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Miss Widdecombe : The Department will, by the end of 1992, have a green housekeeping strategy in place. It will include a commitment to reducing the use of ozone-depleting substances.
Steps which are being taken to reduce leakages of ozone-depleting refrigerants include regular checks, servicing and maintenance ; compliance with professional codes of practice ; and installation of leakage detection systems.
The information needed to set targets for reductions is not currently available.
Civil Servants
Mr. Raymond S. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many civil servants are currently employed by his Department (a) in London and (b) elsewhere.
Mr. Burt : There are 11,572 staff employed in London, and 80,413 staff employed elsewhere.
Notes :
1. Staff numbers relate to permanent staff as at 20 November 1992. 2. London has been defined as the London pay area.
Correspondence
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will reply to the letter of 2 November from the hon. Member for Walsall, North, acknowledged under reference S/3644/9, regarding the rule whereby women over 60 years are not allowed to pay the extra sum to qualify for a state pension.
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Miss Widdecombe : I replied to the hon. Member's letter yesterday. The delay arose because it was necessary to contact both the Benefits and the Contributions Agencies regarding aspects of the individual case in question.
Child Support Agency
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate (a) the costs for the setting up of the Child Support Agency, (b) the running costs of the Child Support Agency in 1993-94, and for each of the financial years up to the year the agency will be fully operational, (c) the total number of staff the agency will employ, (d) how many staff will be located in the six regional centres, (e) how many child support officers the agency will employ and (f) how many of the child support officers will be located in the six regional centres.
Mr. Burt : The current estimates are :
(a) Total costs of setting up the agency--£146 million. (b) Running costs of the agency--
£ million Year |Costs -------------------- 1993-94 |94 1994-95 |111 1995-96 |117 1996-97 |114 1997-98 |116
(c) The agency will employ around 5,000 staff when fully operational.
(d) About 500 staff employed will be employed in each of the six Child Support Agency centres.
(e) The agency will employ around 1,500 child support officers. (f) There will be about 250 child support officers located in each Child Support Agency centre.
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many applications it is estimated that the Child Support Agency will deal with in each year from 1993-94 to the year in which it becomes fully operational.
Mr. Burt : The Child Support Agency will become fully operational during 1997-98. On current predictions, the number of applications per year until then are estimated to be as follows :
(thousands) Year |Applications --------------------------------------- 1993-94 |830 1994-95 |570 1995-96 |650 1996-97 |430
Income Support
Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) male and (b) female (i) pensioners and (ii) people of working age were in receipt of income support at the latest available date ; and what proportion they made of the relevant population in each case.
Mr. Burt : The information requested is in the table.
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|Number of income |Percentage of
|support recipients |relevant population
|in Great Britain
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Male claimants over 65 |270,000 |7.64
Female claimants over 60 |1,140,000 |16.86
Total number of claimants who are of pensionable age |1,410,000 |13.70
Male claimants of working age |1,390,000 |6.34
Female claimants of working age |1,700,000 |7.15
Total number of claimants who are of working age |3,080,000 |6.76
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest ten thousand
Figures may not sum due to rounding
Pensioners are defined as males over age 65 and females over age 60
2. Source: Income Support Statistics Annual Enquiry, May 1991
Office of Population Censuses and Surveys, 1990
Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people on income support had automatic deductions for (a) electricity, (b) gas, (c) social fund loan repayments, (d) rent arrears, (e) mortgage arrears, (f) water charges and (g) community charge arrears at the latest available date ; and what were the average amounts for each type of deduction.
Mr. Burt : The latest available information showing the numbers of income support recipients with deductions is as follows :
|Numbers
--------------------------------------------------
Fuel |<1>305,000
Social fund loan repayments |<2>637,000
Rent arrears |<1>134,000
Mortgage interest |<3>461,000
Water charges |<1>147,000
Community charge arrears |<1>337,000
<1> These figures are based on Management
Information Statistics (MIS) collected by the
Benefits Agency at the end of August 1992. MIS
figures do not distinguish between gas and
electricity deductions or provide an average
amount for each type of deduction. These figures
have been rounded to the nearest thousand, are
provisional and may be subject to amendments.
<2> It is not possible to exclude from the social
fund figure repayments made by people not in
receipt of income support.
<3> The figures for mortgage interest deductions
is based on the number of direct payments made
during November 1992. Recipients with more than
one mortgage will be counted more than once.
The latest information available showing separate figures for gas and electricity deductions and the average amount of individual deductions is contained in table 10.1 of volume 1 of the "Department of Social Security Income Support Statistics Annual Statistical Enquiry, May 1991", a copy of which is in the Library.
Figures distinguishing between deductions for current charges and those for arrears are not available.
Prioritisation
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what guidance is given by his Department in respect of prioritisation within high priority groups for community care grants and budgeting loans.
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Mr. Scott : National guidance on the priority to be accorded to social fund applications is contained in the social fund guide, a copy of which is in the Library.
Child Benefit
Ms. Eagle : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate what the level of child benefit would be in 1993-94 if it had been fully uprated since 1979 and its structure had remained the same.
Mr. Burt : The rate of child benefit in April 1979 was £4 a week for each child. If this level had been uprated annually in line with the retail prices index, and with the normal rounding to the nearest five pence, it would become £9.55 at April 1993.
Invalidity Pension
Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many women are in receipt of the housewives' non-contributory invalidity pension ; and how many men were in receipt of non-contributory invalidity pension in each year since 1984.
Mr. Scott : Severe disablement allowance replaced the two non- contributory invalidity pensions from 29 November 1984. I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 23 October, at column 396.
Income-related Benefits
Ms. Eagle : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish the latest figures showing the take-up rates of income-related benefits.
Mr. Burt : Work on the statistics on the take-up of income-related benefits in 1989 has not yet been completed. The results will be published early in the new year.
Benefits Agency
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when the hon. Member for Greenock and Port Glasgow can expect to receive an answer to his letter, dated 28 October, to Mr. Michael Bichard, chief executive, Benefits Agency, concerning his constituent, Mr. McMaster--Ref. DB103169.
Mr. Scott : Correspondence on operational issues is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Dr. Norman Godman, dated 2 December 1992 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security concerning correspondence about your constituent Mr. McMaster (Ref. DB103169). I can confirm that decisions have now been made on Mr. McMaster's claims and these have been notified to him. I replied on 1 December to your letter of 28 October and this explains the position in greater detail.
I offer my sincere apologies to Mr. McMaster for the delay in dealing with his claims and for delay in responding to your correspondence. Clearly neither you nor your constituent have received the standard of service to which you have every
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right to expect of the Agency. You will be aware from my letter of 19 October to all MPs of the problems we have encountered since the successful launch of the new benefits and the positive steps taken to improve the situation.I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
Disability Allowances
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will set up an emergency office in Stoke on Trent North to deal with outstanding disability living allowance and attendance allowance applications.
Mr. Scott : The administration of disability living allowance and attendance allowance is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Ms. Joan Walley, dated 2 December 1992 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about setting up an emergency office in Stoke on Trent North to deal with Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA) claims.
There are no plans to set up an emergency office in Stoke on Trent. New claims to DLA and AA are dealt with by ten Disability Benefit Centres (DBCs) around the country. All claims from the Stoke on Trent area are dealt with by the DBC in Birmingham.
My letter of 19 October to all MPs outlined the measures that were implemented to deal with the backlog of claims successfully. We are of course closely monitoring the effectiveness of the procedures and organisation in place for DLA. As with all new benefits, procedures and organisation will be reviewed and I can assure you that every opportunity will be taken to identify new initiatives to speed up processing times.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Plutonium and Uranium
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 23 October, Official Report, column 411, how many representations on plutonium exports his Department has received ; and if he will indicate the nature of the representations from the (a) United Kingdom and (b) abroad.
Mr. Eggar : Over the past four months or so, my Department has received over 50 letters which mentioned, in most cases among other topics, the transfer of plutonium overseas. None of these letters came from abroad. Further representations may have been received by other Departments.
The letters came either direct from members of the public or through hon. Members and raised the possible misuse of the plutonium and its safe transport. The replies explained that civil plutonium is transferred overseas only subject to the application of safeguards and on receipt of assurances covering peaceful use, physical protection and controls on re- transfer.
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what quantities of plutonium are contained in (a)
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nuclear fuel in reactors and (b) spent nuclear fuel in one-site cooling ponds at reactor sites in England and Wales ; and what information on this plutonium his Department is required to report to the Euratom safeguards authorities.Mr. Eggar : The information requested by the hon. Member is given in the annual plutonium figures published by my Department. Operators meet the requirements of the Euratom safeguards authorities by supplying monthly inventory change reports. These reports, which are sent via my Department's safeguards office, include any shipments off site of their irradiated fuel. Reports on such shipments contain estimates of the plutonium content of the fuel.
Mrs. Anne Campbell : To ask the President of the Board of Trade how long plutonium and depleted uranium is permitted to be stored before these substances can no longer be used as fuel for nuclear power stations without further processing.
Mr. Eggar : The properties of uranium, whether natural, depleted or recovered from reprocessing, do not vary significantly over time. In the case of plutonium, the material changes its characteristics over time, mainly as a result of the formation of americium 241. The rate of this change depends on the burn-up of the fuel and the cooling period before reprocessing. The acceptable levels of americium when re-cycling plutonium are a commercial matter for the manufacturer of the recycled fuel and the operator of the reactor in which it will be used.
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the President of the Board of Trade when current supplies of uranium will be depleted ; and if he will make a statement on the future of the United Kingdom's energy resources.
Mr. Eggar : The United Kingdom has no uranium resources which could be extracted economically under current world market conditions. The Government's aims are to promote the economic development of our indigenous energy resources and to ensure that the United Kingdom's energy needs are met cost-effectively.
Ozone Depletion
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will implement a refrigerant recycling and reclaim policy covering all departmental equipment currently using
chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons ; if he will publish targets for departmental reuse and recycling ; if he will implement an equipment conversion and replacement programme for all departmental uses of CFCs and HCFCs ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) if he will introduce a leakage prevention programme for all refrigeration and air conditioning equipment owned and operated by his Department ; if he will publish targets for reductions in leakages ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar : My Department is committed to eliminating the use of ozone-depleting substances on its estate. As an interim measure, the Department has established policies for the use and disposal of such substances which are designed to minimise releases to atmosphere. Control procedures have been introduced to minimise leakages, including arrangements for the regular monitoring and servicing of refrigerant and air conditioning
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systems containing ozone-depleting substances. When discharging equipment containing ozone-depleting substances, every effort is made to recover CFCs/HCFCs rather than release them to atmosphere. Wherever practicable, ozone-depleting substances are recycled in order to minimise purchases of new supplies.Waste to Energy
Mr. Austin-Walker : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make it his policy to halt any approvals for waste to energy incinerators pending the outcome of the Select Committee inquiry into the pit closure programme.
Mr. Eggar : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Sherwood (Mr. Tipping) on 30 November, at column 33.
Fossil Fuel Levy and Renewable Energy
Mr. Cash : To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) how much has been levied under the fossil fuel levy in 1990-91 and 1991-92 ; (2) what proportion of the amounts levied has been used under the NFFO for renewable energy schemes ; and what value this represented in 1990-91 and 1991-92.
Mr. Eggar : The fossil fuel levy raised £1,175 million in 1990- 91, and £1,324 million in 1991-92. The proportion going to renewables was about 0.5 per cent. (£6 million) in 1990-91, and 1 per cent (£15 million) in 1991-92.
Mr. Cash : To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what is his latest assessment of the proportion and value of the fossil fuel levy that will be used for renewable energy schemes over the entire life of its operation until December 1998 ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what assumptions were made about the proportion and value of the fossil fuel levy that would be used for renewable energy schemes over the entire life of its operation until December 1998.
Mr. Eggar : The proportion of levy receipts going to renewables is set to rise through the 1990s. The exact amounts will depend on a number of factors, including the pool price and the number of projects coming forward under the non-fossil fuel obligation.
Electricity
Mr. Cash : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what proportion of the electricity bought from the pool by RECs was from renewable energy sources in 1990-91 and 1991-92 ; how many megawatts this represented ; and what are the RECs' obligations under the NFFO in comparable terms.
Mr. Eggar : The great majority of renewables-sourced electricity in the United Kingdom is not traded through the pool. In 1990-91 and 1991-92 about 2 per cent. of electricity generated in the United Kingdom came from renewable energy sources. This represented the output from, respectively, about 1500MW and 1600MW of capacity. The aggregate obligation on the regional electricity companies to contract for electricity from renewable sources eventually builds up to 102MW under the 1990 order and 457MW under the 1991 order. At the end of 1990-91 the obligation was 29MW, and at the end of 1991-92 it was 37MW.
Column 348
Gas
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the President of the Board of Trade whether his review of energy policy will address the consequences for long- term gas supplies and gas prices caused by purchasing policies of the regional electricity companies ; and what representations he received on this aspect of policy during 1992.
Mr. Eggar : The terms of reference of the Government's coal review were set out in the answer which the President of the Board of Trade gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Waveney (Mr. Porter) on 26 October, at columns 522-23. Estimates of likely reserves of gas and the scale of gas- fired power generation in the United Kingdom are being considered in the context of the review, as are the relative costs of gas and coal-fired power generation.
Excluding evidence submitted to the coal review, by the end of November 1992, Ministers had received around 20 representations on these issues.
EC Industry Council
Mr. Hague : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the outcome of the discussions which took place in the EC Industry Council on 24 November.
Mr. Heseltine : I chaired the meeting of the Industry Council in Brussels on 24 November. My right hon. Friend the Minister for Industry represented the United Kingdom.
From the United Kingdom point of view, this was a highly successful Council which met all our objectives. In particular, we secured adoption of two resolutions : one on deregulation which highlights the importance of the Commission's impact assessment system in helping to reduce the burdens of EC legislation on industry and will ensure regular scrutiny and review of the Community's record on deregulation ; and one which underlines the importance of dialogue with business on the best way of achieving environmental objectives and ties the Commission to assess the costs and benefits of different means of achieving these objectives.
We also succeeded in securing satisfactory Council conclusions on the future of the European Coal and Steel Community which call for substantial reductions in the levy on coal and steel producers. A discussion of the Commission's annual report on competition policy resulted in Presidency conclusions supporting the vigorous and even-handed application of EC competition policy.
The main debate in the Council centred on proposals for aid to the Spanish steel industry. The Council was unable to approve the derogations from the steel aids code required to accommodate the Spanish proposals. The Council decided that further work was needed and the issue should be reconsidered under the Danish Presidency. The Council discussed recent Commission ideas on restructuring the steel industry, which will also need further consideration under the next Presidency.
Other items briefly discussed included future policy on small and medium- sized enterprises and a Commission communication on the non-energy mining industry.
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Telecommunications Council
Mr. Hague : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the outcome of the Telecommunications Council on 19 November.
Mr. Leigh : The Council continued its discussion, begun at the last Council meeting in June, of the European Commission's proposal for a Council decision on an action plan for the introduction of advanced television services in Europe. The action plan proposes a subsidy of up to 850 mecu to help accelerate the development of the market for widescreen and high-definition television services. Agreement was reached on the text of the action plan, subject to a reservation by one member state and consideration of amendments proposed by the European Parliament. However, member states were unable to reach agreement on funding. The United Kingdom opposed the sume of 850 mecu as unacceptably high and questioned the justification for any subsidy. Several other member states could not give agreement to funding while the Community's overall financial perspectives remain to be settled. A number of member states have sought a further meeting of the Telecommunications Council on this issue before the end of the year, but the possibility of further progress on this question will be clearer after the Heads of Government summit in Edinburgh.
The Council also discussed the Commission's review of the situation in the Community telecommunications sector, which considers further liberalisation of the European telecommunications market. It agreed a resolution calling upon the Commission, to report to the next Telecommunications Council, currently scheduled for 10 May 1993, on the results of its consultations on the review document.
Presidency proposals on the process and time scale for taking forward the work on the Commission's Green Paper on postal services, once the present consultation period has ended, were also adopted. The Commission agreed to prepare for the next Council, a summary of the results of the consultation period, the main conclusions which the Commission draw from the consultations and a detailed and signposted timetable for subsequently moving forward to draft directives. The Council also agreed on the urgent need to seek reform of arrangements at both European and global level under which postal administrations account with each other for imbalances in mail flows between them.
The Council adopted resolutions on frequencies and numbering, setting out a framework for future Community action in both these fields. It also reviewed progress on the ONP voice telephony directive and discussed trans- European networks and a Commission communication on the European telecommunications equipment industry.
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British Coal Corporation
Mr. Hague : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the final response from the British Coal Corporation concerning the 1989 report of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission into the corporation's investment programme.
Mr. Eggar : British Coal has prepared a comprehensive final response to the 1989 report into the corporation's investment programme, which has now been placed in the Library of the House. Many of the issues mentioned in the response, such as the market prospects for coal and the competitiveness of British Coal as an organisation, will be examined in the coal review which was announced in October.
Argentina
Mr. Shersby : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is the value of imports from Argentina for the most recent 12 month period for which figures are available ; and what is the value of British exports for the same period.
Mr. Needham : The value of imports from Argentina for the 12 months ended September 1992 was £122.3 million. The value of British exports to Argentina was £103.4 million for the same period.
Collieries (Redundancy Applications)
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will place in the Library regularly updated details of how many people are applying for redundancy at each of the 31 collieries originally planned for closure ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Eggar [holding answer 1 December 1992] : This is a matter for British Coal.
SCOTLAND
Food Safety
Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many inspections of food premises have been carried out by each local authority in Scotland under the Food Safety Act 1990 ; and how many of those inspections have resulted in (a) the issuing of improvement and emergency prohibition notices, (b) informal warnings letters or (c) the voluntary closure of companies.
Sir Hector Monro : At present information is available only for 1991. This is given in the table :
Column 349
Number of
establishments
subject to
Enforcement |Number of |Issue of improvement|Written warnings |Closures (voluntary
authority |inspections of food |and emergency |and compulsory)
|premises<2> |prohibition notices
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aberdeen City |944 |41 |191 |-
Angus |1,676 |4 |189 |2
Annandale and Eskdale |664 |1 |12 |1
Argyll and Bute |968 |- |371 |-
Badenoch and Strathspey |212 |- |83 |-
Banff and Buchan<3> |2,055 |- |181 |-
Bearsden and Milngavie |156 |2 |6 |-
Berwickshire<3> |178 |1 |26 |-
Caithness<3> |135 |2 |38 |-
Clackmannan<3> |390 |31 |110 |-
Clydebank |697 |6 |32 |-
Clydesdale<3> |481 |1 |- |-
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth<3> |62 |22 |23 |-
Cumnock and Doon Valley<3> |741 |10 |411 |-
Cunninghame<3> |995 |- |- |-
Dumbarton<3> |607 |7 |15 |1
Dundee City<3> |1,570 |- |581 |-
Dunfermline |1,119 |55 |- |-
East Kilbride |482 |- |413 |-
East Lothian |820 |12 |325 |-
Eastwood |284 |- |20 |-
Edinburgh City<3> |5,374 |120 |892 |3
Ettrick and Lauderdale |409 |2 |101 |-
Falkirk |3,396 |16 |442 |-
Glasgow City |9,670 |259 |490 |7
Gordon<3> |394 |3 |246 |-
Hamilton |987 |24 |190 |-
Inverclyde |645 |6 |431 |-
Inverness<3> |510 |- |236 |-
Kilmarnock and Loudoun |755 |- |209 |-
Kincardine and Deeside |317 |- |103 |-
Kirkcaldy<3> |1,940 |9 |631 |1
Kyle and Carrick<3> |1,338 |10 |309 |3
Lochaber |229 |22 |11 |-
Midlothian<3> |240 |16 |65 |-
Monklands |1,222 |40 |463 |2
Moray<3> |622 |- |217 |-
Motherwell<3> |1,298 |2 |458 |-
Nairn<3> |111 |- |- |-
Nithsdale<3> |472 |- |68 |-
North East Fife<3> |509 |12 |275 |-
Orkney<3> |92 |- |48 |-
Perth and Kinross |1,281 |11 |661 |-
Renfrew |2,671 |72 |3 |-
Ross and Cromarty |703 |1 |16 |4
Roxburgh<3> |199 |25 |64 |4
Shetland<3> |258 |- |44 |-
Skye and Lochalsh<3> |85 |- |55 |-
Stewartry<3> |336 |17 |195 |-
Stirling<3> |578 |6 |17 |-
Strathkelvin |769 |29 |11 |-
Sutherland<3> |474 |3 |19 |3
Tweeddale |120 |- |39 |-
West Lothian<3> |597 |53 |53 |-
Western Isles<3> |104 |- |- |-
Wigtown<3> |467 |1 |54 |-
<1>These statistics cover work carried out by local authorities under the Food Safety Act 1990, regulations made under it and the
OfficialControl of Foodstuffs Directive. They exclude:
meat hygiene inspections carried out under EC veterinary legislation;
inspections carried out by the Wine Standards Board under EC wine legislation.
<2>The number of food hygiene and food standards inspections covers:
inspection of premises;
inspection of equipment including cleaning and maintenance equipment;
inspection of process or operational procedure;
inspection of the hygiene or practices of personnel;
inspection of food (including ingredients, additives and products at any stage of manufacture) or contact materials;
inspection of labels, labelling equipment and advertising matter and/or inspection of records.
These figures exclude all other visits, eg revisits to check compliance with notices, sampling visits and visits to follow up
complaints.
<3>Excluded figures for first quarter of 1991. This was only required on a voluntary basis.
University Students
Mrs. Ray Michie : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many Scots were attending Scottish universities ; and how many students were attending Scottish universities from other parts of the United
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Kingdom in each year since session 1979-80 ; and if he will list the regions that all students attending Scottish universities were from in each year since session 1979-80.
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