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National Insurance Cards
Mr. Trimble : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many plastic national insurance number cards have been issued ; and how much each national insurance number card costs.
Miss Widdecombe : The issue of plastic national insurance number cards is a matter for Miss Ann Chant, the chief executive of the Contributions Agency. She will write to the hon. Member and copies will be placed in the Library and the Public Information Office.
Maxwell Pensioners
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) who will administer his temporary Maxwell pensioner rescue package ; (2) what information he has on the numbers of pensioners who could be assisted, and the amount to which they could be assisted, by his temporary Maxwell pensioner rescue package ;
(3) what guidelines he will be giving to the administrators of his temporary Maxwell pensioner rescue package as to (a) the circumstances in which payments should be made and (b) the levels to be paid ;
(4) if he will publish a telephone number where advice on claiming grants under his Maxwell pensioners emergency package can be obtained ;
(5) when the first payments under his Maxwell pensioners emergency package will be made.
Miss Widdecombe : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced on 8 June the setting up of a special unit within the Department of Social Security and the establishment of a trust. Individual pensioners need take no action as funds will be made available directly to the independent trustees. Those funds are intended to assist Maxwell schemes that find themselves in difficulties. Funds will be used to protect the pensions of Headington pension scheme members, including the payment for May, to assist schemes that are unable to continue full payment of pensions and to allow schemes to commence payment of pensions to recently retired pensioners. Discussions have already been held with the independent trustees of the Headington pension scheme and we expect the first payments to be made soon.
Unemployment Benefit
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what assumptions about the duration of disqualification for unemployment benefit were made in estimating the cost of reducing the maximum to six weeks, for the purpose of replying to the hon. Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) on 21 January, Official Report, column 180 ; and on what evidence these assumptions were based.
Mr. Burt : The estimate was based upon the actual number of disqualifications in force on 9 May 1991 and an assumption that around two thirds of those disqualified would still be unemployed and disqualified after six weeks. The average length on the unemployment register by claimants disqualified for receiving unemployment benefit has been assumed to be 11 weeks, based upon current unemployment benefit statistics. This is less than the 21-week average period of disqualification--one of the
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findings of a departmental survey published in 1989 entitled "An Analysis of Voluntary Unemployed Claimants", a copy of which is available in the Library.Leaflet FB31
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State forSocial Security whether he will publish the letter sent to Mr. Martin Baillie of the Islington welfare rights unit in reply to his letter of 9 January to the chief executive of the Benefits Agency concerning leaflet FB31.
Mr. Burt : The handling of correspondence from the Benefits Agency is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member regarding the publication of the letter and copies will be placed in the Library and the Public Information Office.
Social Fund
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the total expenditure on discretionary grants and loans, respectively, from the social fund for each month in 1991-92 : and what are the monthly equivalents of the amounts allocated for such expenditure in 1992-93.
Mr. Scott : Separate monthly allocations are not made within the financial year. Information concerning discretionary social fund expenditure for each month in 1991-92 is in the Library.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Lobster Fisheries
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has any plans to amend the Sea Fisheries (Shellfish) Act 1967, particularly concerning the creation of enhanced lobster fisheries ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : Officials from the Department have held discussions with fishing industry representatives in England and Wales about the possibility of extending the power to grant several and regulating orders so as to cover crustacean species in addition to the molluscan species already covered. In the light of the views expressed, I intend to introduce legislation to this affect when the opportunity arises.
Broiler Chickens
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his response to the Farm Animal Welfare Council's report on the welfare of broiler chickens.
Mr. Soames : The Government welcome this report. We will be consulting interested organisations on it shortly and will issue a response when all the comments have been carefully considered.
Farm Waste Management
Mr. Jenkin : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on his proposed pilot study on farm waste management plans.
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Mr. Gummer : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I have decided that a pilot study should be undertaken to see if pollution could be cut by farmers drawing up tailor-made plans for disposing of manure, slurry and other organic wastes on their holdings. These plans will advise when, where and in what quantities farmers should spread wastes in order to avoid water pollution and get the most benefit from the nutrients in them. The areas we have chosen for the study comprise parts of the following river catchments : the River Weaver in Cheshire ; the River Frome in Somerset ; the River Clyst in Devon ; and the Afon Ceri in Wales.
The catchments were chosen, following consultation with the National Rivers Authority, to represent typical dairy farming areas. The National Farmers Union, the Country Landowners Association and the Farmers Union of Wales have indicated their full support for this pilot study and their wish that as many farmers as possible will agree to participate in it.
Agricultural Development Advisory Service project officers nominated for each catchment will be contacting some 100 or so farmers in each of the areas concerned to ask them to take part in the pilot study. They will be available to help farmers involved in the study.
We very much hope that this study will be a great success and that it will prove of direct benefit to those farmers in the selected areas who will end up with a free farm waste plan to consultancy standard. It will benefit both farmers and the community generally by providing an assessment of the possible future value of farm waste plans. This development underlines our commitment to protecting the environment.
Aquatic Environment
Mr. Tyler : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what are the responsibilities and duties of his Department and agencies which report to his Department in relation to inshore waters, intertidal areas and maritime land ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : I refer the hon. Member to the Government's memorandum on this subject which was submitted to the Environment Committee of this House in the last Session. It has now been published by HMSO as part of the Environment Committee's report on coastal zone protection and planning, volume II, minutes of evidence and appendices.
Chernobyl
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his current estimate of when there will be no restriction on the movement of farm animals arising from radioactive contamination following the Chernobyl disaster.
Mr. Curry : It is not possible to be precise about the length of time that post-Chernobyl restrictions will have to remain in place. However, only 138 holdings remain under restriction in Cumbria. This represents a reduction of over 90 per cent. in the number of holdings originally restricted. We hope to be able to identify further holdings for derestriction this year.
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We shall continue our monitoring and research efforts to enable all restrictions to be lifted as soon as possible, consistent with the need to ensure the continued protection of the food chain.Eggs (Marketing)
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what evidence he has of any circumstances under which the egg marketing regulations are regularly breached.
Mr. Curry : The egg marketing regulations are strictly enforced and where necessary prosecutions are taken. There were four prosecutions in England by my Department in 1991-92.
Nematodes
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has concerning the extent of anthelmintic resistant nematodes in farm animals.
Mr. Soames : A commercially sponsored survey in 1990 by the central veterinary laboratory covering three southern English counties demonstrated the presence of anthelmintic-resistant nematodes in sheep and goats. The central veterinary laboratory is to carry out a Government-funded survey this year to determine the extent of the condition.
Whales
Mr. Chisholm : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if the Government will support a total and permanent ban on commercial whaling at the International Whaling Commission meeting in Glasgow and back a proposal to declare Antarctic waters a whale sanctuary.
Mr. Curry : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 8 June 1992 to the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North (Mr. Walley), Official Report, column 11 .
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make it his policy to seek a ban on whaling in EC waters and by EC nationals.
Mr. Curry : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 4 June 1992 to the hon. Member for Southwark and Bermondsey (Mr. Hughes), Official Report, column 642.
Animal Welfare
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many animal welfare inspections were made by state veterinary officers in each year since 1985.
Mr. Soames : The figures record the number of welfare inspections carried out on farms by the State Veterinary Service. They do not include the visits made to farms for other purposes when welfare will have been monitored.
|Number
---------------------
1985 |6,064
1986 |5,804
1987 |5,219
1988 |5,670
1989 |3,902
1990 |4,168
1991 |4,584
Data Protection
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department's arrangements for consulting the Data Protection Registrar during the planning stage of any initiative involving the collection, use or disclosure of personal data ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : Officials maintain regular contact with the Office of the Data Protection Registrar about proposals for legislation which may be sensitive in the area of personal data, and the effectiveness of the arrangements is kept under review.
EC Presidency
Mr. McFall : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what are his Department's current priorities for the United Kingdom presidency of the Community.
Mr. Gummer : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Minister to my hon. Friend the Member for Taunton (Mr. Nicholson) on 4 June, column 936.
Battery Hens
Mr. Dunnachie : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make it his policy to support the abolition of battery hens ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Soames : Proposals for revised welfare standards for egg-laying hens are expected to be published by the EC Commission later this year. In the negotiations, the Government will be pressing for major improvements in the welfare standards for laying hens in all systems of production.
Set-aside
Mr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the conditions beneficial to the environment which will be placed on farmers who will enter into the set-aside scheme agreed in the common agricultural policy reform package in May ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : Environmental conditions are a vital element of the new set-aside arrangements. They will be drawn up as soon as the detailed Commission implementing regulations have been agreed. I appreciate that this will not leave as much time as I would have liked to consult on and implement the new conditions before the start of the first set-aside period and there may have to be some flexibility in this first year. More detailed measures may then be necessary for the second and subsequent years, when farmers will be in a position to decide between rotational and non- rotational set-aside.
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Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
Dr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to his answer of 8 June, Official Report, column 14, on bovine spongiform encephalopathy, if he will give the terms of reference of the committee chaired by Dr. Tyrrell.
Mr. Gummer : The terms of reference of the spongiform encephalopathy advisory committee are to advise the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Department of Health on matters related to spongiform encephalopathies.
Milk Marketing Board
Mr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about his response to the milk marketing board's plans for reform.
Mr. Curry : I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Caerphilly (Mr. Davies) on 8 June, Official Report, column 12.
Clenbuterol
Mr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will ask the Veterinary Products Committee to conduct a full review of clenbuterol ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gummer : No. The Veterinary Products Committee is already reviewing licensed veterinary products containing clenbuterol to ensure they meet up-to-date standards of safety, quality and efficacy as part of its current review of veterinary pharmaceutical product licences.
Mr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Mr. Corbett) on 22 May, Official Report, column 322, when he expects to complete his review of licences for clenbuterol ; what evidence is being used for this review ; whether he will make this evidence public ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gummer : It is not possible to estimate when the review of licensed veterinary medicinal products containing clenbuterol will have been completed. Licence holders are required to provide such evidence as is necessary to satisfy the Veterinary Products Committee that the products meet up-to-date standards of safety, quality and efficacy. Under the terms of section 118 of the Medicines Act 1968, the licensing authority cannot publish this information on grounds of commercial confidentiality.
DEFENCE
Defence Lands
Mr. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will provide tables for the United Kingdom, for England and Wales, for Scotland and for Northern Ireland of (a) the number of defence forces based there, (b) the area of defence lands, (c) the area of defence lands acquired and (d) the area of defence lands released for each year since 1962.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State will write to the hon. Member.
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Mr. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many miles of new permissive footpaths have been opened up over defence lands since 1974.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Records of permissive footpaths are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total area of defence lands contaminated with mines, unexploded bombs and ammunition which have been cleared in each year since 1974 ; and when it is expected all lands not now used for live firing will be cleared.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The area of land cleared each year since 1974- 75 is as follows :
Financial |Area Cleared Year |(hectares) --------------------------------------- 1974-75 |1,232 1975-76 |1,220 1976-77 |2,042 1977-78 |1,905 1978-79 |1,526 1979-80 |1,993 1980-81 |1,909 1981-82 |1,923 1982-83 |1,250 1983-84 |1,138 1984-85 |2,173 1985-86 |1,586 1986-87 |1,825 1987-88 |1,384 1988-89 |936 1989-90 |2,272 1990-91 |1,599 1991-92 |1,183
On current plans, work will continue into the next century.
Mr. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many foreign troops have used United Kingdom defence lands for training exercises other than in small numbers training alongside United Kingdom troops, in each year since 1974.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Defence will write to the hon. Member.
Training Sites
Mr. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the main sites used for training for United Kingdom troops outside the United Kingdom since 1974 ; and if he will list those for which future use is under review.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Under long-established arrangements, troops from the British Army currently train at various locations in the following countries outside the United Kingdom : Australia ; Belize ; Botswana ; Brunei ; Canada ; Cyprus ; Denmark ; Falkland Islands ; France ; Germany ; Gibraltar ; Hong Kong ; Hawaii ; Italy ; Jamaica ; Jordan ; Kenya ; Malaysia ; New Zealand ; Norway ; Oman ; Portugal ; Spain ; Thailand ; and the USA.
The precise date when training in each country commenced could only be made available at disproportionate cost.
The use of all training areas outside the United Kingdom is kept under regular review.
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Exercise Allegiance Exchange
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the aims and objectives of the NATO exercise, Allegiance Exchange, due to commence on 6 June.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The purpose of the Allegiance Exchange exercise was to test and exercise the operational and logistic capabilities of the Allied Command Europe Mobile Force (AMF) northern contingent and allow NATO to demonstrate solidarity by the efficient deployment, employment and subsequent redeployment of the force.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list by country, the number of (a) service personnel and (b) aircraft that will be taking part in the NATO exercise Allegiance Exchange commencing on 6 June.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The approximate number of service personnel and the number of aircraft which participated in the exercise Allegiance Exchange is listed by nation as follows :
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Belgium |203 |4 F16, 1 Bell 206 helicopter
Germany |679 |4 Alpha Jet, 8 UH1D
|helicopters
Italy |388 |6 G91
Netherlands |109 |4 F16
United Kingdom |1,506 |4 Jaguar, 4 Puma helicopters,
|6 Gazelle helicopters
United States |198 |4 A10, 3 UH1D helicopters
Civil Fire Officers
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will list for the next 12 months the dates and venues of his Department's training courses laid on for civil fire officers ; (2) if he will list for the last 24 months the dates and venue of his Department's training courses laid on for civil fire officers ; and if he will show by fire and civil defence authority those who were notified and the response obtained.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My noble Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Defence will write to the hon. Member.
Aquatic Environment
Mr. Tyler : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the responsibilities and duties of his Department and agencies which report to his Department in relation to inshore waters, intertidal areas and maritime land ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I refer the hon. Member to the Government's memorandum on this subject which was submitted to the Select Committee on the Environment in the last session. It has now been published by HMSO as part of that Committee's report on coastal zone protection and planning, volume II, minutes of evidence and appendices.
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Accommodation
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out the cost evaluations arrived at in the course of his review into RAF MOD establishments for the provision of accommodation in the Harrogate area and at RAF Wyton and RAF Brampton.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The consultative document published on 4 June sets out the options considered and a summary of the economic appraisal. The detailed costings for each option contain information which is commercially or otherwise sensitive.
Coroner's Inquest
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to this answer of 3 June, Official Report, column 569 , what were the nature and contents of his recent brief discussion with Secretary Cheney about the recent verdict of the coroner's inquest.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My right hon. and learned Friend and Secretary Cheney discussed press reports that the chairman of the House armed services sub-committee on investigations was making preliminary inquiries to see if an investigation would be appropriate.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 3 June, Official Report, column 569, how many changes he has made to his policy relating to the release of information since 6 May.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I have nothing to add to the answer I gave on 3 June, Official Report, column 569 .
WE177 Replacement
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 20 May, Official Report, column 188, whether he has used the different estimated development costs for a possible WE177 replacement to calculate an average estimated development cost for a possible WE177 replacement.
Mr. Aitken : No, Sir. Differences in estimated potential development costs are a result of differences betweeen the programmes on which they are based. An average of such figures would be meaningless.
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 20 May, Official Report, column 188, whether he has considered releasing an estimated development cost for a possible WE177 replacement which is sufficiently imprecise to avoid prejudicing his future negotiating position with potential suppliers.
Mr. Aitken : I have considered the hon. Member's suggestion, but the relatively large difference in cost between the options being evaluated means that any published estimates would be misleading.
Defence Estimate
Mr. O'Neill : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to change the contents of volume 2 of the Statement on the Defence Estimates.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Following a review of the dissemination of defence statistics, it has been decided to
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replace volume 2 of the Statement on the Defence Estimates with a similar publication called Defence Statistics. The new publication will in many cases provide a longer historical perspective as well as containing more up-to-date information. Some tables in volume 2 of the Statement on the Defence Estimates contained information that was of only specialist interest or was obtainable from other sources. These tables will be omitted from the new publication but the information they contain will either be published elsewhere or will be available on request from the Defence Statistical Organisation.Courts Martial
Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has sought or received from Commander in Chief, Fleet, about the court martial of Lieutenant-Commander Peter McDonnell ; what consideration has been given to further action arising from the sinking of the Antares ; what action is being taken on the information arising from the court martial concerning command of HMS Trenchant at the time of the sinking ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The Commander in Chief, Fleet has kept me fully informed of the reasons for and circumstances leading to the court martial of Lieutenant Commander Peter McDonnell. Both the verdict and the sentence are subject to review and Lieutenant Commander McDonnell has the right to appeal.
The Commander in Chief will also be fully reviewing the proceedings of the court martial to decide what further action, if any, might be appropriate.
Little Ferry Bomb
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the dropping of a target bomb by a United States air force plane. near Little Ferry, Sutherland on Thursday 4 June.
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Mr. Archie Hamilton : On Thursday 4 June, a practice bomb was inadvertently released from a United States Air Force (USAF) F111 aircraft using RAF Tain range. The practice bomb fell into woods near Little Ferry causing a fire. The USAF is currently conducting an investigation to establish the cause of the incident.
Maintenance Group
Mr. Mans : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what performance targets have been set for the Maintenance Group defence support agency for the financial year 1992-93.
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