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GCSE
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the representations he has received since January in favour of limiting the percentage of course work in GCSE examinations.
Mr. Eggar : Since January 1991, my right hon. and learned Friend has received a number of letters in support of further limitations on the percentage of GCSE marks acquired through course work. These letters were private and it would not thus be appropriate to list the correspondents. Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he last met (a) the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals, (b) the Committee of Directors of Polytechnics and (c) the Confederation of British Industry to discuss the integration between GCSE and A-level examinations.
Mr. Eggar : My right hon. and learned Friend meets these organisations from time to time to discuss matters of mutual interest, including aspects of education for 16 to 19-year-olds as a preparation for higher education and employment. The question of integration between GCSE and A-level examinations has at no time arisen.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether his Department has made any assessment of the impact of course work upon (a) standards and (b) pupil motivation in relation to GCSE.
Mr Eggar : HM inspectorate has reported that course work is of a variable quality, may fail to bring out the best in pupils at both ends of the ability range, and may be inadequately moderated. The HMI, however, reported that it has a generally positive effect on pupil motivation.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement on trends in A-level results since the introduction of the GCSE examination.
Mr. Eggar : In the first year that candidates with GCSEs sat A-level examinations, 1989-90, the overall proportion of entries resulting in grades A to E rose by 1 per cent. to 77 per cent. In 1990-91 there was a further rise to 78 per cent.
In 1989-90, 20 per cent. of school leavers had achieved two or more A- levels at grades A to E : a rise of 2.7 percentage points on the previous year. Figures for 1990-91 are not yet available.
World Summit for Children
Miss Lestor : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if his Department has completed the review of its policies for inclusion in the progress report on action in the areas targeted by the World Summit for Children's declaration and plan of action ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is co-ordinating an exercise among all interested Whitehall
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departments in order to prepare the United Kingdom's progress report on action in the areas targeted by the World Summit for Children's declaration and plan of action. The aim is to submit this to the UNICEF secretariat by the end of this year. My Department is liaising closely with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on the preparation of this report.Unplanned Pregnancy
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has received a copy of the report of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists working party on unplanned pregnancy ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Atkins : My right hon. and learned Friend has noted the findings of this report with interest.
City Technology Colleges
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will set out the number of pupils at each of the city technology colleges at the start of the September term, and the number of full-time and part-time teachers employed in each of the city technology colleges on 1 September.
Mr. Eggar : The latest available pupil figures from city technology colleges, collected in January 1991, are set out in the table. No figures for September are available.
It is for each college individually to determine its own teaching complement.
College |Pupils -------------------------- Kinghurst |706 Djanogly |377 Macmillan |373 Dixons |180 Harris |744 Leigh |899 Emmanuel |150
Data Protection Act
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the cause of the delay in providing guidance to head teachers, school governors and local authorities about the Data Protection Act ; what plans he has to recompense schools for the costs of registration under the Act ; whether he has estimated the costs of registration ; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : The delay in providing guidance on the implications of the Data Protection Act was caused by the need to amend the draft guidance as the result of further advice from the data protection registrar. No information is available on the extent to which schools make use of computer-held personal data which would make registration necessary. Revised draft guidance on the financial and other implications of the Data Protection Act for schools will be issued shortly.
Rugby League
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will call for a report from the chairman of the Sports Council on the reasons for his remarks about rugby league football at the recent launch of the Rothmans rugby union yearbook.
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Mr. Atkins : I do not intend to call for a report on the matter raised by the hon. Member. I understand that, on the occasion of the USA v. Italy rugby union game at Otley on 5 October, the chairman of the Sports Council discussed the press accounts of his remarks with the chief executive of the Rugby League. The full text of the statement made at the launch of the rugby union yearbook contains a substantial endorsement of the management skills of the Rugby League, not least in promoting its sport. I understand that both governing bodies now regard the matter as closed.
Student Loans Company
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what arrangements the Student Loans Company has made to publish annual accounts for the period 1990-91 and an annual report ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Alan Howarth : The "Student Loans Company's Report 1989-91", containing the company's accounts for the periods 1989-90 and 1990-91, has been published today. Copies have been placed in the Library. The report records the company's achievement in preparing for the start of business in September 1990 and issuing loans to 180,000 students in the academic year 1990-91. The company has established a firm foundation for further development and for the recovery of loans. I pay tribute to the staff and management.
WALES
Aviation Industry
9. Dr. Kim Howells : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the level of employment in the aviation industry in Wales.
Mr. David Hunt : The last census of employment, carried out in September 1989, estimated that there were 9,800 employees in the aviation industry in Wales.
Labour Statistics
11. Mr. Ray Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give the present unemployment figure for Ogmore, Mid Glamorgan, Wales, and the unemployment figure for June 1979 for the same areas.
Mr. David Hunt : On 12 September, there were 3,236, 25,445 and 118, 952 unemployed claimants in the Ogmore constituency, Mid Glamorgan and Wales. Comparable data for June 1979 for Ogmore and Mid Glamorgan is not available. The comparable number of unemployed claimants in Wales in 1979, seasonally adjusted was 66,100 and 120,200 in September 1991.
14. Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the latest unemployment rate for Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : On 12 September, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Wales was 9.3 per cent. of the workforce.
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Council House Sales
12. Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many council houses and flats have been sold in Wales since 1979 under the right -to-buy provisions and on a voluntary basis.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : There have been about 91,500 local authority sales between 1979 and June 1991. Just over 85,000 were under the right to buy and the remainder were voluntary sales.
Primary Schools
13. Mr. Knox : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was spent per pupil in primary schools in Wales in the most recent year for which figures are available ; and what was the comparable figure for 1978- 79, at constant prices.
Sir Wyn Roberts : In 1989-90, current expenditure per pupil in primary schools in Wales was £1,191. The equivalent constant price figure for 1978-79 was £899.
Orthopaedic Surgery
15. Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will approve the bid by South Glamorgan health authority significantly to raise the throughput capacity for major joint surgery at the Prince of Wales orthopaedic hospital, Rhydlafar.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : Additional funding has been made available to the authority to increase the number of hip and knee replacement operations undertaken at the treatment centre. A bid to increase capacity at the hospital was not successful under the 1991-92 waiting times initiative.
16. Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he proposes to have with the chairman of the South Glamorgan health authority concerning waiting lists for orthopaedic surgery.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : I met the chairman and consultant surgeons in May to discuss waiting lists in South Glamorgan. My officials are in regular contact with the chairman and the authority's managers and I will bear in mind the possible need for further meetings.
NHS Spending
17. Mr. Gwilym Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what are the current totals of spending on the national health service in Wales ; and what the figures were in 1979.
Mr. David Hunt : Total provision for the NHS in Wales this year is now £1,769 million. In 1979-80, total expenditure was £481 million. The increase since 1979 is almost 60 per cent. in real terms.
Welsh Water (Investment)
18. Mr. Hain : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he next intends to meet the Director-General of Water Services to discuss the implications of Welsh Water's investment policy for the regulatory framework.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : My right hon. Friend will continue to meet the director general whenever there are matters of mutual interest to discuss.
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Channel Tunnel
19. Mr. Anderson : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what efforts he is making to ensure that Wales is able to take advantage of the channel tunnel.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Wales enjoys good links into the motorway system leading to the channel tunnel. Planned improvements are set out in "Roads in Wales : Progress and Plans for the 1990s" and the 1991 supplement. Further major schemes to improve communications in Clwyd and South East Wales were announced earlier in the year.
The provision of rail links is a matter for British Rail who are now working up the plans which they announced in 1989 as required by section 40 of the Channel Tunnel Act 1987.
Economy
20. Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his latest estimate of the date at which economic activities in Wales will begin to increase.
Mr. David Hunt : Our forecast is that recovery will take place during the second half of this year. All the conditions for recovery are right--inflation and interest rates have reduced dramatically in the last few months and surveys show that confidence is growing.
Tourism Grants
21. Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of the value of grants under section 4 of the Development of Tourism Act 1969 in the current year ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The Wales Tourism Board estimates that in 1991-92 grants amounting to around £3.6 million will be paid under section 4. This is expected to generate capital investment of £22 million and create 435 full-time equivalent jobs in the Welsh tourism industry.
Local Government Reorganisation
22. Mr. Murphy : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he last met leaders of councils in Wales to discuss his plans for local government reorganisation.
Mr. David Hunt : I met the Assembly of Welsh Counties on 24 September. I am to meet both local authority associations early next month.
Hospital Waiting Lists
23. Mr. Grist : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will cause to be published at regular intervals the waiting list for each consultant working in national health service hospitals.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : I am considering my hon. Friend's suggestion.
Local Government
24. Mr. Raffan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will extend the consultation period on the Welsh Office paper "The Structure of Local Government in Wales".
Mr. David Hunt : No, but I have made it clear to the local government associations that I want a continuing dialogue until final decisions are reached.
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Beef Sector
25. Mr. Livsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the present state of the beef sector in Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : From my recent discussions with the farming unions and farmers in Wales I am well aware of the concerns of beef producers. As part of the annual autumn review, I am currently assessing the economic conditions and prospects for producers in less favoured areas in Wales. More generally, the Government will seek to ensure that measures for the beef sector included as part of the reform of the common agricultural policy do not discriminate against our producers.
Local Government Funding (Cardiganshire)
26. Mr. Geraint Howells : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to visit Cardiganshire during the next six months, to discuss local government funding.
Mr. David Hunt : The Welsh Consultative Council on Local Government Finance, a meeting of which I chaired on 8 October, is the appropriate forum for discussing local government finance.
Physical Education
Mr. Rowlands : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what information he has on the number of teachers in primary schools (a) in Mid- Glamorgan and (b) in Wales who hold a qualification in physical education.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Information on the numbers of teachers and their qualifications is given in the Welsh Education Statistics Bulletin : No. 5 Primary School Staffing Survey (1987), copies of which are available in the House of Commons Library. Table 15 provides an analysis of teachers by subject of qualification.
Information for Mid Glamorgan is not available.
Mr. Rowlands : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the time to be allocated per day and per week within the national curriculum to physical education.
Sir Wyn Roberts : My right hon. Friend has no power to specify time allocations for any national curriculum subject and is specifically proscribed by law from doing so.
Mr. Rowlands : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what information he has of the average number of hours per day and week allocated by primary and secondary schools to physical education.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The 1987 primary school staffing survey showed that an average of 8 per cent. of class time in the survey week was spent on physical education, games and swimming. The 1989 secondary school staffing survey showed that an average of 6 per cent. of periods in the survey week were spent on physical education.
Mr. Rowlands : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the ability of primary schools to deliver the national curriculum in physical education ; and what extra staff will be required to implement the curriculum.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The consultation on our proposals for physical education specifically seeks views on the
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practicability of introducing the subject as part of the national curriculum. Our proposals were based on the physical education working group's final report and we are currently considering the resource implications of their recommendations.Some primary schools might experience difficulty in meeting the requirements for swimming. A survey of current provision and access for swimming is being carried out in order that the timing and costs of its introduction can be accurately assessed.
Sports
Mr. Rowlands : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the number of youth and employment training schemes currently in operation assisting in the stimulation of sports participation.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Training and enterprise councils (TECs) are responsible for ensuring that the training needs of their local labour markets are met and that an appropriate range and supply of youth training (YT) and employment training (ET) are available. TECs are not required to provide information about specific types of training but it is estimated that across Wales there are at least 18 schemes which contribute to the stimulation and development of sport and leisure.
Asthma
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will take steps to ensure that within every general practice in Wales there is either a nurse or a doctor who has been specifically trained to deal with asthma ; and if he will issue guidelines to general practitioners regarding the need for regular monitoring of treatment of asthma patients.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : The general education and vocational training of a general medical practitioner encompasses training in the management of asthma, including an awareness of when referral for specialist opinion and help is needed. Screening for asthma may be recognised as appropriate for health promotion clinics in general practice, and family health service authorities are empowered to pay for these if they are satisfied with the protocol provided. Instruction in the caring for patients suffering with asthma is an integral part of the education of nurses caring for patients suffering with respiratory disease. In the practice environment, in-service training and clinical updating is available for nurses as part of planned professional development. To specify more narrowly the exact type of service that is provided within each practice is neither desirable nor practical. The monitoring of patients who suffer from asthma is primarily a matter for the clinical judgment of the doctor.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will issue guidelines to every school in Wales giving specific advice to teachers on how to deal with children suffering from asthma, in order to safeguard the well-being of asthma sufferers and to minimise the loss of school time on account of asthma.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : Such advice should be provided locally by principal school medical officers in their role as
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advisers to the local education authority. If the hon. Gentleman has any particular concerns in this matter I should be happy to discuss them with him.Sea Fishing Industry
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much regional financial assistance has been paid out by the Welsh Office to assist the sea fishing industry in the counties of Gwynedd and Dyfed, respectively, in the current financial year ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : In the current financial year one application has been received for regional selective assistance on a fishing industry project in Dyfed and an offer has been made. No applications have been received from Gwynedd. The Welsh Office is always ready to discuss potential projects in the fishing industry with the promoters.
Limestone Pavement
Mr. Andrew F. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much limestone pavement has been damaged since the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 came into force in (a) national parks, (b) areas of outstanding natural beauty and (c) elsewhere in Wales.
Sir Wyn Roberts : We are not aware of any damage to limestone pavements in Wales.
Empty Properties
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish a table showing the most recent estimate of the number of void dwelling units which fall below the minimum tolerable standards in the ownership of (a) Government agencies or Departments, (b) local authorities, (c) private landlords and (d) housing associations.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : The information is not available centrally.
Invoice Payments
Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his Department's policy on the payment of invoices to small and medium- sized businesses.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Our Department's policy is to pay all invoices, after validation, within the suppliers' credit terms.
Burns Units
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to ensure that patients from the Gwent health authority currently treated at the burns unit located at St. Lawrence hospital, Chepstow will be treated at Morriston hospital, Swansea, when the new burns unit opens there.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : The service currently located at St. Lawrence is for the treatment of patients who require more specialist facilities than can normally be provided at a district general hospital. It is the Department's policy that patients in this category from the south Wales area, including those from Gwent, should be referred for treatment to Morriston hospital, Swansea when service is transferred to the new burns unit there.
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Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales to which hospital the Gwent health authority will send patients requiring specialised treatment following the planned closure of the burns unit at St. Lawrence hospital, Chepstow.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer that I gave on 21 October 1991.
Oystermouth Bus Station
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish in the Official Report in relation to the public inquiry to be held on the Oystermouth bus station, Swansea (a) the date of the inquiry, (b) the number of days set down for the inquiry, (c) the venue of the inquiry and (d) the name of the inspector he has appointed.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The applicant and the local planning authority have requested that the application should be held in abeyance to enable further discussions to be held. Arrangements for the public inquiry have therefore not yet been made.
South Glamorgan Health Authority
Mr. Gwilym Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much the revenue and capital spending of South Glamorgan health authority was in 1979 and at the latest available date in cash terms and in real terms.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : The information requested is as follows :
South Glamorgan Health Authority
|Outturn |Expenditure |Percentage
|expenditure |at constant |increase
|(£'000) |1990-91 prices|(£'000)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Revenue
1979-80 |70,655 |152,766 |-
1990-91<1> |199,928 |199,928 |31
Capital
1979-80 |2,092 |4,523 |-
1990-91<1> |15,673 |15,673 |247
<1> Provisional
Source:
Health authority annual accounts
Outturn prices adjusted by the "gross domestic product" inflator
Notes
1. Expenditure given in accruals rather than cash terms as this is more
representative of the real level of spending incurred in each of the
respective years.
2. Pattern of expenditure as between years can be affected by virement
between revenue and capital, the incidence of capital receipts brokerage
with other authorities and other non-recurrent factors.
Burial Charges
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the county councils which charge relatives of deceased AIDS victims more than the standard burial charge ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : Information on the fees charged by burial authorities in Wales is not held centrally. The level of fees is a matter for the burial authorities to determine.
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