House of Commons Hansard Debates for 26 Nov 1991

Gibraltar (Human Rights)

Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he takes to ensure that residents of Gibraltar have their human rights protected under the European convention on human rights.

Mr. Garel-Jones : The European convention on human rights applies in full to Gibraltar and provides Gibraltarians with the right of individual petition in relation to the rights covered by the convention. Furthermore, Gibraltar's constitution contains a chapter setting out the fundamental rights and freedoms of Gibraltarians and provides for their enforcement through the courts.

Lockerbie

Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from Mrs. Pamela Dix of UK Families Flight 103 concerning the Lockerbie disaster ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Douglas Hogg : Ms. Pamela Dix has written three times to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State concerning the Lockerbie disaster. Ms. Dix wrote most recently on 4 November 1991 enclosing a copy of a status report by UK Families Flight 103. My right hon. Friend replied to Ms. Dix on 19 November.

Cambodia

Mr. Mullin : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, further to his answer of 20 November, Official Report , columns 198-99 , what information he has regarding the current whereabouts and fate of the leadership of the site 8 camp.

Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We understand that all but two of the members of the former site 8 leadership have returned

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to refugee camps on the Thai/Cambodia border, 10 of them to site 8. The exact whereabouts of the others is uncertain, but we understand that the two who remain inside Cambodia are safe.

Iraq

Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if, pursuant to the reply to the hon. Member for Fulham (Mr. Carrington), of 18 November, Official Report , columns 52-56 , he will place in the Library copies of the reports of each of the UNSCOM visits to Iraq listed in his reply ; if he will list by name and expertise each of the United Kingdom inspectors or technical experts involved in each UNSCOM visit ; and if he will set out the new information provided to Her Majesty's Government by the UNSCOM inspection visits, subsequent to knowledge of the Iraqi nuclear programme as at 19 April 1990.

Mr. Douglas Hogg [holding answer 25 November 1991] : Reports of the IAEA nuclear inspections are already available in the House of Commons Library in the form of Security Council documents as follows : UNSCOM 1 and 4 in S/22788 of 15 July ; UNSCOM 5 in S/22837 of 25 July ; UNSCOM 6 in S/22986 of 28 August ; UNSCOM 14 in S/23112 of 4 October and UNSCOM 16 in S/23122 of 8 October. We expect the report of UNSCOM 19 to be issued shortly. Reports of other inspections have not yet been made public.

United Kingdom nationals serving on the inspection teams have skills and expertise requested by the UN special commission and appropriate to the nature of the inspection for which they are provided. For reasons of personal security, I am not prepared to reveal their identities.

New information on Iraq's WMD programme is set out in the above documents and in the report submitted to the Security Council by the executive chairman of the special commission which is being made available in the House of Commons Library--document S/23165 of 25 October.

Algerian Nuclear Facilities

Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he intends to make to the International Atomic Energy Agency to improve its surveillance of Algerian nuclear facilities.

Mr. Douglas Hogg [holding answer 25 November 1991] : The Algerian research reactor operating at Draria is already under safeguards and the Algerian Government have given a public guarantee that the nuclear reactor under construction at Ain Oussera will be subject to IAEA inspection. We welcome this assurance, and look to the Algerian Government to invite the IAEA to inspect Ain Oussera as soon as possible.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Corporate Governance

Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the cost to his Department of seconding staff to the Cadbury committee on corporate governance.

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Mr. Leigh : There is no cost to the Department for the secondment of a member of its staff to the committee on the financial aspects of corporate governance.

Company Investigations

Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions he has secured repayments of the costs of any investigations carried out by DTI inspectors, under section 439 of the Companies Act 1985.

Mr. Redwood : The Government are seeking recovery under section 439(4) of the costs of the Animal Defence Society Limited.

Inspectors Reports

Ms. Mowlam : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is his Department's policy (a) on the timing of the release of one of its inspector's reports where the subject of the report is also the subject of a current trial and (b) on the relative timing of the release of an inspector's report to those mentioned in the report and to Parliament.

Mr. Lilley : My Department would not expect to publish a report where the subject of the report was also the subject of a current criminal trial. A copy of the report could, however, be made available to those affected by its contents in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act and against suitable undertakings of confidentiality from the recipients. The timing of such release would depend upon the reasons for the request for the report.

Reports are made available to Parliament on publication. It has been the practice of my Department to allow persons whose interests may be affected by the report, on request and on payment of the prescribed fee in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 1985, to have copies, against undertakings, shortly before the proposed date of publication.

Export Credits Guarantee Department

Mr. Michael Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list those countries covered by Export Credits Guarantee Department provision.

Mr. Sainsbury : Some export credit insurance cover is currently available from the Export Credits Guarantee Department, including from the Insurance Services Group which is shortly to be privatised, for all but three countries--Iraq, Libya and Zambia.

BBC External Services

Mr. Michael Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will outline the arrangements made to co-ordinate the duties of the BBC external services and of the Export Credits Guarantee Department with respect to promotion of United Kingdom commercial interests.

Mr. Sainsbury : The BBC World Service and the Export Credits Guarantee Department are two separate organisation with separate aims and objectives. However, ECGD does keep the BBC World Service informed about its activities. There are no plans to co-ordinate more closely their respective roles.

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Cumbria Action Team

Dr. Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of Statefor Trade and Industry what was the proportion ofthe budget of the Cumbria action team allocated for (a) administration, (b) new work space in Copeland and (c) new factories in Copeland.

Mr. Leigh : On 13 June the Secretary of State announced a package of special measures for Barrow and West Cumbria. These included : (

(i) The establishment of the Cumbria action team, with a special fund of up to £1 million to support local initiatives in the area. No money from this special budget has been allocated for administration.

(ii) A £15 million programme under which English Estates will provide new sites, factories and work space in Copeland and Furness. There is no formal allocation for Copeland, but we expect the programme to be roughly equal between the two areas.

RECHAR

Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he expects the European Commission to release the RECHAR programme for implementation in the United Kingdom.

Mr. Leigh [holding answer 21 November 1991] : This is a question for the Commission. I can make no prediction, but I hope that it will be released very soon.

ECGD Insurance Services Group

Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) further to his answer of 18 November, Official Report, column 37, what is his most up-to-date estimate of the number of current Export Credits Guarantee Department staff who will be given additional paid leave after 1 December, pending transfer to other duties ;

(2) how many existing Export Credits Guarantee Department staff will be retained after 1 December, on full pay with no duties pending early retirement with full civil service entitlement.

Mr. Sainsbury [holding answer 21 November 1991] : Management are still considering the most effective deployment of staff following the privatisation of the Insurance Services Group.

Cumbria

Dr. Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures he proposes for the improvements to communications recommended by his Department's consultants in their report, "Cumbria's Economy, Strategic Needs and Opportunities in the 1990s."

Mr. Leigh [holding answer 22 November 1991] : Following my right hon. Friend's announcement of measures for West Cumbria and Furness on 13 June, the Cumbria action team was promptly established in the area with bases at Barrow and Cockermouth. The team has established close and regular links with business leaders, key local agencies and others concerned with the economic development of the area. A steering group involving the regional directors of Government Departments has also been established to

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ensure effective liaison at senior level between Departments on issues concerning West Cumbria and Barrow. In addition to regular meetings between Departments, this group has held other meetings with representatives of key agencies in the area with a follow-up arranged for mid-December. I plan to be in Whitehaven on that occasion and to attend the meeting.

Cars (Recycling)

Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information he has to date on corporate projects to dismantle and recycle cars in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) the remainder of European Economic Community countries.

Mr. Leigh [holding answer 25 November 1991] : I am aware of a number of initiatives being taken with regard to the dismantling and recycling of motor cars. In the United Kingdom, for example, BMW (GB) Ltd. has announced a pilot recycling and disassembly scheme and the Rover Group has announced plans to undertake a programme of research with the Bird Group--one of the leading United Kingdom and European materials reclamation and recycling organisations--which aims to establish the optimum level of disassembly as well as standards covering a wide range of marques. I am also aware of the proposal for an industry steering group whose initial function would be to initiate action and to co-ordinate information on the range of projects being undertaken.

Elsewhere in Europe, we are aware that BMW--who are co-operating closely with other manufacturers--have a pilot disassembly plant at Landshut and have opened an operational recycling centre in Munich. Also in Germany, GM Europe--Opel Vauxhall--has initiated a programme with RED Darmstadt and Ford have started a vehicle dismantling plant at Cologne. In France, the PSA Group--Peugeot/Citroen--has established a joint project, near Lyon, with a scrap metal processor and a cement maker to remove pollutants, to recover metals, and to produce fuel pellets from the residues. The results from all of these projects will be applied in the United Kingdom.

Additionally on the European front, the European Commission --DGXI--has designated end-of-life vehicles as a priority waste stream and discussions will start next month on identifying the scale of the problem and ways in which it can be tackled.

Recycling is not new to the motor industry. About75 per cent. of the material in the average car is already recovered and there is a long commercial tradition in the United Kingdom of recycling car batteries, of reconditioning engines, gear boxes and radiators and a variety of other used parts.

Regional Government

Mr. Caborn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the Council of Ministers meeting on the regions on 18 and 19 November.

Mr. Leigh : I attended on these dates the informal meeting in the Hague of EC Ministers responsible for regional policy and physical planning. The meeting considered two subjects : the Community structural funds, and the Commission's reference document "Europe 2000, Outlook for the Development of the Community's Territory". As it was an informal meeting, not a Council, no formal conclusions were reached.

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Ministers had a broad exchange of views on the implementation of the structural funds to date and on certain aspects of their future. The importance of proper evaluation of the effectiveness of the funds was recognised and several ideas for improving the efficiency of their administration were discussed. The principle of subsidiarity and its relevance to the operation of the funds was acknowledged ; I and some others expressed our Governments' wish to be more fully responsible for determining the eligible areas for and the detailed uses of the funds. Both Ministers and the Commission felt that there should in future be fewer "Community initiatives", a type of grant scheme exemplified by RECHAR.

The reference document "Europe 2000" was generally welcomed, although I and others emphasised that it should not lead to any Community "spatial plan" contrary to the principle of subsidiarity. The Commission intends to carry out further studies. The intention of establishing a committee or working group, to facilitate exchange of information and experience on matters relevant to the Community dimension of "spatial development" in the member states, will be considered in detail at official level.

EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

Channel 4 Commission on Education

Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether his Department supplied the Channel 4 commission on education with statistical information or comments on the performance of education in England and Wales.

Mr. Eggar : My Department did not supply the Channel 4 commission on education with statistical information or comments on the performance of education in England and Wales. It was, however, in contact with the makers of an accompanying television programme.

Mr. Sillars : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science when he received a copy of the report of the Channel 4 commission on education ; and what response he has made to the views expressed.

Mr. Eggar : A copy of the report of the Channel 4 commission on education was received by the Department on 22 October. I responded to the views expressed in a television debate on Channel 4 transmitted on 23 October.

Disabled Students

Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to extend the system of mandatory and discretionary awards to students on courses of further or higher education whose disabilities or medical conditions oblige them to study on a part- time basis ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Eggar : The Education Act 1962 gives local education authorities the power to make discretionary awards to part-time students on courses of further or higher education, but restricts mandatory awards generally to designated full-time and sandwich higher education courses. The student support arrangements are kept under review. We have, however, no present plans for primary legislation to extend mandatory awards to part-time courses.

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Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will make special provision for people to have access to education or retraining if they become disabled after the age of 19 years through accident or illness.

Mr. Eggar : Existing education and training arrangements already provide for those who become disabled in adult life. Local education authorities' responsibilities towards disabled adults will be carried forward into the new further education structures under the Further and Higher Education Bill. Department of Employment schemes give priority access to people with disabilities.

Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to ensure suitable transport to and from college for disabled students in further education who do not have access to public or private transport ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Eggar : Under the Further and Higher Education Bill currently before Parliament, the provision of transport for disabled and other students in further education will continue to be the responsibility of local education authorities.

Special Educational Needs

Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to ensure that students with special educational needs wishing to pursue further education receive a full and appropriate assessment of their needs ; and if he will specify the methods by which their academic achievements will be acknowledged.

Mr. Eggar : Under the Further and Higher Education Bill currently before Parliament the assessment of further education students' needs will continue to be a matter for the colleges. It would be inappropriate for the Government to specify the methods by which examining and awarding bodies assess the academic achievements of students with special educational needs. The Government expect those bodies to ensure that their assessment arrangements take account of the needs of students with special educational needs.

Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will extend the statutory age limit for entitlement to further education for students with special needs who need extra time to develop independence skills and to catch up academically with their able-bodied peers.

Mr. Eggar : There is no such statutory age limit. The duty to secure provision of further education applies to 16 to 18-year-olds and to adults of all ages. The Further and Higher Education Bill currently before Parliament carries that duty over into the proposed new further education structures.

Official Journeys

Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give the number of official journeys to Bradford made by the hon. Member for Enfield, North (Mr. Eggar) during 1990 and the current year to the most recent practicable date and the total cost of rail fares for himself and civil servants together with the associated costs of meals and any other expenses.

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Mr. Eggar : The Government have a strong commitment to promoting inner city regeneration. As Minister with special responsibility for Bradford and Leeds, it is invaluable for me to maintain personal contact with those involved in this vital process--including both Bradford city council and important private sector and partnership bodies such as the Bradford chamber of commerce, the Bradford and District training and enterprise council, the Bradford Breakthrough and the Keighley business forum, not to mention the many voluntary sector and community groups which are contributing to the development of new initiative and new partnerships in the district.

My many and frequent contacts with local people are also invaluable in steering the work of the Bradford and Leeds city action team and the Bradford task force which between them invest over £1.5 million a year in the city--and which seek to co-ordinate the impact of central Government programmes especially in the fields of environment, employment, training and enterprise. There is no substitute for seeing things personally and learning at first hand.

Since July 1990, when I became Minister of State, I have made 11 official visits to Bradford, nine by train. From the records currently available the total cost for myself and civil servants is as follows :


                    |£                

--------------------------------------

a) Rail fares       |1,692.58         

b) Associated costs |285.85

Departmental Telephone Calls

Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what information is available on the number of calls made to directory inquiries from his Department since 1 April 1991.

Mr. Eggar : It is not possible to give complete statistics of all directory inquiry calls made by departmental personnel. While telephone logging equipment is now installed at the Department's main offices in London and Darlington, it is not available at small outstations or the divisional and local offices of Her Majesty's inspectorate.

Data collected during October suggest that approximately 80 calls are made daily to directory inquiries from the Department's two principal sites.

Schools (Health and Safety)

Mr. Andrew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his policy on local education authority inspections of schools for health and safety.

Mr. Atkins : It falls to local education authorities to ensure that their inspection arrangements are appropriate for the discharge of both their statutory duties and wider responsibilities with regard to health and safety.

ENVIRONMENT

Council Rents

Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what are his Department's guidelines for rents of council homes in Lambeth in 1992 and 1993.

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Mr. Yeo : Guideline rents are the assumptions about each local housing authority's rental income used in the calculation of entitlement to housing revenue account subsidy. They are calculated by each authority in accordance with a formula determined annually by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State. For 1992-93 my right hon. Friend has proposed that guideline rents should be increased by between £1.20 in low value areas to £4.50 in high value areas. If the proposals are confirmed, the Department estimates that Lambeth's guideline rent for 1992-93 is likely to be £30.39 a week. No decisions have been made about guideline rents for 1993-94.

Red Telephone Boxes

Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what criteria changes have taken place which has resulted in English Heritage listing an old-style red telephone box outside the London inn in Ivybridge, Devon, in 1988, but removing it from the list in 1991 ; and how many red public telephone boxes will remain in Ivybridge.

Mr. Yeo : The criteria for assessing traditional red telephone kiosks for listing have not changed since June 1987. The kiosk outside the London inn, Ivybridge, was rejected for listing on 24 June 1991, because it is not considered to fulfil the listing criteria. It had not previously been assessed for listing. It is for British Telecom to decide how many red telephone kiosks are to remain in Ivybridge.

Council House Sales

Mr. Summerson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing for each year since 1981 which local authorities are spending their receipts from right-to-buy sales at the maximum permitted rate ; what are the amounts ; which local authorities are spending their receipts at less than the maximum permitted rate ; what are the amounts they spend ; and what are the amounts they could spend.

Mr. Yeo : Data on the spending of receipts from right-to-buy sales has not been collected from local authorities.

Liverpool Obstetric and Gynaecology Unit

Mr. Kilfoyle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what grant aid has been sought through the Merseyside task force towards the cost of the proposed obstetric and gynaecology unit in Liverpool ;

(2) what grants are being made through the Merseyside task force towards the costs of the proposed obstetric and gynaecology unit in Liverpool.

Mr. Key : None, but the Liverpool city action team has given grant support to the development team of Project Rosemary, of which the proposed new hospital would form a part. This support includes payment of the salary of a community development officer. The main costs of the new unit will be met by the district health authority under its usual allocations, details of which are a matter for the chairman of Mersey regional health authority, Sir Donald Wilson.

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City Challenge

Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of grant the Government will be contributing to city challenge schemes ; and what proportion local authorities will have to raise themselves.

Mr. Portillo : The proportion of grants contributed by local authorities and the Government in city challenge are as follows : Urban Programme

For revenue projects grant will be available at 90 per cent. rather than 75 per cent. ; the local authority will be expected to contribute 10 per cent. of approved costs.

For capital projects, grant will be available at 75 per cent. and supplementary credit approvals (SCAs) at 25 per cent.

Estate Action

For estate action projects there will be 100 per cent. SCA support.

Local Authority Derelict Land Grant

In respect of local authority derelict land grant projects, all city challenge areas will receive 100 per cent. support, in the form of 50 per cent. grant and 50 per cent. SCAs in Lewisham and Tower Hamlets and 100 per cent. grant elsewhere.

Non Local Authority Derelict Land Grant

Grant on approved expenditure on non local authority derelict land grant projects will be given at a rate of 50 per cent. in Lewisham and Tower Hamlets and 80 per cent. in other areas.

Private Sector Housing Renewal

City challenge support is available under section 132 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and for environmental works in renewal areas under section 96 of that Act. Grant will be paid on 90 per cent. of a local authority's eligible expenditure for group repair schemes and on 90 per cent. of the eligible expenditure incurred in carrying out environmental works in renewal areas ; the local authority will be required to contribute the remaining 10 per cent.

City Grant

For city grant, grant will continue to be paid directly to developers and assessed on the deficit between project costs and project value.

Housing Corporation

For schemes funded by the Housing Corporation grant will be paid on mixed funded schemes and public funded schemes in 1992-93 at the appropriate rates for the area in accordance with Housing Corporation circular 33-91.

Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if the funds for city challenge have been top-sliced from existing inner-city programmes.

Mr. Portillo : Yes ; £82.5 million for 1992-93 has been top- sliced from the following programmes :

Estate Action

Urban Programme

City Action Teams

City Grant

Derelict Land Grant

Private Sector Housing Renewal

Housing Corporation

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