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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 15 December 1993
LORD CHANCELLOR'S DEPARTMENT
Advertising
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the cost of advertising by his Department has been for each year since 1979 and for each of the last 12 months.
Mr. John M. Taylor : Expenditure on advertising prior to 1987-88 could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Expenditure on advertising for each year from 1987-88 is as follows :
|£
----------------------
1987-88 |4,978
1988-89 |3,888
1989-90 |5,483
1990-91 |5,174
1991-92 |22,698
1992-93 |15,962
Expenditure for each of the past 12 months is as follows :
|£
------------------------
1992
November |328
December |375
1993
January |-
February |-
March |14,901
April |352
May |-
June |1,439
July |2,617
August |302
September |1,056
October |989
Magistrates
Mr. James Hill : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to ensure independence of justices' clerks when advising magis-trates, other than in individual cases.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The Lord Chancellor and I are entirely committed to protecting the independence of justices' clerks when advising magistrates. The legislation which with Parliament's approval will implement the White Paper, "A New Framework for Local Justice", will establish a framework within which the respective roles and responsibilities of justices' clerks and their magistrates courts committees can be clarified. The legislation will also make clear that justices' clerks are not liable to direction in respect of the legal advice given to magistrates in court.
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Mr. James Hill : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will now publish the text of the proposed statutory provisions regarding the judicial independence of magistrates and the independence of legal advice given to magistrates by their clerks in individual cases.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The Bill which will implement the White Paper, "A New Framework for Local Justice", is expected to be introduced to the House before the Christmas recess, after which the full text will be published in accordance with the usual procedure.
Efficiency Commission
Mrs. Lait : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment he has made of the implications of the recommendations of the Efficiency Commission on the cost of legal aid.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The Efficiency Commission has, since it was set up in 1986, made a number of recommendations designed to improve the operation of the criminal legal aid system. It is not possible to produce a precise figure for the implications which those recommendations which have been accepted have had on the cost of legal aid. It is, however, likely that the resulting savings have been small relative to total expenditure on criminal legal aid.
Mrs. Lait : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what is the current time scale for the work of the Efficiency Commission ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John M. Taylor : There is currently no timetable assigned to the work of the Standing Commission on Efficiency.
Mrs. Lait : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department which proposals of the Efficiency Commission have been implemented since its establishment.
Mr. John M. Taylor : The Standing Commission on Efficiency is made up of senior representatives from the Bar, the Law Society, the Crown Prosecution Service and the Lord Chancellor's Department. It has provided a forum for the formulation and discussion of ways of enhancing communication between the legal profession and the courts and thereby improving the disposal of criminal business. The commission has considered a large number of papers on a wide range of topics with the common aim of speeding up or streamlining both pre-trial processes and in-court procedures. In 1990 each of the members of the Efficiency Commission published a "Guide to Good Practice", which drew together the discussions of the group and provided reference documents in which each agency set out how it would discharge its responsibility to provide an efficient and effective service. The best practices set out there inform the practical operation of a wide range of services carried out by practitioners and courts. The commission has also been instrumental in devising a form for the provision of information by defence solicitors to assist courts when making listing decisions. A research project into the causes of delay in criminal proceedings was commissioned earlier this year. The findings of that research were submitted to the Royal Commission on
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criminal justice, and consideration and implementation of any of its recommendations will take place in the context of the discussion of the wide-reaching proposals of the Royal Commission.Costs
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what complaints he has received about delays in the taxing and payment of (a) expedited costs and (b) other costs ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John M. Taylor : In relation to costs in civil proceedings in the High Court and the county courts, I have received no more than 20 written complaints about delays in taxation over the last 12 months. Payment of costs in civil proceedings is a matter for the parties. The courts provide a range of procedures which can be used to enforce an order for costs, but it is for the parties to decide whether they want to use them.
With regard to the delays in the taxing and payment of costs in criminal proceedings, the information is not recorded under this particular definition. The best available information shows that I have received nine complaints from Members of Parliament and 12 complaints from members of the public this year.
No central record is kept of the number of complaints which may be received by the courts direct.
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to improve the efficiency of the administration of justice in respect of the prompt taxing and payment of costs awarded by (a) the High Court and (b) other courts.
Mr. John M. Taylor : Delays in respect of civil taxations have been reduced generally over the last eighteen months. The situation is being kept under review and remedial steps will be taken, if necessary. On the question of payment of costs in civil proceedings, I refer the hon. Member to my answer to an earlier, related question.
In respect of improving efficiency in the payment of costs in criminal proceedings, targets are in place for the payment of those costs which are being met nationally. Some problems have been experienced by the south- eastern circuit taxing teams and additional resources have been provided to assist them in meeting the targets set. Additionally, my officials are currently looking at how the standard fee system in the Crown court may be extended.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
National Lottery
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what plans he has to award Rainbow the management of the national lottery.
Mr. Sproat : None. The licence to run the national lottery will be awarded by the director general after a competitive process.
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BBC Northern Ireland
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many redundancies have been effected in all grades in BBC Northern Ireland in each year from 1 April 1983 to 31 March 1993.
Mr. Brooke : I understand from the BBC that the information is not readily available before 1991. The total number of redundancies in BBC Northern Ireland in each of the last three years is as follows :
|Number
---------------------
1991 |105
1992 |4
1993 |37
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many people were employed in BBC Northern Ireland in all grades in each year from1 April 1983 to 31 March 1993.
Mr. Brooke : I understand from the BBC that the information is not readily available before 1987. The total number of people employed in BBC Northern Ireland in each of the last seven years, in December, is as follows :
|Numbers
------------------------
1987 |701
1988 |675
1989 |697
1990 |671
1991 |566
1992 |570
1993 |533
Radio Stations
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list radio stations which are wholly or mainly aimed at serving ethnic minority listeners.
Mr. Brooke : The following radio stations are wholly or mainly aimed at serving ethnic minority listeners :
Choice FM (South London)
Harmony Radio (Coventry)
London Greek Radio (North London)
Spectrum Radio (Londonwide)
Sunrise East Midlands (Leicester)
Sunrise FM (Bradford)
Sunrise Radio (West London )
WNK Radio (North London)
Londonwide from 1 January 1994).
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how many radio stations serve each of the cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Dundee, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield.
Mr. Brooke : The table lists the number of services which are specifically designed to serve the whole of each named city.
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BBC Independent
|National |Local/Regional|National |Local/Regional
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Glasgow |5 |1 |2 |<1>3
Edinburgh |5 |1 |2 |<1>3
Aberdeen |5 |1 |2 |<1>2
Dundee |5 |1 |2 |<1>2
Birmingham |5 |1 |2 |<1>3
Manchester |5 |1 |2 |<1>5
Liverpool |5 |1 |2 |<1>3
Sheffield |5 |1 |2 |2
<1> Includes services which are licensed but not yet on air.
In addition, there are services which can be heard in part of each city or received from neighbouring areas.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage which major British cities have a radio station licensed to serve the entire metropolitan area.
Mr. Brooke : Every major British city has at least one licensed local radio service.
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what is his policy on the provision of small community radio stations.
Mr. Brooke : Under the Broadcasting Act 1990, the Radio Authority licenses independent radio stations, including stations to serve small communities. It is for the authority to decide how to carry out its responsibilities.
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Research and Development
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on the distribution of funds between countries and projects in the fourth framework programme for research and development of the European Union.
Mr. Waldegrave : The fourth framework programme has not yet been adopted. Statistical information on the distribution of funds will not be available until individual programmes within the overall framework have been implemented and operational for some time.
Acts of Parliament
Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster for how long published copies of individaul Acts of Parliament are available; and whether he will consider more extensive publication as an initiative under the citizens charter.
Mr. Davis : HMSO aims as a minimum to keep all Acts of Parliament in print for at least three years. Thereafter individual acts are normally reprinted, provided there is sufficient demand. Where an Act goes out of print, HMSO can supply photocopies. In addition, HMSO can supply copies of any unrepealed Act in the version appearing in "Statutes in Force."
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HOUSE OF COMMONS
Works of Art
Mr. Cormack : To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick upon Tweed (Mr. Beith), representing the House of Commons Commission, what changes have been made to the membership of the Advisory Committee on Works of Art.
Mr. Beith : I understand that Madam Speaker has appointed to the Advisory Committee on Works of Art the right hon. Member for Horsham (Sir Peter Hordern) in place of the right hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Channon).
Overnight Sleeping Accommodation
Mr. Steen : To ask the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Mr. Beith), representing the House of Commons Commission, what is his policy on the provision of overnight sleeping accommodation for staff ; what is the annual cost of providing overnight sleeping accommodation for staff ; and what alternatives have been considered for (a) uses of the allocated sleeping accommodation and (b) arranging overnight staff accommodation in local hotels.
Mr. Beith : Overnight sleeping accommodation is provided for essential staff of the House who are required to be on duty at late hours. The only costs arising directly from this provision are those for laundry, which at present cannot readily be separately identified. There is no plan to alter existing arrangements.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Public Interest Immunity Certificates
Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Attorney-General if he will outline the procedures governing the use of public interest immunity certificates.
The Attorney-General : Public interest immunity is a rule of evidence developed by the courts which is designed to prevent documents being disclosed in criminal or civil litigation if harm would result to the operation of the public service. It applies equally to all parties to litigation, irrespective of whether production would help or hinder their case. A claim for public interest immunity cannot be waived and in the case of the Crown is usually made by way of ministerial certificate. Such a certificate is not conclusive. Each claim is considered by the court which may, and in a criminal case must, inspect the documents. The court considers first whether the claim is in principle a valid one and, if so, must then go on to consider whether
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the interests of justice in the particular case require that the public interest in maintaining confidentiality be over-ridden. The decision whether or not to override the public interest in maintaining confidentiality is for the court to make; it is not for the party claiming immunity.OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION
World Food Programme
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the budget of the world food programme in 1993.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The overall turnover of the world food programme in 1993 will be some US$2 billion. This includes both the programme support and administration budget, project spending, contributions in cash to trust funds and contributions in kind, which will provide some 4.5 million tonnes of food commodities.
Somalia
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what policy initiatives he is urging upon the Secretary-General of the United Nations to promote the long-term recovery of Somalia.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : All donors had a full opportunity to express their views on the rehabilitation of Somalia at the humanitarian conference organised by the United Nations in Addis Ababa from 29 November to 1 December. We now await the report from the Secretary-General called for in Security Council resolution 886 of 18 November.
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what is the value of the ODA and EC aid and development programme in Somalia, excluding the area of the former British Somalia, in the current financial year ;
(2) what is the ODA and EC aid and development programme in the former British Somalia--Somaliland--in the current financial year.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Britain's bilateral development programme to Somalia was terminated in 1991, since when there has been residual expenditure only. In November 1993, the EC approved a rehabilitation programme for the whole of Somalia worth about £29 million. The UK share will be £4.7 million.
Both Britain and the EC have provided substantial amounts of humanitarian assistance to Somalia this year. Since January 1993, Britain has committed more than £9.5 million in bilateral humanitarian assistance to Somalia, of which more than £1 million has so far been allocated to activities in the north-west. The EC has provided £9.2 million in emergency assistance to Somalia, of which the UK share is £1.5 million. EC expenditure by region is not available.
EC Development Council
Mr. Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Mr. Smith) of 6 December, Official Report, column 76, what were the voting figures recorded in the meeting of the European Community's Development Council held on 2 December.
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Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The resolutions of the Development Council on 2 December were adopted by consensus, as is the normal practice.
PRIME MINISTER
Former Members
Mr. Meale : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list by ministerial department how many former hon. Members have been appointed to salaried positions in Government bodies since 1979, giving details in each case.
The Prime Minister : This information is not held centrally.
European Council
Mr. Barnes : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the outcome of the European Council of 10 and 11 December indicating the voting record of each member of state on each item and where no formal votes were taken.
The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the statement I made following the European Council on 13 December. The task of the European Council, as set out in the treaty on European union, is to provide the union with the necessary impetus for its development and to define general political guidelines. It does not vote ; its decisions are taken by consensus. Legislative decisions under the treaties are taken by the Council of Ministers.
Advertising
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Prime Minister what the cost of advertising by his office has been for each year since 1979 and for each of the last 12 months.
Honours Review
Sir Anthony Grant : To ask the Prime Minister what is the outcome of the review of honours numbers which he announced in his statement on honours of 4 March, Official Report , columns 453-63 .
The Prime Minister : The review has been completed, and the outcome has been graciously approved by the Queen. The review considered the number of honours required for my list, the diplomatic service and overseas list and the defence services list, at each half-year for six years, 1994 to 1999 inclusive. As a result of the review, the number of awards available for the recognition of all forms of voluntary service will be increased by about 100 in my list, and by 20 in the diplomatic service and overseas list. The increase will be broadly matched by a reduction in the number of awards to state servants, largely reflecting the reductions in the size of the civil service and of the armed forces.
Ex-Ministers
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Prime Minister, if he will list those who have resigned, retired or been dismissed from ministerial office in the past 10 years and the severance pay in (i) cash and (ii) current prices paid to each one.
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The Prime Minister [pursuant to his answer of 7December 1993, columns 142-43] : Severance payment shown as having been authorisedwith effect from 5 May 1992 for the Chairman of Committees, House of Lords and the Principal Deputy Chairman of Committees, House of Lords were not made since both the individuals concerned were disqualified, on grounds of age, under the terms of the Ministerial and Other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Child Support Agency
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will establish a hotline for hon. Members to contact the Child Support Agency on behalf of constituents on similar lines to the hotline for the disability living allowance.
Mr. Burt : The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for Ros Hepplewhite, the chief executive. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Ros Hepplewhite to Dr. Tony Wright, dated 14 December 1993 :
I am replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking for a hotline to be established to enable Members of Parliament to contact the Child Support Agency on behalf of their constituents.
I am pleased to be able to tell you that I have put arrangements in place, and have written to all Members individually on this and other matters relating to their correspondence with the Agency. I hope you will find this reply helpful.
Young People
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many 16 and 17-year-olds received severe hardship payments in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland in each of the past five years for which figures are available.
Mr. Burt : The administration of income support is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available. Letter from Tony Laurance to Mr. John McAllion, dated 4 December 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is the responsibility of Mr. Michael Bichard to answer questions about relevant operational matters. However, as Mr. Bichard is away on annual leave at the moment, I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security. This was about the number of 16 and 17-year-olds who have received Severe Hardship Payments in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland in each of the past five years.
Regrettably, the information required is not available in the format requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. This is because the statistics kept cover the number of applications, rather than the number of individuals who have claimed. Some customers may have made more than one application.
However, I have provided figures from the earliest date available, 1990, in the attached appendix relating to successful applications for Severe Hardship Payments. I should point out that the statistics relate to Benefits Agency Districts and are not routinely collected to show the number of claims specific to a town. The statistics given for Dundee relate to the Benefits Agency's Dundee East and West offices for the period January 1990 unitl March 1991. From the inception of the Benefits Agency in April 1991, the figures quoted are for the Tayside District Office, which also includes the Arbroath and Perth Branch Offices.
I hope you find this reply helpful.
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Successful Servere
Hardship Claims
|Numbers
-------------------------
Dundee
1990 |75
1991 |421
1992 |1,168
<1>1993 |1,631
Scotland
1990 |10,787
1991 |10,983
1992 |18,360
<1>1993 |20,587
<1>The figures for 1993
show the position up
until the end of
October.
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many 16 and 17-year-olds had an automatic right to income support in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland in each of the past five years for which figures are available.
Mr. Burt : The administration of income support is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available. Letter from Tony Laurance to Mr. John McAllion, dated 14 December 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is the responsibility of Mr. Michael Bichard to answer questions about relevant operational matters. However, as Mr. Bichard is away on annual leave at the moment, I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security. This was about the number of 16 and 17-year-olds who had an automatic right to Income Support in (a) Dundee and (b) Scotland in each of the past five years.
The information requested relating to Dundee is not routinely collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the table below gives data from the Annual Statistical Inquiry for the total number of 16 and 17-year-olds in Scotland on Income Support. This includes those who are automatically entitled to Income Support and those paid under the special hardship rules. To obtain separate figures would incur disproportionate cost. The figures quoted show the number of customers at the end of May 1992, the last year for which figures are available, and have been rounded to the nearest thousand.
16 and 17-year-olds in
receipt of Income
Support in Scotland
|Numbers
-------------------------
May 1988 |16,000
May 1989 |2,000
May 1990 |3,000
May 1991 |2,000
May 1992 |4,000
The figures for the Annual Statistical Inquiry are based on a 1 per cent. sample of Income Support cases at the time of inquiry. I hope you find this reply helpful.
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