| Previous Section | Home Page |
Mr. Heseltine [holding answer 20 November 1992] : A total of £615 million medium-term credit was made available to Iraq in the form of a series of financial protocols between 1985 and the outbreak of hostilities. In addition ECGD also insured cash and short-term credit transactions of £725 million over the same period. At present £830 million remains outstanding for payment, of which, as at 31 October 1992, £463 million represented unrecovered claims paid by ECGD.
Column 517
Opencast Mining
Mr. Mike O'Brien : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is the current amount of coal produced from opencast mining in tonnes and as a percentage of current coal production.
Mr. Eggar [holding answer 19 November 1992] : Total production of opencast coal in 1991-92 from British Coal Opencast and licensed private sector producers was 19 million tonnes, 21 per cent. of the total United Kingdom coal production.
Energy Enterprises
Mr. Dobson : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the application of the 1.5 per cent. pay rise ceiling to each of (a) those energy enterprises which are still nationalised and (b) those energy enterprises now privatised in which the Government maintain a substantial minority shareholding.
Mr. Eggar [holding answer 19 November 1992] : In the autumn statement the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that pay settlements in the public sector and related bodies will be restricted to the range 0-1.5 per cent. in the coming year. This policy applies to energy enterprises which are publicly owned, namely : British Coal Corporation, Nuclear Electric plc, British Nuclear Fuels plc, the UK Atomic Energy Authority and Scottish Nuclear Ltd. The policy does not apply to energy enterprises in which the Government have a minority shareholding.
Second-hand Gas Appliances
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps will he take to extend safety standards to second-hand gas appliances, beyond 1 January 1996.
Mr. Leigh [holding answer 19 November 1992] : A high standard of safety is already required for second hand gas cookers under the Gas Cooking Appliances (Safety) Regulations 1989. The regulation of these products after 1 January 1996 will be maintained and I am also considering the possibility of extending the same level of consumer protection to a wider range of second hand gas appliances.
Office of Electricity Regulation
Mr. Caborn : To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many contracts have been put out to consultancies by the Office of Electricity Regulation ; what are their subjects, cost and completion dates ; and which ones have been or will be published.
Mr. Eggar [holding answer 19 November 1992] : This is a matter for the Director General of Electricity Supply. I have passed the question to the director general and he will write to give the information and place it in the House of Commons Library.
Mr. Caborn : To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many whole-time equivalent staff work for the Office of Electricity Regulation ; and what are their grades, functions and location.
Mr. Eggar [holding answer 19 November 1992] : This is a matter for the Director General of Electricity Supply. I
Column 518
have passed the question to the director general and he will write to give the information and place it in the House of Commons Library.Assisted Area Status
Ms. Walley : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will extend the areas eligible for assisted area status to north Staffordshire as part of his review of assisted area status ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Sainsbury [holding answer 20 November 1992] : The needs and circumstances of all areas including north Staffordshire will be carefully considered in the review.
Ms. Walley : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment he has made of the submission of intent for assisted area status presented by the city of Stoke on Trent on 13 November.
Mr. Sainsbury [holding answer 20 November 1992] : My Department has received a submission which the city of Stoke on Trent made jointly with other Staffordshire organisations in September. To date, the further submission dated 13 November referred to has not been received. I shall be considering the needs and circumstances of all areas and all the representations received as part of the present assisted areas map review.
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Charters
34. Mr. Nicholls : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many new charters are scheduled for publication in the next six months.
Mr. Waldegrave : Twenty-seven charters have been published to date. Six more charters will be published over the next six months.
41. Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on private sector funding of scientific research.
Mr. Jackson : Private sector funding for scientific research is buoyant. Such funding almost doubled in real terms over the 1985-1990 period.
Justices of the Peace (Stockport)
42. Mr. Bennett : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when he expects to appoint new Stockport JPs who live in north Reddish and south Reddish or Brinnington wards ; and when he expects to appoint new Tameside JPs who live in the Denton, North-East ward.
Mr. Waldegrave : My advisory committee in Stockport is currently processing 51 applications, two of which are from the wards concerned. In Tameside my advisory committee has recently recommended the names of 10 prospective justices of which four are from Denton, one of them from Denton, North-East ward.
Citizens Charter
43. Mr. Skinner : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many representations he has received since 9 April from members of the public about the citizens charter programme ; and if he will make a statement.
Column 519
Mr. Jackson : We have since 9 April received nearly 1,500 letters from members of the public referring to the citizens charter. This is a clear indication of the charter's success in encouraging people to demand better, more responsive services.
Column 520
Agencies
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will list all units of central Government currently under consideration for executive agency status, their parent Department and the number of staff employed in each case in full-time equivalents.
Mr. Robert Jackson : The current list of activities announced by Departments as under consideration for executive agency status, together with their parent department and staff employed is as follows :
Column 519
Candidate Name |Parent Department |Staff<1>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Army Logistics (Including Army Base Repair Organisation)<2><3> |Defence |12,000
Chessington Computer Centre |Cabinet Office |440
Child Support Agency<4> |Northern Ireland |-<4>
Defence Central Services<2> |Defence |1,400
Defence Animal Centre<2> |Defence |220
Directorate Information Technology Bureau Services<2> |Defence |120
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency |Northern Ireland |250
Equipment Test and Evaluation<2> |Defence |2,220
Fuel Suppliers Branch |Environment |20
Her Majesty's Prison Service |Home Office |37,900
Human Factors Research<2> |Defence |390
Ministry of Defence Police<2> |Defence |5,100
Naval Training<2> |Defence |5,200
National Health Service Superannuation Branch |Health |630
Office of Population Censuses and Surveys<6> |Health |2,100
Paymaster General's Office |Treasury |850
Pesticide Safety Directorate |Agriculture |150
Property Division |Treasury Solicitor |120
Property Holdings Portfolio Management |Environment |460
Royal Air Force Training<2> |Defence |9,200
Royal Parks |National Heritage |270
Scottish Office Superannuation |Scottish Office |160
Scottish Prison Service |Scottish Office |4,230
Social Security Child Support Agency<7> |Social Security |-<7>
Transport and Security Services Division |Environment |1,235
Valuation and Lands Office |Northern Ireland |350
Youth Treatment Service |Health |220
28 in number
<1>April 1992 figures for Civil Servants and Armed Forces Personnel. Casuals are excluded. Part time staff are counted as half units.
<2>May be launched as a Defence Support Agency. All figures subject to revision due to major reorganisation. Figures include 7,300
Armed Forces personnel.
<3>Excludes 500 staff in Defence Postal and Courier Services Agency launched 1 July 1992.
<4>Estimated to require 550 staff by April 1993. Of these 120 will come from the Northern Ireland Social Security Agency.
<5>Estimated to require 1,800 staff, drawn from a variety of sources.
<6>Independent Government Department. Responsible Minister: Secretary of State for Health.
<7>DSS estimate the Agency at launch will comprise 4,500 staff, 1,500 of which will come from the Social Security Benefits Agency.
Many other areas are under internal consideration for executive agency status.
Health and Safety Policies (Agencies)
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will place a copy in the Library of the health and safety policy of each of the agencies within his Department.
Mr. Jackson : The chief executives of the Central Office of Information, the Civil Service college, her Majesty's Stationery Office, the Occupational Health Service and the Recruitment and Assessment Services Agency are responsible for health and safety policy within their agencies.
I am placing in the Library copies of the health and safety policies applying in the Central Office of Information and Her Majesty's Stationery Office. I am also placing in the Library a copy of volume IV of the
Column 520
Cabinet Office staff handbook, which contains the Cabinet Office's health and safety policy. This will continue to apply in the Civil Service college, the Occupational Health Service and the Recruitment and Assessment Services Agency until separate health and safety policies have been developed and put in place.SCOTLAND
National Monuments
Mr. Nigel Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how many ancient and historic monuments in Scotland were added to the national monuments record in each year since 1989 ;
(2) if he will list the reported instances of damage to scheduled ancient and historical monuments in Scotland from 1989 to 1992 ; and what action was taken on the discovery of the damage ;
Column 521
(3) how many ancient and historical monuments in Historic Scotland aims to schedule from 1992 to 1995 ;(4) how many management agreements for national monuments were made in 1991.
Mr. Lang : I have passed the hon. Member's questions to the chief executive of Historic Scotland and asked him to reply direct. Letter from G. Munro to Mr. Nigel Griffiths, dated 22 November 1992 :
The Secretary of State for Scotland has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about ancient and historical monuments in Scotland.
Firstly, you asked how many ancient and historical monuments were added to the National Monuments Record of Scotland (NMRS) in each of the years from 1989 to 1992. The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) is responsible for maintaining a comprehensive archive and database in the form of the NMRS. I have therefore contacted the RCAHMS who informed me that they added the following number of monuments to the NMRS :--
|Number
----------------------
1989-90 |2,430
1990-91 |2,586
1991-92 |2,050
The Commission inform me that the figure for 1991-92 will be increased by air photographs of sites discovered in that period which have yet to be fully incorporated into the NMRS. In addition 1991-92 was the year in which the whole national archive was moved to new premises.
Secondly, you asked the Secretary of State if he would list the reported instances of damage to scheduled ancient and historical monuments in Scotland from 1989 to 1992 ; and what action was taken on the discovery of the damage. No central record of such cases is maintained but we are aware of 35 cases during the period. In such cases we would normally write to the owner of the monument, or the person who had carried out the work which had damaged the monument, seeking an explanation for the unauthorised works. This could result in remedial action being taken or in extreme cases the matter being referred to the Procurator Fiscal for possible prosecution. Thirdly, you asked how many ancient and historical monuments in Scotland Historic Scotland aim to schedule from 1992 to 1995. As shown in Annex A to our Corporate Plan for 1992-95, a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library, we aim to schedule 900 monuments in this period--300 per year.
Finally, you asked how many management agreements for national monuments were made in 1991. The answer to that question is eight.
Green Policies
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how the Departmental Green Minister has promoted protection of the ozone layer with specific policy measures and which possible measures have been considered and rejected and on what grounds.
Sir Hector Monro [holding answer 19 November 1992] : The Government's policy on the protection of the ozone layer is set out in the 1990 White Paper "This Common Inheritance" and the subsequent yearly reports. It is to control and eliminate as quickly as possible the production and supply of ozone-depleting substances. This will be reflected in the Scottish Office's green housekeeping strategy, currently in the course of preparation, which will include a presumption against the purchase of any
Column 522
products which cause significant damage to the environment during manufacture, use or disposal, if a suitable alternative is available.Domiciliary Family Planning
Ms. Janet Anderson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list those health authorities which provided domiciliary family planning services in each year since 1985.
Mr. Stewart [holding answer 19 November 1992] : Since 1985, five health boards--Forth Valley, Grampian, Greater Glasgow, Lothian and Tayside--have provided continuous domiciliary family planning services.
Listed Buildings
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to increase the funds available to local authorities for the maintenance of listed buildings owned by themselves ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Stewart [holding answer 19 November 1992] : Local authority current expenditure is supported by aggregate external finance which, with the exception of specific grants, is not hypothecated to particular services. So far as capital expenditure is concerned, each authority receives annually a block capital consent allocation which it is free to augment by revenue contributions and capital receipts. Within the total levels of support available to them, authorities are free to set their own current and capital expenditure priorities.
University Research
Mr. Rooker : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the amount of research funding to universities in Scotland from agencies funded by his Department.
Mr. Lang [holding answer 16 November 1992] : Financial allocations for programmes, including higher education, within the Scottish block will be announced in the near future.
Single-tier Councils
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will provide a breakdown of the costs of the consultation exercise in relation to the proposals for single-tier councils in Scotland, indicating how many consultation documents, videos and leaflets have been distributed and at what cost.
Mr. Stewart [holding answer 17 November 1992] : The information requested is as follows :
|Number produced to|Cost<1> (£) |Number distributed
|date |to date
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Consultation paper |22,500 |72,000 |17,000
Video |900 |27,500 |785
Leaflets |110,000 |31,000 |75,000
<1> Costs shown are production costs and do not include postage.
Column 523
Private Nursing Homes
Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what financial contribution will be made to local authorities for supplementation to private nursing homes for the year beginning 1 April 1993.
Mr. Stewart [holding answer 17 November 1992] : My right hon. Friend announced on 2 October that he was making available £40.6 million to local authorities in 1993-94, being the transfer of resources from the Department of Social Security and a further £20 million for other costs associated with implementation of our community care reforms. These sums are not hypothecated to expenditure on particular types of services but we expect authorities to devote a significant part of these resources to supporting new residents of nursing homes in the private sector.
Police (Court Appearances)
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many citations to appear in court were issued to police officers in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland in each of the past five years for which figures are available ; and how many were withdrawn prior to the date of the trial in each year.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 19 November 1992] : This information is not recorded.
Sheep Annual Premiums
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of sheep annual premium application forms for the current year received so far from sheep producers in the Western Isles have been wrongly completed ; what the percentages of false completion were in the previous three years ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Hector Monro [holding answer 14 November 1992] : A total of 0.74 per cent. of applications for the 1992 sheep annual premium from sheep producers in the Western Isles have been wrongly completed and rejected for payment. The information for earlier years is not readily available.
TRANSPORT
Road Pricing
10. Mr. Corbett : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his policy towards road pricing.
Mr. MacGregor : We are undertaking a major three year study of congestion in London. This is to inform debate on road pricing in towns and cities. No decisions have been taken. As the Chancellor indicated in his autumn statement, I will publish a Green Paper early next year on the scope for motorway charging.
Networker Trains (Kent)
11. Mr. Moate : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement about the prospects for the introduction of the proposed Networker express trains for east Kent and the Kent coastal service.
Mr. Freeman : In the autumn statement the Government announced an increase in BR's external
Column 524
finance. British Rail will be allowed to order up to £150 million of rolling stock on leases over the next three years. BR has not yet decided which rolling stock orders would be suitable for leases but is considering this matter at present.Rail Access (Disabled People)
13. Sir Fergus Montgomery : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance he gives British Rail about making provision for access by the disabled.
Mr. Freeman : British Rail takes account of the needs of people with disabilities in the provision of its services and facilities. The Department is represented on BR's advisory group on disability, which includes people with a wide range of disabilities. The Department's disability unit also works closely with BR on these issues.
Cones
14. Mr. Alison : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what further measures he will take to reduce the number of cones on roads.
Mr. Kenneth Carlisle : We are actively pursuing measures to reduce the number of cones on the national road network to the minimum consistent with safety, and with the smooth flow of traffic through roadworks. These include : the development of improved road materials which require less maintenance, increased use of incentive contracts to reduce contract periods, and use of moving vehicles instead of cones to close lanes for routine maintenance.
Channel Tunnel
15. Mr. Simon Coombs : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he next expects to meet the chairman of British Rail to discuss rail links to the channel tunnel.
Mr. MacGregor : I meet regularly with the chairman of British Rail and channel tunnel issues are often discussed.
16. Mr. Peter Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to receive from British Rail its proposals for a specific route for a new rail link between King's Cross and Folkestone.
Mr. Freeman : I expect a report by the end of December containing a reference case route and associated options.
29. Mr. Rowe : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his best estimate of the difference in cost between building the proposed channel tunnel rail link to the largest European gauge and the gauge measurements favoured by Union Railways.
Mr. Freeman : Union Railways' costed proposals and options will be submitted to Government by the end of the year. Its report will include proposals for the gauge of the link.
Road Crashes
17. Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on progress in the reduction of deaths and serious injuries from road crashes.
Column 525
Mr. Kenneth Carlisle : The provisional figures for the 12 months ending in June 1992 are : 4,585 deaths, 50,695 serious injuries and 312,278 slight injuries. These figures show that, for deaths and serious injuries, the Government have already almost achieved their target of reducing road casualties by one-third by the year 2000.
Coal Mining Areas
18. Mr. Enright : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy to draw up a transport policy to create a more appropriate infrastructure for traditional coal mining areas.
Mr. Macgregor : The Government fully recognise the importance of good transport infrastructure in promoting economic regeneration. The Government will continue their policy of promoting a high level of investment in transport infrastructure in all modes, both in traditional mining areas and elsewhere. Major transport policies in south Yorkshire which will assist coal mining areas include the £29 million Dearne towns link road--supported by transport supplementary grant--and the channel tunnel rail freight terminal at Wakefield.
Ports (Trade)
19. Mr. Page : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the proportion of trade coming to British ports at weekends as opposed to weekdays.
Mr. Norris : Although no overall assessment can be made of the proportion of trade coming to British ports at weekends from the available information, most British major ports are open at weekends and there are indications of significant weekend demand at some ports.
London-Leicester Line
20. Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what future plans he has for the electrification of the London-Leicester line.
Mr. Freeman : At present, it is for British Rail to come forward with investment proposals it considers worthwhile and in the light of available resources. I understand that electrification will be one of the options considered when the existing rolling stock reaches the end of its economic life.
Railways (Leaf Fall)
21. Mr. Wilkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what success British Rail has had in dealing with the autumn leaf fall on to rail lines.
Mr. Freeman : British Rail has implemented a range of measures to deal with the perennial leaf problem. These have included the spreading of sandite paste on the track at noted trouble spots, special driver training, and the management of lineside vegetation. I believe that these measures have helped to minimise delays.
East London River Crossing
22. Mr. Cyril D. Townsend : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when work will start on the east London river crossing.
Column 526
Mr. Norris : We hope to be able to start work soon on this important scheme. However, construction cannot begin until the current High Court challenges and the question of the EC infraction proceedings have been resolved. In the meantime, we are pressing on with detailed design and other advance work.
Environmental Impact
23. Mr. Miller : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures he plans to introduce to reduce the environmental impact of transport.
Mr. MacGregor : From the end of this year most new cars will require catalytic converters to meet tighter EC emissions standards. The United Kingdom Government continue to press for even tighter emissions and noise standards for vehicles and to discuss with other member states and the Commission measures to improve the fuel efficiency of new cars.
From 1 August 1993, certain existing vehicles over 16 tonnes will be required to have speed limiters. This measure complements the introduction of speed limiters for new heavy goods vehicles on 1 August 1992 and will improve fuel consumption and reduce emissions. The MOT emissions check introduced for cars in November 1991 is helping to reduce exhaust emissions. Since 1 September there has been a metered smoke test in the annual test for heavy diesels. A similar test for light vans and diesel cars shortly will be included for the first time in the MOT test from 1 January 1993.
We are working on a number of other initiatives for 1992-93, including the publication of an updated manual of environmental appraisal. The White Paper "This Common Inheritance--The Second Year Report" gives further information about our work to reduce the impact of transport on the environment.
Rail Privatisation
24. Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to announce his plans for the privatisation of British Rail's island assets.
Mr. Freeman : My Department is now analysing the responses to the consultation document on franchising issued on 12 October. We hope to be able to announce early next year the first services or groups of services that will be prepared for franchising. We are considering whether the Isle of Wight services will be included in that announcement.
Red Routes
25. Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to instigate an independent review to determine how the pilot red routes have been operating.
Mr. Norris : Independent monitoring of the pilot red route scheme by the transport research laboratory has already shown how well it has been operating.
| Next Section
| Home Page |