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Letters unopened in IND
|1988 |1989 |1990
--------------------------------------
January |47,469|976 |4,726
February |56,067|779 |7,663
March |53,091|2,192 |6,996
April |33,347|2,982 |3,471
May |7,053 |940 |5,244
June |545 |2,371 |4,437
July |226 |1,630 |-
August |491 |855 |-
September |253 |1,932 |-
October |2,889 |4,498 |-
November |3,281 |8,732 |-
December |173 |4,772 |-
On average, letters are being acknowledged within three days of receipt in the Department. There are no unopened letters in the Liverpool nationality office, since correspondence is opened immediately on arrival and passed direct to caseworkers.
Naturalisation Applications
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cheques and postal orders were cashed on each day at his Department in May for applications for naturalisation ; and what was the value of the cheques.
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Mr. Peter Lloyd : Naturalisation fees and registration fees are recorded together. The amounts brought to account on each day in May 1990 and the numbers of applications were as follows :
Value of
Applications |Total |Cheques |Postal |Cash
|(Number) | amount |orders
|(£)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 |105 |10,645 |9,360 |645 |640
2 |93 |7,675 |7,065 |260 |350
3 |104 |10,000 |8,940 |360 |700
4 |115 |11,820 |11,050 |660 |110
8 |127 |14,390 |12,890 |300 |1,200
9 |120 |12,580 |11,160 |460 |960
10 |106 |9,990 |9,390 |600 |-
11 |114 |11,795 |10,285 |870 |640
14 |115 |12,390 |9,990 |1,175 |1,225
15 |99 |10,725 |8,480 |875 |1,370
16 |108 |12,450 |11,450 |590 |410
17 |87 |8,954 |8,554 |400 |-
18 |114 |10,915 |9,665 |360 |890
21 |87 |9,565 |9,145 |180 |240
22 |125 |13,180 |11,880 |730 |570
23 |115 |11,940 |10,385 |815 |740
24 |93 |10,122 |9,432 |400 |290
29 |96 |9,473 |9,123 |350 |-
30 |82 |8,110 |7,470 |640 |-
31 |103 |10,400 |8,320 |690 |1,390
|------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Totals |2,108 |217,119 |194,034 |11,360 |11,725
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average length of time for dealing with the cases of (a) naturalisation, (b) variation of leave for visitors, (c) political asylum and (d) variation of leave for visitors who subsequently apply for indefinite leave.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The available information is given in the following table :
>
Estimated average length of time between the receipt of an
application and the decision, for cases<1>
decided in the first quarter of 1990
|Months
--------------------------------------------------------------
Applications for naturalisation |27
Application for variation of leave as a visitor |2
Application for refugee status |9"
<1>Includes, where relevant, cases decided in the Public
Enquiry Office as well as in caseworking groups.
Nationality (Registration)
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the new target date for the completion of all registration cases made under the British Nationality Act 1981.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Hicks) on 21 March 1990, at column 634 . At that time, we held some 18,000 transitional registration cases where a response from the applicant was awaited. That number has now reduced to 10,000. We cannot set a date for completing these applications as this will depend on how soon applicants respond. For the continuing classes of registration case, our aim is to reduce waiting times below 12 months as soon as practicable.
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Energy Costs
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answers of 18 June, Official Report, columns 430-31, 10 May, Official Report, columns 197-98, and 30 April, Official Report, column 400, what is the square footage of office space to which these figures relate.
Mr. Waddington : The square footage of the buildings is 3,445,664, but this is not all office space, as the buildings listed include offices, stores, laboratories and residential training facilities.
Trafalgar Square (Incidents)
Mr. Nellist : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list by age, sex, offence, last known address, and prison, or place of confinement, those people remanded in custody following the incidents in Trafalgar square on 31 March, and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Details of the charges preferred against those arrested in connection with the disturbances in central London on 31 March and the readily available information about the age, sex and place of residence of the arrested and charged are set out in my reply to a question from the hon. Member on 13 June at column 192. I understand from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis that the other information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Passports
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many passports were held at the Home Office for each day of each month of 1990.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I regret that the information requested is not available.
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Mr. Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to amend the passport regulations to allow widows and widowers holding joint passports to continue to use them.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The proviso that passports which include particulars of the holder's spouse are not available for use when the spouse (including a widowed spouse) is travelling alone accords with general international practice, and there are no plans to change it.
Immigration
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many representations he has received from hon. Members on individual immigration cases for each month of 1990.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : For each month of 1990, written representations or queries from hon. Members on individual immigration cases have been received as follows :
|Number
-----------------------
January |532
February |508
March |510
April |430
May |512
Information on the number of representations made orally is not available.
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many outstanding applications for (a) naturalisation, (b) registration, (c) variation of leave and (d) asylum applications there were in each month of 1990.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The available information relates to casework in B1 and B4 divisions in the immigration and nationality department and is as follows :
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Nationality Variation of Leave<1> Asylum and related
|casework<1><2>
|Naturalisation |Registration |General immigration|Eastern European
|casework |casework
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January |64,402 |47,622 |28,023 |1,251 |14,475
February |65,355 |42,791 |26,602 |1,376 |15,031
March |65,050 |38,832 |26,359 |1,609 |16,272
April |63,902 |35,780 |24,581 |1,616 |17,270
May |64,273 |33,755 |21,914 |1,530 |18,150
<1> The casework figures include referred entry clearance applications.
<2> These figures are a total of all work outstanding in the Refugee Unit.
Kurdish Refugees
Mr. Watson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to be in a position to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Glasgow, Central of 5 December 1989, ref. 28762/89, on Kurdish refugees.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I regret that the response has been delayed, and I shall reply to the hon. Member in the near future.
Entry Clearance
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of entry clearance have been referred to him for each month of 1990.
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Mr. Peter Lloyd : The information is not available centrally.
Variation of Leave
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to introduce fees for applications for variation of leave ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I am considering how and when the provision for charging for indefinite leave to remain under section 9(1) of the Immigration Act 1988 might be implemented. An announcement will be made at the appropriate time. There are no present plans to introduce fees for applications for other variations of leave.
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Distress Warrants
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the number of distress warrants issued by magistrates courts in 1989.
Mr. John Patten : This information will not be available until around the end of July.
Refugees from China (Permits)
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many refugees from the People's Republic of China have been granted (a) entry permits and (b) residence permits since 4 June 1989.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The available information is given in the following table.
(
Grants<1> of refugee status or
exceptional leave since 4 June 1989 to
Chinese nationals who have applied for
refugee status
|Number
----------------------------------------
Granted refugee status |37
Granted exceptional leave |11
<1> Provisional figures which may be
underestimates.
These figures do not include Chinese nationals who apply to remain here on an exceptional basis, and are being allowed to stay under the terms of the announcement to the House on 20 December 1989 at column 274.
Voluntary Organisations
Mr. Gould : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list for each local authority those voluntary organisations in receipt of section 11 funding, money from crime prevention schemes or any other projects administered by his Department.
Mr. John Patten [holding answer 22 June 1990] : Under present arrangements, section 11 funding may be paid only to local authorities. Although posts funded in this way may be based in voluntary organisations no collected information is kept of such posts.
Grants under the safer cities programme are currently made in 16 local authority areas and I will write to the hon. Member with a list of the voluntary organisations that have received funding to date. Most Home Office grants to voluntary organisations and projects are not allocated by reference to local authority area. The latest available information about Home Office grants was given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister in reply to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Mr. Hayes) on 11 May at column 254.
ENVIRONMENT
Nuclear Waste
85. Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he was last in communication with Nirex regarding possible sites for a nuclear waste repository.
86. Mr. Andrew Welsh : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he was last in communication with Nirex regarding possible sites for a nuclear waste repository.
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87. Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he was last in communication with Nirex regarding possible sites for a nuclear waste repository.
Mr. Trippier : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not yet been in communication with United Kingdom Nirex. His predecessor last met senior representatives of Nirex on 15 March 1989. Officials are frequently in contact with Nirex on various matters.
Mr. Strang : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much money his Department is spending on research into the storage, treatment, handling and transport of nuclear waste.
Mr. Trippier : My Department plans to spend about £9 million in the current financial year on radioactive waste management research, including the storage, treatment and handling of nuclear waste. The transport of radioactive materials is primarily a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport.
Second Homes
Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give the number of second homes for each local authority in Britain, on the basis of information collected for the community charge.
Mr. Portillo : I am at present collecting estimates of the number of properties giving rise to a standard community charge.
Suffolk and Norfolk Broads
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has on the working of the Suffolk and Norfolk Broads Act 1987, and particularly the planning aspect.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : The Broads Authority submits its five-yearly management plan, annual comprehensive work programmes and quarterly grant- in-aid information to the Department.
Waste Management Conference
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what contribution was made by his Department to the 92nd annual waste management conference held on 12 to 15 June.
Mr. Trippier : I was pleased to address the 92nd conference of the Institute of Waste Management on 12 June. Officials from the Department were present for the rest of the conference.
Ozone-depleting Substances
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals Her Majesty's Government are putting to the second meeting of parties to the Montreal protocol on ozone-depleting substances in London on 20 to 29 June.
Mr. Trippier : The European Community negotiating position, based on that of the United Kingdom, is as follows :
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CFCs : 50 per cent. cut on 1986 levels by 1991-92 ; 85 per cent. by 1995-96 ; phase out by 1997 or at least before 2000. Halons : 50 per cent. cut by 1995 ; phase out by 2000 except for a limited number of essential uses. Methyl chloroform : 25 per cent. cut by 1994 ; 50 per cent. by 2000 ; consideration in 1994 of further and faster cuts. Carbon tetrachloride : 50 per cent. cut by 1991-92 ; phase out by 2000.UN Environment Programme
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he intends to put forward at the United Nations Environment Programme governing council meeting in Nairobi on 1 to 3 August.
Mr. Trippier : I shall be attending the special session of the United Nations Environment Programme governing council from 1 to 3 August which will consider priority evolving environmental issues. I will be calling for international support for action on major issues such as climate change, the ozone layer and biodiversity. I will also seek to ensure that the governing council sends a strong message to the preparatory committee for the 1992 United Nations conference on environment and development about the major issues facing the world today.
Letters (Cornwall)
Mr. Mudd : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the hon. Member for Falmouth and Camborne may expect a response to the letter forwarded to his Department on 5 March on behalf of Mrs. Barbara Toyne, of 24 Penmere crescent, Falmouth, Cornwall.
Mr. Chope : I replied to my hon. Friend on 16 May.
Mr. Mudd : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the hon. Member for Falmouth and Camborne may expect a response to the letter forwarded to his Department on 18 April on behalf of Mrs. G. M. Prowse, of 1 Woodview, Woodland avenue, Penryn, Cornwall.
Mr. Chope : I replied to my hon. Friend on 15 June.
Mr. Mudd : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the hon. Member for Falmouth and Camborne may expect a response to the letter forwarded to his Department on 23 April on behalf of Mr. A. R. Jago, of 5 Lister street, Falmouth, Cornwall.
Mr. Chope : I replied to my hon. Friend on 15 June.
Liverpool (Ministerial Visit)
Mr. Parry : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the recent visit to Liverpool of the Minister for Local Government and Inner Cities.
Mr. Portillo : I visited Liverpool on 14 May and 21 June. On the first visit, I met the dean of the Anglican
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cathedral, to see the development being carried out on the precinct site, below the cathedral, and to hear the dean's ideas for future initiatives in the area. I was encouraged by what I saw and heard. I then visited the Granby-Toxteth task force, and had a quick tour of the area with its leader, before touring the Liverpool part of the Merseyside development corporation's area.During my visit on 21 June, I met the leaders of the Princes Park and Granby community council. The group recognised the value of programmes being carried by central and local government, but expressed the view that the Toxteth area was not benefiting and that there could be better co- ordination of the programmes of the statutory agencies active in the area, and improvements in consultation with the local community. I found it a helpful and positive meeting. I then met the board of the Merseyside development corporation, to discuss its recently published strategy and its future policies and programmes. I was impressed by the achievements of the corporation so far, and I encouraged it to continue to take a vigorous and dynamic role in its much-expanded area.
I look forward to visiting Merseyside frequently in future, in my roles as Minister with special responsibility for the Liverpool city action team and the Granby-Toxteth task force.
Incinerators
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what measures he intends to bring forward in response to his Department's study of municipal incinerators, carried out by Warren Spring laboratory ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : I am considering an investigation to determine which incinerators can or will be modified to meet the new European regulations on emissions.
Uniform Business Rate
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will consider the fire certificate threshold of six letting bedspaces as a starting point for the imposition of uniform business rate ;
(2) if he will seek powers to change the limit of 100 days of opening below which accommodation operators will not be subject to uniform business rate.
Mr. Chope : We have received a number of representations which argue that the threshold at which bed-and-breakfast accommodation provided in an individual's own home comes into non-domestic rating is inappropriate. We are at present considering these representations, and whether there is any case for altering existing provisions.
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Water Charges
Mr. French : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will meet the Director General of Water Services to discuss the workings of the water and sewerage infrastructure charges ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : My right hon. Friend has no plans to meet the Director General of Water Services. The detailed application of infrastructure charges is a matter for individual water and sewerage companies, within the terms of their instruments of appointment. It is the responsibility of the director general to ensure that individual companies are complying with their terms and conditions of appointment.
Water Quality
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all independent research bodies that are carrying out public interest work on water quality and supply, funded by his Department.
Mr. Trippier : During the 1990-91 financial year, the following independent research bodies will be carrying out research on water quality and supply for the Department :
Water Research Centre (1989) plc
Hydraulics Research Ltd.
Altwell Chemistry Ltd.
Public Health Laboratory Service
North West Water Ltd.
Natural Environment Research Council
--Plymouth Marine Laboratory
--Institute of Freshwater Ecology
--Institute of Hydrology
Brunel University
University of Dundee
Atomic Energy Authority Technology
Management Information System
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects to place a copy of MINIS 11 in the Library ; and if he will make a statement on its conclusions.
Mr. Chris Patten : I expect to place a copy of MINIS 11 in the Library by the summer recess.
Energy Consumption
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to the answers of 10 May, Official Report, columns 189-90 and 30 April, Official Report, columns 382-83, what is the square footage of office space to which these figures relate.
Mr. Chris Patten : The amount of office space to which the figures in my earlier answers relate is 1,209,645 sq ft. This area excludes specialised sites such as the royal parks and palaces which were included in the consumption and expenditure figures but to which the concept area is not appropriate.
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what was the consumption by the Property Services Agency for the civil estate of (a) kWh of electricity, (b) therms of gas, (c) litres of liquid fuel and (e) tonnes of solid fuel for each year from 1978-79 to 1989-90, breaking the figures down by Government Department ;
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(2) what was the spending by the Property Services Agency for the civil estate on (a) electricity, (b) gas, (c) liquid fuels, (d) solid fuels and (e) all energy, expressed in (i) money terms and (ii) real 1989-90 terms for each year from 1978-79 to 1989-90, broken down by Government Department as far as possible.Mr. Chope : This information can be provided only at
disproportionate cost.
Energy Efficiency
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much was invested in improving the energy efficiency of his Department in the latest available year.
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