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Ozone-Depleting Chemicals
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage (1) if he will outline his Department's policy on recovery and recycling of ozone-depleting chemicals ;
(2) what is his Department's policy on purchasing ozone-depleting chemicals and goods manufactured with these substances ; and in which year his Department expects to cease using, purchasing or releasing ozone depleting substances, controlled by the Montreal protocol, and HCFCs.
Mr. Mellor [holding answer 22 June 1992] : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment on 22 June, Official Report, column 95.
Anabolic Steroids
Mr. Hargreaves : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what discussions his Department is having with the Sports Council or others on restricting the use and trading of anabolic steroids in gymnasiums for sporting or other purposes ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Key [holding answer 19 June 1992] : My Department has regular discussions with the Sports Council and other Government Departments about the misuse of anabolic steroids in sport. Anabolic steroids are prescription-only drugs in the United Kingdom and it is already an offence, under the Medicines Act 1968, to sell steroids or to possess them for the purpose of sale without a licence. The Government plan to introduce legislation at the earliest parliamentary opportunity to prohibit the supply of steroids to minors, and the Department of Health is currently conducting research into the extent of anabolic steroid use.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT
Parliamentary Questions
Mr. Campbell-Savours : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total number of occasions on which the Minister for Overseas Development appeared at the Dispatch Box in Foreign Office questions to answer questions relating to overseas development and assistance to developing countries during the 1987-92 Parliament.
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Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The Minister for Overseas Development appeared on 48 occasions.
Sudan
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports have been received about the effects of the civil war in the Sudan and the number of refugees who have left the country ; what arrangements have been made by the Government to assist with the relief effort ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The civil war has had a devastating effect on southern Sudan. United Nations reports indicate the cash economy is non- existent ; infrastructure, including communications systems, has broken down and transport is not available. Access to clean water, health and sanitation services is very limited. There are large numbers of internally displaced people.
Refugee movements in the south are complex. Last year 300,000 Sudanese refugees returned to southern Sudan from Ethiopia. This year about 20,000 refugees have crossed into northern Kenya.
Since 1989 we have provided £17.8 million to Operation Lifeline Sudan, the United Nations programme to provide relief assistance to the south. This year, Sudanese refugees will benefit from the £7 million we have pledged to help refugees in the Horn of Africa.
Development Assistance
Mr. Jonathan Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much official development assistance was given to developing countries in 1991 as a percentage of gross national product.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : United Kingdom official development assistance in 1991 was £1,841 million, which represented 0.32 per cent. of GNP. This maintains our average aid-GNP over the last five years at 0.30 per cent.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Fair Employment
Rev. Martin Smyth : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what evidence he has of the existence of deliberate discrimination in Northern Ireland employment.
Mr. Atkins : The Fair Employment Tribunal is the body charged with the determination of cases of alleged discrimination in employment on the grounds of religious belief or political opinion. Similarly, industrial tribunals determine cases of alleged sex discrimination. The findings of these tribunals are a matter of public record.
Maghaberry Prison
Mr. McNamara : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many prisoners were charged with disciplinary offences and which offences following disturbances at Her Majesty's prison Maghaberry on23 March.
Mr. Mates : There were no disturbances at Her Majesty's prison Maghaberry on 23 March.
Mr. McNamara : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the number of strip searches
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made on female prisoners at Her Majesty's prison Maghaberry monthly since July 1971 ; what was the number of persons involved and the number of times each person was searched ; what prison contraband, smuggled items, or illegal correspondence were discovered in any search ; in how many cases prisoners refused to be searched and had to be restrained while the search was being conducted ; and what were the reasons for each search.Mr. Mates : The hon. Member's question is incapable of answer, since Her Majesty's prison Maghaberry was not opened until March 1986.
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Environment Research Programmes
Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what plans he has to make the RRS James Clark Ross, the RSS Discovery, the RSS Charles Darwin and the RRS Challenger environmental research programmes available to schools.
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Mr. Robert Jackson : The Natural Environment Research Council arranges guided tours for school parties around its research vessels, during the limited time they are in United Kingdom ports. The tours include an introduction to the environmental research programmes supported by the particular vessel.
Agencies
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list the names, date of creation and numbers of staff employed by the independent executive agencies.
Mr. Waldegrave : The information requested is as follows :
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Agency |Launch date |Staff<1>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Accounts Services Agency |1 October 1991 |90
ADAS Agency |1 April 1992 |2,500
Building Research Establishment |2 April 1990 |700
Cadw (Welsh Historic Monuments) |1 April 1991 |230
Central Office of Information<2> |5 April 1990 |670
Central Science Laboratory |1 April 1992 |370
Central Statistical Office |19 November 1991 |1,090
Central Veterinary Laboratory |2 April 1990 |590
Chemical and Biological Defence Establishment<3> |1 April 1991 |600
Civil Service College |6 June 1989 |230
Companies House<2> |3 October 1988 |1,070
Compensation Agency<4> |1 April 1992 |150
Defence Research Agency |1 April 1991 |12,150
Directorate General of Defence Accounts<3> |1 April 1991 |2,130
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency |2 April 1990 |4,580
Driver and Vehicle Testing Agency<4> |1 April 1992 |250
Driving Standards Agency |2 April 1990 |2,080
Duke of Yorks Royal Military School |1 April 1992 |100
DVOIT |1 April 1992 |590
Employment Service |2 April 1990 |38,400
Fire Service College<2> |1 April 1992 |160
Forensic Science Service |1 April 1991 |600
Historic Royal Palaces |1 October 1989 |330
Historic Scotland |1 April 1991 |630
HMSO<2> |14 December 1988 |3,250
Hydrographic Office<3> |6 April 1990 |860
Insolvency Service |21 March 1990 |1,470
Intervention Board |2 April 1990 |980
Laboratory of the Government Chemist |30 October 1989 |340
Land Registry |2 July 1990 |9,800
Medicines Control Agency |1 July 1991 |300
Meteorological Office |2 April 1990 |2,390
Military Survey<3> |1 April 1991 |1,300
National Engineering Laboratory |5 October 1990 |390
National Physical Laboratory |3 July 1990 |830
National Weights and Measures Laboratory |18 April 1989 |50
Natural Resources Institute |2 April 1990 |440
Naval Aircraft Repair Organisation<3> |1 April 1992 |1,510
NHS Estates |1 April 1991 |120
Occupational Health Service |2 April 1990 |100
Ordnance Survey |1 May 1990 |2,380
Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland<4> |1 April 1992 |210
Patent Office<2> |1 March 1990 |1,080
Planing Inspectorate |1 April 1992 |630
Public Record Office |1 April 1992 |440
Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre |6 July 1989 |60
Queen Victoria School |1 April 1992 |60
Radiocommunications Agency |2 April 1990 |520
RAF Maintenance<3> |1 April 1991 |13,300
Rate Collection Agency<4> |1 April 1991 |270
Recruitment and Assessment Services Agency |1 April 1991 |240
Registers of Scotland |6 April 1990 |1,280
Royal Mint<2> |2 April 1990 |1,020
Scottish Agricultural Science Agency |1 April 1992 |140
Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency |1 April 1991 |210
Service Childrens Schools (North West Europe)<3> |1 April 1991 |2,300
Social Security Agency<4> |1 July 1991 |5,350
Social Security Benefits Agency |1 April 1991 |63,100
Social Security Contributions Agency |1 April 1991 |8,000
Social Security Information Technology Services |2 April 1991 |4,000
Agency
Social Security Resettlement Agency |24 May 1989 |520
Teachers Pensions Agency |1 April 1992 |300
The Buying Agency<2> |1 November 1991 |110
Training and Employment Agency<4> |2 April 1990 |1,670
Transport Research Laboratory |1 April 1992 |580
United Kingdom Passport Agency |2 April 1991 |1,250
Valuation Office |30 September 1991|5,200
Vehicle Certification Agency |2 April 1990 |80
Vehicle Inspectorate<2> |1 September 1988 |1,820
Veterinary Medicines Directorate |2 April 1990 |80
Warren Spring Laboratory |20 April 1989 |310
Wilton Park Conference Centre |1 September 1991 |30
72 in number |210,960
Customs and Excise<5> (30 Executive Units) |1 April 1991 |26,800
Inland Revenue<5> (34 Executive Offices) | April 1992
TOTAL<6> |299,860
TOTAL CIVIL SERVANTS<7> |290,490
<1>October 1991 figures for Civil Servants and Armed Forces personnel. Casuals are excluded. Part-time
staff are counted as half units.
<2>Trading Fund.
<3>Defence Support Agency.
<4>Northern Ireland Civil Service.
<5>Departments operating fully on Next Steps lines. Staffing figure for Inland Revenue excludes the
Valuation Office which is a free standing agency.
<6>Includes 8,070 Armed Forces personnel in Ministry of Defence Agencies, and 1,300 locally engaged
staff in Service Childrens Schools (North West Europe).
<7>Includes 7,900 Civil Servants in agencies of the Northern Ireland Civil Service.
TRANSPORT
Channel Tunnel
Mr. Harris : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the Government response to the Transport Select Committee's second report, Session 1991-92, "Preparations for the Opening of the Channel Tunnel" H.C. 12--1, will be published ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : The Government welcome the Committee's report. My right hon. Friend has today published the Government response--Cm. 1987. Copies have been tabled in the Journal Office and the Clerk of the Parliaments' Office. Copies have also been placed in the House Libraries.
Thames River Services
Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what forecasts have been made of the likely growth in (a) commuter traffic and (b) tourist traffic using river passenger services on the Thames ; and what discussions his officials have had about an application for section 56 grant to invest in piers and vessels to accommodate growth in demand.
Mr. Norris : Forecasts provided to us by the Riverbus Partnership showed a projected growth in demand for Riverbus services from 400, 000 per annum in 1991 to a
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peak of 750,000 per annum in 1993 with a gradual decline thereafter until 1997, when the demand is forecast to level off at about 400,000 per annum. I know of no forecasts of tourist traffic using other river services.Ministers and officials have had several meetings with the Riverbus Partnership to discuss a possible application for a section 56 grant. Preliminary discussions were also held with another company contemplating setting up a service. Both have been told that grant would not be available in 1993-94.
Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his policy in respect of encouraging the development of river passenger transport in London ; and what action he has taken in the last year to promote river passenger transport.
Mr. Norris : I should like to encourage greater use of the River Thames for both freight and passengers. I should welcome proposals from operators and others to develop services, including the means of financing them.
My officials have had discussion with river users and their representatives to explore the potential of the River Thames and its associated facilities. I intend that such discussions should continue.
Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action he plans to take to safeguard the Riverbus services in the light of the impending withdrawal
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of its operating subsidy by Olympia and York ; and what information he has on the numbers using the service daily (a) overall and (b) to London city airport.Mr. Norris : I have looked at the possibility of providing an operating subsidy to Riverbus. I have concluded that such a subsidy would not represent good value for money in transport terms. I understand that 228,000 passengers used Riverbus in the first five months of 1992. Of these, 14,000 travelled to the London City airport.
Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received and what discussions he has had about the future of the Riverbus services.
Mr. Norris : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I have received representations from the owners of the London City airport, from the airport's managing director, from two airlines, from the Riverbus Partnership, from the Port of London Authority, from the Chelsea Reach Association, and from 14 hon. Members enclosing a letter from the chairman of Mowlem, owners of the London City Airport. There have been no formal discussions about Riverbus.
South Circular Road
Mr. Dowd : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give the planned start on site and finish dates for the A205, south circular, Catford town centre relief road.
Mr. Norris : Until land acquisition is completed, it would be premature to forecast the timing of construction work.
Mr. Dowd : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to improve consultation arrangements between his Department and the London borough councils through which the A205, south circular road passes, regarding all types of highway work and pedestrian safety.
Mr. Norris : I consider the present arrangements satisfactory. Frequent contact takes place between officials of the Department and individual boroughs on matters of mutual interest, including improvements to the roads for which the Secretary of State is responsible.
Jubilee Line
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will state (a) the current projected cost of the Jubilee line in current and 1989 prices, (b) the length of time over which private sector contributions are to be paid and from what source, (c) the proportion of the current cost, and 1989 cost that is now proposed to be covered from such contributions when discounted to a common base year and (d) the methods and assumptions on which the private sector contributions have been discounted.
Mr. Norris : The current projected cost of the Jubilee line extension is £1,420 million in 1989 prices and £1,828 million in current--cash--prices. Private sector contributions were promised by Olympia and York--O and Y--Heron Quays Developments Limited--HQDL--and British Gas--BG.
O and Y was to have contributed £400 million cash, comprising £40 million on 31 March 1992 ; £60 million on
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31 March 1993 ; and a stream of payments over 24 years, or a single discounted payment, once the extension was opened. At the time the company went into administration, it had not completed its funding agreement with London Underground Limited--LUL-- setting out the terms under which its contributions were to have been made.HQDL was to have made a single payment of £2.4 million at November 1989 prices, uplifted by 10 per cent. per annum and payable in June 1992. The company, which is a joint venture company owned partly by O and Y and partly by Regalian Homes Limited, has told LUL it cannot proceed now that O and Y has gone into administration.
BG is to make contributions in cash and kind, estimated in 1989 to be worth £24.7 million. Some of those contributions are to be uplifted at 12 per cent. per annum to the dates on which they are paid. The detailed terms under which the contributions are to be paid, including the length of time over which they would be paid, is to be specified in the funding agreement with LUL, which is still to be negotiated.
We continue to look to the private sector to make these contributions so that the line may proceed. If the contributions were all forthcoming, the proportion of the extension's total cost covered would be just over 12 per cent. in 1989 prices or 24 per cent. of the current--cash--price. The HQDL and BG contributions have not been discounted as they were originally expressed in 1989 prices. The O and Y contribution has been discounted at 8 per cent. per annum.
EDUCATION
Schools (Effectiveness)
Mr. Cummings : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions his Department is having concerning the most appropriate criteria to include in league tables when measuring schools' effectiveness.
Mr. Patten : Comparative tables will this year cover public examination results ; next year we plan to include national curriculum assessment results, truancy rates and information about the educational and other routes taken by older pupils. We consulted widely on plans for 1992 and will do so again for 1993.
Butlers Hill Infant School, Hucknall
Mr. Tipping : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make a statement on the Butlers Hill infant school, Hucknall.
Mr. Forth : Nottinghamshire LEA has submitted a bid for a supplementary credit approval to enable the school to be replaced. My right hon. Friend hopes to make an announcement soon about SCAs for the current year.
Teachers
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what representations he has had regarding the number of teacher posts for September 1992.
Mr. Gunnell : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what representations he has had regarding teacher redundancies for September 1992.
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Mr. Forth : My right hon. Friend has received letters from a number of sources relating to the employment of teachers ; a proportion of these refer to changes in numbers of teacher posts for September 1992.Standard Assessment Tasks
Ms. Quin : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he has had with the National Association of Head Teachers regarding standard assessment tasks at key stage 1.
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he expects standard assessment tasks to be taken in 1993 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forth : We are currently consulting about the arrangements for assessing both seven and 14-year-olds in 1993, including about the timing of the national tests. My right hon. Friend expects shortly to reach final decisions about the testing arrangements for 1993 in the light of the consultations.
English Curriculum
18. Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what representations he has received from the National Curriculum Council regarding the content of the English national curriculum.
Mr. Forth : My right hon. Friend has received no such representations.
29. Mr. Kilfoyle : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he has had with the National Association of Advisers in English and the National Association for the Teaching of English following their recent report on the English curriculum.
Mr. Forth : My right hon. Friend has had no such discussions.
Grant-maintained Schools
20. Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what representations he has received on the subject of
grant-maintained status from primary and secondary schools.
Mr. Forth : My right hon. Friend continues to receive views from numerous bodies and individuals on grant-maintained status.
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what modifications he has sought to the proposed admissions policies of schools seeking grant-maintained status in Essex ; and what are the reasons in each case for the modifications.
Mr. Forth : I will write to my hon. Friend with the information she has requested.
Local Management of Schools
21. Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the impact of local management of schools on local authority-wide music provision ; and if he will make a statement on the Government's future plans in this respect.
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Mr. Forth : There is no direct relationship between the introduction of local management of schools and the level of music provision.
Student Unions
22. Mr. Alexander : To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he expects to announce the outcome of his Department's inquiry into student unions ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forman : I plan to bring the current consultations on student unions to a close in the near future.
Expenditure (Examination Results)
23. Mr. Merchant : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make a statement on the relationship between spending by local education authorities and examination results.
Mr. Forth : There is no straightforward relationship between spending by local education authorities and examination results ; higher spending does not, of itself, guarantee better results.
Hendon School
24. Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many pupils applied to enter Hendon grant-maintained school in 1992-93 and in 1988-89.
Mr. Forth : The Department does not collect centrally information on applications for admissions to grant-maintained schools. However, I understand from Hendon school that it has received 420 applications for admission in September 1992. The school admitted 103 pupils in 1988.
Assessment
25. Dr. Berry : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he plans to review the arrangements for the assessment of pupils in the light of the proposals for Scotland.
Mr. Forth : No, we have no intention of abandoning a system that works.
School Governors
26. Mr. Moss : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps are being taken to encourage parents to stand for election as school governors.
Mr. Forth : The Department is playing its part in efforts to attract new school governors this autumn, including parents. My right hon. Friend launched the "Schools Need Governors" campaign on 28 April. I have followed this up at a number of events designed to raise awareness of school governor issues and the satisfaction which membership of governing bodies can bring. We have appointed Mrs. Ann Holt to support and co-ordinate local authorities' recruitment plans. We have paid for the production of a leaflet and poster--translated into eight ethnic minority languages--for distribution to all schools and libraries in England and Wales. We are spending around £300,000 on the campaign, which I am confident will be successful.
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Nursery Education
27. Ms. Coffey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proposals he has to ensure that adequate resources will be made available for nursery education provision throughout England and Wales for 1993-94.
Mr. Forth : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Northfield (Mr. Burden) on 19 May, Official Report, column 107.
Parents Charter
28. Mrs. Angela Knight : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many copies of the parents charter have been distributed to parents.
Mr. Forth : Some 5.3 million copies, in English and ethnic minority languages, were requested by individuals and by the two thirds of schools which distributed copies direct to parents. More than 1 million further copies were distributed through main post offices and public libraries.
Pupil : Teacher Ratios
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what has been the average pupil : teacher ratio since May 1979 ; what was the October 1974 to May 1979 average : and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Forth : The average overall PTR for the period January 1980 to January 1991 inclusive, the latest date for which full information is available was 17.7. For the period January 1975 to January 1979 inclusive the average overall PTR was 19.6.
Higher Education Funding Councils
Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what study he is making of the number of Scottish students attending English universities after the establishment of higher education funding councils.
Mr. Forman : My Department is making no such study. Places for home students at higher education institutions in England will be funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England irrespective of domicile. The same principle will apply to funding for places at institutions in Scotland and Wales by the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council and the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.
Single-Sex Education
Sir Michael Neubert : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what percentage of children of school age receive single-sex education in (a) Romford, (b) the London borough of Havering and (c) England and Wales generally ; and what assessment he has made of the extent to which this provides adequate choice for parents in the state sector.
Mr. Forth : Information for schools in Romford is not available centrally. Information on schools in Wales is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Wales. In January 1991, the percentages of children of compulsory school age receiving education in maintained single sex schools in Havering local education authority and England as a whole are 9.2 and 4.7 respectively. It is for each local education authority to determine the demand for single sex education in its area.
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Statementing
Mr. McCartney : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will review the arrangements for the statementing of children with special education needs ; and what discussions he has had on the provision of medical services to children attending special education establishments in the Wigan metropolitan borough.
Mr. Forth : On 11 June my noble Friend the Minister of State said in another place that the Government had undertaken a fundamental review of the Education Act 1981, and announced the Government's proposals to legislate to improve present arrangements for assessments and statements. We shall consult widely on the detail of our proposals.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has ministerial responsibility for the provision of medical services.
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