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Written Answers to Questions

Tuesday 6 July 1993

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Butte Mining plc

Mr. Morgan : To ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the director of the Serious Fraud Office's investigations into the flotation of and share dealings in Butte Mining.

The Attorney-General : The SFO investigation relating to Butte Mining plc is not yet concluded. It is my practice not to give details about investigations which are still in progress.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

Gerontology

Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the breakdown of the £600,000 spent on basic aging research or gerontology.

Mr. William Waldegrave : The Medical Research Council--MRC--is the main Government agency for the promotion of medical and related research in the United Kingdom. The MRC do not recognise the figure to which the hon. Gentleman refers, but in 1991-92--the last financial year for which figures are available--the MRC's expenditure on projects relevant to aging and the elderly was £9.8 million. This research refers to work on cognitive performance, hearing, dementia, osteoporosis, Parkinson's, nutrition, cardiovascular, stroke and cancer research. Additional work is also carried out on understanding the processes underlying aging ; and on molecular mechanisms in the clonal deletion of auto-reactive T cells by programmed cell death. Because much of this research is interlinked, the financial breakdown of this research would be available only at disproportionate cost.

Office of Public Service and Science

Sir Rhodes Boyson : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will publish the total amount of expenditure on provision within the responsibility of the Office of Public Service and Science in (a) England, (b) Greater London and (c) the south-east, excluding Greater London, for each year from 1982-83 to 1992-93, estimated, distinguishing between current and capital expenditure, though excluding local authority credit approvals/capital allocations.

Mr. David Davis : I am able to provide the following information about the Department's expenditure on the administration of public service and science and on the science programme.

(i) Expenditure on the Administration of Public Service and Science


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The major part of the Office of Public Service and Science's offices and staff is located in London and the south- east, but the Occupational Health Service, which has its headquarters in Edinburgh, has a small regional network, and the Government Centre for Information Systems has offices in Norwich.

Total expenditure by the Department and its predecessors on administration in the period 1982-83 to 1992-93 was as follows :


£ millions                                                                                          

Year                |Current Expenditure|Capital Expenditure|Total                                  

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

1982-83             |53.0               |5.6                |58.6                                   

1983-84             |63.4               |1.9                |65.3                                   

1984-85             |76.1               |3.4                |79.5                                   

1985-86             |79.1               |4.3                |83.4                                   

1986-87             |75.5               |8.7                |84.2                                   

1987-88             |90.6               |10.6               |101.2                                  

1988-89             |98.0               |9.6                |107.6                                  

1989-90             |96.5               |7.3                |103.8                                  

1990-91             |104.3              |11.0               |115.3                                  

1991-92             |123.6              |9.1                |132.7                                  

1992-93             |134.0              |11.0               |145.0                                  

(ii) Expenditure on the Science Programme

Information on capital and current expenditure from the science budget by the research councils, the Royal Society and the Royal Academy of Engineering is not available in the form requested prior to 1992-93.

The expenditure figures for England are as follows :


England                                                                                             

£ millions                                                                                          

                    |Current Expenditure|Capital Expenditure|Total                                  

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

1982-83             |n/a                |n/a                |n/a                                    

1983-84             |319.4              |68.4               |387.8                                  

1984-85             |340.4              |67.5               |407.9                                  

1985-86             |351.5              |78.3               |429.8                                  

1986-87             |364.9              |80.1               |445.0                                  

1987-88             |397.0              |82.7               |479.7                                  

1988-89             |434.3              |96.4               |530.7                                  

1989-90             |519.0              |115.5              |634.5                                  

1990-91             |n/a                |n/a                |n/a                                    

1991-92             |<1>554.0           |<1>121.6           |675.6                                  

n/a=not available.                                                                                  

<1> Estimated Breakdown.                                                                            

For 1992-93 the figures are as follows :


£ millions                                              

England          South East      Greater London         

         excluding Greater                              

         London                                         

Current |Capital|Current|Capital|Current|Capital        

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

599.1   |124.3  |173.8  |36.3   |149.5  |19.8           

WALES

Rabies

Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what measures are being taken at Welsh ports to prevent rabies entering Wales ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Redwood : People who bring in unlicensed animals and those who allow their animals on deck in harbour will be committing an offence and may face imprisonment in addition to heavy fines. Local authorities have the chief role in enforcing these provisions, supported by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise officers, port health officers and the police.


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Keen surveillance is maintained over vessels from abroad, both commercial shipping and small boats and yachts which are mainly privately owned. This surveillance is supported by the co-operation of harbour-masters, marina owners, yacht clubs and many other members of the public whose work or recreation is connected with ports or sailing.

All-weather noticeboards are provided for use at harbours, ports and marinas, both in the United Kingdom and on the continent. These state, in appropriate languages, that the landing of animals is prohibited, emphasise the danger from illegally landed animals and the penalties for contraventions. A great deal of importance is attached to maintaining general rabies awareness and the present publicity campaign is targeted at the small boat owner.

Rio Declaration

Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what action he has taken to prepare an action plan to guide implementation of the Rio declaration.

Mr. Redwood : The Government are committed to making a report to the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development by the end of this year. The Welsh Office is closely involved in the compilation of this report, which will take full account of the Rio declaration.

Fluoridation

Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will meet the chairman of Welsh Water plc to discuss the fluoridation of drinking water supplies in Wales.

Mr. Gwilym Jones : My right hon. Friend has no plans to do so at the present time.

NHS Trusts

Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it a requirement that NHS hospital trust annual reports should list the salaries of the chief executive and all board members.

Mr. Gwilym Jones : NHS trusts are required to provide information on the emoluments of their board members, excluding pension costs, as part of their annual accounts and this information must include the emoluments of the chairman, the highest-paid member and the chief executive--if not the highest-paid member. They are also required to provide similar information in their annual reports in order to conform with the provisions of the Companies Act 1985, as amended. The information provided in the annual report should be consistent with that provided in the annual accounts and, if there is any less detail, the annual report must make it clear that the full set of accounts is publicly available upon request.

Out-of-Town Developments

Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many out-of-town large commercial developments were initially refused planning permission by the local authority, but were granted permission on appeal to the Welsh Office since 1979.

Mr. Gwilym Jones : Comprehensive information in the form requested could be provided only at disproportionate


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cost, but 11 major retail developments have been approved on appeal against refusal of permission since the end of 1979.

Public Bodies

Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales to whom each of the executive non-departmental public bodies sponsored by his Department is responsible ; whether the public bodies or their members in each case are subject to (a) surcharge, (b) investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner, (c) scrutiny by the Audit Commission or National Audit Office, (d) the statutory provisions for open Government which apply to local authorities, (e) performance indicators and (f) provisions under the citizens' charters ; and whether the chairpersons and members of the boards of each of these bodies are required to declare an interest.

Mr. Redwood : The Welsh Office sponsors 17 executive

non-departmental public bodies--NDPBs. Details are available in "Public Bodies" and in the Department's 1993 annual report. The functions and responsibilities of each NDPB are specified in its founding legislation or charter. The Secretary of State is responsible and accountable to Parliament for the resources provided for NDPBs, and the general framework within which they are required to operate. For most NDPBs, the chief executive is designated as the accounting officer and, together with the departmental accounting officer, is liable to appear before the Public Accounts Committee to account for the use of public funds.

(a) and (d) : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given to him by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment on 15 June Official Report, columns 544-45. (b) The NDPBs in Wales subject to investigation by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration are :

Sports Council for Wales

Wales Tourist Board

Development Board for Rural Wales

Cardiff Bay Development Corporation

Housing for Wales

Countryside Council for Wales

Agricultural Wages Committee

(c) Executive NDPBs in Wales are generally audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General : where the Comptroller and Auditor General is not himself responsible for auditing a particular body, he retains certain rights of inspection.

(e) All NDPBs in Wales have or are developing performance indicators for their own internal management and to enable the Department to monitor their performance.

(f) All NDPBs in Wales are expected to adopt the principles of the citizens charter in their dealings with the public.

Members of NDPBs in Wales are expected to declare any potential conflict of interest.

Welsh Office

Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he intends to publish the Government's response to the first report of the Welsh Affairs Committee, Session 1992-93, House of Commons Paper 259, on the "Work of the Welsh Office".


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Mr. Redwood : I am pleased to announce that the response to the Welsh Affairs Committee report on the work of the Welsh Office has been published today as Command Paper 2276. Copies are available in the Vote Office.

Mapping

Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has any proposals to ensure that the whole of Wales is mapped on a scale of 1 : 2,500 ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Redwood [holding answer 5 July 1993] : No. The Ordnance Survey is responsible for the official surveying and topographic mapping of Great Britain. Following the advice of a review committee, the Government require Ordnance Survey to survey and map all conurbations at a scale of 1 :1,250, all small towns and cultivated rural areas at a scale of 1 : 2,500 and all mountain and moorland areas at a scale of 1 : 10,000. This requirement covers Wales.

Housing Capital Receipts

Mr. Murphy : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was held by local authorities in Wales, as at 31 March 1992, in respect of housing capital receipts reserved for debt redemption.

Mr. Gwilym Jones : As at 31 March 1992, local authorities were required to set aside specified proportions of the capital receipts which they acquire for the repayment of debt, to meet payments on credit arrangements, such as finance leases, or in lieu of capital expenditure. Authorities are also required to make minimum provision from their revenue resources to meet credit liabilities. Such capital charges may be met in part by the interest gained on capital receipts, but the individual sources of such provision are not distinguished in the information collected centrally. In addition to the requirements for the application of capital receipts and revenue resources to meet credit liabilities, authorities may choose to apply the unspecified portions of their receipts which are available for new capital expenditure as well as revenue allocations to this end. At 31 March 1992, the outstanding housing loan debt for which provision would be required stood at £1,800,000,000. The scheduled amount of housing capital receipts assigned to meet credit liabilities stood at £180,000,000 at that date but, in addition, part of the £28,300,000 of unreserved housing receipts could also be applied to such use by authorities.

SCOTLAND

School Information

Mr. Raymond S. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about school information to be made available for parents under the parents charter.

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Having carefully considered the responses made to the consultation paper "Better Information for Parents", my right hon. Friend is today laying regulations before Parliament which provide for the collection and publication of school information covering : attendance and truancy rates ; examination


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results and awards ; school leaver destinations ; and school costs. A circular which explains in detail the provisions contained in the regulations is also being issued today.

We received more than 300 responses during the consultation period. I am very grateful to all those who responded for their helpful and constructive suggestions. Providing information to parents about the schools their children attend is a central element in the parents charter and something this Government consider to be of the utmost importance. As a result of our consultations, we have clarified and revised the earlier provisions in a number of respects. In particular, the regulations now require that :

school handbooks are to be issued by 15 December in each year ; regional and national average figures by category will include education authority schools and grant-aided schools but not special schools for which results are to be given separately ;

attendance and absence rates for pupils in stage S6 need not distinguish between authorised and unauthorised absence ; examination results for SCE are to be shown as percentages of of the number of pupils on each individual school's roll at the start of their S4 year--and a measure of the staying-on-rate to stage S5 is now also to be given ; and

awards for national certificates and other SCOTVEC awards are to be shown by stage.

We have also taken all possible steps to minimise the workload on schools which will result from the provision of this information. For example, calculations on examination results will be carried out as far as possible directly by the Scottish Office Education Department and discussions have already taken place between the Department, the Scottish Examination Board and the Scottish Vocational Education Council to this end. The basic information on school leaver destinations will also be collected by the careers service.

Councillors (Mileage Rates)

Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the methodology used to determine the rates of mileage expenses paid to councillors in Scotland.

Mr. Stewart [holding answer 24 June 1993] : The motor mileage rates are based on the average price at the pump for unleaded petrol over a 12-month period as applied to the schedule of annual running costs produced by the Automobile Association which covers tyres, oil, servicing and repairs.

Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to review the current rates of mileage expenses paid to councillors in Scotland.

Mr. Stewart [holding answer 24 June 1993] : The rates of mileage expenses were reviewed with effect from 1 January 1993. A similar annual uprating exercise will be carried out towards the end of this year.

Secondary School Reorganisation

Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland on what date he expects to publish the Scottish Office Education Department's responses to comments on the Howie committee's recommendations for upper secondary school reorganisation.


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Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 5 July 1993] : Decisions have not yet been taken in response to comments on the Howie committee's recommendations for upper secondary reform. I am unable, therefore, to give the date of an announcement.

Coastal Pollution

Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment he has made of the current cleanliness, safety and freedom from pollution of beaches and coastal waters.

Sir Hector Monro [holding answer 5 July 1993] : The water quality survey of Scotland 1990 which my Department published in March 1992 assesses the cleanliness and freedom from pollution of Scottish coastal waters. The survey demonstrates that a high proportion of Scottish waters are of satisfactory quality. River purification boards monitor water quality at many beaches and I produce annually a report on monitoring of 23 bathing waters identified for the purposes of EC directive 76/160/EEC. That report is in the House of Commons Library and for 1992 showed that 15 beaches achieved the directive's water quality standards.

Individual local authorities take responsibility for the cleanliness and safety of beaches in their area. However, Keep Scotland Beautiful has assessed the standards achieved at some of the most popular beaches including the nine beaches in Scotland that successfully obtained a seaside award this year.

NHS Property Sales

Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the companies and individuals who have purchased NHS property to the value of £250,000 or more over the past five years.

Mr. Stewart [holding answer 5 July 1993] : The information, for the period from 1 April 1988 to date, is set out in the table. Greenock Medical Aid (Properties) Ltd.

Beazer Homes Ltd.

Morrison Developments

Wimpey Homes Holdings Ltd.

Homehurst Ltd.

Cresta Property Investment Ltd.

Messrs W. B. B. Gammell and P. J. A. Leggate

Leven Glen Ltd.

Hotel Saiyo International Ltd.

Central Regional Council

Balfour Beattie Ltd.

Uppermill Farms Ltd.

E. W. Ferrari

Jarlaw Securities Ltd.

Quantum Claims Compensation Specialists Ltd.

Balgownie Development Co. Ltd.


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Balfour Beattie Ltd.

Windex Ltd.

Whatling Homes

Mactaggart and Mickel Ltd.

West of Scotland Housing Association

Charing Cross Housing Association

Tay Homes

Cathcart Housing Association

Miller Homes

E. K. Wallace and Sons Ltd.

Takare

Associated Nursing Services (PLC)

East Kilbride Development Corporation

Glasgow Development Agency

Central Guraduwara Singh Sabha Association

Tulloch Homes Ltd.

Wilson Homes (Stonehouse) Ltd.

Lanarkshire Development Agency

McLean Homes

Hugh McMartin and Partners

John D. Dourley

Barry D. Trentham Ltd.

Farquhar Developments Ltd.

Napier University

Applecross Developments

AMA (New Town) Ltd.

McAlpine Laing Investments

Bryant Homes

Lothian and Edinburgh Enterprise

Sunnyhill Developments


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