House of Commons Hansard Debates for 11 Jun 1993

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triangulation pillars ; how they go about adopting them ; what is the cost of adoption per pillar ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Baldry : Responsibility for this subject has been delegated to the executive agency. I have asked Professor Rhind, chief executive for Ordnance Survey, to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Professor David Rhind to Mr. Martin Redmond, dated 9 June 1993 :

I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Questions about the Ordnance Survey scheme for adopting triangulation (trig) pillars.

The criteria we have adopted, providing the landowner's agreement can be obtained, are :

the first person or organisation to lodge an application for the adoption of a particular pillar will be permitted to do so, subject to various conditions (see below) ;

the applicant must agree to the terms of a Code of Practice drawn up for the purpose (copy enclosed) ;

the applicant must sign a memorandum of agreement with both Ordnance Survey and the landowner (copy enclosed).

Anyone wishing to adopt a particular trig pillar simply has to write to Ordnance Survey registering an interest. Ordnance Survey will respond enclosing a copy of "Guide to Adopting a Trig Pillar" (copy enclosed) and, on receipt of the applicant's confirmation of a wish to proceed, will initiate action to obtain the landowner's agreement, leading to the signing of the memorandum of agreement. Although Ordnance Survey incurs some administration cost, the process is free to the applicant.

When I wrote to you on 27 October 1992 the scheme had only recently been introduced. It is proving to be quite time-consuming to make the necessary arrangements with both landowners and applicants and, at the time of writing, no adoptions have been completed. However, we have made 1,983 provisional allocations (out of a total of 4,904 available) and expect to finalise many of these in the next few weeks. There remain available some 2,920 pillars but this number is reducing slowly on a day-by-day basis. A list of those pillars still available will therefore be a very long one and I should be grateful if you would confirm that you would like a complete listing before I arrange for its preparation.

Sellafield Discharges

Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from Nordic Environment Ministers regarding proposals to increase permitted discharge levels from the Sellafield nuclear plant ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Yeo : I have received representations on this matter from the Swedish Environment Minister, in his capacity of the chairman of the Nordic Council of Ministers, and the Danish Environment Minister.

THORP

Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has regarding representations made to the Paris Commission on the proposed operation of the thermal oxide reprocessing plant at Sellafield ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Yeo : I have received information on a number of such representations.

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Sizewell B

Mr. Madel : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what arrangements he is making for ministerial decisions relating to Sizewell B power station.

Mr. Gummer : Sizewell B is in my constituency, and I have accordingly delegated responsibility for all ministerial decisions to my hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and Planning.

MINIS 14 Documents

Mr. Hayes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he will publish his Department's MINIS 14 documents.

Mr. Gummer : I am today publishing MINIS 14 and a set has been placed in the Library.

Small Cetaceans

Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what specific steps his Department has taken, or intends to take, to conserve and manage the habitat of small cetaceans, in line with the United Kingdom's commitments under the annex to the 1992 agreement on the conservation of small cetaceans of the Baltic and North seas ; and what steps he is taking to prevent acoustic disturbance.

Mr. Yeo [holding answer 7 June 1993] : The Government strongly support the agreement. The United Kingdom was one of the first countries to sign it last year and although the agreement is not yet in force, we have already agreed to apply its principles in all British waters.

Cetaceans already receive considerable protection in British waters under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. A number of other initiatives are also under way which contribute to the conservation of small cetaceans. These include controls of discharges into the sea ; restrictions on exploration activity at sea ; research into ways of enhancing the acoustic detectability of fishing nets to reduce by-catches, and research funded by my Department for recording cetaceans stranded on the British coast and investigating causes of death.

The new agreement contains provisions to encourage joint research. In considering whether further conservation measures are necessary it is essential that we learn more about the abundance and distribution of the various species of small cetaceans present in European waters. For that reason, the Government announced last year that we would provide £110,000 towards a major survey of small cetaceans in the North sea, including the channel. The project is led by the sea mammal research unit-- SMRU--based in Cambridge. The EC and several other range states are also providing resources and the survey is due to be conducted next year.

The SMRU is also to chair a working group on acoustic disturbance to small cetaceans. This has been established by my Department under the arrangements for the implementation of the new agreement.

Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the United Kingdom Government expect to ratify the agreement on the small cetaceans of the Baltic and North seas signed in New York on 17 March 1992.

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Mr. Yeo [holding answer 11 June 1993] : The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is currently preparing an instrument of ratification for the agreement and will be depositing it with the United Nations shortly.

EMPLOYMENT

Employment Service

Mr. Davidson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if he will make a statement on the practice of declaring staff in the counselling service surplus to requirements ; what plans there are to make the policy uniform throughout the United Kingdom ; what is the long-term situation for those staff who have been declared surplus ; and what effect this will have on the career structure within the Employment Service ;

(2) if he will make a statement on the prospect of redundancies occurring within the Employment Service within the next 12 months ; (3) whether the present treatment of surplus staff in the Glasgow and Tayside and Fife region is a national pilot project ; (4) what plans he has for the enhancement of early retirement within the Employment Service.

Mr. Michael Forsyth : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from D. B. Price to Mr. Ian Davidson, dated11 June 1993 : As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, it is the responsibility of Mike Fogden, the Agency's Chief Executive to answer Parliamentary Questions about relevant opera-tional matters. In his absence, I am replying to your questions to the Secretary of State about :

-- surplus personnel in the Employment Service ;

-- what plans exist for redundancies ;

-- whether the present treatment of staff in Glasgow and Tayside and Fife is a national pilot and

-- what plans there are for enhancements to early retirement. Certain aspects of advisory work in the Employment Service are being regraded resulting in a temporary surplus of staff at Executive Officer grade. In common with current policy operated by the Department of Employment every effort will be made to redeploy these and any other staff. This may include offering people throughout the organisation the opportunity to apply for voluntary early retirement on enhanced terms. In the meantime, dependent upon local circumstances, some may be asked to do the work of more junior grades on a temporary basis. The deployment of these people is likely to have the effect of slowing down promotion opportunities in some places. There are no plans currently for redundancies in the Employment Service.

As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.

Mr. Davidson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the proposed effect of the Phillips review on the present surplus situation in the Employment Service.

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Letter from D. B. Price to Mr. Ian Davidson, dated 11 June 1993 :

As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, it is the responsibility of Mike Fogden, the Agency's Chief Executive to answer Parliamentary Questions about relevant operational matters. In his absence, I am replying to your question to the Secretary of State about the effect of Phillip's Review on surpluses within the Employment Service.

The Phillip's review of the Employment Service organisational structure was undertaken to identify ways of sharpening the management of Employment Service performance and further increasing the value for money it achieves in delivering its surpluses, if any, would result from implementing its recommendations.

As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to Written Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.

Counselling Service

Mr. Davidson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what assessment he has made of the effect on service to the unemployed of cuts in the grading of the counselling service and changes in the time taken to interview clients ;

(2) what proposals he has to enhance the counselling service supplied to the unemployed ;

(3) what policy considerations underlay his predecessors decision to regrade the counselling service in the Employment Service and to institute a two-tier service.

Letter from D. B. Price to Mr. Ian Davidson, dated 11 June 1993 :

what assessment she has made of the effect on service to the unemployed of cuts in the grading of the Counselling Service and changes in the time taken to interview clients ;

what proposals she has to enhance the Counselling Service supplied to the unemployed and

what policy considerations underlay her decision to regrade the Counselling Service in the Employment Service and to institute a two tier service.

Ever since the Restart programme of advisory interviews was first introduced in 1986 we have continually developed and enhanced the service we offer to our clients. As part of this process of enhancing our advisory services, we took a policy decision that, as from April 1993, the people who provide these services in our local offices should be re-organised into Back To Work Teams. These teams are made up of a mixture of people, at Executive Officer and Administrativeon Officer levels. Adopting this approach means that we are now able to offer clients different levels of interview according to their needs. For some clients basic advice will meet those needs but for the others, where the initial interview uncovers deeper issues or where the client asks for more help, we will be able to offer in depth advisory interviews. In addition we have ensured that all clients will receive a full diagnostic interview at two key points in their period of unemployment ; namely six months and one year. Back To Work teams will also help us provide a more coherent service. This is because clients will see a member of the same team at all their advisory and signing visits and we will make sure that these contacts build on one another. Each member of a team will be able to

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provide clients with relevant information and advice about their benefit claim and the jobs and programme opportunities available locally.

For these reasons we consider Back To Work teams represent the most cost effective way of providing all our clients with a comprehensive range of advisory services tailored to their needs, while allowing the Employment Service to live within its financial means. We will be assessing the effectiveness of Back To Work teams throughout the year and will take whatever action to further enhance them as necessary. You may be encouraged to know that early indications from our local office people are that our clients have reacted well to the service they are receiving under the new arrangements.

I hope that this is helpful.

As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.

Mr. Davidson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Employment what assessment he has made of disparities in the policy within the Scottish region on regrading of the counselling service in the Employment Service.

Letter from D. B. Price to Mr. Ian Davidson, dated 11 June 1993 :

As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, it is the responsibility of Mike Fogden, the Agency's Chief Executive to answer Parliamentary Questions about relevant operational matters. In his absence, I am replying to your question to the Secretary of State about what assessment she has made of disparities in the policy within the Scottish Region on regarding of the Counselling Service in the Employment Service.

Changes to our advisory services in Scotland have been on the same lines as those in England and Wales. Ever since the Restart Programme of advisory interviews was first introduced in 1986 we have continually developed and enhanced the service we offer to our clients. As part of this process of enhancing our advisory services, we took a policy decision that, as from April 1993, the people who provide these services in our local offices should be re-organised into Back To Work Teams. These teams are made up of a mixture of people, at Executive Officer and Administrative Officer levels. Adopting this approach means that we are now able to offer clients different levels of interview according to their needs. For some clients basic advice will meet those needs but for the others, where the initial interview uncovers deeper issues or where the client asks for more help, we will be able to offer in depth advisory interviews. In addition we have ensured that all clients will receive a full diagnostic interview at two key points in their period of unemployment ; namely six months and one year. Back To Work teams will also help us provide a more coherent service. This is because clients will see a member of the same team at all their advisory and signing visits and we will make sure that these contacts build on one another. Each member of a team will be able to provide clients with relevant information and advice about their benefit claim and the jobs and programme opportunities available locally.

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Regarding the arrangements which have been made in Scotland I should explain that it is an important aspect of our way of working that local managers should have flexibility, within our national framework, to vary their organisation in line with local circumstances. If you have a specific issue about the arrangements in Scotland please contact me or our Director for Scotland, Mr. Alan Brown. His address is Employment Service Regional Office for Scotland, Argyle House, 3 Lady Lawson Street, Edinburgh, EH3 9SD telephone, 031 229 9191.

I hope this is helpful.

Market Testing

Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the cost to date and the expected future cost of his Department's market- testing programme ; how many staff are engaged full-time in work relating to market testing ; which firms of consultants have been used in connection with the market-testing programme ; and how they were selected.

Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 7 June 1993] : The Employment Department group's market-testing programme is being developed within existing resources.

It is not possible at this stage to given an estimate of likely savings from the Department's market testing programme. Annual returns across Whitehall indicate, however, that in previous years savings arising from market testing have typically been around 25 per cent. of the original cost even when the activity has remained in-house.

Fifty-one staff are currently employed full time across the group to deliver a programme covering over 1,900 staff and with a value of £72 million.

The Department has used the following consultants to advise on its market testing programme and all were selected as a result of a competitive tender exercise :

Coopers and Lybrand

k the Secretary of State for Employment what plans he has to review the benefit week and associated signing arrangements in respect of protection of the interests of those claimants who are alphabetically disadvantaged.

Mr. Michael Forsyth) [holding answer 8 June 1993] : Responsibility for the subject or the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Sir Cranley Onslow, dated 11 June 1993 :

As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your Parliamentary Question to him about any plans he has to review the benefit week and associated signing arrangements in the interests of clients who may be

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disadvantaged by the existing procedures. This is something which falls within the responsibilities he has delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.

If a client undertakes part-time work there are occasions when the amount of benefit they are entitled to depends on their signing day and I am assuming this also relates to your question. This is because unemployment benefit is disallowed where earnings for days falling in a benefit week exceed the weekly lower earnings limit, currently £56, and a client's signing day determines their benefit week. Although the rules concerning part-time work are drawn from Social Security legislation, there are some flexibilities available to us and we are always looking at ways of improving our procedures in order to offer a high quality service to our clients. We have recently carried out a review of our part-time worker procedures and several recommendations have been made to improve the service we provide.

We are working towards introducing nationally the benefit week for regular part-time workers to end on Saturday, when all clients would be affected by the rules in the same way. This has the further advantage that it corresponds with the week used to assess the award of National Insurance contribution credits.

I hope this is helpful.

As decided by the Adminstration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.

NATIONAL FINANCE

Farmers and Gangmasters

Mr. Spellar : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action the Inland Revenue proposes to take to ensure that farmers and gangmasters comply with their statutory responsibilities.

Mr. Dorrell : The Inland Revenue will continue, where possible, to use its statutory powers to ensure that farmers and gangmasters, who make use of temporary work forces, properly account for both their own and their employees' tax and national insurance liabilities.

Correspondence

Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth might receive an answer to his letter of 1 April referring to Mr. P. R. Lake of Rugby.

Sir John Cope : I have recently written to my hon. Friend on this subject.

Shares Dividends

Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he proposes to take to prevent tax avoidance arising by the offering of dividends of shares in lieu of cash with instant sale facilities.

Mr. Dorrell : All developments which may have a significant effect on Exchequer receipts are carefully monitored.

Lloyd's

Mr. Viggers : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the timetable for the repayment of tax to individual taxpayers arising out of losses at Lloyd's of London.

Mr. Dorrell : The Inland Revenue calculates that some 27,000 underwriting members of Lloyd's have suffered

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trading losses for the Lloyd's account year to 31 December 1989. These losses can be used for relief against other income for tax year 1989-90 and, in some circumstances, the previous year and repayment of tax paid on that income may be reclaimed.

The process of dealing with repayment claims for Lloyd's account 1989 started some four months earlier than for previous years, and out of some 26,500 claims received by 28 May, when the last count was made, more than 17,000--64 per cent.--have been repaid. At the same time last year, the comparative figures were 16,800 claims received, 6,900--41 per cent.--had been dealt with.

An interim payment will, if possible, be made in circumstances where Inland Revenue audit procedures may prevent immediate repayment in full.

Income Tax

Mr. Bowden : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the number of people over the age of 65 years who are liable for income tax at each of the lower basic and higher rates, in the present financial year.

Mr. Dorrell : Latest estimates for 1993-94 are as follows :


Thousands                                             

Marginal rate of  |Taxpayers aged 65                  

taxpayer          |and over                           

------------------------------------------------------

Lower rate        |1,390                              

Basic rate        |1,490                              

Higher rate       |120                                

                  |-------                            

All taxpayers     |3,000

Tax Credits

Ms Harman : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of tax credits on share dividends becoming available to tax-exempt entities in each of the years 1990-91, 1991-92 and 1992-93 were claimed in the same year.

Mr. Dorrell : I regret that the information requested is not available. However, it is estimated that about 75 per cent. of total repayments of income tax and payments of tax credits to tax exempt institutions are made in the year in which the recipient first becomes entitled to the repayment or payment.

Ms. Harman : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 10 May, Official Report, column 327, on what basis he has made the assumption that about half of tax credits on share dividends held by charities are claimed in the same year in which the dividend is paid.

Mr. Dorrell : The assumption is based on the knowledge that many claims by charities for payment of tax credits are made after the end of the financial year in which the dividend is paid. For example, many charities submit an annual claim for income tax repayments and payments of tax credits after the end of the relevant financial year.

Tax Fraud

Mr. Barnes : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has of the extent of fraud in the taxation system ; and what steps he is proposing to take to combat it.

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Mr. Dorrell [holding answer 10 June 1993] : Reliable estimates of the extent of tax fraud are not available. But the hon. Member may wish to consult the chapter entitled "Deterring And Tackling Non- Compliance" in the latest annual report of the Board of Inland Revenue.

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