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Mr. Trippier : It is not possible to define exhaustively the areas of information which should be excluded on grounds of commercial confidentiality. Under section 22 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the onus is on the operator to prove to the enforcing authority that disclosure of information would prejudice to an unreasonable degree their commercial interests--and every case will have to be considered on its merits.
Estate Action
Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what approvals he intends to give for estate action funds for the refurbishment of the St. Martin's estate, Tulse Hill, London SW2.
Mr. Yeo : The Department did not offer estate action support for 1991-92 to Lambeth council towards the cost of its proposed work on the St. Martin's estate as the application failed to satisfy the objectives of the programme. No other application is being considered. The Department would be willing to consider a new bid for this estate in a future year, but approval would depend on the quality of the proposed scheme in competition with other bids received.
Mr. Knapman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the budget for the estate action programme in the current year.
Sir George Young : The estate action budget for 1991-92 is £268 million.
National Rivers Authority
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what figure he has included in his budget for granting aid to the National Rivers Authority for (a) the current financial year, (b) 1992-93 and (c) 1993-94.
Mr. Baldry : Grant-in-aid for the current year is £106.5 million. Planned provision for 1992-93 and 1993-94 of £96.9 million and £96 million respectively, as published in the Department's annual report 1991 (Cm. 1508), is subject to the Government's public expenditure decisions which will be announced later this year.
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Building (Heating)
Mr. Dunnachie : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what consideration has been given by his Department to the recommendation of the Technical Services Agency, that the law requiring the heating of buildings to a minimum of 16 deg. C should be extended to set a similar minimum temperature for housing ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Yeo : The standard of fitness for human habitation (section 604 of the Housing Act 1985 as amended by schedule 9 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989) requires that a dwelling-house shall have adequate provision for heating. Circular 6/90 advises that in deciding whether a dwelling-house is or is not unfit, an authority should consider whether the dwelling-house has provision for heating capable of generally maintaining the living room at a temperature of 18 deg. C or more and the other main rooms at a minimum of 16 deg. C.
Community Charge
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the amount of community charge payable by each eligible adult in a household of one, two, three, four or five adults where one, two or no adults have been exempted due to severe mental handicap in 1991-92 after the community charge reduction scheme has been applied, for each level of assumed rates in £50 bands from £150 to £500, in £100 bands from £500 to £1,500, £1, 750 and £2,000, where in each case the community charge is set at each £10 increment between £140 and £600.
Mr. Key : I have today placed in the Library tables showing the information requested. The tables relate to the number of adults in a property who are not exempt from the community charge.
If there are people in a property who are exempt from the community charge for any reason, these people are disregarded in the calculation of the community charge reduction available to other occupants.
Waste Recycling
Mr. Burns : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what measures his Department is taking to encourage recycling by local authorities.
Mr. Baldry : The Environmental Protection Act 1990 requires all waste collection authorities to prepare recycling plans. We have issued guidance on how to draw up the plans for consultation. We have also distributed £12 million of supplementary credit approvals for 1991-92 to enable local authorities to invest in recycling. This will add significantly to measures already in place to encourage recycling.
Homelessness
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he plans to introduce new initiatives to reduce the number of homeless people in Britain.
Sir George Young : All those accepted as homeless by local authorities are provided with accommodation. For the relatively small numbers who are literally homeless, we
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have allocated £96 million over three years to central London ; and we are considering the possibility of extending the initiative to other parts of the country.Derelict Land
Mr. Andy Stewart : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has completed his review of derelict land policy ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir George Young : I have today arranged for copies of a derelict land grant advice note setting out the Government's new priorities and objectives for derelict land grant (DLG) to be deposited in the Library of the House of Commons.
The new policies set out in the advice note represent the culmination of the Review of Derelict Land Policy which has been carried out by the Department following the announcement by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Environment and Countryside to the House on 20 July 1988. There have been extensive consultations with local authorities and other interested bodies.
The national priorities and objectives of DLG have been redefined to enable support to be given to the reclamation of sites for both development and environmental improvement. Priority will be given to the treatment of sites which are causing major environmental damage, particularly those which are badly contaminated. We have also enhanced the grant regime available to the private and voluntary sectors.
These changes go hand in hand with the 23 per cent. increase in resources for DLG in 1991-92 which I announced in a reply to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Stockport (Mr. Favell) on 7 February 1991 at column 226. The Government's aim is to broaden the scope of DLG as a nation wide grant for the reclamation of derelict land and to make the grant regime more flexible and attractive. This will speed up the rate at which derelict land is reclaimed and returned to an appropriate use for the benefit of the local community.
In urban areas priority will be given to recycling land for development where there is a proven demand for investment from the private sector but reclamation for environmental improvement will also be welcomed in order to improve the attractiveness of an area as a place for investment or in which to live or work. This will include, for example, promoting nature or historic conservation and community forests.
In rural areas, emphasis will be placed on reclamation in areas of particularly high scenic quality and on schemes to foster development having regard to local planning policies.
Local authorities will be encouraged to develop reclamation strategies in consultation with local interests involved in reclamation. The number of rolling programmes of reclamation which allow local authorities to plan their reclamation strategies for several years ahead will be increased.
A more attractive grant regime for the private sector and for voluntary bodies has also been introduced. A wider range of costs will be eligible for grant and voluntary bodies will be able to apply directly to the Department for grants to clear up neglected or unsightly land. Non-local authority DLG will also be re-introduced into the 57 urban programme areas.
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Energy Efficiency
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give for each available year from 1978 the energy consumption, broken down by fuel, or the buildings occupied by his Department, expressing the figures in (a) cash terms, (b) 1990-91 money terms and (c) units of consumption for electricity in kilowatt hours, gas in therms, liquid fuel in litres and solid fuel in tonnes ; and if he will give the square footage of accommodation to which these figures relate.
Mr. Heseltine [holding answer 3 June 1991] : Information on my Department's energy consumption prior to 1989-90 is not readily available. In 1989-90 energy expenditure, excluding the Property Services Agency, was as follows (expenditure in 1990-91 money terms shown in brackets) :
|£ |£
------------------------------------------------
Electricity |1,593,562 |(1,717,063)
Gas |831,377 |(895,809)
Oil |362,696 |(390,805)
Solid Fuel |4,003 |(4,313)
Consumption relating to these was as follows
The latest estimate of expenditure for 1990-91 which now includes Property Holdings is as follows (Property Holdings in Brackets) :
|£ |£
------------------------------------------
Electricity |1,866,340|(390,000)
Gas |766,932 |(66,000)
Oil |427,949 |(0)
Solid Fuel |1,500 |(0)
Consumption relating to these was as follows :
The area of accommodation relating to the 1990-91 figures is 1,303,197 square feet. This excludes specialised property such as the royal parks and palaces which are included in the expenditure and consumption figures but to which the concept of floor area is inappropriate.
EMPLOYMENT
Disabled People
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, if he will make a statement on the number of disabled people who have been assisted in finding employment by his Department in each of the last 15 years?
Mr. Jackson : Information is not available in the precise form requested. However the Employment Service keeps information on the placings of people with disabilities into employment. I have asked Mike Fogden, chief executive of the Employment Service executive agency, to write to my hon. Friend on this operational matter.
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Radway Green Ordnance Factory
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many redundancies have been declared at the Radway Green ordnance factory in the last year.
Mr. Forth : Information given to the Department under the redundancy handling provisions of the Employment Protection Act 1975 is provided in confidence and remains confidential until made public by the company concerned.
Child Care
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what discussions he has had with the Confederation of British Industry to encourage companies to develop child care provision within their organisation to assist women at work ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : The CBI is represented on the advisory committee on women's employment which I chair. Child care has been discussed on a number of occasions. I welcome all steps by the CBI and other employers' organisations to encourage the adoption of flexible working arrangements and help with child care to assist working parents.
Labour Statistics
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the number of unemployed claimants in each constituency in the west midlands in April 1990 and April 1991 ; what was the percentage change in each case ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : The information requested can be obtained from the NOMIS database in the House of Commons Library. Unemployment in the west midlands remains 30 per cent. below what it was at the time of the last general election.
Disabled Trainees
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment, pursuant to his answer of 9 May, Official Report, column 586, if he will list the action taken by his Department to ensure that there is no discrimination against trainees with disabilities ; and if he plans to introduce further legislative protection for trainees who suffer unjustifiable discrimination on the grounds of disability.
Mr. Jackson : There is a range of measures to enable people with disabilities to benefit from Government training programmes. For example young people with disabilities remain eligible for a guaranteed place on youth training beyond 18 if their availability for YT has been delayed by the effects of their disability or health problem.
From April 1991 people with disabilities regardless of the length of time they had been unemployed, were included in the Government's aim group that offers a place on either ET, EAS at a job club or on the job interview guarantee programme.
People with disabilities can be supplied with appropriate facilities and support to enable them to join youth training and employment training and to pursue suitable training. This covers such items as adaptations to premises, special aids and equipment.
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Training and enterprise councils are required to set out in their corporate and business plans how they intend to meet the training needs of people with disabilities. These plans form the basis of their contract with this Department.We have no plans to introduce further legislative protection for trainees.
Training and Enterprise Councils
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what Business and Technician Education Council courses are financed through the TECs.
Mr. Jackson : TECs receive part of their funding from the Department of Employment for the achievement of NVQs and other equivalent qualifications acceptable to my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Employment. There are at present 222 BTEC qualifications so designated.
Careers Service
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the organisations from which he received a response to his Department's consultative paper on the future of the careers service ; and, of these, how many commented specifically on the future of careers advice for young people with disabilities.
Mr. Jackson : Many organisations responded to my Department's consultation on the future of the careers service announced in the White Paper "Education and Training for the 21st Century" (Cm. 1536). Those with an interest in providing services for people with disabilities were well represented in the responses. It is my intention to ensure that, however provision is organised, a high quality of careers service will be safeguarded everywhere.
Woodlee Employment Rehabilitation Centre
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the future of the provision by Woodlee employment rehabilitation centre in Egham of residential assessment and rehabilitation for people with disabilities.
Mr. Jackson : The Secretary of State announced on 16 April, in reply to a question from the hon. Member for Wyre (Mr. Mans) Official Report, columns 157-59, that employment services for people with disabilities are to be improved and developed. New local employment service teams will be established over the next 12 to 18 months to provide more professional advice, assessment and help in finding and keeping work for people with disabilities. Greater use will be made of the voluntary sector and others to provide employment rehabilitation, including residential facilities, and nine employment service regional centres of excellence will be established over, approximately, the next five years.
Operational responsibility for the development of employment services for people with disabilities, including the future of the Egham employment rehabilitation centre, rests with the chief executive of the Employment Service executive agency, Mike Fogden, to whom I have referred the right hon. Gentleman's question for a more detailed reply.
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Industrial Tribunals
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many (a) members and (b) chairs of industrial tribunals are black ; what ethnic monitoring policy is in operation in respect of industrial tribunals ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forth : It is estimated that 51 lay members and 2 chairmen of the industrial tribunals are from the ethnic minorities. The number of lay members is monitored by asking applicants to give details of their ethnic origin. The monitoring of chairmen is a matter for the Lord Chancellor.
Job Clubs
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what instructions have been issued to managers of job clubs in connection with visits by hon. Members and parliamentary spokesmen.
Mr. Howard : As an executive agency, the employment service is being encouraged to promote contact between hon. Members and their local ES offices.
In the case of proposed visits by parliamentary spokesmen to local offices or to ES programmes such as job clubs, officials are required to notify such requests to my office. I am keen that parliamentary spokesmen should have an opportunity to see ES operations at first hand and I have written to the hon. Member to explain the position.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Student Numbers
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what were the student numbers in the bachelor of education degree, honours, in each year since 1988 in (a) Stranmillis college of education and (b) St. Mary's college of education, Belfast ; (2) what were the student numbers in the bachelor of education degree, general, in each year since 1988 in (a) Stranmillis college of education and (b) St. Mary's college of education, Belfast ; (3) what were the student numbers in the diploma in the advanced study of education in each year since 1988 in (a) Stranmillis college of education and (b) St. Mary's college of education, Belfast ;
(4) what were the student numbers in the post-graduate diploma in education in each year since 1988 in (a) Stranmillis college of education and (b) St. Mary's college of education, Belfast and (c) Queen's university of Belfast.
Dr. Mawhinney : The numbers were :
|1988-89|1989-90|1990-91
---------------------------------------------------------
(a) Stranmillis college
BEd (Honours) |499 |597 |637
BEd (General)<1> |98 |46 |-
DASE<2> |69 |70 |58
PGCE<3> |67 |63 |55
PGCE (Hons) Psychology |3 |6 |6
(b) St. Mary's college
BEd (Honours) |512 |587 |629
BEd (General)<1> |111 |46 |-
DASE<2> |78 |99 |94
PGCE |65 |64 |58
Queen's university
PGCE<3> |119 |125 |146
<1> 1987-88 was the last year of entry to the three-year
general degree course. Since 1988-89 all BEd entrants
have followed a four-year honours course.
<2> DASE figures represent the full-time equivalent
student loan.
<3> The diploma in education was replaced by the
postgraduate certificate in education in 1976.
Education (Finance)
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the budgetary allocation to Stranmillis college of education and St. Mary's college of education in each year since 1988.
Dr. Mawhinney : The budgets for approved recurrent expenditure in the last three financial years were :
|Stranmillis|St. Mary's
|college |college
------------------------------------------------
1988-89 |3,544 |3,345
1989-90 |3,836 |3,709
1990-91 |4,117 |4,032
The figures represent gross expenditure, part of which is funded from tuition fee income.
Private Residential and Nursing Homes
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many private residential and nursing homes are currently registered in the Eastern and Southern health and social services boards ; and if he will list them.
Mr. Hanley : At 31 December 1990, the latest date for which information is held centrally, the numbers of nursing homes registered by the Eastern and Southern health and social services boards were 66 and 29, respectively.
At 31 March 1991, the latest date for which information is held centrally, the numbers of homes for persons in need, registered by the Eastern and Southern health and social services boards were 105 and 23, respectively.
As the list requested is very lengthy, I have arranged for a copy to be sent to the hon. Gentleman and for copies to be placed in the Library.
Eye Surgery
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what measures will be taken to reduce the waiting list for cataract operations at the Royal Victoria hospital, Belfast ; (2) what additional resources will be allocated to eye surgery at the Royal Victoria hospital, Belfast.
Mr. Hanley : Additional funds of some £440,000 have been allocated to ophthalmology at the Royal Victoria hospital over the past two years. The funds allocated thus far have enabled an extra 600 procedures to be carried out during 1990-91, the great majority of which have been for cataracts. I hope to announce in the near future further additional funding for 1991-92 which should enable an additional 1,200 procedures to be carried out during 1991-92.
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Better management of waiting lists also helps to reduce both their length and the waiting time. The Department therefore supports the initiatives by the clinical resource efficiency support team, a group of clinicians formed to promote clinical efficiency. The team has produced a guidance booklet on waiting list management. As a result, boards have been asked to draw up programmes of management action focusing in particular on those specialties which have the greatest problems.Social Services Committee
Mr. A. Cecil Walker : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he will announce the composition of the new Social Services Committee which replaces the district committees disbanded on 1 April.
Mr. Hanley : The chairmen of the four councils were announced on 4 April and I hope to be able to announce the membership within the next few weeks.
Eye Surgery
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many cataract operations were carried out at the Royal Victoria hospital, Belfast in each year since 1 April 1985.
Mr. Hanley : Information is based on calendar years from 1985 to 1988 and on the financial year for 1989-90. The numbers are :
Year |Cataract
|operations
---------------------------------
1985 |959
1986 |957
1987 |1,329
1988 |1,595
1989-90 |1,552
Advance Factories
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland at what locations there are unoccupied advance factories.
Mr. Needham : There are unoccupied advance factories at Antrim (technology park), Armagh, Ballymena, Bangor, Belfast (Adelaide), Craigavon, Londonderry (Springtown), Newtownards and Strabane.
Ryan Park, Castlereagh
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for what reasons the Northern Ireland Housing Executive removed the play equipment from the play area at the rear of Ryan park in the borough of Castlereagh ; and what proposals there are to provide play equipment for the children of this residential area.
Mr. Needham : I am advised by the chief executive of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive that the Housing Executive has not removed any play equipment from the play area at the rear of Ryan park. The Department of Environment has been unable to establish who removed it. However, I understand that Castlereagh borough council is now considering the provision of new play equipment for the children of the area.
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Extradition (Irish Republic)
Mr. Trimble : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the persons who have been extradited for political offences since 1980 (a) from Northern Ireland to the Republic of Ireland and (b) from the Republic of Ireland to Northern Ireland, giving the year in which the extradition occurred and indicating the outcome of the case.
Dr. Mawhinney : None. The legislation effecting extradition between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland precludes extradition for a political offence.
Fair Employment
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland including staff transferred from the former Fair Employment Agency, how many members of the Fair Employment Commission staff have been appointed since Mr. Harry Goodman was appointed chief executive of the commission ; how many of these staff members are Roman Catholics ; and if he will make a statement about Mr. Goodman's previous experience of industry and personnel management prior to his appointment as chief executive of the Commission.
Mr. Needham : Thirty one members of the Fair Employment Commission staff have been appointed since Mr. Harry Goodman was appointed chief executive of the commission, of whom 18 are Protestant and 13 are Roman Catholic.
Mr. Harry Goodman's career began in the Northern Ireland civil service. Prior to leaving the NICS in 1978, he had been a senior manpower adviser on personnel and industrial relations matters, work which necessitated extensive contact with both sides of industry at the highest levels of both management and trade unions.
On leaving the civil service, Mr. Goodman became assistant chief executive and chief officer (advisory services) of the Labour Relations Agency where his work included the development of a range of advisory services to industry on industrial relations and employment and personnel matters, as well as the management of finance and personnel within the organisation. He also had responsibility for the conciliation services associated with individual complaints.
Mr. Goodman is an economics graduate of Queen's university Belfast and a fellow of the Institute of Personnel Management.
Mr. Trimble : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will state the number of persons whose perceived religious affiliation was Protestant and Roman Catholic and (a) operational staff and (b) other staff of (i) the Fair Employment Agency at the time of its dissolution, (ii) the Fair Employment Commission at the time of its creation and (iii) the Fair Employment Commission at the present time.
Mr. Needham : As the Fair Employment Agency became the Fair Employment Commission on 1 January 1990, the number of staff at the time of the agency's dissolution is the same as the number of commission staff at the time of its creation.
The commission has declared its intention to make monitoring information available on a yearly basis. To make such information available more frequently and
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covering shorter periods could infringe the confidentiality requirements of the Fair Employment Acts by disclosing the religious beliefs of identifiable individuals. Accordingly, details are provided in relation to support and operational staff as at 1 January 1991.
1 January 1990 |Protestant |Roman
|Catholic
---------------------------------------------------------------
Operational staff |7 |15
Support staff |7 |4
1 January 1991 Protestant Roman Catholic
Operational staff 18 19
Support staff 12 8
Further Education
Mr. Stott : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what plans he has to remove further education in Northern Ireland from education and library board control ;
(2) if he will make a statement on his conclusions for the future of further education subsequent to the consultative document "Signposts for the 90s"
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