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Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement concerning his policy towards single, homeless people.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 December 1990] : I refer the hon. and learned Member to the answer given yesterday by my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning to my hon. Friend the Member for Harrow, West (Mr. Dykes), Official Report, vol. 183, column 119.
Hostel Beds
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many new hostel beds have come into existence as a result of measures announced on 22 June.
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Mr. Yeo : I refer the hon. Member to the answer given yesterday by my hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning to my hon. Friend the Member for Harrow, West (Mr. Dykes) Official Report, vol. 183, column 119.TRANSPORT
Airports
Sir Fergus Montgomery : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will now announce the 1991-92 supplementary credit approvals for public airport companies and local authority airports.
Mr. McLoughlin : My right hon. Friend the then Secretary of State noted in answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Hexham (Mr. Amos) on 26 November at column 270, that supplementary credit approvals totalling £87 million will be available for public airport companies and local authority airports for 1991-92. Taken with other resources which public airport companies expect to invest, the total will assist the airports concerned to provide facilities which they estimate could cost some £179 million in 1991-92.
At this stage, we have agreed supplementary credit approvals totalling £70 million. The remainder will be issued as the year progresses. Major projects concerned include the continuation of work on phase 1 of terminal 2 at Manchester airport and joint venture projects with the private sector at Birmingham airport. Formal supplementary credit approvals for these and other projects will be issued to the local authorities shortly.
The £87 million total of borrowing approvals for 1991-92 represents the second successive large increase, from £29 million in 1989-90 and £59 million in 1990-91. But these increases reflect the investment profile for phase 1 of Manchester airport's second terminal. Supplementary credit approvals will reduce substantially in the next two years and beyond, as that project is completed, and as the pressure on public sector spending continues.
Local authority airports need to expand to meet a growing share of the demand for air travel, but to do so they will have to look increasingly to the private sector to take a stake in the success and the risk associated with particular projects.
Fire Extinguishers (Solvent Abuse)
Ms. Harman : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many reported incidents have there been of people using British Rail fire extinguishers for solvent abuse for each of the last three years.
Mr. Freeman : Her Majesty's railway inspectorate has no records of such incidents, which are not reportable by railway operators unless they result in personal injury or fatality on railway premises.
Hazardous Substances (Transportation)
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the enforcement procedures adopted by his Department relating to the transportation of (a) inflammable and (b) hazardous material by road.
Mr. Chope : Enforcement of the dangerous goods regulations is carried out by the Health and Safety Executive with the assistance of the police and the
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Department's traffic examiners. The main thrust of the Health and Safety Executive's inspection and enforcement policy is to consider and assess compliance during visits to employers and duty holders' premises. These visits are supplemented by roadside checks.Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the current standards and regulations which apply to the transportation of (a) inflammable and (b) hazardous material by road.
Mr. Chope : The regulations, which cover all dangerous goods, are :
The Dangerous Substances (Conveyance by Road in Road Tankers and Tank Containers) Regulations 1981.The Classification, Packaging and Labelling of Dangerous Substances Regulations 1984.The Road Traffic (Carriage of Dangerous Substances in Packages etc) Regulations 1986.The Road Traffic (Carriage of Explosives) Regulations 1989. Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will establish a national accident database for accidents involving the road transportation of hazardous and inflammable materials ; how many such accidents have taken place within a 30-mile radius of Southampton in the last three years ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : The Health and Safety Executive maintains a database which contains information on those incidents reported under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations. The numbers reported in HSE's area south, which covers Hampshire, Dorset, Berkshire and the Isle of Wight were :
|Number
----------------------
1987-88 |9
1988-89 |12
1989-90 |<1>14
<1> Provisional.
Expressways
Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the schemes which are expressways as defined under the European agreement on main international traffic arteries.
Mr. Chope : The European agreement on main international traffic arteries defines three types of road : motorways, express roads and ordinary roads. The concept of the express road is not contained in English domestic law, but, in practice, there is no distinction between motorways and express roads as defined in the agreement.
Fengate Industrial Estate
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which of the recommendations of the Health and Safety Executive report of March 1989 into the Fengate industrial estate in Peterborough have been implemented ; what additional resources have been made available to the Health and Safety Executive to undertake this matter ; what additional arrangements have been made for the transportation of explosives ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : The Road Traffic (Carriage of Explosives) Regulations were made in July 1989. These regulations
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and the recommendations in the report are being reviewed by the Health and Safety Commission with industry and the fire services. The resource needs of the HSE are a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Employment.Bus Lanes
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list in descending order the London boroughs by proportion of highway in each borough with bus lanes.
Mr. Freeman : The available information is given in the table. Boroughs in which there are no bus lanes are not listed.
Bus lanes in London boroughs: 1990
|Length of |Metres of
|bus lanes |bus lane
|(km) |per km of road
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Camden |7.7 |28
Islington |6.1 |27
Lambeth |9.0 |27
Southwark |6.5 |19
Westminster |5.8 |17
Hackney |4.3 |17
Wandsworth |4.3 |11
Tower Hamlets |2.4 |11
Newham |3.0 |8
Kensington and Chelsea |1.4 |8
Haringey |2.4 |7
Hammersmith and Fulham |1.5 |7
Lewisham |2.5 |6
Enfield |2.6 |5
Richmond upon Thames |1.8 |5
Croydon |2.5 |4
Barking and Dagenham |1.0 |3
Ealing |1.8 |3
Waltham Forest |1.2 |3
Barnet |1.7 |2
Merton |0.6 |2
Greenwich |0.6 |1
Brent |0.6 |1
Harrow |0.5 |1
Hounslow |0.4 |1
Redbridge |0.3 |-
Kingston upon Thames |0.1 |-
Bromley |0.2 |-
Light Bulbs
Mr. Cartwright : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to encourage the use of low-energy light bulbs in his Department's offices and other buildings.
Mr. McLoughlin : Guidance on the use of low-energy light fittings has been issued throughout this Department and has already been applied in a number of its buildings.
Wembley Stadium (Underpass)
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when his Department next intends to meet officials from Wembley stadium to discuss the safety of the pedestrian underpass to the underground station ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : The Department of Transport has no immediate plans to meet officials from Wembley statium. Several meetings have been held. The underpass is the
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responsibility of the London borough of Brent. We have provided in the 1991-92 local roads capital expenditure settlement, announced on 17 December, supplementary credit approval to enable the borough to fund a scheme to improve the underpass. I understand that Wembly plc is willing to contribute to the cost.Severn River Crossing
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will now publish the concession agreement recently signed in London on 29 October by the Minister for Public Transport and senior representatives of Laing, G. T. M. Entropeae, Barclay de Zoete Wedd, the Bank of America, and the shareholders of Severn River Crossing plc.
Mr. Freeman [holding answer 18 December 1990] : Copies of the concession agreement between my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State and Severn River Crossing plc concerning the provision of the second Severn bridge have today been placed in the House Library. Copies are also being made available to the appropriate local authorities.
THE ARTS
Public Libraries
Mr. Alton : To ask the Minister for the Arts (1) how he implements his superintendent powers over public libraries ;
(2) how he ensures the efficient operation of each public library authority as required by the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964.
Mr. Renton : Statistics published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy which provide information on the public library service in England are monitored by my office, which collects supplementary information direct from the local authorities. I investigate any complaints about public library authorities through my professional library adviser. It is for the district auditor to satisfy himself that arrangements are in place within local authorities to secure value for money.
In furtherance of my responsibilities to promote the improvement of the library service, I have produced two management tools on costing systems and performance indicators. A third, on objectives, will be published next year. In addition, I have awarded grants totalling £603,549 for 30 projects under my public library development incentive scheme. I also support research into public library provision leading to the publication of case studies and examples of good practice.
Items in Lieu of Tax
Mr. Allason : To ask the Minister for the Arts if there have been any items accepted in lieu of tax or allocated since an announcement was last made on the subject to the House.
Mr. Renton : Since the announcement made on 15 November at column 188, I am pleased to announce that a further offer has been accepted in principle. The offer is of a Sevres dinner service of some 350 pieces and a Louis
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XV bas d'armoire by Bernard Van Risenburgh and will satisfy £1.4 million tax. The acceptance of this offer will be made possible by a call on the reserve.Regional Arts Boards
Mr. Cash : To ask the Minister for the Arts what progress is being made in establishing regional arts boards ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Renton : I refer my hon. Friend to the statement I made earlier today.
CIVIL SERVICE
Correspondence
Mr. Onslow : To ask the Minister for the Civil Service when he expects to be able to announce the result of the Cabinet Office Efficiency Unit's inquiry into the handling of ministerial correspondence with hon. Members ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Renton : With the approval of my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, the report of the efficiency scrutiny on ministerial correspondence is being made available to Members of Parliament and others today. Copies may be obtained from the Vote Office. An efficiency scrutiny was set up in July to review the methods and costs of handling ministerial correspondence, to identify good methods of operation and to make recommendations for adoption by all Departments. In carrying out its work, the scrutiny team sought the views of Members of Parliament, Ministers and officials in Departments and members of the public.
The task of Government Departments in dealing with correspondence is a very substantial one. Ministers respond to nearly 250,000 letters a year from Members of Parliament, and many more letters from the public receive official replies. The nature and volume of correspondence varies a great deal from Department to Department. Some have a heavy case load of letters which require detailed investigation of a constituent's case before a reply can be sent. A topical issue can stimulate with little warning huge influxes of letters with which Departments do not have the resources to deal and these add to the work load of Ministers and civil servants who are already busy preparing or implementing a policy. The scrutiny estimates that the cost of dealing with ministerial correspondence is of the order of £17.5 million per annum.
Because Departments differ both in their organisation and in the nature and volume of their correspondence, the scrutiny does not recommend a single formula for dealing with letters, nor does it propose that uniform targets should be set, independently of the nature of each Departments' work, for the time taken to reply. The recommendations are essentially a menu of good practice, on which Departments will draw according to their particular circumstances. On this basis, the Government accept the report, which Departments will now consider with the aim of further improving their service to Members and their constituents, while making efficient use of available resources and providing better value for money. While recognising that Members of Parliament always have, and retain, the right of approaching Ministers directly, the report recommends that one important way of achieving a more efficient service is through greater
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decentralisation of correspondence on operational matters to agency chief executives and local offices, who have delegated responsibility for particular areas of work and can deal with Members' inquiries on day-to-day matters quickly and efficiently. The Government accept the recommendation that Members need better information on contact points, and proposes to extend future editions of the "List of Ministerial Responsibilities" to include agency chief executives and other key addresses.Other recommendations are designed to improve the way in which Departments manage correspondence and monitor their performance. They encourage more effective use of targets, and aim to increase Departments' awareness of the costs in dealing with correspondence, cutting out such factors as multiple handling and unnecessary retyping which add to costs and delay without improving the quality of replies. A need for more effective use of information technology is also identified. The report recommends that Departments consider making greater use of briefing notes for Members of Parliament to use in response to correspondence campaigns, and on other occasions when a large volume of letters is received on a single subject. Each Department will produce within three months an action plan for responding to the report.
Non-departmental Bodies
Sir Philip Goodhart : To ask the Minister for the Civil Service how many non-departmental bodies are currently in existence ; and when the annual list of such bodies will be published.
Mr. Renton : On 1 April 1990, there were 1,539 public bodies. That is 16 fewer than last year and 628 fewer than in 1979. These bodies are listed in "Public Bodies 1990", published today. A copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
In the year to 31 March 1990, 67 bodies were abolished and 51 new bodies set up.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Manufacturing Productivity
Mr. French : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the United Kingdom manufacturing productivity figures for 1979, and the most recent year for which figures are available ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Mellor : Data on United Kingdom manufacturing productivity can be obtained from the CSO database, which is accessible from the House of Commons Library.
Public Sector (Manning)
Mr. Ralph Howell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has any plans to reduce manning in the public sector ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Mellor : Future plans for manpower in the civil service and the armed forces were published in table 21.3.11 of chapter 21 of the 1990 public expenditure White Paper (Cm. 1021). The Government do not plan manpower in local authorities or public corporations, but outturn data for the whole of the public sector for the period 1978-79 to 1988-89 were provided in appendix D of
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the same chapter. Over that period, public sector manpower fell from 6,565,000 to 5,361,000, a reduction of 18.3 per cent.Public Expenditure
Mr. Allen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for the latest year for which figures are available what is the total (a) capital spending and (b) revenue spending for (i) local authorities, (ii) Government Departments and (iii) other bodies included in the public expenditure totals.
Mr. Mellor : The latest analyses of public expenditure by economic category were published in the "Supplementary Analyses" chapter (chapter 21) of the 1990 public expenditure White Paper (Cm. 1021). Tables 21.3.5 and 21.4.7 give details of the components of current expenditure (pay, other expenditure on goods and services, subsidies and grants) and capital expenditure (net expenditure on assets, grants and lending and other financial transactions) for central Government's own expenditure and expenditure by local authorities respectively. Similar analyses of the other components of the public expenditure planning total are given in tables 21.4.1 (central Government support for local authorities), 21.5.5 (nationalised industries) and 21.5.12 (other public corporations). Updates of this information will be published in the statistical supplement to the autumn statement, the successor to the "Supplementary Analyses" chapter of the public expenditure White Paper, early in 1991.
Friendly Societies
Mr. William Powell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress is being made on implementing the proposals in the Green Paper entitled "Friendly Societies : A New Framework".
Mr. Maples : Preparations for the proposed legislation are well in hand. The bulk of the instructions to counsel have been drafted and are today being sent to the Friendly Societies Liaison Committee and other interested parties for consultation. We also plan to consult on the draft clauses when they are available. A Bill will be brought forward in a future Session, when the parliamentary timetable permits.
The draft instructions reflect a number of modifications to the proposals in the Green Paper, in the light of the responses received. Most are technical, but the main policy changes are :
(1) the proposed legislation will not include a statutory requirement for friendly societies to stand behind their subsidiaries, but it will include a power for them to meet the liabilities of a subsidiary ;
(2) the voting requirements for a decision to set up subsidiaries will be significantly modified. Only a special resolution of the society will be needed, but there will be provisions to ensure that all reasonable steps are taken to inform members of the vote in good time beforehand ;
(3) there will be no statutory limit on the proportion of its funds a society can invest in its subsidiaries. But there will be provisions to ensure that the financing of subsidiaries is transparent to members and to the regulator and does not deplete the insurance funds below a prescribed margin of solvency ;
(4) there will be a more flexible approach to solvency requirements, with different requirements for different classes of society according to the nature of their activities and powers of investment.
The legislation will also contain enhanced prudential powers for the regulator to intervene where the interests of
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members are at risk. In preparing the instructions to counsel, we have concluded that it would be more appropriate for these and other prudential powers to be vested in a commission rather than the Chief Registrar, and will be consulting the friendly societies on that proposal.HMSO
Mr. Lord : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what financial target he has set Her Majesty's Stationery Office for 1991.
Mr. Maples : I have today laid a further Treasury minute setting HMSO the financial target for 1991 of achieving a profit after interest in current cost accounting terms of £4 million. This compares with the target for 1990 of a profit after interest in current cost accounting terms of £2.9 million.
Mrs. V. Chinnock
Mr. Steen : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what further information his Department is seeking from the senior medical officer of the civil service occupational health service in relation to the benefit payable to Mrs. V. Chinnock of Merle Dene, Hunsdon road, Ivybridge, Devon, as a result of the injuries sustained by her husband in the royal dockyard in 1975 ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) when he expects to finalise the award granted under the injury benefit provisions of the principal civil service pension scheme to Mrs. V. Chinnock of Merle Dene, Hunsdon road, Ivybridge, Devon, as a result of the injuries sustained by her husband in the royal dockyard in 1975 ;
(3) when payment will begin of the benefit due to Mrs. V. Chinnock of Merle Dene, Hunsdon road, Ivybridge, Devon, as a result of the injuries sustained by her husband in the royal dockyard in 1975 ; (4) whether his pensions office has assessed the amount of benefit payable to Mrs. V. Chinnock of Merle Dene, Hunsdon road, Ivybridge, Devon, as set out in his letter of 22 August to the hon. Member for South Hams.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : As my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under- Secretary of State for Defence Procurement explained in his letter of 22 August, Mrs. Chinnock's claim to an injury benefit award has been accepted. The award has now been finalised and will be put into payment very shortly, together with arrears due to her since her husband's death.
Mortgage Interest Relief
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the cost to the Exchequer of allowing mortgage interest relief at the higher rate of income tax.
Mr. Maude : The cost of mortgage interest relief at a rate in excess of the basic rate of income tax in 1990-91 is provisionally estimated at £520 million. This estimate is based on the assumption that interest rates remain at their current levels.
Mr. Battle : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total value of mortgage interest relief during 1988-89.
Mr. Maude [holding answer 18 December 1990] : The total value of mortgage interest relief in 1988-89 is estimated as £5,400 million.
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Mr. Battle : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will show the total value of mortgage interest relief during 1989-90 by economic planning region.Mr. Maude [holding answer 18 December 1990] : Broad estimates, based on the regional distribution of mortgage interest relief recorded in the family expenditure survey for 1988 and 1989, are as follows :
Mortgage interest relief 1989-90
|£ million
-------------------------------------
Northern |320
Yorkshire and Humberside 470
North West |680
East Midlands |430
West Midlands |550
East Anglia |280
Greater London |1,000
Other South East |1,730
South West |660
Wales |230
Scotland |470
Northern Ireland |80
|---
United Kingdom |6,900
Charities
Mr. Parry : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy that the Royal National Lifeboat Institute and other registered charities will remain zero-rated for VAT.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Charities as such are not zero-rated, but they benefit from various VAT reliefs on certain supplies they make and on certain goods and services they buy in, which are zero-rated by virtue of their intended use. The Government oppose any proposals for the single market which would further restrict the United Kingdom's ability to use zero rates. EC decisions in tax matters require the unanimous agreement of member states, and there is no question of any unwelcome proposals being forced upon us.
Alcohol (Duty)
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the rates of duty are per centilitre of alcohol for (a) beer, (b) wine and (c) spirits.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The excise duty per centilitre of pure alcohol would be about 10.2p for a typical beer or table wine, and 17.35p for spirits.
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the yield to the Exchequer would be if the rate of duty for beer and wine were increased to that of spirits ; by how much the price of a pint of beer and a bottle of wine would rise ; and what would be the effect on the retail price index.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The extra yield to the Exchequer if the rate of duty per unit of alcohol on beer and wine were increased to that of spirits would be £1 billion in 1991-92. The price of a typical pint of beer and a 75 cl bottle of table wine would rise by about 18p and 69p respectively. The impact effect on the retail price index would be to raise it by around 1 per cent. in total.
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Income Tax
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the threshold for the payment of higher rate income tax would be if it were restored to its 1988 level in real terms ; and what the cost to the Exchequer would be of so restoring it.
Mr. Maude : It is estimated that the basic rate limit for 1990-91 would be £22,900 of taxable income it if were set at its 1988-89 level after allowing for the movement in the retail prices index between the two financial years. The direct revenue cost would be about £500 million in a full year.
Third-world Debt
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax write-off British banks have been allowed against expected non-repayment of third-world debt.
Mr. Maude : Estimates of the reduction in mainstream corporation tax receipts for provisions on doubtful sovereign debt are negligible for the years to 1985-86 inclusive, about £70 million for 1986-87, about £ billion for 1987-88, over £ billion for 1988-89 and about £illion for 1989-90.
EDUCATION AND SCIENCE
School Governors and Managers
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give the reasons for his decision not to give to his Department responsibility for providing advice to governors and managers.
Mr. Fallon : The Department has produced and supported a number of publications and training materials to help school governors, including a loose-leaf handbook supplied to all governors giving information about their responsibilities. Local education authorities also need to provide detailed information and training for governors, as required by the Education (No. 2) Act 1986. The Department encourages their efforts through the grants for education support and training programme, which will cover some £24 million of expenditure on governor support in the four years to 1993.
School Libraries
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish the latest available information on the resourcing of school libraries ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Fallon : Latest outturn data on local authority recurrent spending are from 1988-89. They do not separately identify total spending on school libraries. In that year spending on library books and on non- printed library materials was included within the £331 million of spending on books, equipment and materials in maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools in England. Spending on school librarians was included within the £304 million of spending on school support staff.
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National Association of Governors and Managers
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what funding has been made available to the National Association of Governors and Managers by his Department ; and if it is his intention to provide a secretariat for the National Association of Governors and Managers.
Mr. Fallon : The Department contributed £8,000 per annum in 1988-89 and 1989-90 towards the cost of improving NAGM's administration ; up to £40,000 is available in the current year in support of longer- term restructuring to enable NAGM to become an effective national organisation. My right hon. and learned Friend will consider any further proposals which are based on a sound business plan designed to move the association as quickly as possible towards
self-sufficiency.
Key Stage 4
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many representations he has received (a) for and (b) against key stage 4 of the national curriculum ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : None. It is not a question of being for or against key stage 4, but how all the objectives of the national curriculum for 14 to 16 -year-old pupils can best be met within the study time available.
School Budgets
Mr. Cartwright : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will set out the most recent estimate of the proportion of the potential school budget being delegated to schools in each local education authority in (a) inner London and (b) outer London.
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