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Fitzherbert School, Brighton
Mr. Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether the former Fitzherbert school site in Brighton has been sold.
Mr. Robin Squire : I understand from the City Technology Colleges Trust, which is the beneficial owner of this site, that a sale to Nuffield Nursing Homes Trust has been agreed. The price is commercially confidential.
Primary Schools
Mr. Wilshire : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to improve the teaching of basic skills in primary schools.
Mr. Patten : I have today published, following wide consultation, a circular--DFE circular 14/93--which sets new standards for all courses of training for primary teachers. It requires students to spend more time on learning to teach the core subjects of the national curriculum, in particular the basic skills of reading and arithmetic. It also requires students to spend more time in schools, with serving teachers playing a full part in their training.
The circular announces new plans to fund courses for classroom assistants, so that they can support the teaching and learning of basic skills in the primary classroom ; such courses will be developed over the coming months and funded from September 1994. The circular, which has been sent to all primary schools, those offering primary teacher training, and other interested bodies, includes comprehensive criteria which all primary training courses must meet. The criteria cover the subject knowledge and teaching skills new teachers require to be effective in the classroom ; the amount of time to be spent in schools, and on the study of core subjects and basic skills ; and the need for serving teachers to be able to play a full part in planning and delivering training. The circular sets the new criteria in the context of the government's policies for primary education and teacher training. It supports the use of new course models to offer a variety of routes into teaching ; including a six-subject, three-year BEd to prepare primary teachers for work across the curriculum. It encourages the use of the accreditation of prior learning to widen access to teaching for mature people without conventional qualifications.
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AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Fisheries Council
Mr. Butler : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the outcome of the Fisheries Council held in Brussels on 22 November ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Jack : I represented the United Kingdom at the Council of EC Fisheries Ministers held in Brussels on 22 November.
The Council voted unanimously to agree the fish support prices for 1994. This was the only vote at this Council. The prices set reflect developments on the market, and the United Kingdom secured some adjustments to the Commission's proposals to reflect particular concerns of our industry. The United Kingdom also secured the continuance of the dual guide price system for herring, which is designed to enable the United Kingdom industry to take best advantage of EC market support mechanisms.
The Council held a further discussion on the Commission's proposal for changes to the rules governing fishing by Spain and Portugal. The Commission's proposal was unsatisfactory to a majority of delegations including the United Kingdom. As a result, the Belgian presidency will be looking for an alternative way foward. I repeated my insistence that the eventual decision must respect member states' existing shares of available quotas--"relative stability"--and must not allow any increase in fishing effort. I also stressed my determination to find satisfactory arrangements to apply in the Irish box. Discussions will be taken up in the December Council at which time decisions may be reached on these matters.
At the United Kingdom's request, the Council had a further discussion on industrial fishing. We received strong support from a number of member states to our request that the Commission should press ahead quickly with a thorough study of the subject including its possible effects on the marine ecosystem and marine mammals and birds. Pilot projects will be set up to study control and management problems on industrial fisheries. The Commission was asked to report back to the Council, if possible before 31 March 1994.
The Council reached unanimous agreement in principle to adopt measures this year on standards for the minimum information to appear in all member states' fishing licences. More detailed aspects of the Commission's proposal on fishing licences and permits will be considered further during 1994.
Agricultural Commodities,Trade and Food Production Directorate
Dr. Strang : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what were (a) capital expenditure and (b) running costs paid by her Department in 1992-93 in respect of the work of the agricultural commodities, trade and food production directorate on (i) the European Community, (ii) arable crops and alcoholic drinks, (iii) horticulture, plant protection and agricultural resources, (d) food, milk and marketing policy and (e) the meat group.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The information requested is as follows :
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£ thousands
|Running costs |Capital
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
European Community |1,123 |5
Arable crops and alcoholic drinks |1,494 |40
Horticulture, plant protection and
agricultural resources |7,930 |64
Food, milk and marketing policy |2,689 |21
Deputy Secretary and staff |130 |0
Dr. Strang : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will list the responsibilities of the agricultural commodities, trade and food production directorate in respect of (a) the European Community, (b) arable crops and alcoholic drinks, (c) horticulture, plant protection and agricultural resources, (d) food, milk and marketing policy and (e) the meat group.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The responsibilities are set out in columns 42 to 46 of the civil service year book 1993. However, since that was published, the plant health division, plant variety and seeds division and agricultural resource policy division have ceased to be part of this directorate.
Set-aside
Mr. Tyler : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress has been made in her discussions on the extension of the EC set-aside programme ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Jack : At the meeting of Agriculture Ministers on 16 and 17 November, my right hon. Friend the Minister continued to press for a number of changes to the rules on set-aside under the arable area payments scheme, in particular to enable those who have set land aside for five years under the old five-year scheme to keep all that land in set-aside, to reduce the percentage requirement for mixtures of rotational and non-rotational set- aside below the 20 per cent. proposed and to allow arable land taken out of production under forestry and agri-environment schemes to count against a producer's set-aside requirement. It was not possible to reach decisions at the meeting though a compromise was discussed that would allow farmers finishing a five-year set-aside agreement to keep all that land in set- aside for a further five years. Discussion will resume at the December Council when I hope that agreement can be reached.
Statistics
Mrs. Lait : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans she has to rationalise the collection of statistics by her Department.
Mr. Jack : The statistical needs of the Department are kept under constant review. A thorough review of each statistical survey is reported to Ministers every five years. These reviews, which examine the need for the information and whether it could be collected more efficiently, lead to continuing rationalisation of collection of statistics.
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Sediment Pollution
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what contribution her Department made to the recent European Commission study on sediment pollution in the EC.
Mr. Jack : I am not aware of any recent European Commission study on sediment pollution in the EC. My scientists are making a significant contribution to a study of sediment which is being undertaken on behalf of the OSPAR convention.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Ethnic Monitoring
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of police forces operate ethnic monitoring procedures in respect of cautioning ; and if he will list those police forces.
Mr. Charles Wardle : Forces are not required to collect data on the ethnic origin of those cautioned. We understand that around one third of police forces in England and Wales do so. The forces are : Bedfordshire
Cleveland
Derbyshire
Devon and Cornwall
Durham
Gloucestershire
Gwent
Hampshire
Kent
Leicestershire
Northamptonshire
Nottinghamshire
South Yorkshire
Staffordshire
Surrey
West Mercia
West Yorkshire
Secure Training Centres
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he plans to take to ensure that children who will be held in secure training centres do not deliberately harm themselves.
Mr. Maclean : I fully recognise the importance of this issue. Providers of facilities for juveniles serving the custodial part of a secure training order will be required to develop and implement a suicide and self-harm awareness and prevention policy. This will be monitored by the Home Office.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much of the 25 hours per week lesson time which children at secure training centres will receive will be spent on education ; and how much on vocational training.
Mr. Maclean : The figure of 25 hours per week lesson time was a suggested minimum in the outline draft specification for the delivery of the regime in a secure training centre. A number of comments were received on this and other aspects of the proposed regime. The minimum number of hours lesson time per week and the breakdown between education and vocational training are matters which are still under consideration. Our present intention is to retain flexibility so as to enable each trainee to follow a programme based on his or her individual needs.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what police and medical checks will be required of staff appointed to work in secure training centres.
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Mr. Maclean : The Government intend to ensure that a wide range of checks are made on staff who work in secure training centres. Staff who have a specific responsibility for the custody of detained juveniles will require a certificate issued by the Secretary of State.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to ensure that there is not an inappropriately high ratio of boys and girls in secure training centres.
Mr. Maclean : The secure training order will be a sentence available to the youth court for persistent juvenile offenders who meet statutory criteria. It will be the decision of the court as to who will be made the subject of an order. Facilities for both boys and girls will be available in each secure training centre.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when he plans to announce a complaints and representation procedure for children who will be held in secure training centres ; (2) if he will make it his policy that arrangements for representation of children held in secure training centres should be the same as those provided in the Children Act 1989 for children in secure accommodation.
Mr. Maclean : I am still considering with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health what provision should be made for a complaints and representation procedure for children held in the new centres.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce a mandatory key worker scheme into secure training centres.
Mr. Maclean : We are currently considering whether it will be necessary to require agencies or organisation providers secure training centres to provide a key-worker scheme.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy that secure training centres should not be sited an impractical distance away from hospital accident and emergency departments.
Mr. Maclean : No decision has been made on sites for secure training centres. A number of factors will be taken into consideration. These will include proximity to main centres of population.
Persistent Offenders
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the research commissioned by his Department from the Policy Studies Institute into persistent offenders to be completed.
Mr. Maclean : The Policy Studies Institute has completed fieldwork for the research commissioned by the Home Office into persistent juvenile offending, but on current information I do not expect to receive a final report before the new year.
Deportation
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the circumstances in which drugs are used to sedate people who are being forcibly deported.
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Mr. Charles Wardle : Drugs are not used to sedate people who are being deported. Any medication required by the deportee would be administered by a medically qualified person with the deportee's consent.
Young Offenders
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department hopes to introduce specialist training for staff working with juveniles in youth offender institutions.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Mr. Derek Lewis to Mrs. Barbara Roche, dated November 1993 :
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about specialist training at Young Offender Institutions. Some specialist training for staff working with young offenders has already taken place at Lancaster Farms Young Offender Institution, under the guidance of the Trust for the Study of Adolescence. Pilot training based on this, to develop a distance learning pack for use in other YOIs is to take place in January. We plan to have the distance learning pack available for general use later in the year.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects that 16 and 17-year-olds who are sentenced to adult penalties will no longer be held with adults serving similar penalties.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The custodial penalties available for 16 and 17- year-olds are detention in a young offender institution--YOI--and detention under section 53 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933. Boys of this age sentenced to YOI are taken directly to a YOI with a juvenile unit, unless exceptionally they have to be held overnight at a remand centre or local prison because of travelling difficulties. Boys sentenced under section 53 may be held for a few weeks in a remand centre or local prison while a decision is taken as to where they should be allocated to serve their sentences. Girls of 16 and 17 may be held with other female young offenders in establishments which also hold adult women prisoners. This is considered to be the best option for holding them, in their own interests. There are no plans to alter these arrangements.
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to end remands of 15 and 16-year-olds to prison service establishments.
Mr. Maclean : The Government have enacted the necessary legislation to end the remand of 15 and 16-year-olds to Prison Service establishments and we have made additional capital provision available to local authorities so that they can provide an effective alternative. We will bring the new law into effect as soon as we are satisfied that local authorities have provided sufficient additional secure accommodation to meet the expected need.
Criminal Justice Study
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects his Department's study of entry into the criminal justice system to report.
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Mr. Maclean : A first report on this study is expected in July 1994. This report will cover decisions made by the police about whether to charge or caution suspects arrested and held at police stations. The report will also contain information about the ethnic origin and gender of those arrested, the proportion dealt with as mentally disordered or handicapped offenders, and the extent of offending on bail.
A further report on the study is expected to be available towards the middle of 1995. This will contain details of decisions made by the Crown Prosecution Service in relation to termination or continuance of proceedings and information about court outcomes and sentences.
Siemion Serafinowicz
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to remove United Kingdom nationality from Siemion Serafinowicz ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : There is no record of Mr. Serafinowicz having acquired British citizenship.
British National Party
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report from the Metropolitan police Commissioner over an assault by a BNP councillor against an Evening Standard reporter ; and if he will refer the case for prosecution.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I understand from the Commissioner that the complainant in this case does not wish any further action to be taken and has declined to give evidence.
Mr. Amanullah Khan
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when in May 1990 the United Kingdom National Central Bureau of Interpol received notification that the arrest of Amanullah Khan was requested by the Indian National Central Bureau of Interpol ; and what description was given of Mr. Khan's nationality.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The notification was received on 25 May 1990. Mr. Khan's nationality was described by the Indian National Central Bureau of Interpol as
"Indian and Citizen of Pakistan (not confirmed)".
Plutonium Smuggling
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information or assistance his German counterpart sought from United Kingdom authorities in regard to the trial in Flensburg of British citizen Albert Derbyshire for smuggling and alleged attempt to sell stolen Russian plutonium.
Mr. Maclean : The United Kingdom Central Authority in the Home Office received a letter of request from the German authorities under the 1959 European convention on mutual assistance in criminal matters asking that witness summonses be served on five named people in this country for the purposes of the trial. This request was executed earlier this month.
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EMPLOYMENT
Disabled People
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what representations were made to him at his meeting on 20 October with the Royal National Institute for the Blind, Mencap, the Spinal Injuries Association, the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation and Deaf Accord to discuss his proposal to oblige employers to contribute 50 per cent. of the cost of providing services such as personal readers and special aids to employment for disabled people working with them for six months or longer ; what reply he has made ; what action he will be taking to revise the proposal ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what consultations he is having with the Employers' Forum on Disability and the CBI on his proposal to oblige employers to contribute 50 per cent. of the cost of providing services such as personal readers and special aids to employment for disabled people working with them for six months or longer.
Miss Widdecombe : The meeting on 20 October was called to discuss the new scheme "access to work" about which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State made a statement to the House on 22 June 1993, Official Report, column 102. It will replace and extend four of the Department's current special schemes and enable us to help more disabled people and meet a much wider range of their employment related needs. To help fund the extra costs we will expect employers to contribute 50 per cent. of the cost of help, up to a ceiling, to employees who enter the scheme after working for them six months or more.
Members of the delegation welcomed the increased flexibility of access to work. They expressed concern about the willingness of employers to pay a contribution and the effects this would have on the employment of disabled people. My right hon. Friend sought to reassure them. Both current and previous research suggests that employers would be willing to make a reasonable contribution : my right hon. Friend pointed out that the limit on the employer contribution, and on individuals' entitlement, about which they also expressed concern, had yet to be set.
My noble Friend Lord Henley met representatives from the Employers' Forum on 2 November to discuss access to work ; my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will be meeting them on 9 December. The Department is currently in correspondence with the CBI on a number of issues including access to work. The Department has offered to meet the CBI at a suitable date.
There are a number of issues on access to work on which my right hon. Friend has still to make decisions. In addition to the limits on individual entitlement and employer contributions, these include transitional arrangements for existing beneficiaries of the current Special Schemes, for how long those helped as new recruits will remain exempt from the employer contributions and whether there will be special arrangements for certain types of firm.
Once my right hon. Friend has taken a decision on these areas, an announcement will be made to the House.
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PRIME MINISTER
War Veterans
Ms Walley : To ask the Prime Minister if he will take steps to assist British war veterans attending the D-day commemorations in Brittany to stay in the hotels in which their bookings have been made.
The Prime Minister : I am aware that some of the hotel reservations made by British veterans wishing to attend the D-Day commemorations in France in 1994 have been cancelled by French hoteliers. I am pleased to say that, following an approach by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence, the French authorities have established an office in Caen to deal with all queries concerning accommodation in Normandy. The address of the office is :
Comite Departmental du Tourism du Calvados
Place du Canada
1400 CAEN
France
(Telephone : 010-33-31-86-53-30)
(Fax : 010-33-31-79-39-41)
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