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Written Answers to Questions
Monday 20 January 1992
PRIME MINISTER
European Union
Mr. Tebbit : To ask the Prime Minister if he will set out the commitments of the United Kingdom under the declaration of the conference within article C of the provisions of a common foreign and security policy of the draft treaty on European union.
The Prime Minister : The declaration has no legally binding effect. It does not alter the fact that unanimous decisions will still require the unanimous support of all member states. It is similar to the provision in the Single European Act calling upon partners to refrain from impeding the formation of a consensus.
Mr. Tebbit : To ask the Prime Minister if, in relation to article E of the provisions of a common foreign and security policy of the draft treaty on European union with regard to matters coming within the common foreign and security policy, he will state within which international organisations and international conferences the United Kingdom will retain its own representation rather than be represented by the presidency of the European union.
The Prime Minister : The United Kingdom will retain the membership and representation in all international organisations and international conferences it enjoys at present.
Sir Basil Feldman
Mr. Alton : To ask the Prime Minister (1) when he last met Sir Basil Feldman on official business ; and what subjects were discussed ;
(2) how many times he has met Sir Basil Feldman in the last 12 months ; and whether Sunday trading has been discussed.
The Prime Minister : My normal practice is to neither confirm nor deny whether meetings with private individuals have taken place.
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Office Costs
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Prime Minister if he will give the cost of running his office in 1989, 1990 and 1991.
The Prime Minister : The cost in 1990-91 was £8,225,816. The cost in 1989-90 was £7,669,276.
Note : Salaries and wages, notional pension liability, administration costs, the costs of office services and the grant-in-aid to the Chequers Trust are included in the costs. The Prime Minister's salary is excluded.
Businesses (Environmental Performance)
Mr. Robert G. Hughes : To ask the Prime Minister whether he has any proposals to recognise businesses who improve their environmental performance.
The Prime Minister : The Government's environment White Paper "This Common Inheritance", and last year's first anniversary report on it stressed that all parts of society have a role to play in securing environmental improvements. This applies not least to business. The Government want to create the right conditions to encourage business to improve its environmental performance and to recognise and reward those businesses which rise successfully to the challenge. On my recommendation, Her Majesty the Queen has given her approval in principle to the introduction of a new Queen's award for environmental achievement.
The new award will recognise product and process development which has major benefits for the environment and which is commercially successful. It will form part of the established Queen's awards scheme alongside business awards for export and technology achievement. It is planned that applications will be sought in June and that the first environment awards will be made on the Queen's birthday on 21 April 1993.
The addition of environment achievement to the Queen's awards builds on the pioneering work of the Royal Society of Arts whose better environment awards for industry have led the way and generated invaluable experience in awards for business in the environmental field. The RSA plans to continue activity in this area in a way which will complement the new Queen's award.
Lord Lieutenants
Mr. William Powell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the lord lieutenants with the dates of their appointment and expected retirement.
The Prime Minister : A list of lord lieutenants, together with the dates of their appointment and expected retirement, is set out in the table.
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County |Lord-Lieutenant |Date of |Date of
|appointment |retirement
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
England
Avon |Sir John Wills, TD FRICS JP |April 1974 |July 2003
Bedfordshire |Samuel Whitbread, Esq |January 1991 |February 2012
Berkshire |John Henderson, Esq, CVO OBE |June 1989 |May 1995
Buckinghamshire |Commander, The Hon. John Fremantle, RN (Retd.) JP |September 1984 |January 2002
Cambridgeshire |Michael Bevan, Esq |August 1985 |August 2001
Cheshire |William Bromley Davenport, Esq. JP |June 1990 |March 2010
Cleveland |The Lord Gisborough, TD |March 1981 |July 2002
Cornwall |The Viscount Falmouth |October 1977 |October 1994
Cumbria |Sir Charles Graham, Bt |February 1983 |July 1994
Derbyshire |Colonel Peter Hilton, MC JP |January 1978 |June 1994
Devon |The Earl of Morley, JP |May 1982 |May 1998
Dorset |The Lord Digby, JP |September 1984 |July 1999
Durham |David Grant, Esq, CBE |April 1988 |January 1997
East Sussex |Admiral Sir Lindsay Bryson, KCB |November 1989 |January 2000
Essex |Admiral Sir Andrew Lewis, KCB JP |August 1978 |August 1992
Gloucestershire |Colonel Martin Gibbs, CB DSO TD JP |June 1978 |February 1992
Greater London |Field Marshall, The Lord Bramall, GCB OBE MC JP |January 1986 |December 1998
Greater Manchester |Colonel J B Timmins, OBE TD JP |December 1987 |June 2007
Hampshire |Sir James Scott, JP |December 1982 |October 1999
Hereford and Worcester |Captain Thomas Dunne, JP |July 1977 |October 2008
Hertfordshire |Simon Bowes Lyon, Esq, FCA |January 1986 |June 2007
Humberside |Richard Bethell, Esq |October 1983 |March 1997
Isle of Wight |The Lord Mottistone, CBE |August 1985 |December 1995
Kent |The Right Hon. Robin Leigh-Pemberton |August 1982 |January 2002
Lancashire |Dr. Simon Towneley |March 1976 |December 1996
Leicestershire |Timothy Brooks, Esq, JP |January 1989 |March 2004
Lincolnshire |Henry Nevile, Esq |November 1975 |March 1995
Merseyside |Henry Cotton, Esq |May 1989 |July 2004
Norfolk |Timothy Colman, Esq |March 1978 |September 2004
Northamptonshire |John Lowther, Esq, CBE JP |January 1984 |November 1998
Northumberland |The Viscount Ridley, TD |January 1984 |July 2000
North Yorkshire |Sir Marcus Worsley, JP |March 1987 |April 2000
Nottinghamshire |Sir Andrew Buchanan, Bt. |February 1991 |July 2012
Oxfordshire |Sir Ashley Ponsonby, MC |January 1980 |February 1996
Shropshire |John Dugdale, Esq |February 1975 |May 1998
Somerset |Lt. Col. Geoffrey Luttrell, MC JP |March 1978 |October 1994
South Yorkshire |Hugh Neill, Esq, CBE TD JP |May 1985 |March 1996
Staffordshire |Sir Arthur Bryan |July 1968 |March 1998
Suffolk |Sir Joshua Rowley, JP |March 1978 |December 1995
Surrey |Richard Thornton, Esq, OBE JP |May 1986 |October 1997
Tyne and Wear |Sir Ralph Carr-Ellison |July 1984 |December 2000
Warwickshire |The Viscount Daventry |February 1990 |December 1996
West Midlands |The Earl of Aylesford, JP |April 1974 |November 1993
West Sussex |The Duke of Richmond and Gordon |March 1990 |September 2004
West Yorkshire |The Lord Ingrow, OBE TD JP |May 1985 |August 1992
Wiltshire |Field Marshal, Sir Roland Gibbs, GCB CBE DSO MC |December 1989 |June 1996
Wales
Clwyd |Sir William Gladstone, Bt. JP |August 1985 |October 2000
Dyfed |David Mansel Lewis, Esq, JP |February 1979 |October 2002
Mid Glamorgan |Murray McLaggan, Esq, JP |January 1990 |September 2004
South Glamorgan |Captain Norman Lloyd-Edwards |June 1990 |June 2008
West Glamorgan |Lt. Col. Sir Michael Llewellyn, Bt. |December 1987 |June 1996
Gwynedd |Meuric Rees, Esq |January 1990 |March 1999
Gwent |Richard Hanbury-Tenison, Esq, JP |June 1979 |January 2000
Powys |Mervyn Bourdillon, Esq, JP |July 1986 |August 1999
Scotland
Highland region
Caithness |The Viscount Thurso |April 1973 |December 1997
Sutherland |Major General David Houston, CBE |November 1991 |February 2004
Ross and Cromarty |Captain Roderick Stirling, TD |February 1988 |June 2007
Inverness |Lt. Cdr. Lachlan Mackintosh of Mackintosh, OBE RN (Retd.)|September 1985 |June 2003
Nairn |The Earl of Leven and Melville |July 1969 |May 1999
Grampian region
Moray |Captain Sir Iain Tennant |January 1964 |March 1994
Banff |James McPherson, Esq, CBE |August 1987 |November 2002
Aberdeen County |Captain Colin Farquharson, FRICS |March 1987 |August 1998
Kincardine |The Viscount of Arbuthnott, CBE DSC |January 1977 |October 1999
Tayside region
Angus |The Right Hon. The Earl of Airlie, KT GCVO |June 1989 |May 2001
Perth and Kinross |Major Sir David Butter, KCVO MC |November 1971 |March 1995
Fife region
Fife |The Earl of Elgin and Kincardine |October 1987 |February 1999
Lothian region
West Lothian |The Earl of Morton |August 1985 |March 2002
Midlothian |Sir John Clerk of Penicuik, Bt CBE VRD FRSE JP |June 1972 |January 1992
East Lothian |Sir Hew Hamilton Dalrymple, Bt KCVO |November 1986 |April 2001
Central region
Clackmannan |The Earl of Mar and Kellie |September 1966 |February 1996
Stirling |Lt. Col. James Stirling, CBE TD FRICS |December 1983 |September 2005
Borders region
Peebles |Lt. Col. Aidan Sprot, MC |October 1980 |June 1994
Roxburgh |The Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry |January 1974 |September 1998
Berwick |Major General Sir John Swinton, KCVO OBE JP |April 1989 |April 2000
Strathclyde region
Argyll |The Most Hon. The Marquess of Bute, JP |June 1990 |February 2008
Dunbarton |Brigadier Donald Hardie, TD JP |June 1990 |January 2011
Lanark |The Lord Clydesmuir, CB MBE TD |August 1963 |May 1992
Renfrew |Major David Crichton Maitland |November 1980 |September 2000
Ayrshire and Arran |Major Richard Henderson, TD |April 1991 |July 2006
Dumfries and Galloway region
Wigtown |Major Edward Orr Ewing |September 1989 |September 2006
Stewartry |Sir Michael Herries, OBE MC |March 1989 |February 1998
Dumfries |Captain Ronald Cunningham-Jardine |October 1991 |September 2006
Island areas
Orkney |Brigadier Malcolm Dennison |March 1990 |March 1999
Shetland |Magnus Shearer, Esq, JP |October 1982 |February 1999
Western Isles |The Earl of Granville, MC |March 1983 |December 1993
Northern Ireland
County
Antrim |Captain Richard Dobbs |April 1975 |April 1994
Armagh |The Earl of Caledon |March 1989 |May 2030
County Borough of Belfast |Colonel J Elliott Wilson, OBE JP |March 1991 |May 2000
Down |Colonel William Brownlow |January 1990 |August 1996
Fermanagh |The Earl of Erne |May 1986 |July 2012
Londonderry |Colonel Michael McCorkell, OBE TD |April 1975 |February 2000
County Borough of Londonderry |James Eaton, Esq, TD |January 1986 |August 2002
Tyrone |The Duke of Abercorn |December 1986 |July 2019
NORTHERN IRELAND
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
Dr. David Clark : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list all the confirmed cases of BSE in Northern Ireland (a) in 1991 and (b) before 1991 on a county basis.
Mr. Hanley : Following is the information.
1991
County |Number of
|confirmed
|cases of BSE
------------------------------------------
Down |27
Fermanagh |19
Londonderry |26
Tyrone |32
Antrim |55
Armagh |11
|--
Total |170
|--
Prior to 1991
Down |33
Fermanagh |12
Londonderry |12
Tyrone |25
Antrim |42
Armagh |9
|--
Total |133
There are 1,533,226 cattle in Northern Ireland, and a total of 308 confirmed cases of BSE have been reported to date.
Dr. David Clark : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will give the location, including the
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county, of the incinerators which dispose of BSE-infected cattle that are currently operating in Northern Ireland and in each case give the potential capacity and actual capacity for through put each week of infected cattle ; whether he has plans to introduce new incinerators ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Hanley : There are two incinerators currently operating in Northern Ireland, one at Dundonald, County Down, and one at Omagh, Co. Tyrone. These incinerators both of which are owned by the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland are used for the disposal of a wide range of pathological material, for example, clinical material submitted for diagnostic investigations and post-mortem examination. The Department is currently installing a new incinerator in County Down. The potential capacity--based on 24 hours a day, five days a week operation--and actual throughputs are as follows :
Bovines Per Week
|Potential |Actual
|Throughputs<1>
------------------------------------------------------------
County Tyrone |60 |2.0
County Down |75 |3.5
<1> Average weekly number of BSE infected cattle.
ENERGY
Advertising Expenditure
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list for the financial years (a) 1989-90, (b) 1990-91, (c) 1991-92, (d) 1992-93 and (e) 1993-94 actual or projected expenditure on (i) print and (ii) audio-visual
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media advertising by (1) British Nuclear Fuels Ltd., (2) the Atomic Energy Authority, (3) Nuclear Electric and (4) Scottish Nuclear.Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : This is a commercial matter for the bodies in question.
Nuclear Materials (Protection)
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether the United Kingdom has submitted any amendments to the secretariat of the review conference for the convention on the physical protection of nuclear materials to be held in Vienna in July.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : No. The United Kingdom does not see any need to propose changes in the current international convention.
Euratom
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East on 9 December 1991, Official Report, column 336, he will set out the criteria used in choosing the appointees to the Euratom scientific and technical committee.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : The scientific and technical committee must be consulted on any matters where the Euratom treaty so provides. The main areas in question are nuclear research, radiation protection and hazardous waste management. United Kingdom members are chosen for their expertise in these fields.
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy whether, following the reply given by the EC Energy Commissioner to Mr. Llewelyn Smith MEP on 23 July 1991, European Parliament written question 958/91 EN, on United Kingdom plutonium stocks, he will now give the EC Commission permission to make public the amount of plutonium offered to Euratom on the United Kingdom's accession to the treaty of Rome on 1 January 1973.
Plutonium
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what information he has regarding the implications for future Japanese reprocessing contracts for Sellafield of the decision taken on 28 November 1991 by the Japanese Government's Science and Technology Agency to survey the safety and requirements to transport plutonium from the United Kingdom to Japan following reprocessing ; and if Her Majesty's Government have been contacted by the Japan Atomic Industrial Forum Inc., which is conducting the survey.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : I am not aware of any such decision.
Coal Industry
Mr. Andy Stewart : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what discussions he has had with the Union of Democratic Mineworkers and Lloyds merchant bank about their proposals to apply for all or part of a privatised coal industry and to enable employees in the industry to become shareholders.
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Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : I have met the Union of Democratic Mineworkers and Lloyds merchant bank to discuss their proposals concerning the coal industry. However, no decisions as to the form or timing of the sale will be made until after the next election.
HSE Offshore Division
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many inspector grade personnel who inspected offshore installations in the Department of Energy prior to 1 April 1991, have not taken up posts in the Health and Safety Executive's offshore division.
Mr. Moynihan : All such staff who were in post on 31 March transferred to the Health and Safety Executive's offshore division on 1 April 1991.
Renewable Energy
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make it his policy that an amount equal to that spent on fusion research should be spent on research into non-nuclear renewable energies ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Moynihan : It is the Government's policy to allocate resources to research on energy sources in accordance with the needs of individual technologies and taking due account of their state of development. There is no merit in simply imposing arbitrary equality.
Linkohr Report
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will obtain for his departmental library a copy of the Linkohr report to the European Parliament regarding European Community expenditure on fusion research.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : A copy of this report is in the Department's library.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Djibouti-Eritrean Border
Mr. Bernie Grant : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place in the Western European Union concerning the deployment of French troops along the Djibouti-Eritrean border ; and if he will make it his policy to request the removal of all foreign troops from the region.
Mrs. Chalker : There have been no discussions in the Western European Union on Djibouti. The deployment of French troops within that country is a bilateral matter for the Djibouti and French Governments.
South Korea
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he, Ministers or officials of his Department, held any consultations with his United States counterpart over the content of the recent intergovernmental agreement concluded with South Korea to sign contracts with British Nuclear Fuels plc on nuclear fuel services for South Korea's nuclear industry.
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Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Yes, there was contact at official level, subsequent to the announcement of the agreement.Commonwealth of Independent States
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the impact which negotiations among members of the Commonwealth of Independent States on the deployment and control of their military forces is likely to have on international commitments previously entered into by the governments of the former Soviet Union.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : Russia, as the continuing state, takes on all rights and obligations of the former Soviet Union. We have, however, also urged the other former republics to take on those rights and obligations as far as they can apply to them.
The Minsk agreement on armed forces and border troops confirms the legal right of states to create their own armed forces. A high-level working group has been set up at NATO headquarters in Brussels to work with the new states to ensure that they uphold their responsibilities under the CFE treaty.
The Alma Ata agreement on nuclear weapons and the Minsk agreement on strategic forces will have implications for the strategic arms reduction talks agreement between the US and former Soviet Union and the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, NPT. We and our allies are actively pursuing with the former republics the means to ensure that these agreements are fully honoured and that all former republics other than Russia accede to the NPT as non-nuclear weapons states as soon as possible.
Iraq
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 9 December 1991, Official Report, column 321 on Iraqi nuclear scientists, if he will list the categories used by his Department for recording entry visas issued to people from Iraq from 1979 onwards.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Records are maintained according to the category of visa issued--that is, visit, settlement, and categories. In cases where visit or student visas are issued, application forms are retained for two years and then destroyed. No separate record is kept of an applicant's personal details or profession. In cases where visas are issued to settlement or other long-term applicants, application forms, and index cards recording the applicant's personal details--but not profession--are retained for 10 years.
Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a further statement on discussions with his United States counterpart on the terms of the possible accession of Byelorussia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : We strongly support accession to the nuclear non- proliferation treaty of these republics as soon as they are in a position to observe the treaty obligations. We have been in close touch with the United States and with out European partners on these matters.
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UN Secretary-General
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last met the Secretary-General of the United Nations ; what matters were discussed ; and what agreements were reached.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : I had valuable talks with the new United Nations Secretary-General, Dr. Boutros Ghali, during his visit to London on 13 January. We discussed a range of issues on the UN's current agenda including my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's proposal to convene a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council in New York on 31 January, which Dr. Boutros Ghali welcomed.
Pakistan
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 9 December, Official Report, column 321 , if he will state the name of the Norwegian company concerned ; and if he will make a statement about United Kingdom assistance once the Norwegian authorities have completed their investigations.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : No. My right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Treasury proposes to make a statement when investigations have been completed.
Indonesia
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what meetings have occurred between Ministers of Her Majesty's Government and Indonesian Ministers during 1991 ; and what matters were discussed.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Six Ministers met their Indonesian counterparts in 1991, either in London or in Jakarta. The Prime Minister also met the Indonesian Minister for Research. Discussions covered a wide range of issues.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the Government contracts between Indonesia and Britain since 1975.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : British companies have signed many contracts with Indonesia since 1975. Details are a matter for the companies involved. In terms of Governmental contracts, we sold obsolete tribal class frigates to Indonesia in the early 1980s.
East Timor
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has concerning the numbers of East Timorese (a) killed, (b) tortured, (c) missing feared killed or imprisoned and (d) arrested by the Indonesian security forces, since the occupation.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Accurate figures are very difficult to obtain. We believe a figure of 100,000 killed or died of starvation is credible. We have no credible figures of the number tortured, missing or arrested.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action Her Majesty's Government have taken following the Santa Cruz massacre in East Timor ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We have made representations to the Indonesians on several occasions here in London and in Jakarta. Our position has also been clearly set out in EC and Council of Europe declarations and in the EC presidency statement to the third committee of the UN General Assembly.We are also in close touch with our partners with the aim of supporting the efforts of the UN Secretary-General in this area.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from the Parliamentary Human Rights Group concerning the Santa Cruz massacre in East Timor.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We have received the report of the Parliamentary Human Rights Group on the recent shooting incident in East Timor. Members of the group have also raised with us their concern about the events in Dili.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give the reasons for the United Kingdom's abstention on United Nations Security Council resolutions concerning the invasion of East Timor since 1975.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The United Kingdom, along with most other European Community partners, abstained on all resolutions passed in debate in the United Nations General Assembly between 1976 and 1982. We took the view that by so doing, in the company of other countries, we could help the process of reconciliation and the search for a diplomatic solution between Indonesia and Portugal. We continue to hold this view.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his (a) Portuguese and (b) Dutch counterparts concerning East Timor.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : My right hon. Friend has held several discussions with his EC counterparts on East Timor, before and after the events in Dili in November.
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action his Department has taken regarding those East Timorese missing after the Santa Cruz massacre.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The Indonesians are well aware of our concerns about those reported missing after shootings. We look to the Indonesian Government to investigate the fate of the missing fully and promptly, as they have promised to do. A further commission has been set up partly for this purpose.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Taxation
Mr. Gwilym Jones : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the cost in 1992-93 of (a) cutting the basic rate of income tax by 1 per cent., (b) increasing the maximum for mortgage interest relief by £5,000, (c) increasing each personal and marriage allowance, including age-related allowance by £1,000 and (d) removing value added tax from granny flats.
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Mr. Maude : The information is as follows :
(a) Reducing the basic rate of income tax to 24p would cost about £1.95 billion.
(b) Increasing the ceiling on mortgage interest tax relief by £5, 000 would cost about £300 million excluding the effect of behavioural changes following such an increase.
(c) Increasing all personal allowances by £1,000 would cost about £7 billion.
(d) Information on which to make an estimate is not available.
Bingham Inquiry
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has given evidence to the Bingham inquiry.
United States International Affairs Minister
Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he last met Mr. David Mulford, the United States Treasury
Under-Secretary for International Affairs ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maples : My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer last met Mr. Mulford on 8 January 1992, when he briefed him on the Japan- United States joint communique on world economic growth issued by President Bush and Prime Minister Miyazawa. A copy of the communique is in the Library of the House.
Civil Service Pensions
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the cost of requiring that all temporary service in the civil service count in full for pension, as recommended by the Priestley commission in 1956 ; how many persons would be affected ; and at what ranks.
Mr. Maples : An estimate of the cost of allowing unestablished service rendered before 14 July 1949 to reckon in full for civil service pension purposes, including the cost of arrears of pension and increased lump sums, is not available. Information about the number of persons who would be affected and their ranks could only be provided at a disproportionate cost. If only those with such service who qualified for a pension are considered, and no arrears of pension were paid or change made in the basis of calculating lump sum retirement benefits, it was estimated in 1989 that some 100,000 pensioners would benefit at a cost over the next 25 years of the order of £400 million for the civil service alone.
Privatisation
Mr. Callaghan : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has any further proposals to privatise more industries.
Mr. Maude : Work is in hand on the planned privatisation of Northern Ireland Electricity, British Coal and British Rail. The Government continue to look for new opportunities for returning public sector industry and services to the private sector. Announcements of new candidates will be made in due course.
Manufacturing Output
Mr. Callaghan : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the levels of manufacturing output in 1989, 1990 and 1991.
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Mr. Mellor : Indices of United Kingdom manufacturing output can be found on the CSO databank which can be accessed by the House of Commons Library.Pipe Tobacco
Mr. Robert Hicks : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue has been raised from the increase in duty on pipe tobacco announced in the 1991 Budget ; and what proportion this increase represents to the total increased revenue from all tobacco products arising from the 1991 Budget.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The increase in duty on pipe tobacco announced in the 1991 Budget will raise an estimated £5 million in 1991-92. This represents about 1 per cent. of the estimated total increase in revenue from all tobacco products.
Derbyshire County Council
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received from the chair of the Finance and General Purposes Committee of Derbyshire county council concerning the statements of the Financial Secretary 18 November, Official Report, column 32, concerning Derbyshire county council ; and if he will make a statement.
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