Home Page

Column 239

Written Answers to Questions

Friday 11 May 1990

ENERGY

Power Cut, West London

Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will inquire into the circumstances which caused the power cut in west London on the morning of 8 May ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Baldry : The National Grid Company was carrying out switching operations at its St. John's Wood substation to release a circuit breaker for maintenance during the morning of 8 May, when at 0653 hours other circuit breakers operated due to some technical problem, leading to a loss of supply to London Electricity. Supplies were rapidly restored within 23 minutes.

The National Grid Company is carrying out an urgent investigation into the causes of the operation of these circuit breakers and the Department's engineering inspectorate will be inquiring into the matter as seems appropriate.

Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what representations he has received regarding the power cut in west London and the substation failure at St. John's Wood in the morning of 8 May.

Mr. Baldry : No representations have been received by the Department of Energy regarding the electricity supply failure in west London during the morning of 8 May.

Chapelcross and Calder Hall Power Stations

Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) whether future maintenance work at Chapelcross and Calder Hall has any implications for levels of radiation exposure for workers ; and if he will make a statement ;

(2) what steps are being taken to reduce radiation exposure to workers at Chapelcross and Calder Hall ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Baldry : British Nuclear Fuels plc has a programme of measures designed to reduce radiation doses to workers at the Calder Hall and Chapelcross nuclear installations. The Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate's assessment of British Nuclear Fuel's latest long term safety reviews of the two installations requires British Nuclear Fuel to review radiation doses to its workers, to agree improvements, and to make arrangements to consider progress annually with the nuclear installations inspectorate. The nuclear installations inspectorate's assessment recognised that maintenance operations are a major contributor to radiation exposure.

Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) if he will list those representations he received in favour of extending the operational life of Chapelcross and Calder Hall nuclear power stations, prior to that decision being announced ;


Column 240

(2) if he will list those representations he has received in favour of and against extending the operational life of Chapelcross and Calder Hall nuclear power stations, subsequent to that decision being announced.

Mr. Baldry : I have received no such representations.

Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) what is the purpose of extending the operational life of Chapelcross and Calder Hall nuclear power stations ; and if he will make a statement ;

(2) what is the estimated cost of (a) a second emergency shutdown system, (b) improved seismic protection and (c) improved leak detection in respect of (a) Chapelcross and (b) Calder Hall nuclear power stations ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Baldry : This is an operational matter for British Nuclear Fuels plc.

Dounreay (Discharge)

Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make a statement on the discharge of liquid sodium metal from one of the cooling circuits at Dounreay.

Mr. Baldry : This is an operational matter for the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Departmental Savings

Mr. Devlin : To ask the Attorney-General what value for money savings have been achieved by the Lord Chancellor's Department in the last year ; and how much of this was as a result of advice from the central unit on purchasing.

The Attorney-General : The return submitted to the central unit on purchasing for 1989-90 shows that the Lord Chancellor's Department achieved overall value for money savings of £3.9 million on the supply of goods and services. In general, it is not possible to attribute particular value for money savings to advice from the central unit on purchasing. The role of the unit is to provide advice and guidance on best purchasing practice and to encourage value for money savings across all departments.

Crown Prosecution Service

Mr. Ralph Howell : To ask the Attorney-General for each week in financial years 1987-88 and 1988-89, how many cases had to be adjourned in (a) the magistrates courts and (b) the Crown courts because the prosecution witnesses did not appear ; and what those adjournments cost were in respect of (a) the Crown prosecution service, (b) defendants and (c) costs of running the courts, giving the figures in respect of (b) separately for those legally aided and those not legally aided.

The Attorney-General : The information requested about the number of cases adjourned because prosecution witnesses did not appear is not collated centrally and could only be obtained by examining many thousands of case files. Information about the cost of those adjournments to the various parties is not available. Some limited research


Column 241

by the Crown prosecution service and the Home Office has been carried out into the broad reasons for adjournments and the results were presented to the Home Affairs Committee during the conduct of its inquiry into the Crown prosecution service.

Mr. Ralph Howell : To ask the Attorney-General for each of the financial years since the establishment of the Crown prosecution service what was the number of occasions the Crown prosecution service had costs awarded against it ; what those costs amounted to for each of those years ; and what were the precise grounds on which the costs were awarded in each case.

The Attorney-General : The number of occasions an award of costs was made against the Crown prosecution service and the amounts of costs paid by the Crown prosecution service since its establishment are as follows :


Year        |Number of  |Amount paid            

            |awards     |£                      

------------------------------------------------

1986-87     |731        |115,324                

1987-88     |950        |85,586                 

1988-89     |525        |89,547                 

1989-90     |410        |163,949                

These figures cover only the 31 areas of the Crown prosecution service and do not include awards of costs made in cases handled by the headquarters casework group. The number of awards made in headquarters casework is not known, but the amounts paid in respect of each financial year were :


|c|Amount paid in     

headquarter cases|c|  

Year    |£            

----------------------

1986-87 |<1>          

1987-88 |<1>          

1988-89 |66,537       

1989-90 |78,346       

<1> Reliable figures  

not readily           

available.            

Information as to the precise grounds on which the costs were awarded in each case is only available on the individual case file, but an award of costs may only be made against the Crown prosecution service where a court is satisfied that costs have been incurred as a result of an unnecessary or improper act or omission by or on behalf of the service. Thus an award of costs can be made against the service for act or omissions over which it has no control.

Mr. Ralph Howell : To ask the Attorney-General what is the present day cost for the Crown prosecution service in the areas of each of the former metropolitan counties (a) at today's prices and (b) at 1986 prices.

The Attorney-General : The cost of the Crown prosecution service in 1989-90 in the areas of each of the former metropolitan counties was as follows :


                    Cost                         

Area               |1989-90  |1986-87            

                   |prices   |prices             

                   |£        |£                  

-------------------------------------------------

Durham-Northumbria |5,522,286|4,533,907          

Greater Manchester |9,522,758|7,818,375          

Merseyside         |6,132,525|5,034,925          

South Yorkshire    |3,943,197|3,237,444          

West Midlands      |7,652,803|6,283,104          

West Yorkshire     |6,845,423|5,620,229          

Legal Aid Fund

Mr. Ralph Howell : To ask the Attorney-General if he will list (a) each individual barrister and (b) each firm of solicitors who have received more than £5,000 from the legal aid fund, and the amount paid to each of those people, in each of the last five years ; and if he will list each barrister who has received more than £5,000 in fees for acting on behalf of the Crown, and the individual amount paid to each of those people, in each of the last five years.

The Attorney-General : Information about the income of individuals and individual firms is not kept centrally so far as legal aid records are concerned. Payments made to individuals for services are regarded as private and confidential.

EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

School Leavers

Mr. Terry Fields : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the destination of school leavers from 5th, lower 6th and upper 6th forms into the following categories (a) returned to school, (b) gone to further education, (c) entered employment, (d) on Government schemes and (e) unemployed for each year since 1980 and the predicted destinations of school leavers to the mid 1990s.

Mr. Alan Howarth : The most recent published information on the educational and economic activity of young people in England aged 16, 17 and 18 at the previous 31 August, from 1977-78 to 1987-88, is available in DES Statistical Bulletin 14/88 a copy of which is in the Library. An updated version is due to be published later this summer.

Recycled Paper

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information he has on how many Natural Environment Research Council publications were printed on 100 per cent. recycled paper in the last year.

Mr. Jackson : No Natural Environment Research Council publications were printed on 100 per cent. recycled paper in the last year : the council considers that the technology for recycling paper has not yet produced a product of sufficient quality for high definition colour printing. The NERC's "in-house" newspaper is printed on 85 per cent. recycled paper and all NERC's stationery and photocopy paper is either 100 per cent. recycled or based upon recycled paper.

Environment Protection

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what lead he is taking to improve environment protection education and training.

Mrs. Rumbold : The national curriculum includes much that is relevant to the protection of the environment. Science includes learning about human influences on the earth such as activities which can cause pollution and changes in the biosphere, while technology includes


Column 243

understanding something of the environmental consequences of design and technological innovations. Geography, when it is introduced, will be a major vehicle for environmental education, including the area of environmental protection.

Provision for further and higher education, including for vocational training, is made by local education authorities or by individual institutions such as universities, polytechnics and colleges of higher education. Our education reforms are ensuring that institutions are increasingly able to respond flexibly to the retraining and updating needs of employers and their employees. In consultation with his colleagues, my right hon. Friend is considering what further action could be taken in the area of further, higher and continuing education.

British Antarctic Survey (Airstrip)

Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if the British Antarctic survey airstrip being built at Rothera point will be used for any activity other than that connected with pure science, or by an organisation which is not part of the Natural Environment Research Council ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Jackson : The Rothera airstrip, which will replace the current ice ski-way, will be used to support the scientific programme of the British Antarctic survey. This programme of fundamental investigation uses the unique natural laboratory conditions in Antarctica both to address problems of global relevance (such as ozone depletion and related atmospheric chemistry and climate history) and to improve the understanding of this least known continent.

Under the general requirements of the Antarctic treaty, the airstrip will be available for use by other Antarctic national operations, subject to specific requests, agreed in advance. It will not be available to non- governmental or commercial organisations, except in emergency where life is significantly at risk.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Parliamentary Business

Mr. Onslow : To ask the Lord President of the Council on how many days in the present session the hon. Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) has tabled notices of motion relating to a Select Committee on Legal Affairs, the reform of House of Commons procedure, the sittings of the House, and Members' facilities ; and what estimate he has made of the total cost to public funds, and the volume of newsprint, that have been involved in the printing of these motions.

Sir Geoffrey Howe : To 30 April the hon. Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) has tabled the notices of motion in question on 74 days this Session. The estimated cost of printing the 89,000 sheets of A4 paper which have been used is around £10,000.


Column 244

OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT

India

Mr. Jack : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to use the overseas aid programme to help the Government of India solve their environmental problems.

Mrs. Chalker : In India earlier this month I offered £50 million new aid for energy efficiency projects which, by promoting the more cost-effective generation, distribution and use of power, will reduce environmentally damaging emissions. This offer reflects the high priority I attach to using our aid programme to assist India to tackle its environmental problems which can have both national and global implications. The new aid is in addition to £40 million offered, last year, for environmental projects, in particular for forestry and to develop alternatives to the use of

chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). A British aid funded study of the latter will be ready for the meeting in London in June of the parties to the Montreal protocol. Good progress is also being made with the development of a major new project for the conservation of the forests of the Western Ghats.

Common Land

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he now expects to announce the Government's intentions on common land legislation.

Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : My right hon. Friend expects to make an announcement very soon.

Landscape Change

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will place in the Library a copy of the survey carried out by Hunting Surveys and Consultants Ltd., on landscape change and hedgerow depletion.

Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : A copy of the survey report was deposited in the Library in 1986.

Mid-Sussex Water (Discolouration)

Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment why Mid-Sussex Water has been allowed 20 years in which to deal with the problem of discolouration of drinking water supplies ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : The undertaking the Mid-Sussex Water Company has given to my right hon. Friend under section 20 of the Water Act 1989 includes a commitment to carry out a mains refurbishment programme in priority zones over the next five years. Provisional estimates are that this will involve replacing approximately 30 km of mains and relining approximately 207 km. At the end of that period the Drinking Water inspectorate will examine with the company what more needs to be done to its distribution system. Before he accepted an undertaking from the company, my right hon. Friend satisfied himself that it is taking all appropriate steps to remedy breaches of the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 1989, and that these breaches in question do not constitute a hazard to health.


Column 245

Housing Grants

Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) which organisations previously funded by section 73 of the Housing Act 1985 have recently had their grants terminated ; and on what grounds ;

(2) what was the level of Department of the Environment funding of those organisations previously funded by section 73 of the Housing Act 1985 at the point of termination.

Mr. Michael Spicer [holding answer 10 May 1990] : This year we have trebled the funds available under section 73 to £2 million. Half will go to a new national advice service based on citizens' advice bureaux and involving Shelter and SHAC. The remaining £1 million goes to a total of 26 bodies providing direct assistance and practical help to single homeless people. Priority in choosing successful applications has been given to projects which will either take single homeless people off the streets or will work directly with young people and persuading them not to leave home and/or come to London. The following organisations which received grant under section 73 in 1989-90 have submitted unsuccessful applications for funding of specific projects in 1990-91 :

Bayswater Hotel Homeless Project

Birmingham Settlement, Housing Debtline

British Refugee Council

CHAR "Housing Campaign for Single People"

Central London Housing Advisory Service Ltd.

Community House Information Centre

Empty Property Unit

First Key

Homes for Homeless People

Resource Information Service

National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders (NACRO)

National Association of Voluntary Hostels

National Council of One Parent Families

Specialist Information Training Resource Agency (SITRA) These organisations received 44 per cent. of the funds granted under section 73 in 1989-90. All bodies which received funding in 1989-90 were reminded four times that existing recipients had no guarantee of continued funding.

Football Fans (Charter Trains)

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what discussions he has had with British Rail in respect of its ability to accept charter train applications to transport football fans to Wembley and the implications for crowd control and safety ; and if he will make a statement in relation to the arrangements for the FA Challenge Trophy cup final.

Mr. Moynihan : There are well established procedures for providing and policing trains to Wembley. The British Rail special trains from Manchester travelling to Wembley for the FA Cup Final will be supervised by officers of the British Transport police and as is normal the charter train, hired by the Manchester United football club, will be supervised by the club itself. No alcohol will be permitted on any of these trains. British Transport police will be on duty at Wembley Central station to supervise the arrival of the trains and their departure after the match. British Transport police and the Metropolitan police are satisfied with these arrangements.


Column 246

Voluntary Groups (Doncaster)

Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the voluntary groups within the Doncaster metropolitan borough council area, that have received funding agreed by the Government and how much the Government grant was in each case.

Mr. Moynihan : In 1989-90 the voluntary groups within the Doncaster metropolitan borough council area for which funding was agreed by the Government under the urban programme, and the amounts involved in each case were as listed :


|c|1989-90-Doncaster's inner area programme|c|                         

                                         |Capital £|Revenue £          

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

First Interpreters                       |25,000   |5,000              

Doncaster council for voluntary services           |33,900             

Doncaste under-fives support programme             |31,5000            

Homestart                                          |22,600             

Rape Crisis                                        |15,000             

Doncaster Money Advice                             |15,135             

Doncaster inter-agency liaison project             |11,663             

Punjabi community centre                           |15,000             

Denaby community association             |75,000   |5,650              

Additional staffing/rape crisis centre             |11,060             

Transport for the disabled               |22,000                       

Manor House project                      |100,000  |10,000             

LA community chest                                 |50,000             

TRANSPORT

British Rail

Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has any plans to change the circumstances in which buses may be substituted for train services on parts of British Rail's provincial network.

Mr. Freeman : No.

King's Cross

Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with British Rail about the public and private investment arrangements for the King's Cross railway lands.

Mr. Freeman : None. There is no public financial investment in the King's Cross lands development.

Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with British Rail about the development policy for the King's Cross railway lands.

Mr. Freeman : None.

Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with British Rail about a code of compensation for local residents affected by the development of the King's Cross railway lands.

Mr. Freeman : None.

Radioactive Substances (Air Transport)

Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many flights carrying radioactive fuel, spent or otherwise, occurred between Carlisle and


Column 247

Dounreay in 1989 ; what was the total of fuel transported ; what was the purpose of such flights ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. McLoughlin : Spent fuel has to be transported in packages which are too heavy to be economically transported by air. The Department does not collect data of the kind requested but I understand that an average of around eight flights per year from Carlisle carry fresh fuel to Dounreay to supply the nuclear facility there.

Baggage Checks, Gatwick

Mr. Bowis : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the thermal neutron analysis machine for the detection of explosives in passengers' baggage will be installed at Gatwick ; and whether he will make a statement.

Mr. McLoughlin : A thermal neutron analysis machine made by Science Applications International Corporation of Santa Clara, California will be installed at Gatwick over the next few days for a one year trial. The machine has been lent to the Department by the United States Federal Aviation Administration. I am pleased that we are able to carry out a one- year trial of this explosives detection machine. We have taken many initiatives to improve the security of air travel in the past 16 months and we are exploring new techniques for explosive detection. I am grateful to Mr. Samuel Skinner, the United States Secretary for Transportation, and to the Federal Aviation Administration for offering to let us try one of their first thermal neutron analysis machines in the United Kingdom so that we can see at first hand how effective it is.

I am also grateful to British Airports Authority for agreeing to install the machine at Gatwick and for making the necessary arrangements with the manufacturers. I shall watch the progress of the trial with great interest, but of course I cannot say at this stage whether we shall require the use of such machines at our airports in future as part of the national programme of aviation security measures.

NATIONAL FINANCE

Friendly Societies

Mr. Wigley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many friendly societies are currently registered as having their headquarters in Wales.

Mr. Ryder : There are six friendly societies registered as having their registered office in Wales.

Mr. Wigley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many friendly societies there are currently registered with the registrar of friendly societies ; and what is the corresponding figure 10 years previously.

Mr. Ryder : There are 474 friendly societies currently registered. The corresponding figure on 31 December 1979 was 519 societies.

Mr. Wigley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the asset value of those friendly societies which became defunct during the past 10 years ; and in what ways those assets were dissipated.

Mr. Ryder : In the 10 years 1980 to 1989 the number of friendly societies (excluding branches of orders) removed


Column 248

from the register following dissolution, cancellation or winding up, totalled 182. The aggregate assets of those societies and method of dissipation are not readily available. In general the assets after meeting all liabilities would have been distributed to the members on an equitable basis determined by an actuary.

Mr. Wigley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total cost of running the department of the registrar of friendly societies ; and how many employees there are in this department.

Mr. Ryder : Details of the cost of running the department of the registrar of friendly societies are given on pages 52-54 of Supply Estimates 1990-91, class XVIII, a copy of which is available in the Library.

One hundred and forty staff are employed in the department, half of whom are engaged on Building Society Commission work. The remaining 70 employees are engaged in work connected with the 16,500 mutual organisations, 468 of which are friendly societies.


Next Section

  Home Page