| Previous Section | Home Page |
Column 425
Prince Charles Hospital, Merthyr, Phase 2Ysbyty George Thomas
Aberdare General Hospital Geriatric Unit
East Glamorgan General Hospital Geriatric Unit
Pembrokeshire
Withybush Hospital Re-roofing
Powys
Machynlleth Hospital Development
South Glamorgan
University Hospital of Wales (UHW)--
Paediatric Cardiac Unit
Cardiac Catheter Laboratories
New Telephone Switchboard
Replacement Energy Sources
Upgrading of Intensive Care and Coronary Care Unit
Velindre Hospital, Linear Accelerator Suite
West Glamorgan
Singleton Hospital West Ward Block
Tonna Hospital Redevelopment
Morriston Hospital School of Nursing
3. Planned
Clwyd
Ysbyty Maelor Wrexham, Phase 2
Hollywell Community Hospital
Ysbyty Glan Clwyd Mental Illness Unit
East Dyfed
West Wales General Hospital Upgrading
Gwent
Torfaen Acute Mental Illness Unit
Abergavenny Acute Mental Illness Unit
Ebbw Vale Community Hospital
Gwynedd
Cefni Hospital New Ward Unit and Rehabilitation Facilities South Glamorgan
University Hospital of Wales (UHW)--
MRI Scanner
New Kitchen
West Glamorgan
Morriston Hospital--
Scheme 4
Pathology Department
Singleton Hospital--
Linear Accelerators
Staff Residences
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Manhole Covers
Mr. Ted Garrett : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will take steps to restrict the import of manhole covers from India.
Mr. Redwood : My officials are currently considering with the industry whether there is evidence of serious injury to domestic producers arising directly from the import of manhole covers from India which might justify a call for safeguard restrictions. Any decision to impose restrictions would ultimately be a matter for the European Community.
Column 426
Engineering Council
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has received a copy of the Engineering Council report published on 29 May concerning the Government's assistance to manufacturing industry to encourage innovation ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The Engineering Council published a press release on 29 May on its written evidence to the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology which is looking at "Innovation in Manufacturing Industry". My Department has given both oral and written evidence to this inquiry. The Government will respond in the normal manner to the Select Committee's findings once its report has been published.
Postal Services
Mr. Mudd : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he expects the publication, in draft form, of the European Community Green Paper on postal services.
Mr. Forth : The European Commission expects to publish the Green Paper on postal services towards the end of the year.
Broadcasting
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will ask the Director General of Fair Trading to investigate changes in share ownership of TVS Entertainment Ltd. and other companies holding ITV franchises.
Mr. Redwood : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 25 June, at column 25. The provisions of the Broadcasting Act 1981 operate without prejudice to the Fair Trading Act 1973. Under the latter, the Director General of Fair Trading has a duty to keep himself informed of mergers and proposed mergers. If changes in the share ownership of a company holding an ITV franchise gave rise to a merger situation qualifying under the Fair Trading Act for reference to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission he would advise my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on whether it should be referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission.
Documents
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what criteria he uses when deciding which documents to pass on to the Public Record Office.
Mr. Forth : The Department complies with the guidelines issued by the Public Record Office on the selection of documents for permanent preservation. Decisions on which documents are transferred to the Public Record Office for this purpose are taken in consultation with PRO inspecting officers.
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of and how many documents in 1989 he estimates were (a) passed on to the Public Record Office intact, (b) passed on to the Public Record Office in censored form, (c) retained by his Department in full, (d) retained by his Department in part, (e) destroyed, (f) otherwise disposed of and (g) otherwise unaccounted for.
Mr. Forth : Department of Trade and Industry estimates relate to files reviewed and are for (a) 4.3 per
Column 427
cent.--4,463, (b) nil, (c) 7.3 per cent.-- 7,540 retained for second review, (d) nil, (e) 88.4 per cent.--91,339, (f) nil, (g) nil.Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what system he employes to classify, log and otherwise record each document generated by his Department ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forth : The Department of Trade and Industry raises and registers files by number and title, incorporating relevant documents, using widely accepted filing conventions for paper records.
Girobank
Mr. Burns : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he expects the sale of Girobank to be completed.
Mr. Forth : I am pleased to announce that the sale of Girobank by the Post Office to the Alliance and Leicester Building Society was completed today. When the sale of Girobank was announced in June 1988, we set out a number of factors which we and the Post Office agreed would be important in evaluating bids. I am fully satisfied that the sale to Alliance and Leicester meets these points. Alliance and Leicester is clearly well placed to develop and expand Girobank's business, a major objective of the sale. It will contribute to greater choice in banking services, while preserving the close links between Girobank and Post Office Counters. I am confident that both Girobank's staff and its customers will benefit from its new position in the private sector and I wish Girobank's management and staff well in this new and challenging stage of the bank's development. My right hon. Friend the then Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster announced in April 1989 that, following a competitive bid process, the Post Office had agreed to sell Girobank to the Alliance and Leicester Building Society for £130 million, subject to later adjustments to the sale price principally in respect of the difference between the book and market values of Girobank's gilts portfolio. Following these adjustments, the proceeds received by the Post Office will amount to £111.9 million, comprising the repayment of Girobank's subordinated debt issued to it by the Post Office of £39 million, and payment by Alliance and Leicester of £72.9 million for the equity.
Euroenviron Initiative
Mr. Paice : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what support his Department has given to companies under the Euroenviron initiative ; and to what use the measures were put.
Mr. Forth : Since the launch of Eureka Euroeviron in the United Kingdom on 23 January 1990, three research proposals involving United Kingdom companies have been approved for which the total DTI grant amounts of £1.2 million over three years. The projects will investigate a new technique for incinerating plastic shredder residues from car breaking with heat recovery and no emission of toxic fumes ; the development of an ultra- low emission dry cleaning machine, and research into the recovery, and re- use for high quality goods, of plastic materials derived from automobile production and disposal.
Column 428
The DTI has supported four successful regional seminars on Euroenviron since the London launch ; a further nine are planned. These are maintaining the momentum developed by the initiative.Brewing Industry
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received from the Small Independent Brewers Association regarding the implementation of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : I have received no representations from the Small Independent Brewers' Association since 1 May 1990, when the measures to ensure that tenants of the major brewers were free to take a guest beer came into effect. Specific complaints should be put to the Office of Fair Trading.
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what monitoring he is undertaking of the practical effects of the implementation of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report on brewing.
Mr. Redwood : The Director General of Fair Trading is monitoring compliance with the measures and has taken steps to keep their effects under review.
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will meet a delegation of the Small Independent Brewers Association to discuss the tactics of the big five breweries against Small Independent Breweries Association products since the implementation of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report.
Mr. Redwood : I should be happy to consider any request for a meeting. However the Director General of Fair Trading is monitoring compliance with the measures we have introduced, and it is important that any evidence of anti-competitive behaviour is passed to his office.
Scottish Consumer Council
Mr. Norman Hogg : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what grants he has made to the Scottish Consumer Council in each of the past five years.
Mr. Forth [holding answer 28 June 1990] : The grant in aid paid by my Department to the Scottish Consumer Council, through the National Consumer Council, in each of the last five years with an estimate for the current year is as follows :
|£
---------------------------
1985-86 |203,100
1986-87 |215,796
1987-88 |218,534
1988-89 |238,076
1989-90 |243,113
<1>1990-91 |271,000
<1> Estimate.
Air Fares
Mr. Teddy Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made in the reduction of air fares within the European Economic Community ; and if he is able to provide some examples of specific reductions.
Column 429
Mr. McLoughlin : I have been asked to reply.The European Community Council of Transport Ministers meeting on 18 June agreed on a second stage of air transport liberalisation measures and committed themselves to complete a single market in aviation by the end of 1992. The agreement reached will give airlines greater freedom to set innovative fares and take advantage of more open access to the market. The setting of fare levels is a matter for airlines' commercial judgment. However, where the United Kingdom has already concluded liberal bilateral agreements with other countries, fares have come down.
ENERGY
Electricity Privatisation
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when the contract was signed for the appointment of Imagination to be the co- ordinator of the share offer presentations for the forthcoming offers for sale of the successor companies to the area electricity boards in England and Wales.
Mr. Wakeham : I announced the joint appointment, with the 12 regional electricity companies, of Imagination as co-ordinators of the share offer presentations for the forthcoming offers for the sale of the 12 RECs on 4 May 1990, after terms and conditions had been agreed. A formal contract incorporating these terms and conditions is being prepared.
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy, further to his answer of 16 February, Official Report, column 468, whether any of the estate agents advising on electricity privatisation have consulted him regarding any potential conflict of interest.
Mr. Wakeham : Before they were appointed all the property advisers assured my Department that they had no conflict of interest with their appointment. As I said in my reply of 16 February to the hon. Member, the contracts with these firms require them to consult me regarding potential conflict of interest. I am satisfied that these arrangements have enabled my Department to ensure that any such potential conflicts are avoided.
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy, pursuant to his answer of 5 February, Official Report, columns 454-58, if he will list any changes in the companies retained by him to advise on electricity privatisation.
Mr. Wakeham : Since I last replied the following changes have taken place in the Department's contracts with advisers.
The following contracts have come to an end :
Adviser and Area
Lloyds Bank--Receiving Bank and Registrar
Lamb and Edge--Property Valuers
Grimley J. R. Eve--Property Valuers
Gerald Eve--Property Valuers
Knight Frank Rutley--Property Valuers
Weatherall Green and Smith--Property Valuers
Debenham Tewson and Cheshire--Property Valuers
Hartnell Taylor and Cook--Property Valuers
Connell Hallum and Brackett--Property Valuers
Matthews and Goodman--Property Valuers
Cook and Arkwright--Property Valuers
Bernard Thorpe--Property Valuers
Henry Butcher--Property Valuers
Column 430
Lloyd Northover--Design ConsultantsNew contracts have been concluded with :
Adviser and Area
Price Waterhouse--Reporting accountants
Russell Reynolds--Recruitment consultants for
Chairmanship, National Power
R. L. Associates--Setting X for Area Boards
Lincoln Hannah--Press cutting service
Imagination--Roadshow organisers
WCRS--Flotation advertising
Debenhams Tewson and Chinnocks--Property Valuers
Edward Erdman--Property Valuers
Rowe and Pitman--Brokers (in the process of being formally appointed)
In addition, a number of operational contractors have been or are in the process of being employed to provide the major flotation operations :
| Next Section
| Home Page |