Previous Section | Home Page |
Column 320
estimated to have been spent internally. The total training expenditure represents some 0.17 per cent. of the science budget resources made available to SERC.Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what has been the cost so far of ballots of parents held under section 61 of the Education Act.
Mr. Eggar : The Electoral Reform Society conducts all parental ballots for grant-maintained status and claims its costs for each individual ballot from the Department of Education and Science. The total of these costs currently stands at some £175,000.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science for each of the financial years 1989-90 and 1990-91, what have been the total levels of (i) liability for VAT, (ii) relief from liability for rates and (iii) special purpose grant (VAT) for grant-maintained schools.
Mr. Eggar : Details of grant-maintained schools' actual liability for VAT are not available. The total level of newly acquired rates relief for ex-county schools was some £141,000 in 1989-90 and some £1,103,000 in 1990-91. Total special purpose grant (VAT) paid to grant -maintained schools was £231,000 in 1989-90 and £639,000 in 1990- 91.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science which grant-maintained schools have been visited by Her Majesty's inspectors, and in each case (i) by how many inspectors, (ii) for how long, (iii) at what cost and (iv) whether a report will be published.
Mr. Eggar : At the end of March 1991, there were 50 schools operating under grant-maintained status and HMI had visited 46 of them. Listed below are details of the visits made to each school.
Column 319
HMI visits to grant-maintained schools made between September 1989 and March 1991 Visit |Number of visits|Total number of |Length of each |Cost (£) |HMI involved |visit (days) |in visits -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hendon |2 |4 |1 |960 Queen Elizabeth's Barnet |2 |5 |1 |1,200 Queensbury |3 |8 |1, 4 |5,040 Baverstock |3 |9 |1, 2, 4 |6,480 Small Heath |3 |8 |1 |1,440 St. James |6 |6 |1 |1,440 Colyton Grammar |3 |3 |1 |720 Old Swinford Hospital |3 |4 |1 |960 London Oratory |4 |4 |1 |960 Wilmington GS for Girls |3 |4 |1 |960 Castle Hall |3 |3 |1 |960 Heckmondwike GS |4 |6 |0.5, 1, 1, 2 |2,280 Bacup and Rawtenstall |2 |4 |1 |960 King's, Grantham |3 |5 |1 |1,200 Queen Elizabeth's GS |3 |4 |1 |960 Skegness GS |2 |3 |1 |960 Wilson's |2 |2 |0.5, 1 |600 Audenshaw |3 |3 |1 |720 Bankfield |2 |7 |1, 4 |5,280 St. Francis Xavier |2 |3 |1 |720 Beechen Cliff |1 |1 |1 |240 Southlands |1 |1 |1 |240 Claremont |2 |2 |1, 2 |720 Netherthorpe |1 |2 |0.5 |240 Ribston Hall |1 |1 |1 |240 London Nautical |1 |3 |2 |1,440 Cardinal Vaughan |2 |5 |1 |1,200 Lancaster RGS |1 |1 |1 |240 Southfield |2 |3 |1 |720 Bridgewater Hall |1 |1 |1 |240 Brindley Hall |1 |1 |1 |240 Ecclesbourne |1 |2 |1 |480 Bournemouth GS |2 |3 |1 |720 Stroud High |1 |1 |1 |240 Marling |1 |1 |1 |240 Pate's GS |1 |2 |1 |480 Rickmansworth |1 |2 |1 |480 Bishopshalt |1 |1 |1 |240 Long Field High |2 |2 |1, 2 |720 Carre's GS |1 |3 |1 |720 Adams GS |1 |1 |1 |240 Guildford |1 |1 |1 |240 Wolverhampton High |1 |1 |2 |480 Handsworth GS |1 |1 |1 |240 Buller's Wood |1 |1 |1 |240 Francis Bacon |1 |2 |1 |480 In all cases the inspectors' findings were reported orally to the head and to the chairman of governors where he or she was able to attend. None of these inspections was planned to lead to a published report. My right hon. and learned Friend will therefore not be publishing the findings of these individual school inspectors.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what would be the total full-year cost of grant payable to schools as (i) transitional grant, (ii) special purpose grant (development) and (iii) capital grant if all eligible schools became grant-maintained at the current levels of each (a) during 1991-92 and (b) over a five-year period.
Mr. Eggar : Given the statutory timetable it is not possible for all schools to become grant-maintained in the financial year 1991-92.
These levels of payment are reviewed annually in the light of the Government's spending priorities for
Column 322
education and other services. It is therefore not possible to project a figure for the total cost if all schools became grant-maintained over a five-year period.Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many copies have been distributed and, in each case, at what cost of all the editions of the booklet (i) "School Governors--How to Become a Grant-Maintained School", (ii) "Grant-Maintained Schools-- Questions Parents Ask" and (iii) "Grant-Maintained Schools--What it Means For Staff".
Mr. Eggar : The information requested is given in the table :
Column 321
P --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science for each of the financial years 1990-91 and 1991-92, what have been the average total allocations of capital grant to grant-maintained schools (i) per school and (ii) per pupil.
Mr. Eggar : Total grant for capital expenditure by grant-maintained schools in 1990-91 was £6.5 million. The planned grant expenditure for 1991-92 is £10.5 million. The average per school for 1990-91 was £130,186 and per pupil £181 based on total school and pupil numbers in that year. Figures for 1991-92 will depend upon the total number of schools and pupils in the sector this year.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science for each of the financial years 1989-90 and 1990-91, what was (i) the amount available and (ii) the amount paid to grant-maintained schools as special purpose grant (development).
Column 322
Mr. Eggar : Special purpose grant (development) of £177,573 was available to grant-maintained schools in 1989-90. The amount actually paid in that year was £171,190. In 1990-91, special purpose grant (development) of £705,126 was available. This amount will be adjusted during the course of the current financial year if financial returns from schools show that the full amount of grant was not required for the purposes for which it has been made available.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what payments have been made from public funds to the Grant- Maintained Schools Trust in each year since its creation.
Mr. Eggar : Payments of central Government grant in each financial year have been as follows :
Column 323
|£ ------------------------ 1988-89 |25,000 1989-90 |250,000 1990-91 |448,000
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science for each of the financial years 1989-90 and 1990-91, what has been (a) the total and (b) the average per pupil of (i) annual maintenance grant and (ii) all other grant aid paid to
grant-maintained schools.
Mr. Eggar : Total annual maintenance grant--AMG--paid was £14.9 million in 1989-90 and £59.2 million in 1990-91. A simple average per pupil can be derived by dividing these figures by pupil numbers recorded in the previous January by all schools that were grant-maintained in that year. On this basis, average AMG paid per pupil was £1,083 in 1989-90 and £1,645 in 1990-91. These figures take no account of the fact that some schools were incorporated as grant-maintained at different times during the year in question. The total of other grants paid was £2,466,000 in 1989-90 and £8,128,000 in 1990-91. These figures exclude transitional grant which in these years was paid to schools before incorporation as GM schools. It makes little sense to relate the totals of other grants to pupil numbers since these grants are paid on a number of different bases. However, these totals divided by the same pupil numbers produce per pupil figures of £179 in 1989-90 and £226 in 1990-91.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many staff are employed in schools branch 4, division B at his Department ; and what is the annual cost of running this Department.
Mr. Eggar : There are 26 staff employed in schools 4 division B. The cost of running this division in the 1990-91 financial year was approximately £368,000.
Mr. Rowe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps he is taking to accredit prior learning among staff currently employed as teachers ; and if he will ensure that teachers who have not had their skills assessed will not be made redundant on grounds of lack of qualification until an assessment has been made.
Mr. Fallon : It is for the LEA or, in a school with a delegated budget, the governing body to determine whether any teacher should be dismissed. If it behaves unreasonably, a dismissal may be found unfair by an industrial tribunal. LEAs and schools are responsible for deciding what induction and other training should be provided for the individual teachers whom they employ. They also share responsibility with other bodies that provide or accredit training for deciding on the scope for accrediting teachers' prior learning.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science of those children subject to assessment at seven years as part of the national curriculum (a) how many are in mixed age classes and (b) how many are in classes of over 30 in size.
Column 324
Mr. Eggar : Information on the number of seven-year-old children in mixed age classes and in classes of over 30 in size is not collected regularly. In January 1990, 24 per cent. of all pupils in maintained primary schools in England were in classes of over 30 taught by one teacher.
Mr. Bowis : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science, pursuant to his statement on the future of further education 21 March, Official Report, columns 432-448, whether local authorities will be required to seek his consent for contracts exposed to competitive tendering arrangements under the Local Government Act 1988.
Mr. Eggar : No. The application of compulsory competitive tendering to contracts affecting further education and sixth form colleges remains that described in DES circulars 7/88 and 9/88, copies of which are in the Library.
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Prime Minister what action the British Government intend to take at the International Whaling Commission this year to ensure that the moratorium on commercial whaling is maintained.
The Prime Minister : We shall continue to support the moratorium on commercial whaling.
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Prime Minister which Government Departments have purchased Promis software.
The Prime Minister : Departments have delegated authority from the Treasury to purchase proprietary software packages to meet their own needs. Information on such procurements is not collected centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 2 May.
The Prime Minister : This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in this House, I shall be having further meetings later today.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he has had regarding the establishment of an international arms register.
The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 April to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) at column 32.
Column 325
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Attorney-General what percentage of all magistrates are women ; what percentage of magistrates appointed in each of the past 10 years have been women ; what percentage of women magistrates are under the age of 40 years ; what is the average age of magistrates ; what is the average age of all women magistrates ; and if he has any proposals to appoint more (a) women magistrates and (b) women magistrates under 40 years.
The Solicitor-General : As at January 1991, in the Lord Chancellor's area of responsibility, women represented 45 per cent. of the total number of active lay magistrates. The percentage of women magistrates appointed in each of the past 10 years, rounded to the nearest point was as follows :
|Per cent. ------------------------------ 1981 |42 1982 |43 1983 |45 1984 |48 1985 |44 1986 |46 1987 |51 1988 |48 1989 |49 1990 |51
Approximately 4 per cent. of women magistrates are under the age of 40.
The average age of magistrates and the average age of all women magistrates, could only be ascertained at disproportionate cost. The answer to whether there are any proposals to appoint more (a) women magistrates and (b) women magistrates under 40 years is yes.
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Attorney-General if the review by the Lord Chancellor of the legal aid system in the United Kingdom will consider means to harmonise levels of remuneration payable to the legal profession, and to remove existing anomalies between rates of remuneration paid to legal advisers, north and south of the Scottish border.
The Attorney-General : The current review is addressing the financial conditions for the grant of legal aid. It is not considering the levels of remuneration payable to the legal profession.
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Attorney-General what is the policy of the Government towards reducing the number of persons eligible for legal aid.
The Attorney-General : The Government's policy is to target legal aid to meet need. The Lord Chancellor is conducting a review of the financial conditions for legal aid to see how this can best be achieved.
The number of full civil legal aid certificates issued compared with figures for five and 10 years ago indicates that more people than ever before are taking up legal aid. The figures are in the table :
Column 326
|Number ------------------------ 1979-80 |190,677 1984-85 |221,209 1989-90 |262,581
The estimated figure for 1990-91 is about 300,000. Over the same period, expenditure on legal aid as a whole increased some five fold.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Attorney-General what is the cost to the Exchequer of the Court of Protection ; and what is its fee income.
The Attorney-General : The operation of the Court of Protection is financed by those who use it. During the financial year ending 31 March 1991 there was no cost to the public purse.
The fee income for that year was £7,750,423.01.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Attorney-General how many patients the Court of Protection is currently handling.
The Attorney-General : The total number of patients whose affairs are currently being administered by the Court of Protection is 30,842 as at 30 April 1991.
11. Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress there has been in the review of the convictions of the Armagh Four ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Mawhinney : A dossier on this case is receiving detailed examination. In the meantime, the Chief Constable of the RUC has been asked to make further inquiries about a number of points. Until the results of these further inquiries are known, it will not be possible for my right hon. Friend to consider whether he would be justified in referring the case back to the Court of Appeal.
13. Mr. Falnnery : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will take steps to hold a representative delegate conference to raise issues conducive to religious tolerance and peace in Ireland.
Mr. Mawhinney : I have no plans at present to hold such a conference. I am pleased to report, however, that the Government have given substantial support to a number of conferences, including a major conference in September 1990, on the role of the churches in community relations in Northern Ireland.
14. Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what information he has on who will be representing the Conservative party at the talks on the future of Northern Ireland.
Mr. Brooke : My hon. Friend the Minister of State and I will represent the Government in the forthcoming talks.
Column 327
15. Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent representations he has received concerning the subject of political devolution in Northern Ireland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Dickens : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the prospects for a political solution to resolve conflict in Northern Ireland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Brooke : I refer the hon. Member and my hon. Friend to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Falkirk, West (Mr. Canavan).
17. Mr. Kilfedder : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has to deal with recession in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Needham : The latest economic indicators suggest that any downturn in the economy has had less effect in Northern Ireland than in the United Kingdom as a whole. The Government's economic development strategy for Northern Ireland aims to improve the competitiveness of Northern Ireland industry and thereby promote economic growth and a sustained increase in employment.
18. Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he next expects to meet the Prime Minister of the Republic of Ireland.
Mr. Brooke : I have no present plans to meet the Taoiseach.
19. Mr. William Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people are currently self-employed in Northern Ireland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Needham : At June 1990, the latest date for which figures are available, there were an estimated 75,800 self-employed persons in Northern Ireland. This represents a growth in self-employment of some 16,600--28 per cent.--since June 1983.
20. Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the composition of the non-executive directors of the four area health and social services boards and the membership of the new health and social services councils.
Mr. Hanley : Each health and social services board includes six non- executive members plus a chairman. They were appointed from 1 April this year.
The names of the chairmen of the health and social services councils were announced on 4 April 1991. Nominations for membership of the councils have been invited from district councils, voluntary and community groups and, through public advertisement, from other interested groups and individuals. It is hoped to announce the names of the members shortly.
Column 328
21. Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he has any plans to review teachers' pay and conditions bargaining arrangements ; and if he will make a statement.
Dr. Mawhinney : At present my right hon. and noble Friend the Paymaster General has no plans to review the teachers' pay and conditions of service negotiating arrangements. Following the recommendations of the Northern Ireland Teachers' Salaries and Conditions of Service Committee, the Department of Education makes regulations prescribing the rate of salaries and conditions of service.
22. Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on employment trends in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Needham : At June 1990 the estimated number of persons in employment in Northern Ireland--including the self-employed--stood at 605,400, which is some 7,000 higher than the previous peak level in 1979. Annual estimates also show that the level of employment has increased consistently since June 1983. Between June 1983 and June 1990 employment in Northern Ireland grew by almost 51,000--9.2 per cent.--mainly due to an increase in employment in private sector services and self-employment.
16. Mr. Hague : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many students are currently studying in universities and institutions of higher education in Northern Ireland ; and if he will make a statement.
Dr. Mawhinney : The answer is 25,559 full-time and part-time students. Institutions of further education also provide higher education courses and in 1989-90 total enrolments on such courses--full time and part time--amounted to 3,444 students.
Mr. William Ross : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish a table in the Official Report showing the number of persons employed in the construction industry in each of the last five years for which figures are available in Northern Ireland and also list for each of those years (a) the number of dwellings constructed and (b) the number of construction workers unemployed.
Mr. Needham : The information requested is as follows :
|Employees in |Number of |Number of |employment |unemployed |dwellings |in construc- |construction |completed<2> |tion industry<1>|workers<1> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1986 |24,550 |23,307 |10,145 1987 |25,840 |21,964 |9,761 1988 |26,360 |19,251 |9,941 1989 |25,990 |17,938 |10,304 1990 |25,940 |16,959 |7,912 <1> Figures relate to June of each year. <2> Figures relate to the calendar year.
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects to announce the privatisation of the trust ports.
Mr. Needham : It is my intention to bring forward next spring a draft Order in Council which would provide the necessary powers to enable any of Northern Ireland's trust ports to be privatised.
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the highest level of clenbuterol found in cattle from County Laois in the Republic of Ireland which were presented for slaughter in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Hanley : The answer is 27.2 parts per billion (ppb).
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many clenbuterol-treated cattle from County Laois in the Republic of Ireland have been presented for slaughter in Northern Ireland in the past 12 months ;
(2) how many clenbuterol-treated animals from County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland have been presented for slaughter in Northern Ireland in the past 12 months.
Mr. Hanley : In the last 12 months two cattle from County Laois and 24 from County Donegal presented for slaughter in Northern Ireland have been found to contain residues of clenbuterol.
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what arrangements exist for action against beef producers in the Republic of Ireland who present clenbuterol-treated animals for slaughter in meat plants in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Hanley : All such cases are communicated to the appropriate authorities in the Republic of Ireland and it is for them to decide on what, if any, action is taken against the producers concerned.
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make it his policy that all animals originating from a farm in one of whose animals clenbuterol has been detected at a slaughterhouse should have their urine tested ; and if he will bring forward proposals for acquiring powers to detain animals which have tested positive for clenbuterol.
Mr. Hanley : I am considering such a policy under the powers available when the Food Safety Order comes into effect on 21 May 1991.
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make it his policy to carry out tests for salbutamol in animals, and to condemn meat in which salbutamol is found.
Next Section
| Home Page |