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December 1989. The Government have made it clear that such a measure would be difficult to justify let alone to negotiate in Brussels. The EC Commission and most member states disliked the United Kingdom's beef variable premium scheme and would be certain to oppose any suggestion to reintroduce that kind of end price support. Unilateral action by the United Kingdom would be illegal.CHURCH COMMISSIONERS
Capital Assets
26. Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the right hon. Member for Selby, representing the Church Commissioners, what is the total current value of the capital assets of the Church of England ; and what are comparable figures updated to 1990 values, for 1960, 1970, and 1980.
Mr. Michael Alison (Second Church Estates Commissioner, Representing the Church Commissioners) : The Church Commissioners' assets produce about 72 per cent. of the Church of England's investment income and, at their last published valuation, at the end of 1988, were worth £2,640 million or £2,860 million at 1990 prices. The comparable figures for the Church Commissioners' assets in 1960, 1970 and 1980 were, at 1990 prices, £2,240 million, £2,700 million and £2,040 million respectively.
Income
27. Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the right hon. Member for Selby, representing the Church Commissioners, what have been the trends in the Church Commissioners' income over the past 12 months.
Mr. Alison : Although final figures for 1989 are not yet available, it is expected that the commissioners' investment income for that year will have increased by about 14 per cent. over that for 1988.
LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL
Accountancy Bodies
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will introduce legislation to ensure that before a recommendation is made for the granting of a supplemental royal charter to the accountancy bodies a formal invitation is issued to the public to comment on the conduct of such bodies.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : Legislation is not necessary for this purpose. As a matter of standard practice, notice of the receipt of any petition for the grant of a supplemental charter is published in the relevant gazette, together with an invitation to anyone wishing to make representations to communicate with the Privy Council Office within a specified period.
Official Duties
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Lord President of the Council, on average, how much of his time has been spent on his duties as (a) Lord President of the Council and (b) Leader of the House of Commons since 1 January.
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Sir Geoffrey Howe : It is not possible sensibly to separate and quantify the duties associated with the two offices referred to, as distinct from my wider duties as a member of the Administration.
Civil Servants (Advice)
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will issue guidance indicating under what circumstances civil servants in the Official Box can advise and offer briefings to Back-Bench Members during the course of a debate ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : It is the function of civil servants in the Official Box to advise Ministers.
HOUSE OF COMMONS
Members' Interests
34. Mr. Wallace : To ask the Lord President of the Council whether he proposes to recommend any changes to the rules governing the registration of Members' interests.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : I have no proposals to make at this time. However, the hon. Member will recall the motion which I moved, and to which the House agreed, on 7 March.
EEC Affairs
36. Mr. Teddy Taylor : To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will take steps to improve the provision of factual information to hon. Members on EEC affairs ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : The Government attach great importance to keeping the House informed of developments in the Community and will continue to report promptly on the outcome of Council meetings as necessary. The Government are actively considering the report by the Procedure Committee on parliamentary scrutiny published on 30 November 1989 which covers a wide range of issues concerning the way in which the House deals with European Community legislation.
Leicestershire
37. Mr. Tredinnick : To ask the Lord President of the Council how many debates on Leicestershire have taken place since March 1989.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : Three Adjournment debates related specifically to Leicestershire have taken place since 1 March 1989.
Official Visit (South America)
38. Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Lord President of the Council, pursuant to his answer of 7 March, Official Report, column 963, if he will make a statement on (a) his visit to Brazil and his discussions on rain forests and (b) his discussions with President Menem of Argentina in relation to the Falklands.
Sir Geoffrey Howe : I have no plans to do so.
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HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION
Staff Numbers
Mr. Wallace : To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, what was the number of people employed (i) full-time and (ii) part-time (a) by the House of Commons and (b) by an outside agency but working at the House of Commons as of 1 January 1990.
Mr. Beith (on behalf of the House of Commons Commission) : A total of 832 full-time and 166 part-time staff, and three agency secretarial staff were employed by the House of Commons Commission on 1 January 1990. In addition, agency staff are employed on a regular basis in the Refreshment Department to cover absences and to assist at functions. An average of 11 such agency staff were employed on each working day during January. These figures do not include full-time and part-time staff employed in the House of Commons by agencies such as the Parliamentary Works Office, the Metropolitan police and Post Office, who are not the direct responsibility of the Commission.
Training
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, what training opportunities are provided by the House for those employed (a) by and (b) in the House of Commons.
Mr. Beith : I can reply only for those staff employed by the House. For them training is available either on the job or in external organisations, such as the Civil Service college, the Industrial Society and various academic institutions. Training falls into four broad categories : induction courses ; professional training ; career development ; and educational courses.
Responsibility for the identification and organisation of relevant courses lies in the main with individual departmental training officers who advise their own management and staff of available courses. Certain courses of common interest such as induction and staff reporting and appraisal are, however, organised centrally by the Establishments Office.
Staff undertaking relevant educational courses are assisted financially towards the cost of the course, books, and examination fees and, where necessary, are allowed time off and special leave with pay.
Trade Union and Labour Relations Act
Mr. McLeish : To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, if he will place in the Library copies of all the correspondence between the House of Commons management and the Association of First Division Civil Servants over the last 15 years concerning the applicability of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974, and other national employment legislation, to its employees.
Mr. Beith : No. Correspondence between management and trade unions is not written with a view to publication. The applicability of the Trade Union and Labour
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Relations Act 1974 and the Health and Safety at Work Act 1975 are dealt with in replies given today to other questions from the hon. Member.Mr. McLeish : To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, what is the policy of the Commission as to whether the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 applies in its entirety to employees in the House of Commons service ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Beith : Subject to the right of the House to determine its own actions and the interpretation of the law by the courts, there is no reason to believe that the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974, as amended, does not apply in its entirety to employees in the House of Commons service.
Health and Safety at Work etc. Act
Mr. McLeish : To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, what progress has been made since 1 November 1989 by the head of the Administration Department in considering whether the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 applies to Commission employees ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Beith [holding answer 15 March 1990] : As explained in reply to the hon. Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) on 19 June 1989, at column 16, it is the policy of the House of Commons Commission to endeavour to comply fully with the requirements of the Act and with all other relevant statutory provisions, subject only to specific exemptions provided for in legislation. Further advice has confirmed that there has been no change in this position.
WALES
Severn (Rail Tunnel)
6. Mr. Stern : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has any plans for the construction of a second rail tunnel under the Severn.
Mr. Wyn Roberts : No. This would be a matter for the British Railways Board.
Local Government Finance
7. Mr. Nicholas Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the highest and lowest community charge levied in Wales for 1990- 91.
Mr. Peter Walker : My information is not yet complete, but the charge set by Clwyd county council is £223 and by Powys £147. The charge set by Cardiff city council is £78, and £7 by South Pembrokeshire. When full details are reported to me I will place in the Library a comprehensive report on the community charges set by all councils in Wales together with details of their expenditure decisions. It will be for the electorate to consider whether explanations given by councils for their decisions are acceptable.
20. Mr. Denzil Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will, as a matter of urgency, meet representatives of Welsh district and borough councils to discuss the implications of the community charge.
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Mr. Peter Walker : I meet representatives of Welsh district and county councils on a regular basis in the forum of the Welsh consultative council on local government finance. I have no plans to convene a meeting of the consultative council to discuss the implications of the community charge.22. Mr. Anderson : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what lessons he has learnt from the process of implementing the poll tax in Wales.
Mr. Peter Walker : I have learnt that, in setting their budgets, some local authorities appear to have acted with insufficient regard for the interests of their charge payers, especially those on low or fixed incomes.
Hospice at Home Movement
17. Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he expects to make a statement for funding of the Hospice at Home Movement in Wales.
Mr. Grist : I will be meeting representatives of district health authorities and the voluntary hospice movement to discuss the way in which resources for the movement in Wales can best be deployed. A statement will be made after their views have been considered.
Welsh Assembly
18. Mr. Gow : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received about the setting up of a Welsh assembly in Cardiff.
Mr. Peter Walker : None for more than a year.
Coal Miners
19. Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what information he has as to how many of those coal miners employed in the south Wales coalfield up to and including 1981 are still receiving pensions from their employers.
Mr. Peter Walker : British Coal does not have information in the form requested. It believes, however, that the majority of the 134, 000 or so persons who left the south Wales coal industry between 1961 and 1981 will either be receiving pensions now or are entitled to payment in the future.
Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin
21. Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what level of support he intends to give to Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin in the coming year.
Mr. Wyn Roberts : Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin is one of many organisations that have applied for Welsh language grant support next year. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will be announcing individual allocations shortly.
Local Government Leaders
23. Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he next plans to meet the leaders of the organisations representing local government in Wales ; and what subjects will be discussed.
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Mr. Peter Walker : I meet the leaders of organisations representing local government in Wales as and when required. I have no such meetings arranged at the moment.
Cancer
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when the figures for the incidence of (a) leukaemia, (b) lung cancer, (c) colon cancer and (d) stomach cancer in each district in Wales will be published in relation to 1985.
Mr. Grist : As indicated in my answer of 15 March, I expect this information to be published before the end of this year.
Geriatric Patients
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will commission a study into the location of future geriatric patient care facilities in towns and cities in Wales, from the point of view of convenience of access to (a) patients, (b) relatives and friends and (c) medical staff.
Mr. Grist : No. While the Government place great emphasis on responding effectively to local health needs and preferences, and to being people-centred, the detailed planning and development of services is a matter for individual district health authorities in consultation with other key local interests.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will institute a fire and public safety review of day patient geriatric care wards of wooden construction in actual or prospective use in Wales.
Mr. Grist : Operational responsibility for fire and public safety rests with individual district health authorities which are expected to comply with Firecode, a comprehensive code of guidance on fire precautions in NHS premises issued in 1988 by the Welsh Office. As part of its monitoring function the Department will shortly be asking DHAs to review their compliance with Firecode.
If, in the meantime, the hon. Gentleman is concerned about fire or public safety at a particular hospital, I suggest that he contact the appropriate health authority general manager as a matter of urgency. If he believes that there is a more general problem he should write to me more specifically on the matter.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to institute an analysis and review of the staffing qualifications and training of medical and paramedical staff involved in geriatric patient care in the hospital service in South Glamorgan.
Mr. Grist : No. These matters are the operational responsibility of South Glamorgan health authority.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to meet a deputation concerning the future quality of geriatric patient care in South Glamorgan.
Mr. Grist : I understand that South Glamorgan health authority is proposing to consult on changes to geriatric services in the district. I suggest that the hon. Gentleman should ensure that his views on these proposals are made known to the authority at this stage.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what representations he has received regarding the future of St. David's hospital, Cardiff ;
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(2) what representations he has received regarding the future provision of geriatric patient care in South Glamorgan.Mr. Grist : My right hon. Friend has not received any such representations since approving the broad thrust of South Glamorgan health authority's draft strategic plan.
South Glamorgan Health Authority
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will institute a study into the causes of the revenue shortfall for 1990-91 of the South Glamorgan health authority.
Mr. Grist : We have no plans to do so at the present time. Health authorities have a statutory duty to manage services within available resources. We would therefore expect South Glamorgan health authority to plan accordingly when rolling forward its financial plan and capital programme for the next 10 years and preparing its business plan for 1990- 91. These plans will be scrutinised by the Department as part of the annual review process in the course of the next few months ; and officials will be seeking to ensure that they are realistically based in terms of prospective resources and provide a clear agenda for the management of the authority's services within those resource assumptions.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Fish Farming
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information and statistics he has for the turnover of and growth in the trout farming industry in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Curry : The United Kingdom trout farming industry has shown steady and impressive growth and is a major contributor to our aquaculture industry. In 1989, about 16,000 tonnes of farmed trout were produced for consumption whose first sale value was some £40 million. This compares, for instance, with production of 4,500 tonnes in 1979, worth around £6.5 million.
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received from the fish farming industry over proposals for the National Rivers Authority on residual flows.
Mr. Curry : We have received a number of representatons from fish farming interests, principally concerning the NRA's plans for the introduction and operation, in England and Wales, of abstraction licences and discharge consents, and charges for these.
Fish Producers
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) when he expects to allocate the sectoral quota management arrangements to the Northern Ireland Fish Producers Organisation ;
(2) when he expects to make available the final sectoral quota figures for fisheries management arrangements ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : Following consultation with the industry, Fisheries Departments have agreed to the introduction of
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sectoral quota management arrangements in the cod, plaice, sole and whiting fisheries in the Irish sea for 1990. Departments will shortly be writing to producer organisations asking them to supply the information necessary to begin the calculations which are likely to be complicated. We would aim to produce provisional allocation figures in May and final figures in June.Acid Rain
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list by location for the last 10 years the fisheries in Yorkshire and Humberside that have been affected by acid rain ; and if he will make a statement as to what effect this has had on their revenue.
Mr. Curry : I am asking the National Rivers Authority to write to the hon. Member with whatever information it has on the impact of acid rain on fisheries in these areas.
EC Surplus Food
Mr. Gill : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what arrangements he has made for implementing the EC surplus food scheme in the United Kingdom in 1990 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : Pending its detailed review of this scheme in 1990, the European Commission has decided to authorise the distribution of surplus food from intervention stocks to the most needy for one further year. The Government continue to believe that such a scheme is an inefficient method both of dealing with surpluses, which are now substantially lower than at the outset of the scheme in 1988, and of assisting those whom it should help. Nevertheless, the Government do not wish to deprive eligible United Kingdom citizens of an opportunity available to their counterparts elsewhere in the Community.
The Commission has allocated 150 mecu to the European Community for this purpose, the same as was allocated in 1989. The United Kingdom has obtained some 22.9 mecu, the same proportion as last year, which represents about £17 million worth of butter and beef. This produce will be distributed in the United Kingdom by charitable and other non-profit-making organisations which meet the prescribed conditions and wish to apply. The scheme applies to certain clearly defined categories of people. Pensioners or the unemployed are eligible only if they fall into one or other of these categories. The coverage of those who are eligible will depend on the extent to which the organisations participate.
I am arranging for further details to be sent to the appropriate bodies, and I will place a copy of this information in the Library.
New Forest
Sir Patrick McNair-Wilson : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he expects to respond to the report of the New Forest review group.
Mr. Curry : The responses of the Government and the Forestry Commissioners to the review group's recommendations will be made public tomorrow. Copies of the document containing these responses will be placed in the Library of the House.
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Sheep Premiums
Mr. John Greenway : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the payment of advances of sheep annual premium.
Mr. Curry : The revised sheepmeat regime which my right hon. Friend negotiated last year gives member states the option of making two advances of premium to all sheep producers, or of combining the two advances into a single payment which would be made at the time the second advance was due.
My right hon. Friends and I recognise the advantage to producers of an early advance payment. We also see it as important to ensure that United Kingdom producers are not at a disadvantage compared with producers in other member states. We have, therefore, decided to adopt the system of two advance payments of premium. The precise timing will depend on European Community decisions as well as the speed with which our local offices can complete the various checks which have to take place before payments can be made. By adjusting priorities, we hope to complete the administrative arrangements in time to pay the majority of first advances under this year's scheme by no later than early autumn, with the second advance following in January 1991, and the balancing payment in the spring of 1991. The level of payments will be determined by the European Community Commission in the light of forecasts of income loss.
I am sure that sheep producers will welcome this feature of the new sheepmeat regime which will give them earlier benefit from the sheep annual premium.
Coastal Eutrophication
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if his Department will be represented at the international conference on marine coastal eutrophication on 21 to 24 March.
Salmon Net Fishing
Mr. Mullin : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he expects to complete his review of the north-east salmon net fishing.
Mr. Curry : I refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave on 12 January to the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire (Mr. Kirkwood) at columns 779-80.
Shellfish
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he proposes to take to ensure a regular and adequate future supply of nephrops suitable for processing into scampi.
Mr. Curry : We have, through EC legislation, adopted conservation measures to maintain and safeguard the renewability of fish stocks including nephrops. It is for the processing industry to arrange for its supplies of nephrops suitable for scampi.
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what temporary financial assistance he is prepared to offer shellfish processors who have to resort to temporary lay-offs and closures because of shortage of prawns, nephrops and other types of shellfish.
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Mr. Morley : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will amend by-catch restrictions for the use of separator trawls for prawns.
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