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implementation of the large combustion plants directive. The Government's proposals for this will require substantial overall reductions in emissions of SO2 from Powergen's plants.TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Trade Statistics
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what has been the percentage increase in investment each year since 1979 in real terms in (a) chemicals, (b) man-made fibres, (c) textiles, (d) clothing,
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(e) footwear, (f) motor-vehicle manufacturing and (g) mechanical engineering : to what extent this has resulted in an increase in capacity ; what has been the increase in the demand for such goods ; and whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing in each case the increase in capacity since 1979, the increase in output as a percentage of 1979 and the figures for import penetration from the EEC and the rest of the world now and in 1979.Mr. Leigh : The available information is shown in the tables : 1989 data are not yet available. Investment figures in real price terms are a matter for the Treasury. Statistics on capacity are not available.
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United Kingdom demand: percentage changes
Per cent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
(a) Chemicals (SIC 25) |-2 |+7 |+7 |+14|+12|+4 |+2 |+13
(b) Man-made Fibres (SIC 26) -28 +4 -3 +8 +11 +7 +14 +15
(c) Textiles (SIC 43) |-11|+2 |+7 |+15|+12|+8 |+6 |+7
(d) Clothing (SIC 453) |0 |-1 |+9 |+8 |+15|+10|+9 |+5
(e) Footwear (SIC 451) |0 |+3 |+7 |+9 |+12|+9 |+10|+6
(f) Motor Vehicle
Manufacturing (SIC 35) |-11|-5 |+21|+16|+7 |+16|+14|+18
Engineering (SIC 32) |0 |-4 |+13|+12|+8 |+8 |+6 |+10
United Kingdom output : percentage changes on 1979
Per cent.
1980-1979 1981-1979 1982-1979 1983-1979 1984-1979 1985-1979 1986-1979 1987- 1979 1988-1979
(a) Chemicals (SIC 25) 3 9 15 28 43 53 56 72 88 (b) Man-made Fibres (SIC 26) 18 29 36 25 15 13 10 3 2
(c) Textiles (SIC 43) 8 12 8 0 10 20 24 31 36
(d) Clothing (SIC 453) 0 5 2 10 22 37 46 50 56 (e) Footwear (SIC 451) 2 4 2 2 10 24 35 40 47 (f) Motor Vehicle
Manufacturing (SIC 35) 3 9 4 0 9 26 36 69 98
(g) Mechanical
Engineering (SIC 32) 6 3 12 13 22 32 36 45 62
Import penetration from the E.C. and the rest of the world -------------------------------------------------------- (a) Chemicals (SIC 25) |18|10|30|11 (b) Man-made Fibres (SIC 26) |36|20|53|13 (c) Textiles (SIC 43) |18|17|27|21 (d) Clothing (SIC 453) |9 |19|14|26 (e) Footwear (SIC 451) |22|13|20|28 (f) Motor Vehicle Manufacturing (SIC 35) |30|9 |37|14 (g) Mechanical Engineering (SIC 32) |18|11|26|13 Notes: 1. The sectors are defined in terms of the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC), and the code references are shown in brackets. 2. United Kingdom demand is defined in terms of output ( i.e. United Kingdom manufacturers' product sales) plus imports, less exports. 3. The import penetration figures are defined as imports from the E.C., or the Rest of the World, as a percentage of United Kingdom demand. Both 1980 and 1988 E.C. figures relate to imports from the current 11 member states (i.e. including Spain and Portugal). 1980 figures are given, as 1979 figures are not available in this form. 4. The percentage changes in demand and output are in current price terms. Source: Department of Trade and Industry.
Consumer Guarantees
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals he has for requiring consumer guarantees to be enforceable beyond the life of the company issuing them.
Mr. Leigh : The Government have no proposals for such legislation. The enforcement of long-term guarantees
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was considered by the Director General of Fair Trading in his report on consumer guarantees (June 1986). The report makes a number of recommendations on good practice and indicates that the Office of Fair Trading will keep this matter under review to see whether voluntary initiatives by industry can bring about improvements.Column 409
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals he has for making guarantees issued on goods sold a liability to be taken into account by the Official Receiver on liquidation.Mr. Redwood : The insolvency legislation--rule 13.12 of the insolvency rules 1986--already provides that contingent debts or liabilities that materialise after a company has gone into liquidation by reason of an obligation incurred before that date are provable claims in the proceedings. This in effect means that claims under valid guarantees are taken into account by the liquidator.
Auditing Firms
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will propose legislation under which auditing firms would be banned from conducting public opinion polls for their audit clients.
Mr. Redwood : I see no reason for doing so. Under part II of the Companies Act 1989, the recognised supervisory bodies must have adequate rules and practices to ensure that company audit work is conducted properly and with integrity, and that persons are not appointed as company auditors in circumstances in which they have any interest likely to conflict with the proper conduct of the audit.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will propose legislation under which auditors would be prevented from issuing a disclaimer of opinion.
Mr. Redwood : No. Circumstances of fundamental uncertainty may occasionally arise in which the auditor is unable to form an opinion one way or the other on whether a set of accounts gives a true and fair view. In such circumstances, it is better that an auditor should decline to give an opinion than that he should be forced to give one which cannot, on the evidence available, be justified and could therefore be misleading.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what arrangements applicants for supervisory body status under the Companies Act have offered to enable a member of the public to ascertain whether an auditor (a) has derived 15 per cent. or more of his fee from any one client and (b) has lent money to an audit client.
Mr. Redwood : All the applications that we have received for recognition as supervisory bodies include guidance to the effect that an auditor should not lend money to an audit client, and should not in normal circumstances derive more than 15 per cent. of his fee income from one client.
Company Accounts
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of company accounts are lodged on time ; what efforts are made to pursue late reports ; and what studies he has carried out of the correlation between late reporting and subsequent company failures.
Mr. Redwood : Of the company accounts accepted by Companies house during the financial year 1989-90, 54 per cent. of those filed by public companies and 53 per cent. of
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those filed by private companies were received by the due date. A further 25 per cent. of public and 20 per cent. of private company accounts came in within three months of the due date. If accounts are not submitted within the statutory period allowed, a series of letters are issued. Action taken by Companies house can result in prosecution of the individual directors. There have been no studies carried out on the correlation between late reporting and subsequent company failure.Single European Act
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what were the expected gains and losses to the United Kingdom expected under the Single European Act ; what assessment has been made of the benefits to date ; and if he will publish a table showing the current account balance on visible and invisible trade with the EEC in each of the past five years together with the forecast for this year and next.
Mr. Redwood : The single market is expected to raise the level of income in the European Community by removing the remaining barriers to trade between member states. The Cecchini report published by the European Commission in 1988 sets out the range of expected benefits to the Community as a whole. Projections for the United Kingdom are contained in table A 4.4 on page 622 of volume 2 of the report "Research on the cost of non-Europe-- Basic findings--Studies on the economics of integration", which is available in the library. The benefits which ultimately accrue to the United Kingdom from the completion of the single market will depend crucially on the response of firms to the opportunities and challenges which it presents. Figures on the United Kingdom's visible and invisible trade with the Community can be obtained from table 10.1 of "The Pink Book" United Kingdom Balance of Payments, which is also available in the Library. No forecasts are made for the trade balance with the Community.
Weights and Measures
Ms. Richardson : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to increase the number of qualified inspectors of weights and measures ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Leigh : Inspectors of weights and measures are employed by the local weights and measures authorities and it is the responsibility of each of these authorities to recruit, train and retain sufficient qualified inspectors to enforce consumer protection legislation in their area.
Occupational Health Services
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what arrangements exist for the provision of an occupational health service for employees within his Department ; and (a) how many staff are employed to provide occupational health services, (b) how many of those staff are qualified nurses and (c) how many employees work in his Department in total.
Mr. Leigh : My Department uses the civil service occupational health service which employs some 100 fully
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qualified occupational health professionals- -doctors, nurses and hygiene and safety advisers. The current total number of staff working for DTI is 12,345.Defence Equipment Licensing
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what safeguards exist in the defence equipment licensing system to cover dual-use machinery.
Mr. Lilley : Industrial machinery which is capable of use for defence purposes (dual use) is subject to export licensing in the same way as defence equipment.
Export Controls
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions he and his ministerial colleagues have met representatives of industry to discuss licence applications for goods under the Exports of Goods (Control) Order 1987.
Mr. Lilley : I and my ministerial colleagues meet representatives of industry frequently to discuss many subjects, including export licence applications.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of his Department's handling of export licence applications by the firms, Walter Somers Ltd. and Sheffield Forgemasters Ltd.
Mr. Lilley : I have nothing to add to the statement made by my hon. Friend on 29 November at column 1060.
Environment Conferences
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if his Department was represented at, or provided information and documentation for, the conference on recycling in the future, organised by the Institute of Waste Management on 4 December.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 10 December 1990] : My Department was invited to participate in the conference on recycling in the future on 4 December, but was unable to attend due to other commitments. My hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for the Environment spoke at the conference.
Insolvency
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received proposing the introduction of procedures equivalent to chapter II of the United States bankruptcy code into British insolvency law.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 11 December 1990] : I have received no such representations. The effectiveness of United States procedures is sometimes discussed with officials of the Insolvency Service Executive Agency by some of those who are interested in the development of insolvency policy.
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he proposes to review the working of the Insolvency Act.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 11 December 1990] : The working of the Insolvency Act 1986 is kept under review by the Insolvency Service Executive Agency.
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Advertising
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will publish a table showing the amount spent in each of the last five years by his Department on (a) advertising in the press, (b) advertising on television and radio, (c) other advertising and promotion and (d) promotion videos and sound cassettes.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 11 December 1990] : The information is as follows :
£000's<1>
|A |B |C |D
|Press |Television |Other |Films
|Advertising |and Radio |promotional |Audio-visual
|Advertising |materials |Slides
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1985-86 |1,216 |- |877 |242
1986-87 |987 |3 |1,008 |44
1987-88 |3,417 |5,721 |1,501 |263
1988-89 |4,300 |13,575 |4,800 |818
1989-90 |5,656 |5,900 |11,353 |739
<1>Figures for 1985-86-1988-89 relate to the Department's central publicity
budget. The figure for 1989-90 includes expenditure by divisions which is in
addition to that carried by the central publicity budget.
Goods and Services
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will publish tables showing the amount spent on (a) acquiring and (b) commissioning goods and services by his Department in each of the last five years.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 11 December 1990] : Departmental purchasing information systems do not differentiate between acquiring and commissioning goods and services. However, information on departmental purchasing expenditure from 1986-87 is set out in the annual reports of the central unit on purchasing, copies of which are available in the Library.
Reports
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to the answer of 15 November, Official Report, column 184, if he will place in the Library the Department of Trade and Industry reports listed along with the reports listed in the answers of 1 November, Official Report, column 657, 25 October, Official Report, column 272, 21 February, Official Report, column 789 and 19 December 1989, Official Report, columns 138-39.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 11 December 1990] : All reports to which the hon. Member refers are available in the Library.
Exports (Iraq)
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many approaches were made to his Department by Walter Somers querying the Iraqi order for equipment in respect of the supergun.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : Three : two directly and one indirectly on its behalf.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will publish the technical specifications
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of the steel ordered for the pipes intended for Iraq that were the subject of correspondence between his Department and Sheffield Forgemasters in July 1988.Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : No. It is not the practice to reveal details of individual licensing inquiries.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action his Department took when it was first made aware of the pipeline equipment built in the United Kingdom for Iraq having possible military implications.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : When the military implications of the equipment became clear the Department responsible for taking action was HM Customs and Excise. That Department acted with commendable swiftness to prevent the export of the equipment.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on what date his Department first became aware that an Iraqi export order was for military equipment.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : My Department first became aware that the Iraqi export order for steel tubes was for military equipment in April this year.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether officials of his Department made any statement or communication to the press prior to 18 April indicating his Department's opinion on whether the pipes impounded on Teesside by Her Majesty's Customs were for military purposes.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : No.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) when his Department saw the contract involving Sheffield Forgemasters for the Iraqi order ;
(2) whether, on receipt of the Forgemasters contract for the Iraqi order placed in 1988, his Department called for any further information from the company.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : My Department has not seen the contract to which the questions refer.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what was the Government's shareholding via British Steel in Sheffield Forgemasters when the order for the Iraqi gun was first placed with Forgemasters.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : In June 1988 the Government's shareholding via British Steel in Sheffield Forgemasters was 50 per cent.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what was the day on which his Department was first made aware of the military implications of the Iraqi contract with Sheffield Forgemasters and Walter Somers.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : My Department was first made aware of the military implications of the Iraqi contract with Sheffield Forgemasters and Walter Somers in April of this year.
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Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many letters his Department sent in 1988 to Forgemasters about whether an export licence for the Iraqi contract was required ; and what were the Department's conclusions on this matter.
Mr. Lilley [holding answer 11 December 1990] : One letter was sent ; on the basis of information provided by the company it was concluded that no licence was required.
PRIME MINISTER
Test Ban Treaty
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to raise the amendment conference of the 1963 partial nuclear test ban treaty, to be held in January 1991, when he meets the President of the United States.
The Prime Minister : We consult with the United States Administration on the partial test ban treaty at all levels.
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to attend the opening session of the amendment conference of the partial test ban treaty in New York in January 1991.
The Prime Minister : I have no plans to attend the partial test ban treaty amendment conference.
AIDS
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Prime Minister if he will reconvene the Cabinet committee reviewing AIDS.
The Prime Minister : The Government will continue to pursue vigorously a strategy for dealing with AIDS, but I have no plans to establish a Cabinet committee specifically to consider AIDS issues.
Israel
Mr. Nellist : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on his recent meeting with Prime Minister Shamir.
The Prime Minister : I had a useful first meeting with Mr. Shamir. We discussed bilateral and regional issues including the immediate issue of the Gulf crisis, as well as the longer term issue of the Arab-Israel dispute.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Occupational Health Services
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what arrangements exist for the provision of an occupational health service for employees within his Department, stating (a) how many staff are employed to provide occupational health services, (b) how many of those staff are qualified nurses and (c) how many employees work in his Department in total.
Mr. Curry : This Department has access to the services of the civil service occupational health service which employs some 100 fully qualified occupational health professionals--doctors, nurses and hygiene and safety advisers. It operates via a network of regional offices
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throughout the United Kingdom. The Department, including its agencies, has 10,632 employees in total, none of whom is employed to provide occupational health services.Pesticides
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the potential replacement of pesticides by mycoherbicides in respect of control of fungal diseases ; what research his Department is presently undertaking or sponsoring ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gummer : Mycoherbicides are fungi which are used to control weeds ; they are not capable of controlling fungal diseases.
Mr. Amos : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will meet his European colleagues to draw up plans to distribute the EEC's food surpluses to the Soviet Union in the form of aid ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : No formal USSR request for food aid has yet been received by the Government. As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs indicated at the Foreign Affairs Council on 4 December, the Government are ready to participate fully in any Community response to real shortages in the USSR to ensure food aid reaches those genuinely in need.
Agriculture Council
Mr. Andy Stewart : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the outcome of the Agriculture Council held in Brussels on 10 and 11 December.
Mr. Gummer : I represented the United Kingdom at this meeting of the Council together with my hon. Friend the Member for Skipton and Ripon (Mr. Curry), Parliamentary Secretary in my Department. Agreement was reached on a directive laying down the principles covering veterinary checks on meat and other animal products entering the Community from third countries and laying down rules on the definition of vermouths. These were satisfactory for the United Kingdom.
Ministers agreed in principle to extend for a year the ban on the use of bovine somatotropin (BST) in the Community pending the results of relevant scientific experiments. This is a sensible approach which is expected to be formally agreed when the relevant Commission proposal comes forward which is expected to be very soon. I took the opportunity to press the Commission to take steps to ensure that east European suppliers respect minimum prices when exporting soft fruit to the Community. The Commissioner showed sympathy with this request.
There was a discussion on the GATT round following the disappointing conclusion to the conference in Brussels last week. I pushed hard for a united Community position which provided a sufficient envelope for the Commission
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to be able to negotiate a satisfactory arrangement on agriculture which, as all recognise, would be a vital component in any final settlement.THE ARTS
Arts Expenditure (Scotland)
Dr. Godman : To ask the Minister for the Arts what has been the Government's total expenditure on the arts in Scotland for each of the past five years and as a total over the same period.
Mr. Renton : Government funding for the arts in Scotland is channelled through the Scottish Arts Council. Over the past five years the annual grant to the council has been as follows :
|£
---------------------------------
1990-91 |17,451,000
1989-90 |15,732,000
1988-89 |15,358,000
1987-88 |14,237,000
1986-87 |13,584,000
|-------
Total |76,362,000
In addition, I understand that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland funds a small number of performing arts organisations directly.
NATIONAL FINANCE
European Community (Economic Benefits)
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what studies have been undertaken to examine the net economic benefits to the United Kingdom of membership of the European Community.
Mr. Maude : Useful bibliographies of studies on some of the key policy issues can be found in various editions of the EC publication "European Economy".
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