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Mr. David Hunt : My Department carried out a survey of the ethnic origin of its employees in May 1988. The
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ethnic origin of all new entrants and leavers is monitored and there is no need for another survey. Since 1990, my Department has concentrated on the implementation of a programme of action to consolidate the equality of opportunity offered to people of ethnic minority origin.Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he has taken to recruit members of ethnic minorities in top grades of employment at his Department.
Mr. David Hunt : The Recruitment and Assessment Services Agency, acting on behalf of the civil service commissioners, is responsible for most recruitment into senior grades in my Department. It has taken a number of steps to encourage applications from and aid recruitment of members of ethnic minorities. Those include increasing contacts with minority communities ; extending links with polytechnics, universities and tertiary colleges to attract a wider range of applicants generally, and specifically from ethnic minority communities ; increasing ethnic minority representation among careers liaison staff and on selection panels ; ensuring that relevant recruitment literature reflects a multiracial work force ; equal opportunities training for those involved in selection ; and using validated selection procedures to ensure that selection is fair and non-discriminatory.
Mr. Janner : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many and what percentage of officers in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, respectively, and overall in his Department are members of ethnic minorities.
Mr. David Hunt : The details, based on staff in post figures at 31 March 1992, are given in the table :
|Number |Per cent
------------------------------------------------
Grades 1-6 |- |-
Grade 7 (1) |2 |1.2
Department Total (2) |32 |1.3
(1)Includes equivalent professional grades
(2)Includes agency and industrial staff.
Part-time staff each count as
one unit.
Nuclear Accidents
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what emergency provisions exist for south Wales in the event of a total breach of containment taking place at (a) reactors and (b) spent fuel cooling ponds at (i) Berkeley, (ii) Oldbury and (iii) Hinkley Point nuclear plants.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The rigorous safety arrangements at United Kingdom nuclear sites render extremely unlikely the kind of nuclear emergency postulated. Co-ordinated plans based on the worst case scenario which can reasonably be predicted have been devised by the operators of the nuclear sites on Severnside in consultation with the police, local authorities and other emergency services, and also involve liaison with central Government Departments, including the Welsh Office. Those procedures, which are regularly tested in simulated exercises, entail measures to safeguard public health and to protect food and water supplies on both sides of the Severn estuary.
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Development Area Status (Pembrokeshire)
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will support appeals by Preseli Pembrokeshire district council and Dyfed county council to give Fishguard and Haverfordwest travel-to-work areas development area status.
Mr. David Hunt : The Government announced before the election that a review of the assisted area map would be conducted in this Parliament. We are now considering how to take that forward. The needs and problems of all areas will be fully taken into account during the course of the review.
Student Loans
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will take steps to ensure that the application form and all information concerning student loans are available in the Welsh language.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The responsibility for student support matters rests with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education. I am in touch with him about producing more of the literature on student support matters, including student loans, in the Welsh language.
Countryside
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has any new proposals for protecting the countryside.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Any new proposals for protecting the countryside will be announced at the appropriate time. "The Rural Initiative", which was published by my right hon. Friend last December, included a number of relevant proposals, including plans for a countryside stewardship scheme "Tir Cymen", being developed by the Countryside Council for Wales.
Youth Training
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many new youth training places he is providing and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : The numbers of youth training places provided are the responsibility of the training and enterprise councils. Under the terms of their operating agreements and contracts TECs are obliged to offer a training place to every 16 and 17-year-old not in full-time education who seeks one.
Household Waste
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps are being taken to meet the target of recycling 25 per cent. of all household waste by the end of the century ; and if he will make a statement outlining the present percentage of household waste that is recycled in Wales and by how much it has changed since 1990.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The measures being taken nationally to promote recycling are outlined in the first year report on the Environment White Paper, "This Common Inheritance" (Cm 1655).
In Wales the action taken comprises : guidance to local authorities on devising and implementing recycling
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strategies in the form of waste management paper No. 28 ; a request to authorities to submit recycling plans by 1 August in accordance with section 49 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 ; the introduction of a system of recycling credits under section 52 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 together with associated advice and guidance to authorities on the scheme in the form of Welsh Office circular 10/92.Reliable estimates of the percentage of household waste that is recycled in Wales are not available, but steps are being taken nationally to obtain more accurate data.
School Leavers
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what new policies he intends to adopt to ensure that school leavers without a job obtain employment.
Mr. David Hunt : The careers service and the employment service offer help to school leavers who wish to take up employment. School leavers need the opportunity to acquire skills and qualifications if they are to take their place successfully in the labour market, and all 16 and 17-year- olds leaving full-time education are entitled to a youth training place. By 1996, all such 16 and 17-year-old leavers will be able to claim a training credit, and the value of the training credit will be an incentive to employers to engage them.
Radiotherapy
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he expects his detailed radiotherapy facilities appraisal for north Wales to report ; who are the members of the appraisal committee ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : The investment appraisal of the options available for the establishment of a dedicated cancer treatment centre, including radiotherapy facilities, in north Wales is to be conducted by independent consultants. I expect them to report their conclusions by the end of 1992.
INMOS
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what action he has taken to recover from the INMOS company, Newport sums of money paid to them by the Welsh Office or the Welsh development agency.
Mr. David Hunt : Such information must be treated as commercial in confidence.
Chernobyl
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the length of time that will have to pass before there will be no restriction on the movement of farm animals arising from the high levels of radioactive contamination following the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
Mr. David Hunt : It is not possible to estimate how long radioactivity from the Chernobyl nuclear accident will require the maintaining of controls on the sale of and movement of sheep from the restricted area of Wales. However, our "mark and release" arrangements and associated compensation payments are designed to ensure the minimum disruption to normal farming practices while controls remain in force.
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Following intensive monitoring and assessment programmes, I was able to lift controls from two small areas in Gwynedd and Clwyd last year. We are continuing with those types of programmes with a view to lifting controls in further parts of the remaining restricted area as soon as it is possible to do so without compromising food safety.Pembroke Power Station
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will order a full public inquiry into the proposals to change from the burning of oil at Pembroke power station to the burning of orimulsion ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : National Power requires two separate approvals in order to proceed with its plans--from the Department of Trade and Industry for planning permission to extend the power station, and from Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution for authorisation to burn orimulsion fuel. Those applications are under consideration. The planning procedures allow for the holding of a public inquiry and this is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.
Local Government Finance
Mr. Rod Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he intends to charge-cap any Welsh authorities for 1992-93 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : I have carefully scrutinised all Welsh local authority budgets for 1992-93. I have decided in all the circumstances not to exercise my capping powers.
Most authorities have repaid the confidence which I placed in them by budgeting in line with the settlement. A few authorities could have done better. I therefore intend to announce provisional capping criteria in the autumn, in advance of the 1993-94 local government budgetary round. This will assist authorities as they take their budgetary decisions next year.
TRANSPORT
Runway Capacity
Mrs. Roe : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress is being made by the working group, chaired by his Department, which is taking forward the Civil Aviation Authority's advice on south-east runway capacity in the longer term.
Mr. Norris : The working group is making good progress. It was established to consider the wider implications of runway development at 10 airports which had been identified by the Civil Aviation Authority, in its report CAP 570 published in July 1990, as potentially able in air traffic control terms to handle growth in south-east air traffic forecast after 2005, and to consider the regional airport contribution. It draws its membership widely from industry, environmental, local authority and consumer interests, as well as from central Government.
The working group has carried out a substantial volume of work but has a considerable amount remaining and does not expect to be in a position to offer advice before the end of this year. Its report will be published. Runway Capacity to Serve the South-East--RUCATSE
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--is not a decision-making body or an alternative to the normal planning processes, and it is not preparing actual development proposals. Before there could be a major runway development at any airport, a promoter would need to work up a specific detailed proposal and apply for planning permission in the usual way, with opportunity for anyone wishing to comment to do so.By July the group expects to have taken a view on which options should be taken forward for detailed study in its further work. At that point it proposes to undertake further consultation on the notional runway alignments which would appear most suitable for those sites.
Irradiated Nuclear Fuel
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department of the resolution passed on the sea transport of irradiated nuclear fuel at the marine safety committee of the International Maritime Organisation at its 60th annual conference in London in April.
Mr. Norris : The maritime safety committee of the International Maritime Organisation did not pass a resolution on the sea transport of irradiated nuclear fuel at its 60th session. The draft code on the carriage of INF is subject to consultation between the IMO and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Foreign Vessels
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give the numbers of (a) Spanish and (b) Dutch vessels registered as British and the ports of registration.
Mr. Norris : For ships and large pleasure craft the information requested is as follows :
(a) Three, at Yarmouth, London and Poole ;
(b) Four, at London (2), Harwich and Southampton.
Some 46 Spanish and about 15 Dutch owned fishing vessels have been registered since the European Court judgment referred to in my answer to the hon. Member on 11 May, Official Report, column 17. The majority of these vessels are registered in the south-west ports, Lowestoft and Grimsby, and Aberdeen in Scotland.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many foreign fishing boats are registered as nationals in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Denmark, (d) Holland and (e) France.
Mr. Norris : Some 65 since the European Court judgment ; seven in Scotland, the remainder in England and Wales.
I have no information on registration in other EC countries.
London Bus Services
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representation he has received from the London tourist board concerning his proposals to privatise and deregulate London bus services.
Mr. Norris : Like many other bodies, the London tourist board responded to the consultation paper "A Bus Strategy for London" last year. I am not aware of any subsequent representations from it.
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Radioactive Aggregate
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether any radioactively contaminated rubble or spoil has been used as aggregate for the construction of roads in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Maclean : I have been asked to reply.
The disposal of radioactive waste or material of any kind contaminated with radioactivity in England and Wales is subject to authorisation by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution under the Radioactive Substances Act 1960. There have been no cases where this authorisation process has permitted disposal of such waste for use as road building materials. The control of radioactive material and waste in Scotland and Northern Ireland is the responsibility of my right hon. Friends the respective Secretaries of State.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
EC Treaties
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs by what means he intends to notify the appropriate authorities of the ratification of titles I-VII of the draft treaty on economic union ; and if he will list the relevant means and authority in respect of each of those draft titles and the subsequent protocols and declarations.
Mr. Garel-Jones : Provided that Parliament has passed the necessary legislation, I shall deposit with the Italian Government an instrument of ratification in accordance with article R of the treaty of European union. The ratification will relate to the treaty documents signed on 7 February, namely, the treaty and the protocols. The declarations are not part of the treaty. There is no procedure for ratifying different parts of the treaty.
Macedonia
Mr. David Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on relations with the Republic of Macedonia.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : We and our European Community partners have not yet recognised the Republic of Macedonia. We hope that a common position can soon be found so that recognition can go ahead. We fully support President Gligorov's moderate Government.
Foreign Affairs Council
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the matters discussed and decisions taken at the European Foreign Affairs Council held in Guimares on 1 and 2 May.
Mr. Garel-Jones : The main subjects discussed by EC Foreign Ministers at the informal Foreign Ministers meeting in Guimares on 1 to 2 May were the situation in Yugoslavia, the evolution of the middle east peace process, preparations for the implementation of the common foreign and security policy provided for in the Maastricht treaty, the situation in South Africa and the EC's relations with Turkey. EC Ministers also agreed the solemn declaration on the protocol on the right to life of the unborn in Ireland and had a meeting with the Foreign Ministers of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
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World Commission on Culture and Development
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contribution he intends to make to the World Commission on Culture and Development under the chairpersonship of Mr. Perez de Cuellar when it opens its three-year inquiry in the summer.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : We welcome the appointment of Mr. Perez de Cuellar as chairman of the World Commission on Culture and Development, but we have no plans to make a contribution at this stage.
Cyprus
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place with the United Nations regarding future British contributions to United Nations operations in Cyprus.
Mr. Garel-Jones : We are in regular contact with the United Nations secretariat and other contributors about the United Nations peacekeeping force in Cyprus. It plays a valuable role in preserving the peace, thereby assisting the Secretary-General's efforts to bring about a just and lasting settlement. The size of the force remains under review.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to reduce the British contribution to United Nations operations in Cyprus.
Mr. Garel-Jones : We are in regular contact with the United Kingdom secretariat and other contributors about the United Nations peacekeeping force in Cyprus. It plays a valuable role in preserving the peace, thereby assisting the Secretary-General's efforts to bring about a just and lasting settlement. The size of the force remains under review.
UN Economic Commission for Europe
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contribution the United Kingdom has made to the forty-seventh session of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe since it opened in Geneva on 7 April.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : The United Kingdom was represented at the 47th session of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe by the ambassador and permanent representative of the United Kingdom mission to the United Nations at Geneva, supported by others in the United Kingdom mission and a member of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Those representatives participated in the plenary and sessional committee proceedings of the 47th session and in concurrent informal negotiations on the drafting of decisions sponsored by the European Community and by non-EC member countries of UNECE. They also played and active part in the drafting of statements made by the Portuguese presidency, on behalf of the European Community and its member states.
Iraq
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will set out the range of weapons in Iraq in each category which have now been
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destroyed arising from resolutions of the United Nations Security Council ; what weapons are now left to be destroyed ; when this will occur ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Douglas Hogg : Inspectors have so far supervised the destruction of :
Ballistic Missiles
62 ballistic missiles
10 ballistic missiles
18 fixed scud launch pads
32 ballistic missile warheads
127 missile storage support vehicles
Tons of rocket fuel
Assembled 350 mm supergun
Components for 350 mm and 1000 mm superguns
1 tonne of supergun propellant
54 items of ballistic missile production equipment
10 buildings related to ballistic missile production
Chemical Weapons
11 800 unfilled chemical munitions
463 unstable 122 mm rockets, some filled with chemical
agent
Nuclear Programme
29 items of equipment connected to the nuclear
weaponisation programme
8 buildings used in the nuclear programme
Iraq claims to have unilaterally destroyed equipment covered by SCR687 during the summer of 1991. The special commission is verifying these claims.
The special commission plans to continue the destruction of nuclear facilities and ballistic missile production equipment in the course of upcoming inspections. The large scale destruction of chemicals will begin in June.
Until Iraq complies with its obligation to provide a full, final and complete disclosure of its weapons of mass destruction, there can be no final list of items for destruction.
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what latest warnings have been given to the Iraqi regime over any future aggression or armed action against its own citizens within the borders of Iraq.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : On 14 April, coalition Governments told the Iraq Government that they should cease repressive actions against the people of Iraq in violation of United Nations Security Council resolution 688.
In a further de marche on 7 May we reminded the Iraqis that we had not received and still expected a full and effective response to our de marche of 14 April. We shall continue to press them to respect the basic human and political rights of the Iraqi people.
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