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Pit Closures
Mr. Churchill : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Clydebank and Milngavie (Mr. Worthington) of 21 October, Official Report, column 315, if he will now make it his policy to establish a study of the cost to be incurred by the loss of income tax, VAT and national insurance contributions and the payment of unemployment and other social security benefits in respect of the closure of the 31 pits originally indicated in the announcement of 13 October, so far as the figure can be assessed.
Mr. Dorrell : There is no means of accurately assessing these costs. To estimate the net cost of closing a pit it would be necessary to establish the costs of alternative courses of action. For example, the cost of subsidising a pit would have to be borne by electricity consumers, taxpayers or by diverting funds from other public expenditure programmes, all of which would have implications for employment elsewhere which are impossible to assess accurately.
Trinidad Agreement
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to extend the terms of the Trinidad agreement to cover Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Mr. Dorrell : Debt relief on Trinidad terms has been extended by the Paris club to a total of 10 of the world's poorest and most heavily indebted countries, including Zambia, but Trinidad terms are not intended for less-indebted, lower-middle income countries such as Zimbabwe.
Departmental Properties
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list for each local authority area in south Yorkshire, how many residential properties are currently owned by his Department ; and if he will list, by location, those residential properties which are empty, giving the type of accommodation available, the length of time each property has been vacant, and its intended future use.
Sir John Cope : Departments of the Chancellor of the Exchequer do not own any residential property in South Yorkshire.
Debt
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to increase the proportion of developing country debt eligible for write-off from 50 per cent. to 66 per cent.
Sir John Cope : The Government were responsible for the Trinidad initiative to tackle the debt burden of the poorest and most indebted countries, and hopes that Trinidad terms can be developed further in the direction of our original proposals which were for a benchmark figure of two thirds reduction applied immediately to the whole stock of debt.
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Public Record Office
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many papers his Department has currently withdrawn from the Public Record Office ; if he will list their titles ; and when he estimates that they will be returned.
Sir John Cope : Government Departments have a statutory right under the Public Records Acts to retrieve records temporarily from the Public Record Office for their own administrative use. Her Majesty's Treasury currently has 173 records out on loan. To list them all would involve disproportionate cost. Records are returned as soon as departmental action has been completed.
Trinidad Terms
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what efforts have been undertaken by his Department to persuade other creditor countries to join the Trinidad terms agreement.
Sir John Cope : The Government have given a strong lead in tackling the debt burden of the poorest and most indebted countries and was responsible for both the Toronto and the Trinidad initiatives. The Government are committed to the task of persuading its Paris club partners to agree further improvements to the Trinidad terms, including encouraging all creditors, without exception, to implement debt reduction under these agreed terms.
Value Added Tax
Mr. Stevenson : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment has been made into the effect of value added tax changes that require payment on account rather than in arrears in Stoke-on-Trent, South ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir John Cope : It is not possible to analysise by constituency area the effects of the requirement that the largest VAT payers should make payments monthly in arrears rather than quarterly in arrears. Overall, the change brings United Kingdom practice into line with that in most other EC member states, and offsets the cash flow loss to the Exchequer which would otherwise arise as a result of the reintroduction in this financial year of postponed accounting for VAT on acquisitions from other EC countries.
Savings
Mr. Wareing : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the amount of (a) personal and (b) corporate savings in each of the years 1981 to 1991 inclusive ; and what was the total amount of savings represented as a proportion of gross domestic product in each of these years.
Mr. Dorrell : The figures for savings, before deducting depreciation and stock appreciation, are as follows :
|Personal sector |Corporate sector |Total savings as
|savings |savings |percentage of GDP
|(A) at market
|prices
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1981 |22.3 |28.0 |19
1982 |21.6 |30.8 |18
1983 |19.9 |39.4 |19
1984 |24.7 |40.7 |19
1985 |25.9 |42.7 |19
1986 |22.8 |46.0 |17
1987 |19.6 |54.7 |18
1988 |17.8 |56.4 |18
1989 |23.5 |54.5 |18
1990 |31.7 |50.7 |17
1991 |39.8 |46.5 |15
North Sea Gas
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the effect on tax revenue (a) in total and (b) in percentage terms, of offsets against petroleum revenue taxation resulting from the project for the offshore transportation of gas from the central North sea via the central area transmission system to Teesside ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Dorrell : I have made no such estimate.
Retail Prices Index
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the percentage change in (a) the retail prices index and (b) the health service prices index between September 1991 and September 1992 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Portillo [holding answer 6 November 1992] : The retail prices index rose by 3.6 per cent. and the health service prices index rose by 4.8 per cent.
Unlike the retail prices index, the health service prices index measures changes in input costs, whereas it is output costs which bear on the amount of health care delivered. Output costs in the NHS have over long periods moved in line with those in the economy, taking account of efficiency gains.
Auditors
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward proposals for legislation under which auditors of insurance companies would be prohibited from recruiting company directors.
Mr. Neil Hamilton : I have been asked to reply.
I see no reason to do so. Ethical guidance issued by the professional accountancy bodies states that no one should take part in the audit of a company if he has, during the period on which the report is to be made or at any time in the two years prior to the first day of that period, been an officer, other than auditor, or employee of that company. Under part II of the Companies Act 1989, recognised supervisory bodies are required to have adequate rules and practices as to professional integrity and independence.
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EDUCATION
Higher Education
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what percentage of 18-year-olds are in higher education in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) the United States of America and (c) Japan.
Mr. Forman : The readily available figures are given in the table and represent participation at all ages--generally 18 and over.
New entrants<1> to higher education, 1988
Country |(main ages on entry)|Participation
|rate<2>
|(percentage)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Japan<3> |18 |37-52
United Kingdom<4> |18-21 |37
United States of
America<5> |18 |33-65
<1>Includes full-time and part-time students entering higher education for the
first time i.e. excluding postgraduate students and others already having a
qualification in higher education.
<2>To aid comparison and overcome the problem of the varying lengths of courses in
different countries, the participation rate is the percentage of all new entrants (
defined above) to a derived relevant single year group. The latter is calculated by
taking the total populations for the ages providing at least 70 per cent. of the
new entrants and dividing by the number of ages involved. For the United Kingdom
this is the population of ages 18 to 21 divided by 4. OECD recommend this
procedure.
<3>The higher figure shown includes data for advanced special training schools (
SENSHU') which may be equivalent to sub-degree higher education.
<4>Excludes the private sector and students from abroad. Includes nursing and
paramedical students at Health Department establishments.
<5>The lower figure excludes students on two-year courses, some of which may not be
equivalent to sub-degree higher education.
Public Record Office
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many papers his Department has currently withdrawn from the Public Record Office ; if he will list their titles ; and when he estimates that they will be returned.
Mr. Forman : Government Departments have a statutory right under the Public Records Acts temporarily to retrieve records from the Public Record Office for their own administrative use.
The Department for Education regularly withdraws records relating to closed voluntary schools to deal with legal issues surrounding the disposal of premises. At present, the Department holds 50 records ; of which nine are for those purposes described above. The others are being scrutinised for early release to the public. To list them all would involve disproportionate cost.
It is unusual for this Department to withdraw records for more than two weeks and all are returned as soon as departmental action is complete.
Universal Education
Mrs. Bridget Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what contribution the United Kingdom is making to the
UNESCO-co-ordinated initiative, "Education for All" ; and what work his Department is doing towards achieving the objective of basic education for every child and adult around the world.
Column 680
Mr. Forman : The Government support the objective of ensuring universal access to basic education. In the United Kingdom education is compulsory for all children of school age. The Government also recognise the importance of basic education for adults. Under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, the further education funding councils will be under a duty to secure the provision of adequate facilities for literacy and numeracy teaching for adults. The Goverment will also continue to promote education in developing countries in collaboration with other aid donors, including UNESCO, UNICEF and the World bank. The Overseas Development Administration aims to identify new projects which will improve the quality, availability and relevance of education in developing countries, with particular reference to promoting literacy for women.
Departmental Properties
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will list, for each local authority area in South Yorkshire, how many residential properties are currently owned by his Department ; and if he will list, by location, those residential properties which are empty, giving the type of accommodation available, the length of time each property has been vacant, and its intended future use.
Mr. Forman : The Department owns no properties in South Yorkshire.
School Phobia
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what research has been undertaken into school phobia ; and what advice local education authorities receive in order to deal with this condition.
Mr. Forth : The most recent research on school phobia known to the Department is that undertaken by Mr. Nigel Blagg and summarised in his publication "School Phobia and its Treatment", published in 1987. The Department has not issued any guidance on the subject to date.
Nursery Education
Miss Lestor : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much money has been made available for nursery education under the capital grants system for grant-maintained schools for the financial years 1991-92, 1992-93 and how much has been allocated for 1993-94.
Mr. Forth : No money has been specifically set aside for nursery education under the capital grants system. All bids for capital grants are considered on their merits in the light of the funds available and the competing needs of all the schools in the grant-maintained sector.
Miss Lestor : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance he has given to chairmen and governors of grant-mainted schools concerning the eligibility of nursery education projects for support funding under the allocation of capital grants to grant-maintained schools for 1993-94.
Mr. Forth : No specific guidance has been issued to cover nursery provision. The guidance offered to schools on capital bids applies throughout the grant-maintained sector, and as such includes nursery projects.
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Workers Educational Association
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what is the current level of funding for the Workers Educational Association ; and what is the projected funding for this organisation for the next financial year.
Mr. Forman : The Workers Educational Association in England is currently funded by a mixture of direct grant from the Department for Education and education support grant via local education authorities. In 1992-93 DFE grant is £2,266,000, while ESG funding, 70 per cent. of which is also provided by central Government, amounts to £1.3 million.
From 1993-94, the Further Education Funding Council for England will take over responsibility for the grant currently paid by the Department for Education. It will be for the council to determine the level of that funding in the light of the overall resources available to it. The ESG funding will continue in 1993-94 at the same level as in 1992-93.
Discretionary Awards
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what was the total expenditure, in each local education authority, for major discretionary awards in the last available financial year ;
(2) how many local education authorities did not give major discretionary awards to students in the last financial year.
Mr. Forman : The available information is shown in the table. Three LEAs--Avon, Berkshire and Sunderland--were unable to provide information ; one--Camden--made 149 discretionary awards at 50 to 100 per cent. of the mandatory rate ; and two--Trafford and Isles of Scilly--made no such awards.
Academic year 1990-91
Discretionary awards paid at 50 to 100 per cent. of
mandatory rate
total expenditure on fees and maintenance
Local authority |Total expenditure
-----------------------------------------------------------
City of London |18,798
Camden |n/a
Greenwich |353,670
Hackney |645,103
Hammersmith |307,388
Islington |57,013
Kensington |363,340
Lambeth |984,677
Lewisham |807,683
Southwark |709,091
Tower Hamlets |430,447
Wandsworth |2,011,917
Westminster |243,983
ILEA |6,252,653
Barking |248,514
Barnet |137,877
Bexley |365,139
Brent |810,816
Bromley |767,568
Croydon |515,467
Ealing |869,155
Enfield |456,151
Haringey |105,806
Harrow |371,725
Havering |439,685
Hillingdon |317,122
Hounslow |199,896
Kingston |434,735
Merton |202,681
Newham |445,621
Redbridge |907,650
Richmond |559,539
Sutton |259,318
Waltham Forest |580,722
Birmingham |1,776,135
Coventry |248,311
Dudley |275,699
Sandwell |543,469
Solihull |289,691
Walsall |1,343,472
Wolverhampton |223,502
Knowsley |1,179,233
Liverpool |2,806,557
St. Helens |209,906
Sefton |931,970
Wirral |1,709,108
Bolton |849,613
Bury |470,671
Manchester |417,897
Oldham |281,725
Rochdale |364,178
Salford |154,132
Stockport |352,327
Tameside |240,561
Trafford |0
Wigan |262,426
Barnsley |908,022
Doncaster |455,264
Rotherham |259,742
Sheffield |427,225
Bradford |1,535,646
Calderdale |500,408
Kirklees |1,550,050
Leeds |1,511,568
Wakefield |806,997
Gateshead |710,585
Newcastle |402,324
North Tyneside |571,188
South Tyneside |471,657
Sunderland |n/a
Isles of Scilly |0
Clwyd |1,354,949
Dyfed |434,253
Gwent |827,120
Gwnedd |40,344
Mid Glamorgan |810,978
Powys |726,730
South Glamorgan |1,401,259
West Glamorgan |1,039,103
Bedfordshire |755,605
Buckinghamshire |1,188,107
Cambridgeshire |1,769,427
Cheshire |5,361,145
Cleveland |1,732,699
Cornwall |1,083,959
Cumbria |2,577,192
Derbyshire |1,169,704
Devon |4,739,157
Dorset |2,856,554
Durham |1,876,144
Essex |2,737,523
Gloucestershire |2,297,285
Hampshire |6,466,014
Hereford and Worcester |1,455,101
Hertfordshire |1,341,536
Humberside |3,772,527
Isle of Wight |367,022
Kent |4,698,803
Lancashire |5,251,306
Leicestershire |4,925,489
Lincolnshire |1,463,177
Norfolk |2,153,400
North Yorkshire |8,114,410
Northamptonshire |1,186,418
Northumberland |655,407
Nottinghamshire |2,739,570
Oxfordshire |1,230,249
Shropshire |1,550,763
Somerset |1,573,456
Staffordshire |1,510,034
Suffolk |2,969,060
Surrey |1,305,778
Warwickshire |553,503
West Sussex |591,123
Wiltshire |1,308,156
Avon |n/a
Berkshire |n/a
|-------
Total |141,997,949
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what action can be taken by students, in local education authorities where major discretionary awards have been cut or withdrawn, in order to finance non-degree or degree equivalent courses ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what steps he will take to ensure an equitable availability of major discretionary awards between local education authorities.
Mr. Forman : It is for each local education authority to determine its own policies and expenditure on discretionary awards in the light of local needs and priorities. The local authority grant settlement for 1992- 93 allowed for a substantial increase in overall education spending. Students who are unsuccessful in obtaining discretionary awards may seek help from, for example, their institutions' access funds, sponsors such as employers, educational trusts or other sources.
Schools
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many local education authority schools were open and functioning in each year since 1979.
Mr. Forth : The table shows, for each year since 1979, the number of LEA-maintained schools in England which were open in January of each year.
Column 684
|Schools
------------------------
1979 |28,085
1980 |28,006
1981 |27,747
1982 |27,323
1983 |26,974
1984 |26,479
1985 |26,110
1986 |25,800
1987 |25,593
1988 |25,389
1989 |25,158
1990 |24,999
1991 |24,759
<1>1992 |24,449
<1> Provisional
Disabled Students
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what level of funding local education authorities receive in order to ensure access to education establishments for disabled persons.
Mr. Forth : Local authorities do not receive any grant specifically for this purpose. Central Government support for local authorities is virtually entirely through general grant, which is not hypothecated to particular purposes. Local authorities are thus free to determine their own spending priorities. Information on local education authorities' spending to ensure access to education establishments for disabled persons is not collected centrally.
University Admissions
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will list, for the last five years, the figures for admission to British universities by type of school of those admitted ; and if he will give both the aggregate figure and the figure for each university.
Mr. Forman : The number of United Kingdom domiciled candidates in Great Britain accepted through the UCCA scheme for entry to full-time and sandwich first degree courses at United Kingdom universities are shown in the table.
Column 683
Academic Year Beginning
|1986 |1987 |1988 |1989 |1990
|0000s|0000s|0000s|0000s|0000s
------------------------------------------------------------
Maintained Schools
Grammar/Technical |4.7 |4.6 |4.6 |5.1 |5.8
Sixth Form College |6.2 |6.7 |6.4 |7.2 |8.7
Comprehensive |20.9 |20.7 |20.8 |22.7 |25.6
Other Secondary |0.2 |0.2 |0.1 |0.1 |0.2
|--- |--- |--- |--- |---
Total<1> |37.5 |37.8 |37.6 |40.8 |46.0
|--- |--- |--- |--- |---
Independent Schools<1> |14.9 |14.7 |15.5 |16.8 |18.6
FHE Sector<1> |8.2 |8.3 |10.1 |11.3 |13.8
|--- |--- |--- |--- |---
Total<1> |60.6 |60.8 |63.3 |69.1 |78.4
Not Classified<1><2> |10.9 |11.9 |11.2 |11.6 |14.1
Total Acceptances<1><2> |71.3 |72.7 |74.4 |80.6 |92.5
Source: UCCA Statistical Supplements.
<1> Includes acceptances from Scotland.
<2> Includes acceptances of those who applied direct to
UCCA, whether or not they were attending an FHE institution
at the time.
Information for each institution individually is not published by UCCA.
School Transport
Mr. Bates : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what action he proposes to take with regard to the proposal in the consultation paper "Competing for Quality : Competition in the Provision of Local Services" to introduce compulsory competitive tendering for transport centrally organised by local education authorities for journeys between home and school or college.
Mr. Forth : My right hon. Friend, and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales, remain committed to imposing a rigorous competitive regime on local authorities' provision of vehicles for home to school and home to college transport. In the light of responses to "Competing for Quality", they have concluded that this can best be achieved by imposing on all authorities, not just those running their own transport fleets, a competitive tendering regime compatible with that already required by the Transport Act 1985 in respect of public transport subsidised by local authorities. This will enable authorities to continue to make co-ordinated, cost-effective arrangements for all transport provided from or assisted by public funds, as required by the 1985 Act. It will also mean that local transport operators will work under a single tendering regime.
The 1985 Act regime needs to be amended to provide for competition between private contractors and authorities' own work forces in accordance with the principles of the compulsory competitive tendering regime laid down in the Local Government Act 1988. This will require primary legislation, which will be brought forward at the earliest opportunity.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Battlefield Sites
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list, by county for the United Kingdom, the initiatives he proposes to introduce to secure the preservation of battlefield sites.
Mr. Brooke : The Government have invited English Heritage to prepare a register of battlefield sites in England to inform planning decisions which may affect them. The National Army museum is currently undertaking the research for the register on behalf of English Heritage. The register should be available for consultation early next year. Responsibility for the preservation of battlefield sites in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland rests with the relevant Secretaries of State.
Local Authority Services
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how the Government intend to proceed on the proposed extension of compulsory competitive tendering to local authority managed arts facilities and public library support services.
Mr. Brooke : The Government believe that the wider application of competition to the provision of local authority services will bring significant benefits in terms of the quality and value for money for the public.
Column 686
Proposals to extend compulsory competitive tendering (CCT) to a range of local authority services, including arts facilities and library support services, were set out in the consultation paper "Competing for Quality", published in November 1991. I have discussed with my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Wales the responses to that document which referred to arts and library services, and we are agreed on the way forward in those areas.On arts facilities, my Department received some 180 responses, mostly from local authorities and arts organisations. We are grateful for the helpful comments contained in those responses. In reaching conclusions, I have also taken into account the Audit Commission's report "Local Authorities, Entertainment and the Arts" (January 1991), which identified three principal weaknesses in local authority arts management : lack of policy objectives, absence of monitoring of performance and inadequate financial control.
On the evidence before me, I am satisfied that there is scope to improve local authority arts provision through the introduction of increased competition. However, I have also concluded from that evidence that there are appreciable differences between the management of arts facilities and that of most of the other services to which the extension of CCT has been set out in a written reply by my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment. Particularly important considerations are the wide diversity between local authorities in the extent and type of arts facilities provided and the very long planning times required in drawing up arts programmes.
In view of these differences, I propose to commission consultants to undertake further studies in order to determine how competition might best be applied to this area of local authority management. In addition, to assist local authorities in clarifying and monitoring their service objectives, the Audit Commission will be invited to identify and disseminate models of good practice.
With regard to public library support services, we received 130 responses to the consultation paper from commercial library suppliers, individual librarians and members of the public as well as from local authorities. Many local authority responses drew on experience with existing contracts for library support services or on studies which they had already carried out into the potential for contracting out support work. I am grateful for the helpful way in which respondents dealt with our proposal.
From this evidence, it is clear to me that competition has already resulted in value for money from library support services and that there is little scope for further cost reductions in the areas covered in the consultation exercise. I have concluded, therefore, that CCT for support services would not necessarily be the best way forward for encouraging greater competition in the public library field.
However, I do see scope for extending the contracting out of services in the library field, if necessary on a compulsory basis. The consultation exercise showed a need to consider library operations on a wider basis, rather than arbitrarily designating certain aspects in advance as ancillary. I therefore propose a thorough investigation, based upon a series of pilot projects designed to examine the feasibility of contracting out the direct delivery of all or various parts of the library service. These will take place over the next 18 months and, throughout the investigation, I look forward to a close partnership with local authorities
Column 687
and other interested organisations including the library suppliers. My Department will establish a steering committee to advise and monitor the investigation.Once the investigation is complete, I shall make the results widely available. I intend in so doing to set out a range of competitive options for library authorities to choose between, having regard to their particular circumstances.
Performances
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list the performances of (a) theatre, (b) dance, (c) opera and (d) music which he has attended in an official capacity since taking up his appointment.
Mr. Brooke : Since my appointment as Secretary of State for National Heritage I have attended performances of "Three Birds Alighting on a Field" at the Royal Court theatre, the Duenna at Opera North, a memorial concert for Sir Andrzej Panufnik at the Queen Elizabeth hall, a concert given by the Guildhall chamber orchestra and a private concert in honour of the eightieth birthday of Sir Georg Solti. I shall be attending the opening concert of the Scandinavian arts festival at the Barbican and the Royal Ballet's performance of "Mayerling" this week. I have also visited the Yorkshire Sculpture park, and the MENCAP art exhibition.
Ministerial Visits
Mr. Fisher : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many regional arts boards he has visited since taking up his appointment.
Mr. Brooke : I met the chairman and director of the Yorkshire and Humberside arts board when I visited Yorkshire on 1 October. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State has to date also met representatives of the Northern, North West and London arts boards on visits to those regions. In addition, I held a meeting with the chairmen-- or their representatives--of all the regional arts boards on 28 October.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Greyhound Racing
Mr. Meale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he will take to promote the well-being of greyhound racing.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The promotion of greyhound racing is the responsibility of the industry itself. However, when general betting duty was reduced in the Budget, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer expressed the hope that voluntary arrangements could be made for some of the money to go to greyhound racing. We understand that negotiations between greyhound racing and bookmakers are continuing in an effort to devise suitable arrangements for that purpose.
Mr. Page : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the progress with the voluntary agreement between the off-course bookmakers and the greyhound racing industry over the transfer of the 0.25 per cent. reduction in betting duty introduced in April.
Column 688
Mr. Peter Lloyd : We understand that negotiations between the off- course bookmakers and the greyhound racing industry to devise suitable voluntary arrangements are continuing. We have been kept informed of developments, and hope that the negotiations can be brought to a successful conclusion in the near future.
Police (Housing)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will set out the numbers and locations of empty service police housing quarters in South Yorkshire.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The Home Office does not hold information about the location of police housing, which is owned and managed by individual police authorities. According to information received from South Yorkshire police authority, eight houses were empty as at 31 March 1992. One of these is due to be re-allocated to a serving policy officer, and five have been identified for sale during the current financial year.
Emergency Services
Mr. Clelland : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total revenue expenditure in each of the English regions on police, fire and civil defence services in the years 1990-91 and 1991-92.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The available information on net revenue expenditure by English local authorities on these services in 1990-91 and 1991-92 is given in the table. Expenditure on these services is not aggregated on any regional basis.
Police
Net current expenditure supported by Home Office
specific grant
(excluding loan charges)
£'000s
--------------------------------------------------
Avon and Somerset |102,351 |111,509
Bedfordshire |35,599 |39,148
Cambridgeshire |42,364 |47,116
Cheshire |62,370 |66,960
Cleveland |50,246 |54,802
Cumbria |39,612 |45,001
Derbyshire |61,261 |66,048
Devon and Cornwall |105,660 |117,649
Dorset |49,024 |52,006
Durham |44,964 |48,589
Essex |104,703 |115,540
Gloucestershire |40,236 |44,611
Hampshire |111,152 |124,869
Hertfordshire |58,743 |62,868
Humberside |69,697 |77,396
Kent |109,013 |128,734
Lancashire |108,135 |121,946
Leicestershire |61,274 |67,196
Lincolnshire |41,597 |47,235
Norfolk |48,115 |54,100
Northamptonshire |40,084 |45,498
North Yorkshire |47,396 |51,679
Nottinghamshire |75,709 |82,629
Staffordshire |74,272 |82,163
Suffolk |43,008 |48,042
Surrey |57,125 |63,421
Sussex |92,991 |105,647
Thames Valley |134,225 |149,414
Warwickshire |36,082 |39,842
West Mercia |68,707 |77,230
Wiltshire |40,885 |46,215
Greater Manchester |228,550 |248,807
Merseyside |160,697 |178,881
Northumbria |121,364 |131,161
South Yorkshire |94,778 |103,165
West Midlands |229,256 |250,816
West Yorkshire |181,186 |197,226
City of London |37,074 |40,820
Metropolitan Police
Department |1,197,618|1,341,318
|------- |-------
Total |4,307,123|4,777,296
Fire Service net expenditure
(£000s)
Net expenditure
County councils |1990-91 |1991-92
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Avon |17,562 |<1>19,411
Bedfordshire |9,307 |<1>9,734
Berkshire |13,546 |<1>13,586
Buckinghamshire |10,206 |<1>10,700
Cambridgeshire |10,485 |<1>11,160
Cheshire |18,155 |18,642
Cleveland |16,761 |<1>17,270
Cornwall |8,648 |8,801
Cumbria |10,176 |<1>10,079
Derbyshire |15,954 |16,320
Devon |19,326 |18,971
Dorset |10,229 |<1>11,455
Durham |12,260 |<1>12,287
East Sussex |13,319 |14,476
Essex |28,965 |29,994
Gloucestershire |7,866 |<1>8,988
Hampshire |23,462 |<1>24,763
Hereford and Worcester |10,933 |<1>11,286
Hertfordshire |16,342 |<1>17,039
Humberside |20,896 |20,985
Isle of Wight |2,699 |2,885
Kent |27,778 |<1>31,839
Lancashire |28,197 |<1>29,863
Leicestershire |12,240 |<1>13,610
Lincolnshire |9,387 |9,491
Norfolk |12,047 |12,538
Northamptonshire |9,064 |9,827
Northumberland |7,589 |8,294
North Yorkshire |13,165 |<1>13,129
Nottinghamshire |17,769 |<1>18,642
Oxfordshire |8,737 |<1>9,628
Shropshire |6,896 |<1>7,193
Somerset |7,329 |<1>7,684
Staffordshire |17,901 |<1>18,087
Suffolk |10,831 |<1>11,163
Surrey |21,974 |21,948
Warwickshire |10,552 |<1>10,138
West Sussex |12,035 |13,095
Wiltshire |9,105 |<1>9,007
Fire and civil defence authorities
London |215,031 |<1>221,533
Greater Manchester |56,303 |58,993
Merseyside |39,869 |<1>42,348
South Yorkshire |28,070 |<1>27,900
Tyne and Wear |28,577 |28,724
West Midlands |53,580 |55,783
West Yorkshire |47,087 |<1>48,588
Isles of Scilly |86 |<1>93
|------- |-------
England Total |1,008,296 |1,047,970
<1> Outturn expenditure not available. Figures shown are local
authority budget estimates.
Column 690
Civil Defence
Net current expenditure supported by Home Office
specific grant
£000s
|1990-91|1991-92
----------------------------------------------------
(i) County councils
Avon |289 |321
Bedfordshire |208 |238
Berkshire |403 |479
Buckinghamshire |362 |412
Cambridgeshire |384 |416
Cheshire |501 |573
Cleveland |212 |240
Cornwall |320 |350
Cumbria |379 |435
Derbyshire |226 |259
Devon |624 |663
Dorset |321 |355
Durham |241 |241
East Sussex |319 |367
Essex |482 |514
Gloucestershire |290 |295
Hampshire |356 |426
Hereford and Worcester |240 |285
Hertfordshire |443 |497
Humberside |351 |345
Isle of Wight |273 |297
Kent |488 |550
Lancashire |314 |311
Leicestershire |225 |248
Lincolnshire |391 |374
Norfolk |421 |468
Northamptonshire |268 |293
Northumberland |308 |287
North Yorkshire |334 |364
Nottinghamshire |310 |349
Oxfordshire |403 |424
Shropshire |223 |276
Somerset |322 |353
Staffordshire |289 |309
Suffolk |298 |323
Surrey |392 |384
Warwickshire |297 |321
West Sussex |322 |340
Wiltshire |339 |340
(ii) Fire and civil defence
authorities
London |1,638 |1,812
Greater Manchester |524 |574
Merseyside |532 |628
South Yorkshire |436 |507
Tyne and Wear |431 |479
West Midlands |455 |495
West Yorkshire |454 |453
(iii) Police authorities
Avon-Somerset |3 |5
Greater Manchester |4 |3
Merseyside |7 |6
Northumbria |11 |14
Thames Valley |12 |3
West Mercia |0 |3
West Midlands |6 |3
(iv) London boroughs and
City of London |129 |94
|-------|-------
Total |17,810 |19,398
Mr. A. Alexandrowicz
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the case of Anthony Alexandrowicz is to be considered by the Parole Board.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Mr. Alexandrowicz is one of some 300 discretionary life prisoners who are now eligible for review
Column 691
under new procedures introduced as a result of section 34 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991. It is for the Parole Board to decide the order in which these cases are heard. To assist in this task, the board is provided with a list of those eligible in each prison establishment. These lists are compiled in accordance with the criteria announced in the Secretary of State's written answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Westminster, North (Sir J. Wheeler) on 9 March 1992, at column 396. Mr. Alexandrowicz will be notified as soon as his case is listed for hearing.Primary Purpose Rule
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what changes in trends have occurred since his announcement to adjust primary purpose guidance to allow entry to those spouses who can prove five years of marriage and supply evidence of devotion in this period.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 4 November 1992, at columns 221-22.
Leave to Remain Status
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what categories of status equivalent to exceptional leave to remain are operative in other EC countries ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 3 November, at column 125.
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