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Column 490
Goodman Meat
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the gifts given to staff within the Department of Agriculture from interests associated with the Goodman Meat firm ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Hanley [holding answer 21 May 1991] : Under the Northern Ireland civil service pay and conditions of service code only gifts of
"a trivial or inexpensive seasonal nature"
may be accepted by civil servants. To my knowledge only gifts in this category have been accepted by staff in the Department of Agriculture.
At Christmas 1989 and 1990 some staff in HQ divisions of the Department of Agriculture received unsolicited gifts of alcohol from the Goodman Group. The group was contacted and told that staff could not accept such gifts but the group refused to accept their return. Accordingly, 10 bottles of spirits--nine in 1989 and one in 1990--were donated to the NSPCC which acknowledged their receipt to the Goodman Group.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Legal Aid
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Attorney-General if he will list by year for the last 10 years the number of individuals who have qualified for legal aid ; and what percentage of the population this represents.
The Attorney-General : Calculations are not made as a matter of course of the number of individuals falling within the eligibility limits for legal aid. It is estimated that in 1990 approximately 36 million people or 66 per cent. of the population were eligible on income grounds for non- matrimonial civil legal aid. For personal injury claims it is estimated that 38 million people or 69 per cent. of the population were eligible. No estimates are available of the percentage of the population eligible for matrimonial or criminal legal aid. The numbers of individuals obtaining legal aid are detailed in tables published in legal aid annual reports to 1988-89 the Legal Aid Board annual report for 1989-90 and "Judicial Statistics".
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Attorney-General if he will list by year for the last 10 years the number of households eligible for legal aid in court proceedings and the percentage of those entitled who had to make a contribution to the costs.
The Attorney-General : Calculations are not made as a matter of course of the number of households falling within the eligibility limits for legal aid. In 1990 it is estimated that 18.5 million households were eligible on income grounds for civil non-matrimonial legal aid--19.5 million in personal injury cases. About 60 per cent. are estimated to have been eligible with a contribution.
Free Legal Services
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement in respect of access to free legal services.
The Attorney-General : Those legal services, that are paid for under the legal aid schemes are available free of
Column 491
charge to all those who satisfy the relevant merits test and whose means are such that they are not required to make a financial contribution towards their legal costs. Free legal advice and assistance is also available irrespective of means through the duty solicitor schemes at magistrates' courts and police stations.Mr. Redmond : To ask the Attorney-General if he will list by year for the last 10 years the number of people entitled to free legal advice.
The Attorney-General : Calculations are not made as a matter of course of the numbers of individuals falling within the eligibility limits for free legal advice and assistance. In 1989-90, nil contributions were assessed in 917,882 of the 1,029,018 bills paid for legal advice and assistance. Figures for earlier years are contained in the legal aid annual reports.
Mr. Mohinder Singh Bedi
Mr. Madden : To ask the Attorney-General on how many occasions Mr. Mohinder Paul Singh Bedi or his wife, Kuldip, were retained as interpreters by the immigration appellate authorities since 1984 ; and if he will make a statement.
The Attorney-General : The immigration appellate authorities--IAA-- have no record since 1984 of Mr. Mohinder Paul Singh Bedi or his wife Kuldip being included on the panel of casual interpreters used by the IAA.
Mr. Madden : To ask the Attorney-General on how many occasions since 1984 Mr. Mohinder Paul Singh Bedi has appeared as a representative before the immigration appellate authorities to represent (a) appellants and (b) respondents ; and if he will make a statement.
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The Attorney-General : The information requested is not readily available because the immigration appellate authorities--IAA--do not record statistics of the number of occasions unqualified representatives are granted leave to appear before them. The granting of leave to appear before them is a matter for the IAA judiciary.
Ashworth Covenant
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Attorney-General what has been the cost to public funds of the relator action on the Ashworth covenant at Birtenshaw Farm, Sylvia Scotland v Barratt Manchester and what further relator actions he anticipates being brought.
The Attorney-General : Any assessment of the cost to public funds occasioned by Attorney-General ex rel. Sylvia Scotland v Barratt Manchester Limited and Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council must await the conclusion of those proceedings. No other applications have been received for consent to commence a relator action in respect of the Ashworth covenant.
EDUCATION AND SCIENCE
Adult Education
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what financial contribution he has made to (a) the National Institute of Adult and Continuing Education, (b) the unit for the development of adult and continuing education, (c) the national educational guidance initiative and (d) REPLAN since 1979, at 1990-91 prices.
Mr. Eggar : The information requested is given in the table.
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1990-91 prices
|(a) |(b) |(c) |(d)
|NIACE |UDACE |NEGI |REPLAN
|£ |£ |£ |£
------------------------------------------------------------
1979-80 |95,134 |- |- |-
1980-81 |98,507 |- |- |-
1981-82 |104,003 |- |- |-
1982-83 |144,036 |- |- |-
1983-84 |118,810 |- |- |-
1984-85 |114,625 |70,756 |- |523,617
1985-86 |122,325 |267,807 |- |1,538,397
1986-87 |125,831 |267,228 |- |1,653,915
1987-88 |124,384 |272,352 |- |1,632,997
1988-89 |170,693 |273,934 |57,308 |1,601,196
1989-90 |161,553 |281,766 |53,875 |1,549,445
1990-91 |195,280 |293,000 |53,000 |1,473,000
The figures in the table result from adjusting the cash outturn figures for past years using the deflator for gross domestic product at market prices. The grant to UDACE excludes that to NEGI, which is shown separately.
Higher Education
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what percentage of young people over the age of 18 years are in higher education in each of the 12 member states of the European Community.
Mr. Alan Howarth : The figures in the following table represent participation at all ages, generally 18 and over.
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New entrants<1> to higher education
Country<2> (main ages on entry) |Latest |Participation
|year |rate<3>
|Percentage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Belgium (18-19) |1987 |49
Denmark (18-20) |1987 |43
France (18-20) |1987 |34
Germany, West<4> (19-21) |1987 |30
Greece<5> |1986 |33
Ireland<5><6> |1986 |29
Italy (19-21) |1987 |27
Netherlands (18-20) |1987 |39
Portugal<5><7> |1984 |14
Spain (18-20) |1987 |35
United Kingdom<7> (18-21) |1988 |36
<1>Includes full-time and part-time students entering higher
education for the first time, i.e. excluding postgraduate students
and others already having a qualification in higher education.
Not all other countries may adhere to this general definition.
<2>Compatible information is not available for Luxembourg since
most higher education is undertaken abroad. Ireland figures
partly estimated.
<3>To aid comparison and overcome the problem of the varying
lengths of courses in different countries the participation rate is
the percentage of all new entrants (defined above) related to a
derived relevant single year group. The latter is calculated by
taking the total populations for the ages providing at least 70 per
cent. of the new entrants and dividing by the number of ages
involved. For the United Kingdom this is the population of ages
18 to 21 divided by 4. OECD recommend this procedure.
<4>Partly estimated.
<5>Main ages on entry unavailable.
<6>Full-time only.
<7>Latest data available.
<8>Excludes the private sector and students from abroad. Includes
nursing and paramedical students at Health Department
establishments.
Column 494
Standard Assessment Tasks
Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total cost of designing, printing and implementing the standard assessment tasks for seven-year-olds, including the cost of the teachers' time involved.
Mr. Eggar : Up to 31 March 1991 the cost to the School Examinations and Assessment Council of securing the design, printing, distribution and evaluation of the standard assessment tasks for seven-year-olds was £5,661,755. The standard assessment tasks have been designed to be delivered by a single teacher using existing resources, and--apart from the individual reading test--to take no more than 30 hours, although the exact time will vary according to the circumstances of each class.
Teacher Vacancies
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list by (a) region and (b) for each local education authority the number of teacher vacancies in January 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1991 ; and if he will show this figure also as a percentage of the total teaching force in each area.
Mr. Fallon : Provisional vacancy figures for 1991 were published on 17 May and are summarised in the table.
The 1991 figures are provisional and a breakdown by local education authority is not yet available. I am arranging for a copy of the numbers of vacancies by local education authority for 1988 to 1990 to be placed in the Library. Comparable figures for 1991 will be placed in the Library when available.
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Vacancy<1> rates in maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools by region:
1988-91<2>
England
Vacancies as a percentage of Number of
teachers in post<3> vacancies
|1988 |1989 |1990 |<2>1991|<2>1991
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All vacancies |1.2 |1.5 |1.8 |1.6 |5,584
By region:
North |0.2 |0.6 |0.6 |0.7 |178
Yorkshire and Humberside |0.8 |0.9 |1.1 |1.2 |489
North West |0.8 |1.0 |1.0 |1.0 |546
East Midlands |0.8 |0.9 |0.9 |0.9 |285
West Midlands |1.1 |1.1 |1.3 |1.3 |552
East Anglia |0.6 |0.7 |1.0 |1.2 |170
Greater London |3.2 |3.7 |5.3 |<4>3.6 |1,686
Other South East |1.1 |1.6 |1.8 |1.7 |1,216
South West |1.0 |1.1 |1.8 |1.5 |462
England excluding Greater London |0.9 |1.1 |1.3 |1.3 |3,898
Total vacancies (numbers) |4,395 |5,540 |6,494 |5,584 |-
<1> Advertised vacancies for full-time permanent appointments (or appointments of
at least one term's duration). Includes vacancies being
filled on a temporary basis.
<2> Figures for 1991 are provisional.
<3> Teachers in post include full-time regular teachers in (or on secondment from)
maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools, plus
full-time regular divided service, peripatetic, advisory, remedial centre and
miscellaneous teachers.
<4> The 1991 percentage vacancy rates for the inner and outer London weighting
areas are 4.7 per cent. and 2.4 per cent. respectively.
Capital Allocations
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will publish a table showing (a) the capital bid for 1991-92, (b) the capital allocation for 1991-92 and (c) the percentage that (b) represents (a) for each local education authority in England.
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Mr. Kenneth Clarke : Details of local education authority capital expenditure bids and education annual capital guidelines--ACGs--for 1991-92 are set out in the table, together with bids and allocations for work at voluntary aided and special agreement schools. No local education authority has ever expected to receive its ACG bid in full, and authorities bid on the basis that they will receive an ACG or allocation to the extent that the bid matches national priority criteria. There is therefore no direct connection between the size of the bid and the level of the ACG or allocation distributed. The percentage figures in the last column are therefore devoid of any real significance.
Annual capital guidelines are not the only source of capital funding available to local education authorities.
Local education authority bids and ACGs for 1991-92 county and
voluntary controlled schools and FE colleges
LEA |Total bid |Total<1> |ACG as
|£ 000s |ACG |percentage
|£ 000s |of bid
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Barking |5,449 |573 |11
Barnet |5,884 |803 |14
Bexley |6,976 |1,891 |27
Brent |9,208 |1,233 |13
Bromley |8,564 |3,656 |43
Croydon |23,427 |1,996 |9
Ealing |12,634 |1,362 |11
Enfield |19,437 |1,971 |10
Haringey |8,045 |1,018 |13
Harrow |3,934 |1,057 |27
Havering |4,558 |1,945 |43
Hillingdon |10,218 |1,005 |10
Hounslow |5,128 |1,516 |30
Kingston |5,346 |1,303 |24
Merton |8,305 |1,304 |16
Newham |15,546 |8,587 |55
Redbridge |4,484 |752 |17
Richmond |5,269 |954 |18
Sutton |10,812 |3,364 |31
Waltham |10,818 |3,386 |31
City |0 |2 |n/a
Camden |4,133 |885 |21
Westminster |7,441 |624 |8
Greenwich |2,310 |676 |29
Hackney |8,206 |1,992 |24
Hammersmith |6,697 |1,235 |18
Islington |6,166 |1,010 |16
Kensington |7,995 |1,846 |23
Lambeth |9,067 |1,152 |13
Lewisham |10,318 |2,512 |24
Southwark |6,061 |1,258 |21
Wandsworth |15,632 |1,374 |9
Tower Hamlets<2> |34,963 |14,619 |42
Birmingham |23,060 |11,083 |48
Coventry |8,962 |2,180 |24
Dudley |12,969 |9,508 |73
Sandwell |9,498 |1,313 |14
Solihull |5,198 |1,883 |36
Walsall |4,414 |1,410 |32
Wolverhampton |6,714 |2,067 |31
Knowsley |6,249 |1,173 |19
Liverpool |18,286 |5,763 |32
St. Helens |8,522 |2,823 |33
Sefton |6,465 |4,208 |65
Wirral |6,057 |3,379 |56
Bolton |3,925 |899 |23
Bury |2,598 |1,254 |48
Manchester |29,609 |4,697 |16
Oldham |14,498 |8,522 |59
Rochdale |14,718 |8,071 |55
Salford |8,198 |3,433 |42
Stockport |3,048 |1,919 |63
Tameside |2,871 |1,744 |61
Trafford |6,786 |3,683 |54
Wigan |11,797 |7,462 |63
Barnsley |2,383 |806 |34
Doncaster |1,686 |375 |22
Rotherham |4,433 |1,039 |23
Sheffield |5,123 |1,371 |27
Bradford |28,244 |9,355 |33
Calderdale |2,720 |1,661 |61
Kirklees |7,170 |3,797 |53
Leeds |46,141 |16,372 |35
Wakefield |12,479 |2,275 |18
Gateshead |10,582 |2,840 |27
Newcastle |10,634 |2,332 |22
North Tyneside |4,759 |729 |15
South Tyneside |8,228 |1,988 |24
Sunderland |9,854 |3,072 |31
Isles of Scilly |215 |16 |8
Avon |22,096 |4,945 |22
Bedfordshire |9,812 |1,974 |20
Berkshire |10,312 |3,282 |32
Buckinghamshire |15,555 |7,124 |46
Cambridgeshire |32,006 |8,536 |27
Cheshire |12,008 |5,257 |44
Cleveland |12,555 |2,979 |24
Cornwall |20,719 |6,828 |33
Cumbria |19,610 |9,629 |49
Derbyshire |29,640 |21,330 |72
Devon |25,298 |7,715 |30
Dorset |13,915 |2,605 |19
Durham |24,188 |6,911 |29
East Sussex |32,015 |16,761 |52
Essex |75,926 |22,210 |29
Gloucestershire |16,106 |6,442 |40
Hampshire |42,960 |16,517 |38
Hereford and Worcester |14,373 |6,774 |47
Hertfordshire |16,162 |6,524 |40
Humberside |25,167 |8,371 |33
Isle of Wight |7,006 |2,263 |32
Kent |51,039 |23,773 |47
Lancashire |36,626 |22,789 |62
Leicestershire |15,209 |6,922 |46
Lincolnshire |26,069 |10,016 |38
Norfolk |11,444 |2,779 |24
North Yorkshire |6,903 |4,575 |66
Northamptonshire |13,987 |8,641 |62
Northumberland |5,565 |3,545 |64
Nottinghamshire |12,741 |5,167 |41
Oxfordshire |24,896 |6,601 |27
Shropshire |17,455 |6,582 |38
Somerset |12,397 |4,979 |40
Staffordshire |12,391 |8,644 |70
Suffolk |20,681 |9,989 |48
Surrey |13,332 |5,538 |42
Warwickshire |6,696 |1,644 |25
West Sussex |14,956 |3,508 |23
Wiltshire |16,446 |4,973 |30
City of London 97 -- --
Camden 1,055 226 21
Greenwich 201 36 18
Hackney 442 195 44
Hammersmith and Fulham 1,357 1,295 95
Islington 181 173 96
Kensington 3,580 2,640 74
Lambeth 937 70 7
Lewisham 329 65 20
Southwark 1,616 861 53
Tower Hamlets 597 334 56
Wandsworth 203 49 24
Westminster 346 324 94
Barking 1,955 1,955 100
Barnet 3,605 718 20
Bexley 2,341 305 13
Column 497
Voluntary aided and special agreement schools
1991-92 total capital bids and allocations
LEA |Total bid |Total |Allocation
|(£ 000) |allocation |as per cent
|1991-92 |(£ 000) |age of bid
|1991-92
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
City of London |97 |- |-
Camden |1,055 |226 |21
Greenwich |201 |36 |18
Hackney |442 |195 |44
Hammersmith and
Fulham |1,357 |1,295 |95
Islington |181 |173 |96
Kensington |3,580 |2,640 |74
Lambeth |937 |70 |7
Lewisham |329 |65 |20
Southwark |1,616 |861 |53
Tower Hamlets |597 |334 |56
Wandsworth |203 |49 |24
Westminster |346 |324 |94
Barking |1,955 |1,955 |100
Barnet |3,605 |718 |20
Bexley |2,341 |305 |13
Brent |196 |35 |18
Bromley |429 |198 |46
Croyden |3,051 |1,814 |59
Ealing |315 |- |-
Enfield |812 |302 |37
Haringey |1,412 |1,163 |82
Harrow |172 |- |-
Havering |311 |147 |47
Hillingdon |405 |20 |5
Hounslow |236 |53 |22
Kingston |646 |- |-
Merton |228 |98 |43
Newham |284 |134 |47
Redbridge |3,399 |116 |3
Richmond |902 |195 |22
Sutton |3,374 |2,354 |70
Waltham Forest |1,800 |300 |17
Birmingham |3,539 |1,113 |31
Coventry |1,570 |1,369 |87
Dudley |2,385 |2,006 |84
Sandwell |351 |7 |2
Solihull |687 |55 |8
Walsall |400 |- |-
Wolverhampton |614 |61 |10
Knowsley |1,288 |571 |44
Liverpool |6,120 |4,493 |73
St. Helens |2,299 |2,149 |93
Sefton |2,233 |1,750 |78
Wirral |1,037 |631 |61
Bolton |984 |436 |44
Bury |830 |574 |69
Manchester |1,305 |827 |63
Oldham |609 |174 |29
Rochdale |756 |436 |58
Salford |567 |343 |60
Stockport |341 |291 |85
Tameside |136 |35 |26
Trafford |781 |715 |92
Wigan |2,126 |1,108 |52
Barnsley |25 |25 |100
Doncaster |145 |145 |100
Rotherham |385 |158 |41
Sheffield |945 |127 |13
Bradford |1,002 |873 |87
Calderdale |634 |444 |70
Kirklees |326 |218 |67
Leeds |12,628 |12,288 |97
Wakefield |346 |180 |52
Gateshead |449 |64 |14
Newcastle upon Tyne |1,050 |847 |81
North Tyneside |454 |203 |45
South Tyneside |59 |21 |36
Sunderland |523 |116 |22
Avon |1,342 |619 |46
Bedfordshire |1,127 |600 |53
Berkshire |723 |358 |50
Buckinghamshire |2,401 |2,207 |92
Cambridgeshire |825 |79 |10
Cheshire |3,324 |1,997 |60
Cleveland |884 |398 |45
Cornwall |508 |369 |73
Cumbria |1,464 |869 |59
Derbyshire |1,106 |889 |80
Devon |2,951 |567 |19
Dorset |6,734 |3,985 |59
Durham |1,103 |718 |65
East Sussex |1,319 |1,065 |81
Essex |1,264 |1,010 |80
Gloucestershire |1,694 |1,229 |73
Hampshire |2,994 |1,926 |64
Hereford and Worcester |2,580 |1,356 |53
Hertfordshire |2,302 |1,656 |72
Humberside |1,400 |46 |3
Isle of Wight |260 |210 |81
Isles of Scilly |- |- |-
Kent |7,737 |2,837 |37
Lancashire |6,534 |4,051 |62
Leicestershire |967 |598 |62
Lincolnshire |1,753 |276 |16
Norfolk |587 |13 |2
North Yorkshire |2,005 |775 |39
Northamptonshire |400 |27 |7
Northumberland |1,175 |747 |64
Nottinghamshire |1,359 |135 |10
Oxfordshire |2,952 |2,526 |86
Shropshire |423 |238 |56
Somerset |2,135 |2,041 |96
Staffordshire |2,001 |979 |49
Suffolk |890 |345 |39
Surrey |2,965 |839 |28
Warwickshire |3,112 |788 |25
West Sussex |2,129 |1,875 |88
Wiltshire |1,677 |1,068 |64
South West London College
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what discussions he has had with the governors of South West London college as to their views on the future of this college ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what discussions he has had with the director of education of the London borough of Wandsworth as to the views of the council on the future of South West London college in Tooting ; and if he will make a statement ;
(3) if he will meet the hon. Member for Tooting and representatives of staff and students of South West London college, Tooting, before any decision is taken as to the possible closure of this college.
Mr. Alan Howarth : The governors of South West London college wrote to the Department on 10 May 1991 about the future of the college. The director of education of the London borough of Wandsworth wrote on 15 May about its further education provision. I am meeting the hon. Member. My right hon. and learned Friend will be considering all the views expressed before reaching his decision.
Brighton CTC
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science at what price the site of Brighton city technology college, referred to in the answer to the hon. Member for Blackburn of 3 May 1990, Official Report, column 627, is now being offered for sale ; what is the difference between that price and the total cost of purchase including agents' and legal fees ; and what will be the total anticipated loss to the public purse, after taking account of interest forgone on the moneys used to make the purchase.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : The site that was purchased for use as a city technology college in Brighton is being offered for sale with a guide price of £2 million on the advice of agents. The original cost of purchase was £2.3 milion net, in addition to which £54,000 was spent on legal fees. As no
Column 499
sale has yet been agreed for the site, it is not possible to calculate the loss or gain to the public purse as a result of its purchase and resale.Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether Mr. Revere was required to repay any interest earned by him, or forgone by the public purse, in respect of the commission charged by him in respect of the purchase of the site of the then proposed Brighton city technology college, referred to in the answer to the hon. Member for Blackburn of 3 May 1990, Official Report, column 627.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : No. The commission was repaid in full upon its discovery.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether his Department has been involved in any discussions with the East Sussex police about the charging by Mr. Ivor Revere of commission on the purchase of the site of the then proposed Brighton city technology college ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : My right hon. Friend the then Secretary of State referred the handling of the purchase of the property to the appropriate authorities for investigation. The investigation has been completed and I have been advised that no further action is contemplated by these authorities.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps have been taken to improve the financial control of the city technology college programme following the discovery of financial improprieties in respect of the then proposed Brighton city technology college.
Mr. Kenneth Clarke : The financial procedures of the CTC programme are subject to continual review and improvement by my Department.
Students (Maintenance)
Mr. Anthony Coombs : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what support will be given from public funds towards students' maintenance in the academic year 1991-92.
Mr. Alan Howarth : Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary regulations, the maximum rates of loan for the academic year 1991 -92 in the United Kingdom will be as follows :
|Full year |Final year
|rate |rate
|£ |£
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Students living away from home:
In London |660 |480
Elsewhere |580 |425
Students living at home |460 |335
As already announced, the main rates of maintenance grant for mandatory award holders from England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and their equivalents in Scotland, will be the same as in the current academic year. The rates for England, Wales and Northern Ireland are shown in the table ; Scottish rates are slightly different.
Column 500
|£
--------------------------------------------
Students living away from home:
In London |2,845
Elsewhere |2,265
Students living at home |1,795
These grant and loan rates will enbable full year student support in the United Kingdom to increase by 6 per cent next year.
Science Budget
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on the distribution to the research councils, the Royal Society and the Fellowship of Engineering, of the sums that were left unallocated when the science budget planning figures for 1992-93 and 1993 were indicatively distributed.
Mr. Alan Howarth : I have received further advice on the distribution of these unallocated sums from the Advisory Board for the Research Councils, and have decided to accept the board's recommendation that, subject to approval by Parliament of the estimates in due course, the following additions should be made to the indicative allocations already announced for 1992-93 and 1993-94 :
£ million
|1992-93|1993-94
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Agricultural and Food Research Council |3.1 |3.5
Economic and Social Research Council |2.1 |2.7
Medical Research Council |5.6 |6.2
Natural Environment Research Council |3.8 |4.4
Science and Engineering Research Council |<1>20.8|<1>22.5
Royal Society |0.9 |1.1
Fellowship of Engineering |0.2 |0.2
Total |36.5 |<2>40.6
<1> SERC's figures includes £ 5 million in each year for
enhanced
supercomputing facilities for use by research councils and
institutions
of higher education.
<2> The ABRC has not yet considered the distribution of £ 17.3
million of the unallocated sum for 1993-94.
EMPLOYMENT
Job Clubs
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) for each region and for Great Britain as a whole, how many people (a) were members of job clubs on 1 April 1990, (b) have joined job clubs, from 1 April 1990 to the latest possible date and (c) have left job clubs, from 1 April 1990 to the latest possible date ; and what were the destinations of those job club leavers, showing how many entered jobs ;
(2) if he will give the destination, ethnic backgrounds and numbers of people who have left job clubs since 1 April 1990, broken down to show (a) the results for each region and for Great Britain as a whole and (b) the results for people leaving either external or internal job clubs.
Mr. Jackson : Questions on operational matters in the Employment Service executive agency are the responsibility of Mike Fogden, the agency's chief executive, to whom I have referred these questions for reply.
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Restart
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people have attended a restart interview since 1 April 1990, to the latest available date, for each region and for Great Britain as a whole ; and what were the results of those interviews, broken down in the manner of the answer to the hon. Member for Pendle (Mr. Lee) of 18 December 1990, Official Report, column 148.
Mr. Jackson : Questions on operational matters in the Employment Service executive agency are the responsibility of Mike Fogden, the agency's chief executive, to whom I have referred this question for reply.
Unemployment Benefit
Mr. Ronnie Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people were refused unemployment benefit in the Blyth Valley area under the actively seeking work rules since 1990.
Mr. Jackson : Questions on operational matters in the Employment Service executive agency are the responsibility of Mike Fogden, the agency's chief executive, to whom I have referred this question for reply.
Training and Enterprise Councils
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any proposals to enable or encourage greater co-operation between chambers of commerce and training and enterprise councils ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : My Department is keen to encourage the greatest possible degree of co-operation between training and enterprise councils (TECs) and all the key players in the local business support network. Working closely together in concert avoids wasteful duplication of effort, and makes the best use of both public and private sector funding. I am pleased to report that many TEC plans make working with their local chamber of commerce a leading priority. In many cases, TEC board members are directors of their local chamber of commerce, and vice versa.
Pneumoconiosis
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will now undertake to review the working of the Pneumoconiosis etc. (Workers'
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Compensation) Act 1979 with a view to establishing whether certain categories of claimants have failed to secure reasonable compensation under the terms of this Act ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Forth : The Government have no current plans to review the working of the compensation scheme which this Act provides. It considers that the Act has well served, and continues to serve, the original purpose intended by Parliament in providing a measure of compensation to sufferers from certain dust diseases who have little chance of obtaining compensation through the courts because the relevant employer is no longer in business. The Government has fully met its commitment to Parliament to review the compensation paid with the aim of maintaining its value.
Sick Building Syndrome
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what research the Health and Safety Executive has carried out into sick building syndrome ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forth : The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is to commission a comprehensive and critical review of current published literature on sick building syndrome to enable it to consider the production of a guidance leaflet. The results of this review are expected to be available by the end of the year.
The HSE is also evaluating a proposal from an external research unit concerning possible epidemiological studies on this subject.
Work Accidents
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what were the total number of injuries as a result of work activities reported to enforcement authorities in the five counties of the east midlands region for each year since 1986-87 in the categories (i) fatal, (ii) non-fatal major, (iii) over three days and (iv) total reported in (a) agriculture, (b) energy, (c) manufacturing, (d) construction and (e) services.
Mr. Forth : The available information for the whole of the east midlands region is provided in table 1. Analysis by individual counties could be provided only at disproportionate cost for all injury severities. However, table 2 provides such analysis for the reported fatalities which have been aggregated for the four years since 1986-87 in view of the small numbers involved.
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Table 1
Numbers of reported occupational injuries<1> in the East Midlands region
1986-87 to 1989-90 (provisional)
Standard industrial classification 1980 |Fatal |Non-fatal |Over 3 day<3> |Total
sector |major<2> |reported
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87
Agriculture |<5>n.a. |41 |148 |189
Energy<4> |1 |53 |632 |686
Manufacturing |6 |677 |5,427 |6,110
Construction |8 |138 |909 |1,055
Services |7 |2,019 |3,967 |5,993
|-- |--- |--- |---
All industries<6> |22 |2,928 |11,083 |14,033
1987-88
Agriculture |<5>n.a. |72 |182 |254
Energy<4> |1 |228 |1,829 |2,058
Manufacturing |6 |714 |4,822 |5,542
Construction |9 |148 |884 |1,041
Services |11 |1,806 |4,129 |5,946
|-- |--- |--- |---
All industries<6> |27 |2,968 |11,846 |14,841
1988-89
Agriculture |1 |73 |193 |267
Energy<4> |5 |242 |2,672 |2,919
Manufacturing |9 |680 |5,409 |6,098
Construction |7 |171 |954 |1,132
Services |7 |1,852 |4,166 |6,025
|-- |--- |--- |---
All industries<6> |29 |3,018 |13,394 |16,441
1989-90<7>
Agriculture |4 |58 |165 |227
Energy<4> |8 |208 |2,128 |2,344
Manufacturing |9 |607 |5,886 |6,502
Construction |5 |199 |1,235 |1,439
Services |19 |2,027 |4,332 |6,378
|-- |--- |--- |---
All industries<6> |45 |3,106 |13,762 |16,913
Table 2
Numbers of reported fatal
injuries (a) in the East Midlands
region 1986-87 to 1989-90 (
provisional)
Standard Industrial
Classification 1980
----------------------------------
Sector
Agriculture<5>
Energy
Manufacturing
Construction
Services
All Industries
<1> Injuries to employees,
self-employed persons and
non-employed persons injured in a
working environment, reported
under the Reporting
of Injuries, Diseases and
Dangerous Occurrences Regulations,
1985 (RIDDOR), to all
enforcement authorities excluding
HSE's Railway
Inspectorate.
<2> As defined under RIDDOR
<3> Injuries causing incapacity
for work for more than three
days.
<4> Excludes injuries reported to
HSE's inspectorate of mines and
quarries.
<5> Analysis by county of fatal
injuries reported to HSE's
agricultural inspectorate in
1986-87 and 1987-88 not
available.
<6> Including a small number of
injuries not classified by
industry.
<7> provisional.
n.a. not available.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Hong Kong
6. Mr. Martlew : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent progress has been made on the proposed new airport development in Hong Kong.
24. Mr. Haynes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the current situation as regards the proposed airport development plan in Hong Kong.
Mr. Hurd : Talks with the Chinese Government on Hong Kong's airport project resumed on 18 May. We and the Chinese Government agree that Hong Kong needs a new airport and we are making intensive efforts to secure Chinese support for the project.
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