss the textile industry.
Mr. Douglas Hogg [holding answer 5 February 1990] : The textile industry is often covered in the frequent meetings my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I have with our Community colleagues. It was last discussed at the Industry Council meeting on 14 November, which I attended. I anticipate that the subject will be discussed again at the next meeting scheduled for13 March.
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Preventable Loss
Mr. Norris : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will list the number of professionally qualified loss-prevention staff employed by his Department and the qualifications held by such staff, excluding qualifications obtained during police or military service.
Mr. Forth : All departmental staff have a duty to prevent loss. There are 14 professionally qualified staff in the Department's internal audit branch.
Small Companies (Audit)
Mr. Stern : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he has any plans to remove the audit requirement from small companies.
Renaval Programme
Ms. Quin : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a further statement on the operation of the European Economic Community's Renaval programme in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Douglas Hogg [holding answer 5 February 1990] : I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave to my hon. Friends the Members for Tynemouth (Mr. Trotter) and for Langbaurgh (Mr. Holt) on 2 February in regard to applications for Tyne and Wear and Middlesbrough and Langbaurgh districts. The Government are considering what other applications might be made.
DTI Structure
Mr. Ron Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has for the future structure of his Department.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has for the future structure of his Department.
Mr. Ridley : I am reviewing various aspects of the work of my Department, but have no changes to announce at present.
ENVIRONMENT
Toxic Waste
87. Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make further representations to the United States of America concerning the export of toxic or hazardous waste to the United Kingdom.
Mr. Trippier : I have discussed the problem of the waste at Wath with the United States deputy chief of mission in London and made clear my concern over the continued presence of this waste in the United Kingdom. I understand that he will be raising the matter with the appropriate authorities in the United States. Future discussions on the resolution of this issue will cover the wider implications for arrangements for the movement of waste between our two countries.
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Inner Urban Aid
Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the allocation of inner urban aid for Lambeth council of (a) 1988- 89, (b) 1989-90 and (c) 1990-91.
Mr. Moynihan : The provisional urban programme allocations for Lambeth council for the years 1988-89 to 1990-91 are as follows :
|1988-89
|(£m)
---------------------------
Lambeth |11.75
|<1>(8.2)
<1> Final outturn.
Hertfordshire County Council
Mr. Robert B. Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will set out a table showing (a) the number of full-time employees and (b) the number of part-time employees of Hertfordshire county council in (i) June 1981, (ii) June 1985 and (iii) June 1989.
Mr. Chope : The information is as follows :
Hertfordshire County Council: All
Services (at June)
|1981 |1985 |1989
--------------------------------------
Full-time |21,724|20,374|<1>
Part-time |18,569|15,365|<1>
Total |40,293|35,739|<1>
<1> Data not available.
Special Education
Mr. Wilshire : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will set out the formula used for calculating the financial needs of each education authority for the provision of special education and list by authority the sum included in the total standard spending assessment for 1990-91 for the provision of special education and for giving special help to children statemented as being in special need.
Mr. Chope : The formula for calculating the standard spending assessment for education is set out in the Revenue Support Grant Distribution Report (England) which is in the Library. The assessment takes account of special needs by means of an index of additional educational needs which reflects additional needs of various kinds and is used to distribute 24 per cent. of the total SSA element for education. This covers both additional costs arising from special education and special support in ordinary schools. It is not possible to identify within this a separate element for statemented children.
Local Government Expenditure
Sir Peter Hordern : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the increase in local government expenditure in each of the last five years ; and if he will express the cost of teachers' salaries as a proportion of the whole in each of these years.
Mr. David Hunt : The available information is as follows :
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|Percentage increase |Cost of teachers'
|in total expenditure|salaries as
|over previous year |percentage of total
|expenditure
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1985-86<1> |1.8 |24.2
1986-87 |9.5 |24.3
1987-88 |8.2 |24.6
1988-89 |8.4 |n/a
1989-90<2> |6.2 |n/a
<1> London Regional Transport was transferred from local authority sector in
1985-86.
<2> Polytechnics were transferred from the local authority sector in April 1989.
n/a=not available.
Total local authority spending covers rate fund revenue account net current expenditure on services plus net loan charges, contributions to other funds and accounts (eg. special funds and HRA) and net non-relevant expenditure (eg. net spending on housing benefit), less specific and supplementary grants.
The cost of teachers' salaries covers spending on school teaching staff, including national insurance and superannuation.
Rents and Rates
Sir Peter Hordern : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the total and annual increase in local authority rents and domestic rates in each of the last five years.
Mr. David Hunt : Information for England is as follows :
Local authority rents
|Average |Increase over |Culmulative
|unrebated |previous year |increase since
|rent |1984-85
|£ per week |per cent. |per cent.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1985-86 |15.63 |6 |6
1986-87 |16.48 |5 |11
1987-88 |17.40 |6 |18
1988-89 |19.01 |9 |29
1989-90 |<1>20.83 |10 |41
<1>Provisional figure.
Domestic rates Average |Increase over |Cumulative domestic rate |previous year |increase since poundage<1> |1984-85 pence |per cent. |per cent. ------------------------------------------------------------ 173 |8 |8 197 |14 |23 210 |7 |31 229 |9 |43 250 |9 |56 <1>Domestic rate poundage is the average rate (in pence) per £ of rateable value levied on domestic properties.
Community Charge
Mr. Rooker : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance he has given community charge registration officers on the status as students for the purposes of poll tax of members of Her Majesty's forces undergoing courses of training.
Mr. Chope : There has been no specific guidance from this Department on this issue. General guidance on determining eligibility for the student relief is contained in
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"The Community Charge" : Students and the Community Charge" (Community Charge Practice Note No. 23) which has been sent to all community charge registration officers. A copy is in the Library.Opencast Mines
Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many appeals against refusal of planning permission for opencast mines in county Durham are outstanding.
Bellwin Scheme
Miss Emma Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether, in his review of the Bellwin scheme, he will consider giving direct funding from central Government in the form of severe weather payments to local authorities.
Mr. Chope : The purpose of the review will be to consider how to adapt the Bellwin scheme given the new local government finance system.
The principles underlying the scheme have been that the primary responsibility for dealing with emergencies lies with local authorities, but central Government assistance may be given exceptionally where otherwise an excessive burden would fall on ratepayers or chargepayers. These principles will remain.
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Bathing Waters
Mr. John Garrett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment which United Kingdom bathing waters failed to meet European Community standards for salmonella bacteria in the 1989 bathing waters survey.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : My hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Environment announced on 25 January, ( Official Report, 25 January 1990, column 785 ) the results of the 1989 survey of bathing waters for England and Wales, and stated that a detailed summary of the results would be placed in the Library. Detailed results for individual waters, including numbers of samples taken for particular parameters and the number of these which failed to meet the directive's mandatory standards, are given in this report, copies of which have now been placed in the Library.
Local Government Finance
Sir John Stanley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will show for each district and borough council in Kent (a) by what percentage in descending order of magnitude, its 1989-90 reported budgeted total expenditure is greater or less than its grant-related expenditure assessment, (b) its 1989-90 reported budgeted total expenditure and (c) its 1989-90 reported budgeted total expenditure per head of population.
Mr. David Hunt : The information requested is set out in the table. For the purpose of this reply, the population figures used are estimates produced by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys of the population of each authority at mid-1988.
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Council |GRE |Reported total |Percent differ-|Reported total
|expenditure |ence (column 1-|expenditure per
|2 |head
|£ million |£ million |percentage |£
|1 |2 |3 |4
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shepway |6.029 |8.119 |34.7 |93
Dartford |4.935 |6.218 |26.0 |79
Tunbridge Wells |5.548 |6.954 |25.3 |70
Tonbridge and Malling |5.059 |6.295 |24.4 |62
Ashford |5.266 |6.270 |19.1 |66
Gravesham |5.701 |6.640 |16.5 |74
Canterbury |8.219 |9.284 |13.0 |70
Swale |6.394 |7.114 |11.3 |62
Thanet |9.862 |10.878 |10.3 |84
Sevenoaks |5.400 |5.719 |5.9 |53
Dover |6.387 |6.743 |5.6 |63
Maidstone |7.382 |7.654 |3.7 |56
Gillingham |6.311 |5.914 |-6.3 |62
Rochester upon Medway |10.021 |7.769 |-22.5 |53
Sir John Stanley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the 1990-91 revenue support grant entitlement per head of population, before safety net adjustments and after reduction of the amount of revenue support grant, attributable to Kent county council for each borough and district council in Kent in descending order of magnitude.
Mr. David Hunt : It is not possible to calculate the figures requested. Although revenue support grant is paid to district councils in support of services provided by both the district and county councils, there is no amount separately identified as being attributable to the county council.
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Shell UK (Planning Appeal)
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to complete his urgent consideration of the application for costs in the planning appeal by Shell UK Oil Limited at South Brent as communicated to solicitors acting for the South Brent and Lower Glaze group on Dartmoor on 13 October 1989.
Mr. Moynihan : Unless unforeseen difficulities arise, my right hon. Friend's substantive reply will be given before the end of this month.
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Environmental Protection Bill
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what individuals and organisations have been consulted in relation to environmental assessment regulations under the Environmental Protection Bill ;
(2) when he will publish draft environmental assessment regulations under the Environmental Protection Bill.
Mr. Trippier : Regulations made under schedule 1 to the Environmental Protection Bill will prescribe details of the application procedure for an authorisation under part I of the Bill. I propose that those regulations should require applications to include information about the environmental effects of the proposed process. I will consult on the draft regulations in the next few months.
Residential Housing, London
Mr. Wilkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement giving his estimate of the proportion of residential housing in the outer London boroughs, i.e. not in the old London county council area, which is in conservation areas.
Mr. Chope : By 1 January 1990 there were 285 designated conservation areas in outer London, of which 253 include residential properties. It is not possible to estimate the proportion of residential property included in these areas from the information held centrally by English Heritage.
Environmental Protection
Mr. Tredinnick : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what studies he has made of practice in other countries regarding the use of economic instruments as a means to deliver policies to protect the environment ; and what plans he has to make use of such measures in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : I have had placed in the Library of the House the report of a recent study by Environmental Resources Ltd. which examines the uses which 10 selected countries make of charges and subsidies as means of pollution control. Seven EC countries (United Kingdom, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain), two Scandinavian countries outside the European Community (Norway and Sweden) and Japan were chosen for study. The report considers both the effectiveness of such schemes in improving environmental conditions and the trends emerging over the past five years. The study shows that there has been a notable shift away from subsidies as a means of pollution control--in line with increasing emphasis on the "polluter pays" principle. At the same time, much greater attention is being paid to possibilities for using charges. In the United Kingdom, little use has until now been made of charges as a means of pollution control. However, charges covering the costs of operating a number of pollution regulation systems, including integrated pollution control, are proposed in the Environmental Protection Bill. Moreover, the Government recognise that in appropriate circumstances it is possible that environmental policies could be delivered more efficiently by market-based instruments.
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Planning
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the outcome of his review of the procedures in the Town and Country Planning General Regulations 1976.
Mr. Michael Spicer : My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State and the Secretary of State for Wales have today issued a consultation paper seeking views on proposals to amend the Town and Country Planning General Regulations 1976. The proposals would also entail amending the Town and Country Planning Act 1971 and Local Government Act 1972.
The proposed changes are : councils should in future be required to apply for planning permission like any other applicant for any development where they are not the responsible development control authority ; where local authorities determine their own planning applications, the decision should be taken in public ; all self-applications should be determined either by the planning committee or by the council and not by a committee, sub- committee or officer responsible for the management or disposal of land or buildings owned by the authority ; to direct that all
self-applications should be advertised and to issue guidance on public consultation ; all self-applications should be brought to the Secretary of State's attention so that where they conflict with the development plan or give rise to unresolved or substantial objections, the Secretary of State can consider whether to determine the application himself.
These proposed changes are intended to ensure fuller and more open debate about local authorities' own development proposals and to increase confidence in the accountability of local planning authorities.
Derelict Land
Mr. Leigh : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what resources are being made available under the derelict land programme in 1990-91 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The resources available in 1990-91 for derelict land reclamation under the derelict land programme will be £71.512 million.
Derelict land reclamation is one of the most effective ways in which the environment can be improved. Since 1979 the derelict land programme has funded the reclamation of more than 13,000 hectares of derelict land. I expect that, in the course of 1990-91, about 400 schemes producing an additional 1,200 hectares of reclaimed land will be completed. The resources available for 1990-91 should be sufficient to enable about 1,500 hectares of land to be reclaimed. The programme is thus continuing to make a real contribution to the reclamation process.
As in previous years, more than 90 per cent. of derelict land grant resources will be allocated to the north and midlands. I have given priority to the north-west and Yorkshire and Humberside where some of the most extensive and persistent dereliction is found ; and to the west midlands where there is a need to fund continued investigative and remedial work on old limestone workings in the black country. Overall my allocations include more than £12 million for treating dereliction arising from coal mining, thus maintaining the level of support given in last year's allocation.
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I am approving new rolling programmes of reclamation for the joint local authority initiatives in east Manchester and Tameside, and north Staffordshire. I am also approving programmes for Oldham, Wakefield and Kerrier.Following the first round of triennial rolling programme reviews carried out last year, I have decided to discontinue rolling programme status for north-east Lancashire but to transfer Hyndburn, where much remains to be done, to the existing Leeds and Liverpool canal corridor rolling programme. The other programmes or major projects reviewed ; Wigan, Normanby Park, the black country, Wirral and Corby will continue. The rolling programmes at Barrow (Project Furness) and Liverpool will be reviewed in the course of 1990. The total provision made for the 16 rolling programmes approved for 1990-91 will be nearly £23 million.
At present the priorities for derelict land reclamation are set out in circular 28/85 "Reclamation and Reuse of Derelict Land". These stress the importance of schemes designed to reclaim urban, especially inner city, land for housing and industrial and commercial uses.
However, when choosing new schemes to support in 1990-91, the Department will take into account the changes to the existing priorities proposed by the Government following the review of derelict land policy published in September 1989. We want to ensure that, through these changes, the derelict land programme can play an even more effective part in reclaiming sites to improve the environment.
We are considering the responses to our proposals for change, and guidance setting out new objectives and priorities will be issued later this year.
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