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Written Answers to Questions
Monday 25 June 1990
CHURCH COMMISSIONERS
Archbishop of Canterbury
76. Mr. Gow : To ask the right hon. Member for Selby, representing the Church Commissioners, what finance has been made available by the Commissioners for the administration of the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury in the current financial year.
Mr. Alison : The Commissioners have paid the stipend of the archbishop and met the costs of his supporting staff and their equipment.
Ordination of Women
77. Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the right hon. Member for Selby, representing the Church Commissioners, how many priests he expects to be paid redundancy and severance payments in the event of women being ordained in the Church of England ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Alison : No authoritative projections exist of the numbers of priests likely to leave the Church of England in the event of women being ordained to the priesthood.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Neill Joseph Patterson
Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Attorney-General whether he has anything to add to his answer of 19 December 1988, Official Report, column 92, to the hon. Member for Orpington (Mr. Stanbrook), on the result of the trial of Neill Joseph Patterson.
The Attorney-General : Yes. The three extraterritorial offences for which Patterson was prosecuted were not tried before a jury. The offences were charged as alternatives to offences allegedly committed in Northern Ireland. As Patterson was convicted of the offences allegedly committed in Northern Ireland the judge did not return a verdict on the extraterritorial offences and ordered them to lie on the file. The result of the trial should therefore read--"No verdict returned ; left on file." I regret the inadvertent mistake in the answer.
Criminal Law Jurisdiction
Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Attorney-General whether he has anything to add to his answer of 14 May, Official Report, column 280, to the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull, North (Mr. McNamara) concerning offences allegedly committed in the United Kingdom.
The Attorney-General : Yes. At the time of my reply the Irish authorities had indicated that the offences alleged against John Brendan Brady were committed in Northern
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Ireland. However, they have subsequently reported that the offences were committed in the Republic of Ireland, albeit with the intention that offences should be committed in Northern Ireland. I understand that the confusion arose because the offences were charged contrary to provisions of Irish legislation, as amended by the Irish Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act, 1976 (CLJA). Whilst the offences could not have been prosecuted but for the amendments to Irish law effected by the CLJA, the prosecution was not an extraterritoral prosecution under that Act.Mrs. Hanif Bibi
Mr. Madden : To ask the Attorney-General when the appeal of Mrs. Hanif Bibi, TH/9473/88, is to be heard by the immigration tribunal ; and if he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : The appeal of Mrs. Hanif Bibi is to be heard on 26 June 1990.
Mr. Zabur Khan
Mr. Madden : To ask the Attorney-General when the immigration tribunal is to issue its determination in the case of Mr. Zabur Khan, TH/13322/88 ; and if he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : The determination was issued to Mr. Zabur Khan's representatives in the United Kingdom on 21 June 1990.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT
Poland
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total amount of bilateral and EC aid received by Poland from the United Kingdom in 1988.
Mrs. Chalker : Poland received no bilateral aid nor EC attributed aid from the United Kingdom in 1988.
Mekong River Project
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the United Nations commission for the Mekong river project or any of its subsidiary bodies last met ; what plans are currently in hand for the furtherance of the programme ; and what contribution Her Majesty's Government expect to make to the solving of any problems that are preventing its progress.
Mrs. Chalker : The last meeting of a Mekong commission body was held by the interim Mekong committee from 24 to 27 April 1990. An extensive work programme has been drawn up by the secretariat including some 70 projects planned for implementation in the period 1990-92. These are divided into three main areas : basin planning, data collection and information systems, and resources development. The British Government already contribute to the cost of various research studies and we have indicated our willingness to consider support to other activities. This could include assistance, with other donors, for a further phase of the water balance study once all members of the committee have agreed the way forward.
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Ethiopia
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much food aid has been provided to Ethiopia by the EC and member states since July 1989.
Mrs. Chalker : Detailed information is readily available only for the period since 1 November 1989. This indicates that at least 370, 000 tonnes of food aid, worth some £70 million, has been provided or pledged by the Community and its member states in this period for the benefit of the people of northern Ethiopia.
Guyana
Mr. Nellist : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aid has been given to Guyana, and to what projects, in each of the last 10 years.
Mrs. Chalker : Financial aid to Guyana in project form was suspended in 1983 because of defaults on the
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repayment of development loans. Financial aid was resumed in 1989 in support of Guyana's economic recovery programme, but in the form of balance of payments support, a grant of £13.7 million being signed for this purpose in June 1989. The technical co-operation programme has continued throughout.In addition, a bridging loan was agreed, also in June 1989, for the purpose of helping Guyana to clear its arrears to international financial institutions which had led to suggestion of assistance from the institutions concerned. The loan--US$ 10.5 million--was activated on 19 June this year and with bridging finance from other donors and the Bank for International Settlements, has resulted in the clearance of the arrears in question. The World bank and the IMF will shortly be meeting to consider finance for the programme of economic adjustment on which Guyana has embarked.
Expenditure figures for 1980-89 are as follows :
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£ '000s
|1980 |1981 |1982 |1983 |1984 |1985 |1986 |1987 |1988 |1989
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Project
1. Essequibo sea defences |319 |1,188 |686 |412 |31 |- |- |- |- |-
2. Tapakuma irrigation |847 |397 |629 |757 |10 |- |- |- |- |-
3. Dredging equipment |323 |152 |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |-
4. Plant and vehicle |15 |- |13 |4 |- |- |- |- |- |-
Programme
1 Agricultural spares |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |733
2. Fuel oil |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |4,942
Technical co-operation |852 |738 |396 |382 |378 |354 |487 |635 |521 |986
|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------
Total |2,356 |2,475 |1,724 |1,555 |419 |354 |487 |635 |521 |6,661
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the European Community Council of Development Ministers discussed aid to Namibia at the meeting on 29 May ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Chalker : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 18 June at column 392.
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans the European Community has to grant a beef quota to Namibia under the Lome agreement.
Mrs. Chalker : We have not yet received the Commission's proposals for Lome accession arrangements for Namibia. The United Kingdom will support generous terms of accession for Namibia to the Lome convention. We will give sympathetic consideration to any proposal for a Namibian beef quota.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Reserved Matters
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he will introduce measures to ensure that applications for approval of reserved matters are published for consideration by interested parties.
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Mr. Needham : I have no plans to change the measures which already exist. Applications for reserved matters are advertised if the proposals have created particular interest at outline stage or where objectors have so requested.
Wages Councils
Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to produce for Northern Ireland the information contained in tables in the answers to the hon. Member for Stretford of 24 April, Official Report, columns 177-82 and 185-86, and to the hon. Member for Coventry, South-East (Mr. Nellist) of 14 March, Official Report, columns 251-56, on wages councils.
Mr. Needham : The information requested is given in the tables. There were no prosecutions in Northern Ireland in 1989 under the Wages (Northern Ireland) Order 1988.
Wages Council |Table 6 |Table 7 |Table 8
|Establishments found|Establishments found|Establishments found
|failing to post |failing to keep |failing to keep
|wages council |adequate records of |adequate records of
|notices-1989 |wages paid-1989 |hours work-1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baking |9 |- |3
Boot and Shoe Repairing |4 |- |-
Catering |193 |4 |40
Clothing Maufacturing |3 |- |-
Laundry |- |- |-
Linen and cotten Handkerchief and Household Goods and Linen
Piece Goods |- |- |-
Paper Box |- |- |-
Road Haulage |87 |1 |11
Sugar Confectionery and Food Preserving |- |- |-
|--- |--- |---
Northern Ireland Totals |296 |5 |54
Wages Council |Table 6 |Table 7 |Table 8
|Establishments found|Establishments found|Establishments found
|failing to post |failing to keep |failing to keep
|wages council |adequate records of |adequate records of
|notices-1989 |wages paid-1989 |hours work-1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baking |9 |- |3
Boot and Shoe Repairing |4 |- |-
Catering |193 |4 |40
Clothing Maufacturing |3 |- |-
Laundry |- |- |-
Linen and cotten Handkerchief and Household Goods and Linen
Piece Goods |- |- |-
Paper Box |- |- |-
Road Haulage |87 |1 |11
Sugar Confectionery and Food Preserving |- |- |-
|--- |--- |---
Northern Ireland Totals |296 |5 |54
Wages Council |Table 6 |Table 7 |Table 8
|Establishments found|Establishments found|Establishments found
|failing to post |failing to keep |failing to keep
|wages council |adequate records of |adequate records of
|notices-1989 |wages paid-1989 |hours work-1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baking |9 |- |3
Boot and Shoe Repairing |4 |- |-
Catering |193 |4 |40
Clothing Maufacturing |3 |- |-
Laundry |- |- |-
Linen and cotten Handkerchief and Household Goods and Linen
Piece Goods |- |- |-
Paper Box |- |- |-
Road Haulage |87 |1 |11
Sugar Confectionery and Food Preserving |- |- |-
|--- |--- |---
Northern Ireland Totals |296 |5 |54
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Wages Council |Table 6 |Table 7 |Table 8
|Establishments found|Establishments found|Establishments found
|failing to post |failing to keep |failing to keep
|wages council |adequate records of |adequate records of
|notices-1989 |wages paid-1989 |hours work-1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baking |9 |- |3
Boot and Shoe Repairing |4 |- |-
Catering |193 |4 |40
Clothing Maufacturing |3 |- |-
Laundry |- |- |-
Linen and cotten Handkerchief and Household Goods and Linen
Piece Goods |- |- |-
Paper Box |- |- |-
Road Haulage |87 |1 |11
Sugar Confectionery and Food Preserving |- |- |-
|--- |--- |---
Northern Ireland Totals |296 |5 |54
Wages Council |Table 6 |Table 7 |Table 8
|Establishments found|Establishments found|Establishments found
|failing to post |failing to keep |failing to keep
|wages council |adequate records of |adequate records of
|notices-1989 |wages paid-1989 |hours work-1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baking |9 |- |3
Boot and Shoe Repairing |4 |- |-
Catering |193 |4 |40
Clothing Maufacturing |3 |- |-
Laundry |- |- |-
Linen and cotten Handkerchief and Household Goods and Linen
Piece Goods |- |- |-
Paper Box |- |- |-
Road Haulage |87 |1 |11
Sugar Confectionery and Food Preserving |- |- |-
|--- |--- |---
Northern Ireland Totals |296 |5 |54
Wages Council |Table 6 |Table 7 |Table 8
|Establishments found|Establishments found|Establishments found
|failing to post |failing to keep |failing to keep
|wages council |adequate records of |adequate records of
|notices-1989 |wages paid-1989 |hours work-1989
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baking |9 |- |3
Boot and Shoe Repairing |4 |- |-
Catering |193 |4 |40
Clothing Maufacturing |3 |- |-
Laundry |- |- |-
Linen and cotten Handkerchief and Household Goods and Linen
Piece Goods |- |- |-
Paper Box |- |- |-
Road Haulage |87 |1 |11
Sugar Confectionery and Food Preserving |- |- |-
|--- |--- |---
Northern Ireland Totals |296 |5 |54
Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list those areas which have been declared sites of special scientific interest ; and for which other areas he has proposals to become sites of special scientific interest.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The following sites have been declared as areas of special scientific interest :
Carrickbrawn, County Fermanagh
Gortnagory, County Antrim
Moneygal Bog, County Tyrone
Garry Bog, County Antrim
Teal Lough and Slaghtfreeden Bogs, Counties Tyrone and Londonderry
Black Bog, County Tyrone
Glenariff, County Antrim
Cleggan Valley, County Antrim
Monawilkin, County Fermanagh
Lough Beg, Counties Londonderry and Antrim
Beagh Big, County Fermanagh
Garvroa, County Fermanagh
Moneendogue, County Fermanagh
Lergan, County Fermanagh
Drumlisaleen, County Fermanagh
Inner Belfast Lough, Counties Antrim and Down
Glen Burn, County Antrim
Strangford Lough (Part 1), County Down
Ballymacormick Point, County Down
Strangford Lough (Part 2), County Down
Kiltubbrid Loughs, County Armagh
North Woodburn Glen, County Antrim
Dunloy Bog, County Antrim
Strangford Lough (Part 3), County Down
Moninea Bog, County Fermanagh
Proposals for a further five areas are currently under consideration and declarations are likely to be made later this year. Other areas will be designated in the future as a result of continuing survey work, but it is not possible at this stage to predict which sites will be designated.
Rivers (Sewage)
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proposals he has to separate control of rivers and foul sewage disposal.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The control of river pollution and foul sewage disposal are already separated in the sense that the functions are carried out by separate directorates
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within the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland. We have not proposed at present to alter that system.Gargoyles, Newtownards
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to his answer of 5 June, Official Report, column 387, why some gargoyles at the Old Cross, Newtownards were replaced.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : Gargoyles decayed beyond recognition were removed and replaced with new ones based on those remaining. The two original gargoyles, which were better preserved, were retained in order to perpetuate the market cross.
Schools (Selection)
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what representations he has received about the selection procedure transfer system from primary to secondary level schools.
Dr. Mawhinney : I have received representations about children who have not been admitted to the school of their parents' choice because the school is oversubscribed. It has always been made clear that parental choice is limited by the physical capacity of a school and that an independent appeals tribunal in each education and library board area will consider appeals from parents about the way schools have operated their admissions criteria.
Shopping (Republic of Ireland Residents)
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will raise at a meeting of the Anglo-Irish Ministerial Conference the decision of the European Court to reject the restriction by the Government of the Republic of Ireland on its residents shopping in Northern Ireland ; if he will oppose the alternative proposal of a 36-hour restriction on such shoppers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Brooke : We have already conveyed to the Irish through a number of channels our anxiety that the European Court judgment should be given early effect and
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intend to discuss the matter at the next intergovernmental conference. I have yet to consider the "36-hour rule" proposal with those of my right hon. Friends who have an interest in it.Cuan Sea Fisheries
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the length of the case of Cuan Sea Fisheries against the Department of the Environment (NI) in the High Court in Northern Ireland ; what was the outcome ; what payment is being made to Cuan Sea Fisheries ; what are the estimated legal costs to the Department ; and what legal costs of the claimant will be paid by him.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The case of Cuan Sea Fisheries Ltd. against the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland and others lasted for 85 court days. The plaintiff ultimately agreed to withdraw its claim against the defendants in consideration of an ex gratia payment of£1 million to include costs and outlays. The Department of the Environment maintained its denial of liability. The estimated legal costs to the Department are some £320,000.
Juvenile Crime
Mr. Hume : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what information is available to indicate the length of time between commission and detection of a juvenile offence and prosecution in court ; and what has been the trend for such periods over the past five years.
Mr. Cope : The Chief Constable has informed me that the information requested is not held centrally and could not be obtained without disproportionate costs.
The Royal Ulster Constabulary has discretion under the juvenile liaison scheme, through which all such cases are dealt with, to issue a caution as an alternative to prosecution. It does so wherever possible so that not every case reaches court. In cases that are taken to court it is estimated that the average length of time between initiation of proceedings and the final court hearing is three months. I understand that hearings are often adjourned to allow reports on accused juveniles to be obtained from probation officers. An important feature of the juvenile liaison scheme is that juvenile liaison officers visit the parents of the accused juvenile offender before court action is commenced. Sometimes this is not readily possible and, where difficulties arise, alternative arrangements have to be made. Delays of up to a few weeks between detection of a juvenile offence and initiation of court proceedings can therefore occur in certain cases.
Mr. Hume : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether consideration has been given to extending the police juvenile liaison system by establishing a juvenile branch to deal with all prosecutions against juveniles ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Cope : Under the juvenile scheme individual sub-divisional commanders have discretion to decide how an offence committed by a juvenile should be dealt with. This is in line with police policy elsewhere in the United Kingdom. Detection of offences by juveniles are therefore often not followed by a prosecution. Cautions are issued whenever possible. The Chief Constable tells me that he
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has no information to suggest that the use of discretion by sub-divisional commanders is a major factor in delays in the prosecution of juvenile offenders. I understand that he recently examined the desirability of creating a central juveniles branch within the Royal Ulster Constabulary and that he concluded that the case for doing so had not been made out.Social Fund
Mr. Stevens : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will announce the 1990-91 social fund budget allocations to social security offices in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Needham : The information requested is as follows :
Social Security Office |Loans |Grants |Total
|£ |£ |£
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Andersonstown |915,636 |424,212 |1,339,848
Antrim |448,449 |229,953 |678,452
Armagh |317,106 |166,613 |483,719
Ballymena |383,728 |192,327 |576,055
Ballymoney |265,554 |136,757 |402,310
Ballynahinch |48,703 |29,384 |78,087
Banbridge |162,037 |92,455 |254,492
Bangor |196,414 |108,115 |304,529
Carrickfergus |175,273 |92,650 |267,923
Coleraine |429,403 |226,051 |655,454
Cookstown |254,167 |143,750 |397,917
Corporation Street |1,059,369 |601,174 |1,660,543
Downpatrick |172,124 |88,394 |260,518
Dungannon |400,736 |214,197 |614,933
Enniskillen |327,961 |194,388 |522,349
Falls Road |799,911 |387,353 |1,187,264
Holywood Road |529,377 |291,329 |820,707
Kilkeel |61,022 |34,367 |95,289
Knockbreda |286,501 |168,729 |455,229
Larne |178,239 |92,327 |270,566
Limavady |162,347 |84,517 |246,863
Lisburn |652,879 |339,746 |992,625
Londonderry |1,204,827 |650,955 |1,855,783
Lurgan |730,837 |400,229 |1,131,066
Magherafelt |394,742 |237,957 |632,699
Newcastle |80,162 |45,232 |125,394
Newry |678,334 |362,648 |1,040,982
Newtownabbey |304,808 |145,336 |450,144
Newtownards |163,269 |89,635 |252,905
Omagh |394,944 |199,907 |594,851
Portadown |221,537 |121,907 |343,444
Shaftesbury Square |586,871 |294,472 |881,343
Shankill |403,126 |214,459 |617,585
Strabane |409,558 |218,574 |628,132
A note explaining how these allocations were calculated has been placed in the Library.
PRIME MINISTER
Economic and Monetary Union
Mr. Teddy Taylor : To ask the Prime Minister what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government on publishing the United Kingdom's proposals relating to economic and monetary union before they are submitted to the EEC ; and what notification she has had of the date of the intergovernmental conference at which these proposals are to be considered.
The Prime Minister : My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer placed a copy of the Government's most recent proposals on economic and monetary union in the Library of the House on 21 June and reported this to the House in answer to a question
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from my hon. Friend the Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley). The precise date of the intergovernmental conference has yet to be set but we expect that it will be discussed at the forthcoming meeting of the European Council on 25 and 26 June, which I shall attend, and the results of which I shall of course report to the House in the usual way.Visits, 10 Downing Street
Mr. Allen : To ask the Prime Minister if she will make arrangements for hon. Members to arrange visits to 10 Downing street.
International Atomic Energy Agency
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister what considerations underlay the decision to transfer financial responsibility for the mission to the International Atomic Energy Agency to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office ; and to which Department Her Majesty's permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency board of governors in Vienna is responsible.
The Prime Minister : The Foreign and Commonwealth Office traditionally has responsibility for the costs associated with missions to international organisations including those in Vienna. Until recently the Department of Energy paid for 50 per cent. of the costs, including overheads, of Her Majesty's permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency and his personal assistant. These costs were transferred to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in order to bring together responsibility for and control of resources and in the interests of greater efficiency. Her Majesty's permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency is concurrenty permanent representative to other United Nations organisations in Vienna. Although on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office establishment, he also reports, therefore, to a variety of Departments in London.
Economic Advice
Mr. Allen : To ask the Prime Minister what provision she makes within her office for the assessment of economic advice from unofficial sources and what estimate has been made of what the cost has been in the last year.
The Prime Minister : I have nothing further to add to the reply I gave the hon. Gentleman on 18 June at column 403.
Correspondence
Mr. Maxwell-Hyslop : To ask the Prime Minister what is her policy with respect to the elapse of time before a letter sent by an hon. Member to the Minister for Local Government and Inner Cities should receive a reply ; and what action will be taken to staff Department of the Environment Ministers' offices adequately to permit prompt replies to hon. Members' letters.
The Prime Minister : It is the aim of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment that his Department should reply to letters within three to four weeks of receipt. However, the volume of correspondence about the new local government finance system has been
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very large and I regret that it has taken substantially longer to reply in many cases. A special unit, now comprising 20 staff, has been established to deal with this correspondence and as a result the Department has replied to 58,000 of the 65,000 letters on this subject received from hon. Members and members of the public so far this year. In general, letters from hon. Members on local government finance are being answered at present within about seven weeks and many are being dealt with more quickly than that ; with current staffing the aim is to reduce the period significantly as soon as possible.Global Warming (Diatoms)
Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister whether she will raise the importance of work on diatoms and related studies at the forthcoming conference on global warming.
The Prime Minister : The work on diatoms is certainly an important component of scientific research into global warming and part of the research work to which I have referred and will continue to refer in speeches and conferences on global warming.
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