| Previous Section | Home Page |
Mr. Archie Hamilton : These are matters for the chief executive of the Hydrographic Office Defence Support Agency. I have asked him to write to the hon. Gentleman.
Walter Somers Ltd.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will now state the dates on which the two telephone conversations between Walter Somers Ltd. and his Department's metallurgical expert took place ; what was established by the conversations ; what advice was provided by his Department's expert to Walter Somers Ltd. ; and how the expert identified himself or herself to Walter Somers Ltd.
Mr. Alan Clark : The telephone conversations took place on 16 and 22 June 1988. On the basis of the available information they established that the steel tubes which Walter Somers Ltd. proposed to export to Iraq were almost certainly pressure vessels of some kind whose function was unclear. No advice was provided to Walter Somers Ltd. by the Department's expert. At this distance in time it is not possible to say how the expert identified himself to Walter Somers Ltd. other than be name, though his normal practice was to indicate that he worked for the Ministry of Defence.
Resettlement
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service resettlement officers are currently in post ; and what is the establishment level for service resettlement officers.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The information requested is as follows :
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment is made of the effectiveness of the current programmes of retraining and resettlement for service personnel.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The resettlement centres carry out regular surveys of personnel who have attended their courses, to try and establish the relevance to their subsequent employment of the training they have received. Some of the results were summarised in the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood (Ms. Short) on 29 November at columns 683-86.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes have occurred to his resettlement policy for service personnel in the last 12 months.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : It remains our policy to provide a comprehensive resettlement service and we are making provision to extend this service to cater for the increased numbers who will be leaving over the coming years. A temporary post of director general resettlement has been established within the Ministry of Defence to direct and coordinate this activity over the months ahead.
Service Accommodation
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for East Lothian (Mr. Home Robertson) of 5 November, Official Report, column 96, how many houses are in the process of being sold ; and what is the average length of time for which these houses have been empty.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : No later figures than those previously given are yet available for the total number of houses in the process of being sold. The average length of time these houses have been vacant could only be calculated at disproportionate cost.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how much surplus service property will be made available to housing associations to give temporary help to service personnel in severe housing need ;
(2) pursuant to his reply of 22 November, Official Report, column 355, if he will list each announcement made to date about the transfer of service married quarters to housing associations.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Discussions with housing associations are continuing and announcements will be made in due course.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel have purchased their homes through the services' discount scheme in each (a) year and (b) quarter since its inception.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Since the services discount scheme was introduced, the following numbers of service personnel have purchased their homes at a discount :
Column 385
Financial |Quarter 1|Quarter 2|Quarter 3|Quarter 4|Total
year
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
1984-85 |- |- |- |- |153
1985-86 |- |- |- |- |308
1986-87 |- |- |- |- |438
1987-88 |- |- |- |- |452
1988-89 |- |- |- |- |562
1989-90 |- |- |- |- |610
1990-91 |200 |247 |138 |141 |726
<1>1991-92 |124 |158 |- |- |282
<1> To 30 September 1991.
In addition, some 500 properties are in the process of being sold through the discount scheme.
Quarterly figures are available only from financial year 1990-91.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the current backlog of anavoidable and essential repairs for service accommodation at Tidworth garrison.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The current backlog of maintenance for service accommodation at Tidworth garrison amounts to £8.7 million on unavoidable repairs and £2.3 million on essential repairs. An extensive modernisation programme is planned.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will state the location of those service properties that are currently being irregularly occupied.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Most service establishments throughout the United Kingom have some married quarters irregularly occupied, but the information is not held centrally.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the backlog of unavoidable and essential repairs for (a) single accommodation, (b) married quarters and (c) empty accommodation.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave on 14 November at column 671.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for East Lothian, (Mr. Home Robertson), Official Report, column 96, if he will publish the number and location of vacant married quarters that are awaiting (a) unavoidable and essential repairs and (b) urgent repairs.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under- Secretary of State for the Armed Forces will write to the hon. Member.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the current expenditure to date on the work of the service housing task force.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : To date, expenditure on the work of the service housing task force, including staff costs, amounts to £173, 500.
Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment Vessels
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many orders for (a) type 23 frigates and (b) auxiliary oiler replenishment vessels will be placed in the next 10 years ; and in which years they will be ordered.
Mr. Kenneth Carlisle : We hope to make an announcement on the outcome of the recent tender
Column 386
exercise for type 23 frigates early next year. We plan further orders of auxiliary oiler replenishment vessels, but no decisions have been taken on their size or timing. It is not our practice to disclose details about the longer-term internal planning assumptions for equipment orders.Homelessness
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with local authorities regarding the acceptance by them of a certificate of impending discharge as evidence of impending homelessness.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The code of guidance on homelessness issued by the Department of Environment provides advice to local authorities on the acceptance of certificates of impending homelessness for service personnel who are shortly to leave the services. It is not normal practice to produce separate certification of impending discharge, but certification will be provided if it is requested by individual local authorities.
Options for Change"
Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether officers and men discharged from the Army as a result of "Options for Change" outside the United Kingdom will be required to be responsible for the costs of their own furniture and movements expenses.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : When United Kingdom based service personnel and their families return from an overseas station on discharge they will do so at public expense. Their personal possessions will also be conveyed at public expense within the same limits as those returning on normal posting.
Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his estimate of the final civilian establishment of his Department once the proposals contained in "Options for Change" have been fully implemented.
Mr. Alan Clark : By 1997, the number of United Kingdom-based and locally entered civilians will be about 134,000.
Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what will be the differences in the terms of redundancy offered to civilians as a result of the implementation of "Options for Change" from those that are offered to officers and men of the Army.
Mr. Alan Clark : Redundancy payments to civil servants and military personnel are made under two quite separate arrangements, the principal civil service pension
Column 387
scheme and the armed forces pension scheme. With both schemes, the benefit varies according to pay and length of service.The two schemes are different and, within each, different criteria apply. A direct comparison cannot, therefore, be made. The principal differences affecting benefits relate to the entitlement qualifications, the age at which pensions benefits come into payment and the relationship between benefits and earnings.
Mr. Menzies Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the costs of redundancy as a result of the reduction in the civilian establishment of his Department once the proposals contained in "Options for Change" are fully implemented.
Mr. Alan Clark : It is too early to say what the scale, and therefore the costs, of redundancy arising from our plans to reduce civilian numbers will be.
Rattan Cane Fenders
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will reconsider his Department's decision to terminate on 13 January the contract under which the workshop at Cardiff Institute for the Blind has provided rattan cane fenders for the use of the Navy worldwide.
Mr. Kenneth Carlisle : The current contract for the supply of rattan fenders will continue and action is in hand to let a replacement contract with the Cardiff Institute for the Blind.
Magnetic Treatment Facility, Faslane
Mr. Andrew F. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence why the magnetic treatment facility at Faslane has not been proceeded with ; how much has been spent on it ; and how degaussing will now be carried on.
Mr. Kenneth Carlisle : I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave on 26 June at column 496. Work to define a more cost-effective solution to the requirement is under way. Approximately £15 million had been spent on the contract at the time of cancellation.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Beer
Mr. Burns : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has any plans to implement section 43 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985.
Mr. Leigh : I have fought hard in Europe to retain the traditional British pint. I want to ensure that a liquid pint is what consumers get, in full. My view on consumer protection is that people should get what they think they are getting and what they pay for. In 1988 my Department made regulations on the measures to be used for serving beer with the aim of encouraging licensees to use the glass most appropriate to the type of beer they served and to help ensure a fair deal for the consumer. However, since then I have continued to receive reports from local authority trading standards departments showing that a significant proportion of the draught beer they have checked comprised considerably less than a pint of liquid beer. I have also received complaints from the public about this issue.
Column 388
Accordingly, I now propose to implement section 43 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 which provides that, in ascertaining the quantity of beer or cider under the Act the gas comprised in any form shall be disregarded. I shall be consulting consumers, the trade and the enforcement authorities about a timetable for this. This should be cheering news for beer drinkers everywhere.Swiss Research Policy
Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will obtain for his departmental library a copy of the speech delivered by Professor H. Ursprung to the Royal Society on 27 November on Swiss research policy.
Mr. Leigh : A copy of Professor Ursprung's speech on Swiss research policy delivered to the Royal Society in November this year has been placed in the departmental library and also in the Library of the House of Commons.
Japanese-owned Manufacturing
Sir Tom Arnold : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of people employed in Japanese-owned manufacturing industry within the United Kingdom.
Mr. Leigh : From information available to my Department, based on announcements by the companies at the time of the investment, it is estimated that some 45,000 direct jobs have been created by Japanese manufacturing investment in the United Kingdom.
EC-EFTA Agreement
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what provision has been made in the EC/EFTA agreement to establish the European economic area to provide grants and loans to (a) the Republic of Ireland, (b) Greece, (c) Portugal and (d) Northern Ireland.
Mr. Sainsbury : Under the terms of the European economic area agreement, EFTA would set up a fund to assist the development of Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Greece, Portugal and specified regions of Spain. The fund would be managed by EFTA and comprise 500 mecu in grants over five years and an interest rate subsidy of 3 per cent. on 1.5 becu of loans to be repaid within 10 years.
Credit Marketing
Mr. Tim Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what effect he expects his proposals for new legislation on credit marketing to have on the housing market.
Mr. Leigh : People considering a mortgage would be given more information about the obligations involved and the consequences of not meeting those obligations.
House of Fraser
Mr. Hoyle : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to his answer of 4 December, Official Report, column 178, about the takeover of the House of Fraser, what steps he is taking to ensure that further relevant information is available.
Column 389
Mr. Redwood : My officials are in touch with regulators.Steel Production
Mr. Terry Fields : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, further to his answer of 17 December, Official Report, column 113, what assessment he has made of the production performance at (a) Llanwern and (b) Ravenscraig before the closing of the hot strip facility.
Mr. Leigh : None. This is a matter for the board of British Steel.
Mr. Terry Fields : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, further to his answer of 17 December,
Column 390
Official Report, column 113, what is the average cost of production of an average tonne of steel at (a) Llanwern, (b) Teesside, (c) Dalzell and (d) Scunthorpe.Mr. Leigh : This is a matter for the board of British Steel.
Mr. Terry Fields : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is his latest estimate of the size of the steel stockpiles in the United Kingdom in the last two years of (a) steel pipes, (b) heavy plate and (c) light plate ; and what proportion of each stockpile was imported.
Mr. Leigh : Available information is shown in the following table. Comprehensive information about light and heavy plates, an the proportion of stocks imported, is not collected.
Column 389
'000 tonnes
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Plate<1>
held by:
producers |103 |95 |99 |103 |94 |101 |82 |110 |73 |116
steel stockholders |425 |410 |396 |419 |416 |417 |384 |340 |319 |288
consumers |121 |136 |150 |150 |165 |156 |151 |156 |156 |149
|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------
Total |649 |641 |645 |672 |675 |674 |617 |606 |548 |553
Tubes and pipes
held by:
producers |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
steel stockholders |126 |119 |111 |112 |92 |83 |88 |114 |81 |60
consumers |306 |347 |395 |407 |418 |391 |344 |319 |296 |267
<1> Plate in lengths, 3mm thick or over.
<2> Tonnage not available.
Source: Producers' stocks information from the Iron and Steel Statistics Bureau. Stockholders' and
consumers' information from the Central
Statistical Office's Business Bulletin on the Steel Stocks and Consumption Inquiry.
Iraq
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Newport, West (Mr. Flynn) of 12 December, Official Report, column 501, if he will set out (a) the end- use stated by Iraq for bismuth exports in 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985 and 1988, respectively, and (b) the reason for commercial confidentiality covering the sale of bismuth to Iraq in 1986.
Mr. Sainsbury : End user information is required to be submitted to DTI only for licensable exports.
Information used to compile the Overseas Trade Statistics (OTS), is taken from Customs entries which importers, exporters or declarants on their behalf are required to render under sections 37 and 53 to 54 of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979. Under common law information compulsorily required may only be used for the purposes for which it was obtained.
Although the OTS does not provide names of importers or exporters, statistics for certain commodities may easily be attributed to specific traders by anyone knowledgeable in that market area ; this is particularly a problem where the statistics are broken down by country of consignment or destination. In such circumstances the public release of information may give valuable commercial information to competitors. It is therefore treated in confidence.
Column 390
Mahogany
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action he will take to prevent the further importation of mahogany from the Philippines ; and how many such imports there have been since 1988.
Mr. Sainsbury : The Government attach importance to the sustainable management of tropical forests. Imports from the Philippines are subject to the same controls as imports from other countries. Available statistics of imports since 1988 of mahogany from the Philippines are :
|m<3> |metric tonnes|£ 000
----------------------------------------------------------------------
1988 |980 |566 |252
1989 |74 |40 |21
1990 |308 |131 |126
<1>1991 |18 |12 |7
<1> January to October.
Some other imports may have been accounted for under the residual codes within the SITC headings 247.52 and 248.5.
Cumbria Action Team
Dr. Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the proportion of the budget of the north-west regional office spent on administrative costs for the Cumbria action team.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 17 December 1991] : The Cumbria action team is involved in the co-ordination of a
Column 391
wide range of Government initiatives, most of which are administered either from Manchester or London. These are not costed on a geographical basis and are in addition to the direct administrative costs of the action team. This is aninter-departmental body, led by DTI and the costs fall across participating Departments. The DTI direct cost element represents about 2 per cent. of the total DTI-North West's running costs.
Column 392
Small Firms
Sir David Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many schemes his Department runs to provide help or finance for small firms ; and if he will list them.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 18 December 1991] : My Department runs or supports 40 schemes which provide help or finance and for which small firms are eligible. Of these, some are exclusive to small firms whilst others are open to companies of all sizes.
Column 391
DTI schemes and services for business development
Scheme |Eligibility |Level and type of assistance
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Innovation
LINK |Minimum one United Kingdom industrial partner and |Up to 50 per cent. grant of eligible
| one United Kingdom science base partner. | project costs.
| Pre-competitive, collaborative research.
EUREKA |Companies undertaking high technology R & D with |Up to 50 per cent. grant of eligible
| at least one other company from a different | project costs.
| EUREKA country.
ATP |At least two firms or research organisations in |Up to 50 per cent. grant of eligible
(Advanced Technology Programmes) | collaboration. Pre-competitive research. | project costs.
Club R & D |A group of companies RTOs, REs, in pre-competitive, |Up to 50 per cent. of eligible project
| collaborative research undertaken by a host | costs.
| organisation.
SMART |Single United Kingdom firms with fewer than 50 |75 per cent. grant of project costs; max.
(Small Firms Merit Award for | employees. High risk innovative ideas. | £ 45,000.
Research and Technology)
SPUR |Single companies up to 500 employees. For new |Fixed 30 per cent. grant; max. £ 150,000.
(Support for Projects Under | product and process development.
Research)
TAL |Single independent firms or groups with up to 500 |Tapering support for operation by RTCs
(Technical Action Line) | employees. Some exclusions as in CI. Immediate | and support of consultancy.
| technical problems.
MPT |Single companies up to 500 employees for planning the |Fixed 50 per cent. grant for external
(Manufacturing Planning and | introduction of modern manufacturing systems. | advice up to £ 50,000 maximum.
Implementation Studies programme)
ROTTP |Public and private sector. Technology transfer |Grant, underwriting, subsidy for SMEs
(Regional Office Technology | to attend conferences.
Transfer Programme)
OTIS |United Kingdom Government and industry. |Firms pay only variable cost arising from
(Overseas Technical Information | Technology transfer | their use of service at present.
Service)
OSTEMS |United Kingdom industry, science base, research |Approximately 50 per cent. grant.
(Overseas Science and Technology | association. Technology transfer
Expert Missions Scheme)
Regional Technology Centres |RTCs are intended to provide technology transfer andPump-priming. £ 75,000 over three years
| training services to SMEs. | tapered funding DES pay 60 per cent.;
| DTI 40 per cent.
AIT3 |Mainly contract work carried out by competitive |100 per cent. funding.
(Advanced IT Technology Transfer) | tendering.
OSTT |A variety of activities carried out by specialist |100 per cent. funding.
(Open Systems Technology Transfer) | consultants on short-term contracts.
Materials Matter |Increasing awareness and transfer knowledge of new |Attendance at technology transfer events
| material technologies. | free for SMEs, but industrial contribu-
| tions sought for clubs, support likely
| to be up to 50 per cent. funding.
Other miscellaneous technology |United Kingdom organisations, especially those with |Up to 50 per cent. grant.
transfer activities under innovation | up to 500 employees. Miscellaneous technology
budget | transfer projects.
Single European Market
Single Market Campaign |All firms, business support organisations inter- |Free info service on single market related
(info service/publicity and | mediaries and HEIs. | matters; includes literature, quarterly
promotional materials) | newsletter, telephone enquiry point,
| access to Government officials, sign-
| posting to business support
| organisations/intermediaries.
Single Market Campaign |Independent business support organisations, such as |Up to 50 per cent. of costs for two years
(Help for representative | trade associations and chambers of commerce,
organisations) | whose principal activity is the provision of services | applications closed 31 March 1991.
| to firms. | Fifty per cent. of costs of attending
| single market related training courses;
| database; and help with specialist
| seminars/workshops.
Managing into the 90s
Managing into the '90s |All firms. |Spread of best practice mainly directed at
| smaller and medium sized firms.
| Advice/info on self-help to improve
| management practices.
The Environment
Environmental Enquiry Point |All Businesses |Advice on environmental issues. Free if
| answers involves four hours work or
| less. At WSL charge out rates if more.
DEMOS |Companies (single or consortia) demonstrating best |Grant aid up to 50 per cent. of eligible
(DTI Environmental Management |environmental practice. | costs.
Options Scheme)
ETIS |Normally consortia of United Kingdom companies, |Grant aid up to 50 per cent. of eligible
(Environmental Technology | research organisations or HEIs looking to research | costs.
Innovation Scheme) | and develop new environmental technology.
Euroenviron |At least one United Kingdom company looking to |Grant aid up to 50 per cent. of eligible
| research and develop new environmental technology | costs.
| with at least one EC or EFTA partner.
Regional
Regional Selective Assistance |Available to manufacturing and some service sector |Grant, payable in instalments. Amount
(RSA) | projects in Assisted Areas. Project must create or | offered is negotiated as the minimum
| safeguard jobs, and satisfy other scheme criteria | necessary for the project to proceed.
| including viability, need and national and regional
| economic benefits.
Regional Enterprise Grants |Available to businesses employing fewer than 25 for |Grants for investment and innovation
| manufacturing and some service sector projects in | projects investment grants: 15 per
| the Development Areas and the Intermediate Areas | cent. cost of fixed assets (max. £ 15,000)
| in South Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Plymouth and Fife. | innovation grants: 50 per cent. of
| project costs (max. £ 25,000). Only one
| innovation and one investment grant
| per business (or group).
Exports
Export Intelligence Service |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |Market Intelligence available world-wide
| at commercial rates.
Market Information Enquiry Service |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |Provision of customer specific informa-
| tion from overseas posts. Charges
| according to time taken to
| complete work.
Export Representative Service |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |Provision of customer specific informa-
| tion from posts on overseas contacts.
| Charged according to time taken to
| complete work.
Overseas Status Report Service |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |Provides a report on an overseas
| organisation. Charged according to
| time taken to complete work.
Export Marketing Research Scheme |Available to producers of goods or services of mainly |DTI pay up to half the cost, up to a grant
| United Kingdom origin with less than 200 | of £ 20,000, for the commissioning of
| employees. | professional consultants to undertake
| research, support for "in-house"
| studies and DTI pay up to one-third of
| the cost of purchasing published
| research. Support is also available to
| Trade Associations on a sliding scale.
New Products from Britain Service |Products and processes must be British and new to |Service helps test and promote new
| target markets. | products overseas. Charge £ 60 for first
| market, thereafter £ 30 per market
| targeted.
Overseas Trade Fairs |United Kingdom manufactured goods. |Subsidy-Exhibitors charged 50 per
| cent. of DTI costs at a maximum of
| three participations in each market
| (five in Germany, USA and Japan).
| Thereafter payment is at full DTI cost.
| Also travel grant available for events
| outside western Europe.
Outward Missions |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |Subsidy-Support of first three oc-
| casions in a market and half the rate
| for the fourth visit (Japan full rate up
| to five visits). Also travel grant for one
| company representative.
| Note: Scheme not available for wes-
| tern Europe.
Overseas Seminar Scheme |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |Subsidy-Participants charged 55 per
| cent. of estimated costs. Travel grants
| available outside western Europe.
Store Promotions |United Kingdom producers of goods and services. |DTI supports overseas stores with
| financial assistance towards costs of
| expenses incurred in promoting the
| event.
Inward Missions |The host should be a group of United Kingdom |Subsidy-Travel to the United Kingdom
| companies who represent their industry. | (50 per cent. or 75 per cent.), travel in
| the United Kingdom 50 per cent.,
| interpreters 50 per cent., accommoda-
| tion and a reception 50 per cent.
Consultancy Help
Consultancy Help |Firms with fewer than 500 employees. |A free business review and up to 15 days
| subsidised consultancy. DTI pays 50
| per cent., or two thirds is Assisted
| Areas and Urban Programme Areas.
Enterprise and Education
Teaching Company Scheme |All companies, no restrictions on size. |TCS helps to stimulate collaboration
| between industry, academia, provides
| industry based graduate training and
| facilitates technology transfer.
| Companies contribute between 30 per
| cent. and 75 per cent. of direct costs
| depending on size, with public sector
| funding making up the balance.
Inner Cities
Task Force Development Fund |Firms should be within a task force area and have up |Grants of up to £ 4,000 and loans of up to
(TFDF) | to 25 employees; funding is on a "last resort" basis. | £ 10,000. £ 1.1 million levered in from
| private sector.
Bus Building Industry
Mr. Fry : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what consideration he is giving to promote assistance to the British bus building industry.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 19 December 1991] : The British bus building industry has, in common with manufacturing industry in general, been hit by the world economic climate. It has suffered from excess capacity and is currently undergoing a period of restructuring.
We have recently been in close contact with the main company in this field but have not been asked for and are not considering any direct assistance. The Government are continuing their policy of creating the right conditions for business and investment as we believe that this yields greater and longer lasting benefits.
The Two-edged Sword"
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will obtain for his departmental library a copy of the transcript and a video cassette of the programme, "The Two-edged Sword", on international arms trading, broadcast on BBC2 on 13 December.
Mr. Sainsbury [holding answer 19 December 1991] : No.
Column 396
TRANSPORT
Mobility Allowance
Sir John Farr : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to reply to letters from the hon. Member for Harborough of 15 March 1991 and 30 September 1991, forwarded to him by the Department of Social Security, about the concern of the hon. Member's disabled constituent of Northleigh grove, Market Harborough, about the effect of vehicle excise duty changes on mobility allowance.
Mr. Chope : I received a letter from my hon. Friend, dated 5 March 1991, in which he raised a question on behalf of his disabled constituent about the effect that abolition of vehicle excise duty (VED) would have on disabled people who are currently exempt from paying this duty. I replied to that letter of 15 April 1991. I am sending my hon. Friend a copy of my earlier reply.
Railways (Noise)
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will undertake to examine the feasibility of introducing thresholds on noise levels for new railways.
Mr. Freeman : We plan to draw up noise insulation regulations for new railway lines. I gave details of our proposals in my answer to the hon. Member for Battersea (Mr. Bowis) on 28 November at column 577 about the recommendations of the Mitchell committee.
Column 397
Diesel Fumes
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements exist to monitor the exhaust emission levels from diesel vehicles in general and London taxi-cabs in particular ; and what further checks he proposes to control the exhaust emissions from diesel engines.
Mr. Chope : Large diesel-powered vehicles are inspected annually and at roadside checks for the cleanliness of their exhaust emission by the Department's vehicle inspectorate. This is at present a subjective assessment of the level of smoke emitted. Testing using smoke measuring instruments will be introduced in 1992.
Taxis are subject to a roadworthiness test after one year from new. Taxis are usually submitted not to an annual MoT roadworthiness certificate but to an alternative test, conducted by the licensing authority, which is generally more stringent than the MoT test. The licensing authority, which for taxis in London is the Public Carriage Office, has the power to carry out spot checks on a taxi at any time during the licensed year and can prohibit use of the vehicle until faults, which may include excessive smoke, are rectified. The Public Carriage Office is also currently liaising with Westminster council to set up a complaints hot-line for, among other vehicles, taxis which smoke excessively.
For the future, studies are under way to determine the extent to which smoke measuring instruments can be adapted or modified for use on diesel- powered cars, taxis and light vans.
| Next Section
| Home Page |