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Mr. John Patten : We have received eight applications for compensation from women who were convicted under the RAF Greenham Common byelaws 1985. None of these applications has been granted.
Ms. Richardson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications he has turned down for ex-gratia payments from women who were wrongly convicted under byelaws at RAF Greenham Common ; and for what reasons he has refused these payments.
Mr. John Patten : We have refused five ex-gratia payment applications from women who were convicted under the RAF Greenham Common byelaws 1985. The applications were refused because they did not meet the criteria of the ex-gratia scheme for compensation.
Mr. Mullin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to pay the first instalment of compensation to John McGranagan following his wrongful conviction.
Mr. John Patten : Mr. McGranaghan's application for compensation was received last month. My right hon. Friend hopes to be in a position to reach a decision soon.
Sexual Offences
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of male homosexual rape have been recorded in Her Majesty's prisons in each of the years for which numbers have been recorded ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Rumbold : I regret that the information requested is not recorded centrally.
Mr. Michael Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to amend the law so as to make sexual offences under United Kingdom law but committed outside the United Kingdom actionable in the British courts, particularly in respect of minors.
Mr. John Patten : We have no plans to extend the jurisdiction of our courts in this way.
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Drugs
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the number of drug-related projects which have received financial support from his Department during 1991 ; and how much support they have been given.
Mr. John Patten : I will write to the hon. Member.
Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Sir John Wheeler : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to increase the lower limit for eligibility for compensation under the criminal injuries compensation scheme ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Kenneth Baker : A guiding principle in considering the allocation of available resources for the compensation for victims of crimes of violence is that compensation should go to the more serious cases. The Government are committed to upholding that principle. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and I have decided that to ensure the maintenance of this principle, applications for compensation received by the board on or after 6 January 1992 will be met only where the injury sustained would attract an award of at least £1,000.
The 27th annual report of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board recently announced a record annual payment to the victims of crimes of violence of £109.3 million in 1990-91, 50 per cent. more than the previous year.
Total spending on the CICB scheme in England, Wales and Scotland is set to rise to £144 million in 1992-93, £157 million in 1993-94 and £161 million in 1994-95.
The increase in funding from £48 million in 1987-88 to £144 million in 1992-93, £96 million amounts to a rise of 300 per cent.
Trevi and Immigration Ministers
Sir John Wheeler : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the meetings of Trevi and European Community Immigration Ministers in The Hague on 2 and 3 December.
Mr. Kenneth Baker : The meeting of Ministers concerned with immigration was the 11th in the series of meetings held towards the end of each presidency since 1986. The Minister of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Oxford, West and Abingdon (Mr. Patten), attended on my behalf.
Immigration Ministers approved a report for submission to the European Council on the harmonisation of immigration and asylum policies, as requested at the Luxembourg European Council. The report contained a detailed work programme for implementation over the next few years. The report made by Immigration Ministers has subsequently been endorsed by the European Council meeting at Maastricht. In the asylum field, Ministers agreed that every effort should be made to ensure ratification of the Dublin convention by the end of 1992 at the latest.
Ministers also agreed that everything possible should be done to resolve the outstanding problem (concerning Gibraltar) which has prevented signature of the draft external frontiers convention.
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The meeting of Trevi Ministers endorsed measures to strengthen practical police co-operation. These include : the establishment of national contact points for public order matters ; guidelines having the aim of strengthening the mutual assistance in criminal cases ; recommendations on the controlled delivery of drugs ; and police co-operation in common frontier zones. The Ministers agreed to submit a report to the European Council, prepared by the ad hoc working group chaired by the United Kingdom, recommending the establishment of a central European criminal investigation office, "Europol", with a drugs unit as its first stage. Ministers also agreed, at the United Kingdom's suggestion, that car crime be placed on Trevi's agenda and that the United Kingdom should convene an ad hoc seminar of experts on this subject during the Portuguese presidency.Visas
Miss Hoey : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will lift visa restrictions for Polish citizens.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : We have no plans to do so.
HEALTH
Children's Homes
Mr. Tredinnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he has in hand to ensure the proper protection of children in residential homes.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that my right hon. Friend gave to a private notice question from my hon. Friend the Member for Leicestershire, North-West (Mr. Ashby) on 2 December at columns 23-29.
Leicestershire county council is today announcing the appointment of Mr. Andrew Kirkwood QC to chair the inquiry to be conducted by the council into matters arising from the recent criminal trial of child care officers formerly employed in the council's children's homes. He will be assisted by two assessors who have yet to be appointed.
Skin Cancers and Cataracts
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimates he has made of the number of cases of (a) skin cancer broken down into melanoma and non-melanoma and (b) cataracts as a result of ozone depletion in the United Kingdom in (i) 1995, (ii) 2000, (iii) 2005 and (iv) 2010.
Mr. Dorrell : Any assessment of long-term health effects resulting from depletion of the ozone layer, with a concomitant increase in ground levels of ultraviolet radiation, would be influenced strongly by assumptions made about global future releases of various pollutants, particularly chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). The United Kingdom strongly supports the Montreal protocol on the phasing out or reduction in emissions of the most harmful of these pollutants. In addition, increased awareness of the dangers of excessive exposure to sunlight will influence public behaviour in relation to sunbathing habits. It is therefore not possible to predict with any confidence the incidence of skin cancer or cataracts in the future. However, trends in the incidence rates of these diseases will continue to be monitored.
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Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers, squamous cell and basal cell, have been reported in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for each of the years 1980 to 1990.
Mr. Dorrell : Registrations of cases of malignant melanoma of skin (ICD 172), and other malignant neoplasm of skin (ICD 173) for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland for each of the years 1980 to 1990, the latest year for which figures are available, are as follows.
Malignant melanoma of skin
Year |England |Wales |Scotland|Northern
|Ireland
------------------------------------------------------
1980 |1,827 |93 |285 |37
1981 |1,952 |96 |261 |47
1982 |1,990 |116 |285 |36
1983 |2,080 |168 |333 |35
1984 |2,083 |148 |251 |46
1985 |2,494 |162 |429 |39
1986 |2,635 |167 |444 |50
1987 |n.a. |n.a. |404 |51
1988 |n.a. |n.a. |500 |44
1989 |n.a. |n.a. |478 |35
1990 |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |58
Other malignant neoplasm of skin<2>
1980 |18,965 |1,250 |2,531 |536
1981 |20,035 |1,234 |2,653 |530
1982 |19,742 |1,108 |2,650 |529
1983 |20,981 |755 |2,816 |512
1984 |20,892 |1,362 |2,880 |486
1985 |21,994 |1,349 |3,127 |484
1986 |25,265 |1,502 |3,221 |483
1987 |n.a. |n.a. |3,223 |549
1988 |n.a. |n.a. |3,718 |551
1989 |n.a. |n.a. |3,956 |510
1990 |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |538
<1>International Classification of Diseases code (
ninth revision)
<2>Registration of cancers from these sites are well
known to be
particularly difficult and liable to incompleteness.
It would not be possible to distinguish between
squamous cell and
basal cell carcinomas without disproportionate cost.
It was recognised by the working party chaired by Professor Eva Alberman which reported last year on the national cancer registration scheme (Series MB1 No. 17) that better and more timely figures were required. Many of the working party's 17 recommendations are currently being taken forward by the cancer registries in the regional health authorities and by the NHS information management group in the Department. At OPCS, the large and complex computer system is being completely redeveloped. This will not be ready until 1994, but results for England and Wales for 1987 should be published by spring next year and those for 1988 by the end of the year.
Ozone Depletion
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff are working in his Department full-time on the human health effect of ozone depletion in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Dorrell : No staff are employed full-time on this specific area. A number of officials are engaged on work relating to health aspects of radiation in the environment, including ultraviolet and other non-ionising radiations. The National Radiological Protection Board also employs scientific staff on work in these areas.
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Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list any studies his Department has undertaken or commissioned on the human health impacts of ozone depletion over the United Kingdom ; and if it has any plans to do any further studies.
Mr. Dorrell : The predominant health effects which might arise as a result of the depletion in the ozone layer would be as a consequence of an increased exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation. The National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) has three stations in the United Kingdom which constantly monitor levels of ultraviolet light from the sun. The data obtained from these monitoring stations is published annually.
The NRPB and other research groups in the United Kingdom and abroad have undertaken a number of studies into the health effects of ultraviolet radiation and further research is either under way or planned.
In addition, the NRPB has established an advisory group which will, among other things, review these studies and will advise on the need for further research when its review is complete. The Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE) is also being kept informed of development in this area.
Refugee Children
Ms. Hoey : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will consider providing special funding for the local authorities caring for unaccompanied refugee children.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : We recognise that the cost of caring for these children bears heavily on a small number of local authorities. The authorities concerned are mostly in London where the standard spending assessments are higher than the national average because they face additional pressures such as this. For 1992-93 the children's personal social services standard spending assessment for London is over twice the national average and that for Inner London nearly four times the national average. It is for the authorities themselves to make their own decisions on priorities for local services.
London Hospitals
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the numbers of empty beds at the Charing Cross hospital, Hammersmith ; what is the current waiting list for operations in the North West Thames regional health authority ; and if he has any changes planned for the hospital functions in the future.
Mr. Dorrell : The information requested for North West Thames regional health authority is given in the table. Information on the number of empty beds is not collected centrally. My hon. Friend may wish to contact Mr. Ian Dixon, the chairman of Riverside health authority, for details. There are no current plans for changes in the hospital functions.
North West Thames RHA: Latest waiting times
Waiting time |Total in |Total in |Percentage
|September |October 1991|change
|1991
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Over 2 years |5,687 |5,025 |-12
1-2 years |11,684 |11,471 |-2
Under 1 year |44,816 |42,933 |-4
|------- |------- |-------
Total |62,187 |59,429 |-4.4
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Abortion
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Health further to his answer to the hon. Member for Bury, North (Mr. Burt) of 12 December, Official Report, columns 484-85, if he will extend the application in principle of the conscience clause in the Abortion Act 1967 to (a) pharmacists who are asked to participate in abortions by dispensing abortifacient drugs for that purpose, (b) medical secretaries who are asked to participate in abortions by processing administrative details required for abortions and (c) other medical and ancillary staff required to assist in the process of abortion except where their assistance is purely for the purpose of caring for mother and baby.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : Section 4 of the Abortion Act 1967 makes provision for conscientious objection to participation in treatment authorised by the Act. Its operation cannot be extended except by primary legislation. However, in recognition of the particular concern expressed about the position of those ancillary staff in hospitals who are involved in the handling of fetuses and fetal tissue, hospital managers have been asked to apply the principle of section 4 to any ancillary staff who express a conscientious objection to participation in that activity. We have no plans to ask managers to apply the principle to other personnel who are not directly concerned with the handling of fetuses and fetal tissue.
Arachnoiditis
Mr. Viggers : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what work has been carried out by his Department on arachnoiditis, including investigations of its cause, symptoms and the prognosis for suffers ; what research he has funded into treatments and possible cure ; and what information his Department has about claims for compensation by sufferers whose condition is alleged to have been caused by the administration of Myodil.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The main agency through which the Government support biomedical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council (MRC) which receives its grant-in-aid from the Department of Education and Science. The MRC is not currently supporting any research specifically into arachnoiditis.
We are aware that litigation is proceeding on behalf of people who claim damage through the administration of myodil.
General Medical Services
Mrs. Currie : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what resources will be made available for the cash limited general medical services in 1992-93.
Mr. Waldegrave : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Hornchurch (Mr. Squire) on 19 December.
RHAs (Capital Spending)
Mrs. Currie : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the amounts to be allocated to regional health authorities for capital spending in 1992-93.
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Mr. Waldegrave : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, North-East (Mr. Thurnham) on 19 December.
NHS Trusts
Mrs. Currie : To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will announce National Health Service trusts' external financing limits for 1992 -93 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Waldegrave : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Northfield (Mr. King) on 19 December.
Ms. Harman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is possible for a national health service trust to merge with non-trust health services without (a) public consultation or (b) without application to the Secretary of State for Health.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : We will be issuing detailed guidance on NHS trust mergers and acquisitions early in the new year. Where an NHS trust plans to merge with non-trust health services and this requires an amendment to the original statutory instrument formally establishing the trust the regional health authority will consult in accordance with section 5 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 under an order made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State. In any other case the district health authority in question will consult the community health council.
Hospital Eye Service
Dame Jill Knight : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many referrals to the hospital eye service of persons above the age of 60 years took place in each year since 1987 ;
(2) how many referrals to the hospital eye service there were of (a) glaucoma, (b) cataract and (c) age-related maculopathy, in each year since 1987.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : This information is not held centrally.
Complex Lenses
Dame Jill Knight : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the values of the complex lens entitlements within the spectable voucher scheme of the national health service for patients who have had a national health service eye examination on grounds of their complex lens eligibility only, and for patients who have had a national health service eye examination on grounds of insufficient income and who are found to require a prescription for complex lenses ; and what information he has on the prevailing market prices of the cheapest available complex lenses.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The value of the complex lenses "supplement" for patients who are entitled to vouchers on the grounds of complex lens eligibility is £3.70 for single vision spectacles and £19.70 for bifocals. Patients who are otherwise entitled under the voucher scheme and who have prescriptions for complex lenses will receive a C voucher (£49.00) for single vision spectacles or an F voucher (£104.20) for bifocals. The Department's annual survey of voucher values indicates that spectacles with complex lenses are available within voucher values.
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Spectacles
Ms. Harman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision is made for people claiming attendance allowance to meet the cost of spectacle lenses.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : People in receipt of attendance allowance can claim help with their spectacle lenses under the NHS low income scheme.
North East Thames RHA
Ms. Harman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to satisfy himself that the procedures leading up to the recent appointment of North East Thames regional health authority's general manager followed good practice in equal opportunities employment.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : Individual appointments to NHS posts are a matter for the relevant employing authorities. The NHS is committed to equal opportunities in employment. Normally, we would expect all NHS posts, including those at senior management level, to be advertised and openly competitive. However, there may be exceptional circumstances in which the adoption of other procedures is justified.
WALES
Trawsfynydd Power Station
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the results and conclusions of the recent radiation monitoring programme carried out on the environment around Trawsfynydd power station by the fisheries radiological inspectorate on behalf of the Welsh Office.
Mr. David Hunt : On behalf of the Welsh Office, the fisheries radiological inspectorate regularly monitors levels of radioactivity in a variety of materials in the aquatic environment around Trawsfynydd power station. The results of this monitoring are pubished annually in the report "Radioactivity in Surface and Coastal Waters of the British Isles", copies of which are placed in the Library of the House.
In addition to this regular monitoring of fish and sediments at Trawsfynydd an enhanced programme of analysis was set up earlier this year by the inspectorate to measure radioactivity in sediment profiles at Trawsfynydd lake. This work has recently been completed and the results have been made available to the local community liaison committee. They are broadly consistent with earlier readings obtained by Nuclear Electric. The radioactivity present in the sediments is at a low level.
In terms of overall exposure to radioactivity by the public, the most highly exposed group are people who fish the lake and consume their catch. Expert advice is that the total radiation dose likely to be received by this group is no more than 10 per cent. of the internationally recommended limit of 1 mSv per year, i.e. well within the recognised safety limit.
Roads
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the cost, expected start and completion date of the Deeside Park to Drove Corner road scheme.
Column 358
Sir Wyn Roberts : The scheme is expected to start between April 1994 and March 1997 at a cost of around £17 million. Construction is likely to take two years.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the cost and expected start and completion date of the Woodbank Junction to Deeside Park road scheme.
Sir Wyn Roberts : This scheme is planned to start between April 1994 and March 1997 at a cost of around £16 million. Construction is likely to take about one and a half years.
Disabled Employees
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the numbers of people registered as disabled in each grade in his Department and Cadw.
Mr. David Hunt : The information is as follows :
|Number
-----------------------------
Grade 6 |2
SEO |1
HEO |4
EO |6
AO |7
AA |15
Support grades |6
The grade categories shown include equivalent professional grades.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his Department's policy on the employment of people registered as disabled ; and what initiatives he has taken to increase the number of people registered as disabled employed by his Department.
Mr. David Hunt : My Department is fully committed to an equal opportunities policy which states that no job applicant or employee should receive less favourable treatment on the grounds of disablement. I have placed a copy of my Department's "Guide to Equal Opportunities" in the Library of the House.
The initiatives my Department has taken include the appointment of a departmental disabled persons officer ; close liaison with the Department of Employment, disablement advisory services and disablement resettlement officers, particularly on recruitment of disabled staff ; the establishment of a work experience scheme for clients of the Cardiff employment rehabilitation centre ; and the provision of special aids and equipment to disabled officers to enable them to carry out their duties effectively.
A further programme of action to achieve equality of opportunity in the Welsh Office for disabled people is to be issued to staff early in 1992. This will contain details of current practice and areas for future development with measurable objectives and target dates for their achievement.
RECHAR
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he has had with the coalfield communities concerning RECHAR funds.
Mr. David Hunt : I have received a significant number of representations from hon. Members, including the hon.
Column 359
Gentleman himself, local authorities and other bodies about RECHAR and have discussed the matter with a number of them. I have consistently made it clear that I am extremely concerned that these EC resources remain blocked by Commissioner Millan and I hope that the whole matter can be resolved as soon as possible.Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what action he is taking to release RECHAR funds for Wales.
Mr. David Hunt : I am concerned that Commissioner Millan has not yet approved the RECHAR programme for industrial south Wales and I discussed this matter with his director general when I was in Brussels last month.
Run-Down Mining Areas (Grants)
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what European funds have been received by his Department for (i) factory units, (ii) small businesses, (iii) promotion of tourism, (iv) training, (v) retraining and (vi) infrastructural and environmental improvements in run- down mining areas.
Mr. David Hunt : For the period 1989-91, £88 million from the European structural funds was committed to the Clwyd and industrial south Wales integrated development operation programmes, which cover Welsh coalfield areas. The operational programmes allocate the funding as shown in the table :
1989-91 structural funds commitments to industrial south Wales and
Clwyd IDOP areas
|ESF<1> |ERDF<2>
|£ million |£ million
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Industrial South Wales IDO
Industrial infrastructure |- |14.03
Communications |- |13.31
Business development |9.87 |2.61
Environment |0.84 |4.17
Tourism |3.42 |9.73
Research and development |3.30 |4.46
|------- |-------
Total |17.43 |48.31
Clwyd IDO
Productive Activities |- |7.37
Communications |- |3.19
Regional Image |0.13 |3.38
Tourism |0.47 |5.18
Technology |0.50 |0.20
|------- |-------
Total |2.59 |19.92
<1> European social fund.
<2> European regional development fund.
Children's Homes
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will make it his policy to encourage local authorities in Wales to appoint mature women who have brought up a family to run children's homes.
Mr. Nicholas Bennett : A review of children's homes in Wales has recently been completed by social services inspectorate, Wales, and a report is currently under consideration. While its recommendations are designed to secure improvements in the management and running of all children's homes in Wales, and it discusses in particular
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the need to develop the existing skills of mature and experienced staff in order best to meet the needs of the children, the selection of staff is, and will remain, the responsibility of local care authorities.BBC Wales
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what changes there will be in the pay and terms and conditions of employment of Dr. Gwyn Jones as chairman of the Welsh Development Agency subsequent to his appointment as chairman-elect of the BBC Wales board of governors.
Mr. David Hunt : The pay and terms and conditions of Dr. Jones's commitment to the WDA will now be reviewed.
Swansea College
Mr. Alan Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if the revised articles of government for Swansea college have been approved by the Welsh Office ; and what are the current articles in force for the college.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Using powers vested in him under the Education Reform Act 1988 my right hon. Friend approved the revised articles of government for Swansea college submitted by West Glamorgan local education authority subject to amendments in August. I understand that the authority has accepted the amendments and will shortly be making the necessary order to bring the articles into effect. Until this is done the articles in force are those which were made by the authority under the Education (No. 2) Act 1968 which came into effect in March 1976.
Training (Cardiff)
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his reply of 16 December, Official Report, column 73 , if he will make it his policy to meet representatives of the South Glamorgan training and enterprise council, the South Glamorgan women's workshop and the Cardiff information technology centre, to consider alternative locations for a training centre of excellence ; if he will meet the chairman of the Cardiff Bay development corporation to consider alternative uses for the previously earmarked training centre of excellence ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : No. The location of the proposed training centre is a matter for the development corporation and the other bodies concerned in the first instance and it would be inappropriate for me to intervene at this stage.
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