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the police and probation services, and from Victim Support as well as the prison service. The working group's programme of work is nearing completion following which we shall study its report and any recommendations it may make, with great care.Young Offenders
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will initiate a full trial into a scheme for young offenders to receive training at sea on the vessel Excelsior, at Lowestoft, for periods of up to three months, to be deducted from their sentences if they passed the training satisfactorily.
Mr. Maclean : Funds are available through the probation supervision grants scheme for voluntary organisations providing sail and similarly challenging training to operate projects designed to strengthen the range and content of programmes for the supervision of offenders who are serving sentences in the community. I see a number of benefits from this approach, and will want to test the effectiveness of this kind of training and consider the scope for integrating it into other sentences. We are discussing with a number of probation services the extent to which offenders could participate in Excelsior Sailing Trust activities, which could be funded under the scheme.
Fast Response Cars
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fast response police cars are currently in use in the metropolis ; for which main purposes they are used ; how many officers are directly involved in driving them ; what is the cost ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I understand that 339 fast response cars are presently used by the Metropolitan police. The main purpose of such vehicles is to respond to emergency calls. They are also used for general patrol duties. A total of 2,077 officers have authority to drive these vehicles. The approximate total annual cost for the purchase, maintenance and other running costs is £2.94 million.
Prisoners' Families (Visits)
Mrs. Bridget Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the commitment by the Prison Service to pay for the travel costs of prisoners' families to make a second visit each month to their family member in prison where such families are eligible to receive public funds for such travel.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for these matters have been delegated to the director general of the prison service who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Mrs. Bridget Prentice, dated 25 November 1993 :
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about the position regarding the proposed extension of the Assisted Visits scheme to cover the second statutory monthly visit. The White Paper "Custody, Care and Justice" included a commitment to consider extensions of the scheme as resources permit. We also have indicated in the Prison Service Business plan that the extension should take place this financial year.
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No final decision on this matter has been taken. It will be necessary to do so in the light of the resources available to the Prison Service. I am afraid that it is not yet possible to say when it will be possible to finance the second visit per month. You may be assured, however, that we are well aware of the need to maintain close prisoner and family ties and the importance which prisoners and their families attach to visits.Prison National Standards
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the document concerning the prison national standards will be published.
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 Derek Lewis to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 25 November 1993. The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent Question about when the document concerning the Prison National Standards will be published.
Drafting work on a Code of Standards for the Prison Service is nearing completion and we expect to publish it shortly.
Dangerous Dogs
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will bring forward proposals to amend the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 to enable owners of relevant breeds to remove their dogs' muzzles to allow them to drink or to receive veterinary attention in a public place, especially if this is within a private motor vehicle.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The Government do not intend to weaken protection afforded by the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991. Recent tragic events have shown how wrong this would be.
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many fatalities there have been due to dog attacks since Royal Assent was given to the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 ; if he will name the breed of each dog involved ; and whether it was registered under the Act ;
(2) if he will make a statement on the future of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 following the recent death in Cleveland.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The tragic events in Cleveland underline the need for the strict provisions in the Dangerous Dogs Act, and how right the Government have been not to heed those who have sought to weaken it.
I understand that the dog involved in the Cleveland attack was identified by a veterinary surgeon as being a pit bull terrier type, with some mastiff or bull mastiff qualities. It has not been registered under the Act.
In other words, it fell within the Act's definition of a dog of the type known as a pit bull terrier.
I am aware of one other fatal injury caused by dogs since the coming into force of the Dangerous Dogs Act on 12 August 1991. This occurred in November 1991, and involved an attack on a boy by his family's pets, a Lakeland terrier, a great dane and a German shepherd, none of which are required to be registered under the Act.
Security Service
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Director General of the Security Service is on
performance-related pay.
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Criminal Compensation
Mr. Wareing : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received respecting recent changes in criminal compensation rules ; what has been the nature of these representations ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : Since announcing last November our intention to replace the present criminal injuries compensation scheme with a tariff scheme next year we have received representations and comment from a number of hon. Members, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board, representative bodies of the legal profession, Victim Support local schemes and the national office, the Trades Union Congress and members of the public.
The representations have covered a range of issues, the main ones being the rationale for the change, the scope of the new arrangements, the way in which the new scheme will be administered and the appeal arrangements.
Ministerial Letters
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officials are currently involved in drafting replies to letters for Ministers in his Department to sign.
Mr. Howard : The information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Many officials are involved as part of their normal duties in drafting replies for Ministers.
A False Sense of Security"
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what response he has made to the document, "A False Sense of Security" published by the Children's Society, a copy of which has been sent to him ; and what initiatives or policy changes he intends to put forward in response to that report.
Mr. Maclean : The second report of The Children's Society's advisory committee on young offenders, "A False Sense of Security", will be launched at a one day conference organised by The Children's Society today, 25 November 1993, at which I shall be giving a keynote address. My right hon. and learned Friend and I will be giving careful consideration to the contents of the report.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Industrial Injuries Benefit
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will provide (a) an estimate of the total number of claims expected for prescribed disease D12--coal miners' chronic bronchitis and emphysema--in each of the first three years following its prescription, (b) an estimate of the total number of awards expected for prescribed disease D12 in each of the first three years following its prescription and (c) an estimate of the total annual expenditure, pursuant to such awards over each of the three years in question.
Mr. Scott : The number of claims cannot be predicted with any certainty but operational plans have provided for
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handling 80,000-90,000 claims in the first year following prescription. The estimated total annual benefit cost is £6 million, based on the assumption that around 9,000 benefit awards will be made, nearly all in the first year. The numbers of new claims and awards in second and subsequent years are expected to be small.Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many industrial disablement claims for
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asbestos-related diseases referred to special medical boards, and the numbers in which the diseases were diagnosed in each year since 1991 in the same format as tables given in reply to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Northfield (Mr. Burden) of 28 January 1992, Official Report, columns 514-16.Mr. Scott : The information is in the table.
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Asbestos related diseases
First examination and those re-examined where the diseases were not previousy diagnosed
References Positive
diagnosis
|D1 |D3 |D8 |D9 |Total |D1 |D3 |D8 |D9 |Total
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1991
Cardiff |68 |72 |26 |57 |223 |32 |67 |5 |22 |126
Glasgow |227 |65 |32 |32 |356 |68 |58 |9 |22 |157
London |105 |192 |38 |73 |408 |49 |180 |6 |18 |253
Manchester |158 |63 |51 |29 |301 |63 |56 |11 |10 |140
Newcastle |944 |67 |35 |90 |1,136 |53 |61 |9 |23 |146
Sheffield |107 |80 |30 |78 |295 |45 |74 |6 |41 |166
Stoke |25 |26 |17 |23 |91 |14 |20 |4 |8 |46
Swansea |13 |4 |11 |12 |40 |6 |3 |5 |5 |19
|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------
All Centres |1,647 |569 |240 |394 |2,850 |330 |519 |55 |149 |1,053
1992
Cardiff |70 |49 |29 |47 |195 |53 |42 |8 |17 |120
Glasgow |295 |88 |27 |45 |455 |96 |77 |5 |31 |209
London |126 |199 |50 |97 |472 |49 |186 |10 |27 |272
Manchester |181 |81 |55 |44 |361 |46 |70 |11 |5 |132
Newcastle |205 |59 |21 |65 |430 |42 |55 |8 |24 |129
Sheffield |102 |93 |35 |74 |304 |43 |87 |3 |41 |174
Stoke |27 |34 |21 |18 |100 |13 |30 |9 |11 |63
Swansea |26 |6 |5 |11 |48 |12 |4 |- |4 |20
|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------|-------
All Centres |1,112 |609 |243 |401 |2,365 |354 |551 |54 |160 |1,119
100 per cent. of cases examined by Medical Boarding Centres (Respiratory Diseases) but excluding
cases boarded for reassessments and those disallowed prior to boarding.
D1 = Pneumoconiosis
D3 = Diffuse Mesothelioma
D8 = Primary Carcinoma of the Lung
D9 = Bilateral diffuse pleural thickening
Disability Living Allowance
Mr. Chisholm : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what percentage of disability living allowance claims this year have been (a) successful at the initial stage, (b) successful at the review stage and (c) successful on appeal.
Mr. Scott : In the period from 1 April 1993 to 31 October 1993 inclusive :
(a) 50 per cent. of new claims were successful.
(b) 46 per cent. of reviews (for whatever reason), were successful ; and
(c) 44 per cent. of appeals decided were successful.
The figures relating to reviews and appeals do not necessarily relate to claims made during the relevant period. Reviews may be requested for reasons other than dissatisfaction with the result of a claim, for example, changes of circumstances.
Civil Servants
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list for each civil service grade in his Department (a) the total number of persons employed and (b) the total number of women employed.
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Mr. Scott : The number of permanent staff employed by the Department, including its agencies, on 31 October 1993 was as follows :
Grade (including |Total staff<1> |Number of women<1>
equivalent
professional and
other grades)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grade 1 |1 |0
Grade 2 |4 |0
Grade 3 |14 |2
Grade 4 |12 |4
Grade 5 |122 |30
Grade 6 |317 |74
Grade 7 |686 |146
Senior Executive Officer |1,433 |366
Higher Executive Officer |5,890 |2,480
Executive Officer |25,071 |15,370
Administrative Officer |45,716 |34,367
Administrative Assistant |15,469 |10,719
Others |160 |114
|------- |-------
Total |94,895 |63,672
<1> Including part-time staff paid for more than 10 hours a week.
Notes:
1. Total of 94,895 equates to 88,435 full-time equivalent staff.
2. The table excludes:
i) staff on loan or secondment and not being paid by the Department
ii) staff on unpaid leave for more than three months or on unpaid maternity
leave
iii) casual staff.
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Pensions
Mr. Tyler : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will show as a table for each EU member state the level in pound sterling of the basic state pension, the SERPS or mandatory private pension and a total of both for an employee on national average earnings, married in a one-income household with no dependent children at time of retirement from the latest figures available.
Mr. Hague : The information requested is not available and could be obtained only at disproportinate cost. However the report of a study commissioned by the Department last year--the Watsons report--contains this information for six EC member states, including the United Kingdom. A copy of that report is in the Library.
Quarry House
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will give to the nearest £5,000 the value of the carpet in the entrance area of Quarry house, headquarters of his management executive.
Mr. Burt : The cost of the carpet linking the two courtyards within Quarry house was £15,000. This was part of the Quarry house project and a contribution to the Percent of Art initiative.
Vaccine Damage Compensation
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) in how many applications for vaccine compensation the reason has been given that there is insufficient documentary evidence ;
(2) if he will list the number of cases in which applications for vaccine compensation have been rejected ; and if he will provide the reasons why applications have been rejected in each case ; (3) in how many cases involving applications for vaccine compensation medical examinations have been carried out.
Mr. Hague : The information requested is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to undertake a comprehensive review of the vaccine compensation scheme.
Mr. Hague : We keep the vaccine damage payments scheme under constant review.
Media Interviews
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish the guidelines governing when media interviews dealing with the administration and efficiency of the Benefits Agency are given by officials of the agency and when by Ministers.
Mr. Scott : There are no such guidelines. Each request for interview is considered in the light of the relevant circumstances.
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Child Support Agency
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make it his policy to remove from the Child Support Agency the powers to overturn clean break divorce settlements which have been established by courts or agreements ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Burt : Clean break settlements concern the financial affairs of former partners. There can be no clean break between parents and their children, and calculation of maintenance by the agency is based on the current needs of children, and the current income and outgoings of their parents. The formula which the agency uses to assess maintenance does take account of the practical consequences of such settlements, since the current housing costs of absent parents are allowed for in calculating their maintenance liability, and capital settlements may affect the assessable income both of absent parents and of parents with care. Where the practical outcome is that an absent parent has higher costs or lower income, his maintenance liability will consequently be less.
The operation of the Child Support Agency is being kept under review.
Sickness and Invalidity Benefit
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what numbers of new claimants have been accepted for (a) sickness benefit and (b) invalidity benefit in each of the past 12 months.
Mr. Scott : The information is not available in the form requested. The table shows the number of claims made to sickness and invalidity benefit for each month in Great Britain.
Month |Number of Sickness
|Benefit and
|Invalidity Benefit
|claims
---------------------------------------------------------
November 1992 |94,000
December 1992 |79,000
January 1993 |95,000
February 1993 |90,000
March 1993 |101,000
April 1993 |90,000
May 1993 |85,000
June 1993 |94,000
July 1993 |92,000
August 1993 |88,000
September 1993 |92,000
October 1993 |91,000
Notes:
1. Figures are based on a 100 per cent. clerical count,
rounded to the nearest thousand and are subject to
amendment.
2. Separate figures are not available for Sickness
Benefit and Invalidity Benefit.
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the criteria according to which people are considered eligible to receive invalidity benefit with particular reference to ME--myalgic encephalomyelitis--sufferers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : Invalidity benefit is payable to people who remain incapable of work when their entitlement to sickness benefit or statutory sick pay ends, and who have satisfied the national insurance contribution conditions
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which apply to sickness benefit. Entitlement does not depend on the nature of a person's incapacity, and people suffering from ME qualify in the same way as other claimants if they satisfy these conditions.Correspondence
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many officials in his Department are currently involved in drafting replies to letters for Ministers in his Department to sign.
Mr. Hague : The ministerial correspondence section, which allocates correspondence and ensures accuracy of drafts, comprises 15 staff. It is part of the responsibility of most executive grade officers in the Department to produce draft replies to correspondence on issues within their area of responsibility. It is therefore impossible to quantify the number involved in producing drafts.
Disability Legislation
Mr. Wareing : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proposals he has to introduce anti-discrimination legislation on behalf of disabled people ; what representations he has received on this subject ; what his response has been ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : The Government have no plans to introduce such legislation. A number of organisations of and for disabled people and the all-party disablement group have made representations. While the Government share the aim of ending discrimination against disabled people, they do not see comprehensive legislation as the appropriate vehicle for doing so. At the Prime Minister's request, I am working with members of the all-party disablement group, to identify areas for further action where discrimination could be eliminated at little or no cost.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish the management structure of the NHS management executive (a) before and (b) after the post of special project director was created.
Mr. Stewart : The post of special project director is outwith the management structure of the NHS Management Executive, reporting direct to the Chief Executive, NHS in Scotland.
EMPLOYMENT -- Part-time Workers
Mr. Hanson : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many part-time workers were in employment in (a) June 1993 and (b) June 1992.
Miss Widdecombe : The available information is as follows :
Part-time workforce in
employment in Great
Britain:
Seasonally adjusted (
thousands)
|Number
------------------------
June 1992 |6,683
June 1993 |6,769
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Employment Training
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the job entry rate for employment training leavers in each region.
Miss Widdecombe : The latest information available is in the following table :
Percentage of all leavers from employment training during
the period
April 1992 to January 1993 going into a job
Region |Percentage into a
|job<1>
-------------------------------------------------------------
South East |28
London |26
Eastern |30
South West |32
West Midlands |30
East Midlands |38
Yorkshire and Humberside |36
NW, Greater Manchester |33
North West |35
Northern |31
Wales |39
Scotland |34
Source: ET National Follow-up Survey.
<1>Into a Job includes full-time work, part-time work and
self employment three months after leaving.
Training and Enterprise Councils (Secondments)
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many civil servants from his Department on secondment to training and enterprise councils have (a) applied for and (b) been accepted under the voluntary early retirement scheme ; and of those, how many are now working permanently for the TEC to which they were seconded ; and if he will make a statement.
Miss Widdecombe : Applications for voluntary early retirement were received from 171 staff on secondment to training and enterprise councils. A total of 153 were accepted. No information is available on the number, if any, now working permanently for the TEC to which they were seconded.
Correspondence
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many officials are currently involved in his Department in drafting replies to letters for Ministers to sign.
Miss Widdecombe : We do not keep a record of the number of officials currently involved in drafting ministerial replies and this information can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Health and Safety Publications
Mr. Pendry : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will reverse the decision of the Health and Safety Executive to award the contract for the distribution of official health and safety publications to Promotion Logics and Dillons bookstores ; what assessment he has made of the level of public access to these publications and the competitive effect on other bookstores ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Michael Forsyth : This is a matter for the Health and Safety Executive but I understand the hon. Gentleman's concerns. I have already made inquiries and once these are complete I will write to him.
SCOTLAND
NHS Management Executive
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether it is the normal practice for posts in the NHS management executive to be advertised ; and if he will list the exceptions there have been to such practice in recent years.
Mr. Stewart : Apart from the post of the chief executive, the only senior posts in the management executive to be advertised in recent years have been those of director of finance, director of operations and director of human resources.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will conduct an investigation into the circumstances of Mr. Lawrence Peterken's dismissal as general manager of Greater Glasgow health board and his subsequent appointment to the post of special projects director with the NHS management executive.
Mr. Stewart : My right hon. Friend has already instituted such an investigation.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the job description and the terms and conditions under which the job of national health service management executive special projects director was offered to Mr. Peterken's.
Mr. Stewart : Mr. Peterken's duties will be to examine a number of issues that flow from the reforms that have been introduced in the NHS in the last few years. He will be employed on the terms and conditions applicable to general managers of health boards.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland at what stage his views were sought on the appointment of Mr. Laurence Peterken's to the post of special projects director with the NHS Management Executive.
Mr. Stewart : This appointment was made by the Chief Executive, NHS in Scotland, after consulting my right hon. Friend and my noble and learned Friend.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the management structure of the NHS Management Executive (a) before and (b) after the post of special project director was created.
Mr. Allan Stewart : The post of special project director is outwith the management structure of the NHS Management Executive, Reporting direct to the Chief Executive, NHS in Scotland.
Forestry Commission
Sir David Steel : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many representations the review group has received on the subject of the privatisation of the Forestry Commission.
Mr. Lang : More than 340 organisations and 1,450 individuals have made submissions or offered comment
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