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Mr. Allan Stewart : The final meeting of the Lanarkshire working group took place on Friday 10 May. The group's conclusions and recommendations are being finalised in the light of members' comments at that meeting ; I expect to receive its report shortly, and to publish it as soon as possible thereafter.
NHS Funding
34. Mr. Ernie Ross : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he next intends meeting chairs of health boards in Scotland to discuss funding and organisation of the national health service.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : I met the chairmen of health boards on 3 May and do so regularly. I will be meeting with them again on 28 June.
Industrial Estates
35. Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he has any plans to increase investment in the refurbishing of industrial estates.
Mr. Allan Stewart : One of the principal functions of Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise is to encourage the provision of suitable property to meet the needs of industry in Scotland. The refurbishment of property is primarily a matter for the property owners ; but Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, and the local enterprise companies, may assist with refurbishment costs where a failure in the market is creating an obstacle to the private sector investment and in order to promote the normal functioning of the market. The Government have made substantial resources available to them for this purpose.
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Employment
36. Mr. Norman Hogg : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what estimate he makes of the likely implications for employment of the recession in Scotland.
Mr. Allan Stewart : In keeping with the practice of previous Governments, no forecasts of Scottish employment are published.
Public Sector Housing
37. Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the capital debt faced by Scottish public sector housing.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The outstanding capital debt associated with public sector housing in Scotland at 31 March 1991 amounted to £4.7 billion, or about £5,700 per house. The Government provide subsidy to those public sector housing authorities with relatively high levels of capital debt.
Dr. Gray's Hospital, Elgin
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if the approval in principle of the establishment of (a) a specialist maternity gynaecology and obstetrics unit and (b) a specialist orthapaedic unit at Dr. Gray's hospital, Elgin, have now been fully funded ; what progress is being made, and when he expects the work to be completed.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Approval in principle for the redevelopment of Dr. Gray's at a cost of £16.1 million has now been given to Grampian health board. The development will include the full range of maternity, gynaecology, obstetrics and orthopaedic services. Work on the redevelopment is expected to be phased starting in August 1992 and being completed by early 1997.
Grampian Health Board
Mrs. Margaret Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what money has been allocated by Grampian health board or the Scottish Home and Health Department for the exploration by Grampian West unit of the possibility of establishing trust status.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The Scottish Office Home and Health Department and Grampian health board have made available £90,000 to help the West Grampian unit to implement a number of White Paper initiatives including preparing an NHS trust plan, following an expression of interest in acquiring trust status from the unit.
Day-care Places
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many day-care places for adults who are (a) mentally handicapped, (b) mentally ill or recovering from mental illness and (c) physically handicapped are provided by (i) local authorities and (ii) health authorities in Scotland in each regional council and health board area in Scotland.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The latest figures, based on annual statistics provided by local authorities and information obtained from recent inquiries of the health boards, are shown in the following tables :
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Persons attending local authority day centres at 31 March 1989
Client group
Region |Mentally |Mentally |Physically |Multiply |Total |Total
|handicapped|ill |handicapped|handicapped|persons |places<1>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Borders |121 |0 |57 |27 |205 |169
Central |313 |0 |100 |61 |474 |492
Dumfries/Galloway |213 |4 |10 |37 |264 |274
Fife |430 |1 |93 |136 |660 |565
Grampian |603 |2 |178 |81 |867 |873
Highland |161 |3 |13 |13 |190 |205
Lothian |786 |300 |392 |230 |1,708 |1,424
Strathclyde |2,906 |117 |662 |376 |4,061 |3,997
Tayside |447 |1 |11 |7 |466 |466
Orkney |31 |5 |9 |0 |45 |54
Shetland |27 |0 |3 |0 |30 |55
Western Isles |30 |0 |34 |4 |68 |40
| ------- | ------- | ------- | ------- | ------- | -------
Total Scotland |6,068 |433 |1,562 |975 |9,038 |8,614
<1>Places in local authority day centres relate to the capacity of the centre. Places can be occupied
by more than one client during a week.
Places available cannot be classified as they are not designated to any group in the centres which
provide for several client groups. However,
centres specifically for the elderly have been excluded.
Current number of day hospital places provided by health boards in Scotland<1>
Health board |Mentally |Mentally ill|Physically |Total
|handicapped |handicapped
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Borders |3 |33 |- |36
Forth Valley |- |90 |- |90
Dumfries and Galloway |4 |70 |- |74
Fife |46 |243 |12 |301
Grampian |53 |220 |10 |283
Highland |- |207 |- |207
Lothian |31 |643 |30 |704
Greater Glasgow |- |441 |- |287
Lanarkshire |12 |63 |- |75
Argyll and Clyde |5 |201 |- |206
Ayrshire and Arran |9 |75 |- |84
Tayside |30 |244 |13 |287
Orkney |- |- |- |-
Shetland |- |- |- |-
Western Isles |- |4 |- |4
|------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |193 |2,534 |65 |2,792
<1> Adult places in some areas may be used by children from time to time. These "joint
use" places have been included in the total.
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many day-care places for children who are (a) mentally handicapped, (b) mentally ill or recovering from mental illness and (c) physically handicapped are provided by (i) local authorites and (ii) health authorities in Scotland in each regional council and health board area in Scotland.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The latest available information which relates to children attending local authority services at 31 March 1990 is given in table A. Table B gives information about places provided by health boards at 31 March 1991.
Table A
Children attending local authority day services
|Mentally |Physically |Multiple
|handicapped|handicapped|handicapped
|(mental and
|physical)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Borders |7 |2 |2
Central |0 |0 |0
Dumfries and Galloway |1 |0 |0
Fife |12 |19 |8
Grampian |0 |1 |3
Highland |0 |0 |1
Lothian |47 |111 |27
Strathclyde |38 |39 |22
Tayside |14 |11 |3
Orkney |0 |0 |0
Shetland |0 |0 |0
Western Isles |0 |0 |0
In addition, local authorities make use of facilities provided by voluntary and private establishments.
Table B
Day hospital places for children provided by health boards
|Mentally |Mentally |Physically
|handicapped|ill |handicapped
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Borders |0 |0 |0
Forth Valley |0 |0 |0
Dunfries and
Galloway |0 |10 |0
Fife |0 |0 |0
Grampian |0 |8 |0
Highland |0 |0 |0
Lothian |0 |0 |0
Greater Glasgow |0 |13 |0
Lanarkshire |0 |0 |0
Argyll and Clyde |0 |44 |0
Ayrshire and
Arran |0 |0 |0
Tayside |27 |0 |0
Orkney |0 |0 |0
Shetland |0 |0 |0
Western Isles |0 |0 |0
Strathclyde
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to meet the leader of Strathclyde regional council to discuss central Government funding for the region ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart : The leader of Strathclyde district council was among representatives of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities who met my right hon. Friend and I on 8 April 1991 to discuss local authority finance.
Truancy
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish a table showing the amount of truancies affecting the education authorities in (a) Scotland, (b) Strathclyde region and (c) Renfrew division in each year since 1979.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : This information is not available. However, on 9 May I announced that I had commissioned the biggest survey of truancy in Scotland ever undertaken. Results from the survey will be available in early summer.
Renfrew District Council
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to meet the leader of Renfrew district council to discuss central Government funding for the district ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart : I last met the leader of Renfrew district council on 13 May when he and a delegation discussed economic issues relating to Barrhead and Neilston.
Horticulture
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what consultations he has had with the horticultural industry in Scotland in the last year ; and when he next plans to consult the industry on contemporary matters.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : In the last year the Scottish Office Agriculture and Fisheries Department has had consultations with the industry on a number of issues such as research and development, the impact of imports from eastern Europe on the soft fruit sector and the introduction of a statutory certification scheme for raspberry canes. My right hon. Friend has no plans at present for further consultations but regular contact with the industry will be maintained.
Health Boards
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will give the remuneration for each health board chairman for the financial year 1989-90.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The levels of remuneration paid to health board chairmen reflect their heavy burden of
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responsibility and time commitment, and take into account the variations in the size of boards. For the financial year 1989-90 they were :
H
Health board |Remuneration
|£ per annum
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Greater Glasgow |18,594
Lothian |16,724
Grampian; Tayside |14,855
Lanarkshire; Argyll and Clyde |12,986
Ayr and Arran; Fife; Forth Valley; Highland |10,826
Borders; Dumfries and Galloway |8,655
Orkney; Shetland; Western Isles |5,299
Secondary Schools
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many secondary schools there are in each local education authority in Scotland ; and how many are served by officially appointed school nurses.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Information on the numbers of education authority secondary schools in Scotland is given in the table. Current guidance to health boards is that there should be a named nurse for each school.
Number of education authority
secondary schools
|Number
------------------------------------
Borders |9
Central |19
Dumfries and Galloway |16
Fife |19
Grampian |38
Highland |27
Lothian |51
Strathclyde |181
Tayside |32
Orkney |6
Shetland |9
Western Isles |16
School Library Books
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what average amount per pupil has been spent on school library books by Strathclyde regional council in each year since 1985.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The information is not available centrally in the form requested. The hon. Gentleman may wish to take up the matter with Strathclyde regional council.
Refugees
Ms. Armstrong : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland which local authorities have applied, under section 210 of the Education Reform Act 1988, for a grant to (a) finance existing provision for refugees or displaced persons living in camps or reception centres and (b) to finance provision for 1991-92 ; how many of (a) and (b) have received a grant ; what is the amount of grant allocated to each local authority ; and if he will review the grant available for these purposes in the light of the increased number of asylum seekers entering the United Kingdom in 1990.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : These provisions do not apply in Scotland.
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David Elder Buildings
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has issued any guidelines to Greater Glasgow health board about preferential disposal of the David Elder buildings to non-profit making community groups.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : No. My right hon. Friend has not yet confirmed closure of the David Elder hospital, and no guidelines on disposal have been issued.
Speech Therapy
106. Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time speech therapists are employed in each health board in Scotland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The information is set out in the table :
Part-time
|Whole-time|Whole-time|Number
|equivalent
------------------------------------------------------------------
Argyll and Clyde |24 |8.0 |16
Ayrshire and Arran |24 |3.2 |7
Borders |10 |1.7 |4
Dumfries and Galloway |13 |4.1 |6
Fife |25 |2.8 |7
Forth Valley |14 |4.9 |10
Grampian |36 |10.2 |22
Greater Glasgow |50 |10.8 |28
Highland |14 |4.0 |7
Lanarkshire |29 |3.9 |9
Lothian |41 |15.3 |27
Orkney |2 |0.0 |0
Shetland |1 |0.0 |0
Tayside |24 |7.3 |16
Western Isles |3 |1.1 |2
Scotland |310 |77.3 |161
It is for individual health boards to determine the number of speech therapists they require to employ after taking account of the needs of the population within their area.
Mentally Handicapped Children
107. Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether his Department compiles information about the support service needs, or provision, of profoundly mentally handicapped children.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : This information is not collected centrally.
Mortgage Repossessions
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many actions for re-possession as a result of mortgage arrears there have been in (a) the parliamentary constituency of Greenock and Port Glasgow, (b) Strathclyde and (c) Scotland as a whole, during each of the past 12 months for which records are available ; and what were the average figures for each of the past 10 years.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : This information is not available in the form requested. The Council of Mortgage Lenders publishes statistics in its regular newsletters on various aspects of mortgage lending by building societies but this is on a GB basis and no corresponding information is available for Scotland only. No information about other mortgage lenders is held centrally.
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Social Services
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has received any requests from the Governments of central and eastern European countries concerning (a) the enactment of legislation concerning the provision of personal social services, (b) the setting-up of departments of social work and (c) the training and employment of social workers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lang : There have been no requests of the kind referred to.
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any proposals to extend the period of training undertaken by those seeking to become registered social workers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : There is no procedure or requirement for the registration of social workers in the United Kingdom. I do not currently propose to extend the period for basic social work training.
Renaval Programme
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has received a substantive response from the European Commission to his submission of a programme under the terms of the European Community's Renaval programme ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart : The Commission has written requesting further information. This is at present being prepared.
Primary School Testing
Mr. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland on how many occasions in the last six months Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools addressed meetings of parents on the subject of primary school testing.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools has addressed three meetings of parents in the last six months on the subject of primary school testing.
Mr. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many school parent meetings in the Stirling parliamentary constituency were addressed in the last six months by Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools ; and what was the cost of these visits.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools has addressed one meeting of parents within the Stirling parliamentary constituency on the subject of primary school testing ; it lasted for two hours in an evening and the only costs incurred were £32 for travel and subsistence.
Renewable Electricity
Sir Hector Monro : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what encouragement is being given to small Scottish-based renewables generators of electricity ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lang : Under the Energy Act 1983, the Scottish electricity boards were obliged to purchase the output from independent generators in Scotland, at a price based
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on the avoided cost to them of their marginal generation. The Electricity Act 1989 did not contain such an obligation ; instead, both electricity boards agreed with the Secretary of State that they would continue to pay independent generators in Scotland in accordance with the Energy Act until five years after vesting, ie until 31 March 1995.Following discussion with me and subject to any necessary competition clearance, ScottishPower (SP) and Scottish Hydro-Electric (HE) have offered to extend these arrangements. Under this extension, the companies have offered to buy the output from existing small Scottish renewables generators or those whose planning is far advanced at a price of 5.3p per unit. The companies have offered to buy a set amount of electricity each year--24 GWh per annum in the case of SP and 34 GWh in the case of HE. Payment will be made for each generator's net production of electricity. The rate payable will be gross, ie before use of system or any other such charges. The contracts will run from 1 July 1991 to 31 December 1998 and the price will be escalated by RPI during that period. More details about the arrangements will be made available by the two companies. I welcome the decision made by the companies. The proposed scheme is consistent with the Government's wider environmental polices and will offer greater security to those covered by current contracts with SP and HE.
For the future the White Paper on the Environment announced that the Government would review its renewables programmes in 1991. The Government confirm that this review will consider the position of renewables in Scotland. The Government expect to make a further announcement about the review shortly, including the administrative arrangements for taking it forward. Scottish interests will be included in the associated consultative arrangements.
Inverclyde Enterprise Zone
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what figure was added to the revenue support grant in respect of the exemption from rates of properties in the Inverclyde enterprise zone for 1990-91 and 1991- 92 ; how the figure was calculated ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart [holding answer 14 May 1991] : No addition is made to revenue support grant in respect of the exemption from rates enjoyed by properties in enterprise zones. Rating authorities are compensated separately and in full for losses of rate revenue in respect of properties in enterprise zones on the basis of audited returns from the authorities. Strathclyde regional council received advance payment of grant of £206,840 in respect of losses of rate revenue in the Inverclyde enterprise zone for 1990-91. A final claim in respect of 1990-91 and an advance claim in respect of 1991-92 have yet to be made.
Scottish Hydro-Electric plc
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what consultations he has had with Scottish Hydro-Electric plc on measures to secure economic development and social improvement in the hydro catchment area ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart [holding answer 14 May 1991] : Scottish Hydro-Electric plc, alone among the Great Britain public electricity suppliers, has a condition in its
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licence--issued by the Secretary of State for Scotland on 28 March 1990--specifically requiring it to charge uniform tariffs throughout its area irrespective of remoteness. This very significant commitment is possible because the company has retained the bulk of the low cost hydro generation capacity and can use this to offset the higher unit transmission and distribution costs associated with the dispersed nature of the electricity supply system in the north of Scotland.Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) if he will direct Scottish Hydro-Electric plc to cease current accounting practices which exempt dams, tunnels, roads, associated stone buildings and other assets from depreciation ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what representations he has made to Scottish Hydro-Electric plc regarding its current accounting practices ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart [holding answer 14 May 1991] : The types of asset to which the hon. Member refers have, for accounting purposes, infinite lives. They are expected, with appropriate maintenance, to last for as long as they are required. In addition, they are mainly capital investments dating from many years in the past. I have no intention of directing any change in the accounting policy which was explained in the company's annual reports and accounts for 1989-90, copies of which are in the House Library.
Local Authority Borrowing
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proposals he has in train in respect of borrowing by Scottish local authorities following the recent judgment by the House of Lords in the case of Hazell v. the council of the London borough of Hammersmith and Fulham ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Allan Stewart [holding answer 14 May 1991] : The Government's position was made clear by the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment on 7 May at columns 402- 3. Consequently I have no proposals to take any action on this issue.
Housing Improvements
Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if any funds from European community sources have gone to Glasgow district council for repairs or improvements to district council or private sector dwellings.
Mr. Allan Stewart [holding answer 17 April 1991] : No.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
British Hostages
Mr. Batiste : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in his efforts to secure the release of the British hostages in Lebanon.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Lancashire, West (Mr. Hind) on 24 April and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs' reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Fulham (Mr. Carrington) on 14 May.
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EC Security Role
Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will outline the policy of Her Majesty's Government towards a security role for the European Community.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : As part of the process of political union we envisage intensified co-operation of national positions among the Twelve on a range of security issues. We believe that defence issues should continue to be dealt with in the Western European Union and in NATO.
Mercenaries
Dr. Goodson-Wickes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's policy on the international convention against the recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We decided not to sign the convention.
EMPLOYMENT
Offshore Installations
Mr. Ernie Ross : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) whether the Health and Safety Executive now requires all individuals on board an offshore installation to be issued with (a) a personal survival suit, (b) a smoke hood, (c) a life jacket, (d) a torch and (e) fireproof gloves ;
(2) what steps he has taken since 1 April to satisfy himself as to the application and implementation of improvement and prohibition notices issued by the Health and Safety Executive ;
(3) whether those offshore installations that had not had an evacuation, escape and rescue analysis carried out, as detailed in recommendation 76 of the Cullen report, have been instructed to do so ;
(4) what steps have been taken since 1 April to ensure the application and implementation of improvement notices requiring offshore operators to complete evacuation, escape and rescue analyses ;
(5) if he will make a statement on the application and implementation of improvement notices issued requiring the completion of smoke or gas ingress assessments as detailed in recommendation 60 of the Cullen report ;
(6) what steps have been taken since 1 April to ensure the application and implementation of improvement notices issued to offshore operators requiring them to undertake fire risk analysis as detailed in recommendation 54 of the Cullen report ;
(7) whether the Health and Safety Executive requires in writing offshore oil operators to carry out a smoke or gas ingress assessment as detailed in recommendation 60 of the Cullen report.
Mr. Forth : My right hon. and learned Friend attaches the highest priority to implementing the recommendations of the Cullen report. Accordingly, the Government have given the Health and Safety Commission the resources to achieve this and the necessary legislation and regulations will be presented to Parliament as soon as possible.
In addition, the representative bodies and companies in the offshore industry have been tasked with taking action
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on those of the recommendations which were primarily addressed to them. Since the transfer of offshore safety responsibilities to the Health and Safety Executive on 1 April it has been monitoring progress at regular meetings with the main industry associations and trade unions to ensure the earliest practicable implementation of the report.Inspectors have had the power to serve improvement and prohibition notices offshore since 1977.
Pottery/Ceramic Industry
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many workers in the pottery/ceramic and allied industries are currently working a four-day and three-day week.
Mr. Jackson : There is no information available on the number of people working a four-day and three-day week. In the week ended 14 December 1990--the latest date for which reliable information is available--there were 29,000 operatives working short-time in the non-metallic mineral products industry in Great Britain. Separate figures for the pottery/ceramic and allied industries are not available.
Redundancies, North Staffordshire
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the number of notified redundancies for north Staffordshire since October 1990.
Mr. Jackson : Data are not available for north Staffordshire. The number of advance notifications of redundancies received since October 1990 for the west midlands region, which includes north Staffordshire, are given in the table :
Advance notifications of
redundancies
|Number
-------------------------
1990
October |4,317
November |3,805
December |2,877
1991
January |5,576
February |5,645
March |7,242
April |4,247
Textile Industries
Mr. Ronnie Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people have lost their jobs in the textile industries in (a) Blyth valley, (b) Northumberland and (c) the north-east in 1991 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : The number of employees in the textile industries in the north--Cleveland, Cumbria, Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear-- fell by 731 over the three months to December 1990. Estimates for areas within standard regions are available only from the census of employment and relate to September 1989.
Disability
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how he intends to ensure that residential assessment and rehabilitation are available to those
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