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Column 368
National Portrait GalleryNormally 15 Trustees of which 5 have been appointed from 1991 Victoria and Albert Museum
Not less than 12 and not more than 20 Trustees of which 3 have been appointed from 1991
Science Museum
Not less than 13 and not more than 20 Trustees of which 4 have been appointed from 1991
Museum of London
9 Governors of whom 4 have been appointed from 1991
Wallace Collection
7 Trustees, none of whom has been appointed from 1991
National Heritage Memorial Fund
11 Trustees of whom 7 have been appointed from 1991
Kennedy Memorial Trust
6 Trustees, none of whom has been appointed from 1991
Security Commission
7 members have been appointed from 1991
Advisory Committee on Business Appointments
None has been appointed from 1991
Police Negotiating Board Chairman and Deputy Chairman
None has been appointed from 1991
Police Arbitration Tribunal Members
None has been appointed from 1991
Security Service Tribunal Commissioner
No appointment made from 1991
Interception of Communications Tribunal Commissioner
1 appointment has been made from 1991
Political Honours Scrutiny Committee
2 members have been appointed from 1991
Armed Forces Pay Review Body
6 members have been appointed from 1991
Doctors' and Dentists' Review Body
6 members have been appointed from 1991
Nurses', Midwives' and other NHS Professions' Review Body 2 members have been appointed from 1991
Schoolteachers' Review Body
12 members have been appointed from 1991
Senior Salaries Review Body
2 members have been appointed from 1991
Citizen's Charter Panel of Advisers
9 members have been appointed from 1991
Women's National Commission
1 appointment has been made from 1991
Chequers Trustees
1 Trustee has been appointed from 1991
Dorneywood Trustees
3 Trustees have been appointed from 1991
Chevening Trustees
1 Trustee has been appointed from 1991
As Prime Minister, I am also responsible for advising Her Majesty the Queen on Crown appointments.
Column 369
Sinn Fein
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the value served by the ban on Sinn Fein voices being heard and of the practice of using an actor to dub the person's voice.
The Prime Minister [holding answer 14 January 1994] : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for National Heritage is reviewing the relevant restrictions, in consultation with other Government Departments concerned.
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Political Advisers
Mr. Alan Williams : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether political advisers receive redundancy payment when they resume the same responsibilities (a) when the appointing Minister leaves his post and the appointment is renewed by his successor and (b) when the same Government are returned after a general election ; and since 1986, how many political advisers have resumed their same responsibilities after a change of appointing Minister and after a general election.
Mr. Waldegrave : Although each Minister's appointment of a special adviser is formally a new appointment, no severance payments are made if there is no break in the special adviser's service. Since 1986, special advisers have remained in post after a change of appointing Minister on eight occasions, including, in one case, following the 1992 general election.
Statutory Sick Pay
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what assessment he has made of the impact of the changes to statutory sick pay provision upon his departmental budget for the financial year 1994-95.
Mr. David Davis : The abolition of the 80 per cent. statutory sick pay reimbursement rate will be offset, at least in part, by a reduction in employers' national insurance contributions. Any additional costs will be absorbed within the Department's existing running costs baseline.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Television
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will hold discussions with independent television company representatives on the proposals that the Council of Europe approve a special study of the value of co-production at the regional level ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Brooke : I believe that the hon. Gentleman refers to the resolution, published in March 1993 by the Council of Europe standing conference of local and regional authorities of Europe, on the regional dimension of the European audiovisual area. This resolution proposed a study of regional television co-production. I understand that the project is still in its early stages, and I have not seen any detailed proposals. In these circumstances, a meeting with industry representatives would be premature.
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Theatre in Education
Ms Mowlam : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what steps his Department is taking to maintain and develop the educational and artistic methodology of theatre in education as a vehicle for educating children in social responsiveness and community responsibility.
Mr. Brooke : The methodology of theatre in education raises questions of educational and artistic judgment in which my Department does not become involved. The value, use and development of theatre in education are issues that need to be addressed by those agencies with a direct interest--local authorities and individual schools, and the arts councils and regional arts boards.
Arts Venues
Ms Mowlam : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage how the advent of unitary authorities will affect the funding of venues with fewer than 400 seats.
Mr. Brooke : I maintain a close interest in the work of the Local Government Commission, although ministerial responsibility rests with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment. The funding of local authority controlled arts venues is a matter for the local authorities concerned.
European Union
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what proposals he plans to put forward to enhance European cultural activities during the Greek presidency of the European Union.
Mr. Brooke : It is for the Greek presidency of the European Union to indicate what areas it wishes to give priority to during its presidency. The United Kingdom will participate fully in carrying forward the work of the Culture Council as a whole.
London Orchestras
Sir Thomas Arnold : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what recent information he has about the Arts Council's policy towards funding the leading London orchestras ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Brooke : Having undertaken a review of its support for the London orchestras, the Arts Council has decided that, in the immediate future, it will continue to concentrate funding on the London Symphony, Philharmonia and London Philharmonic orchestras. In addition, the Council has welcomed the emerging regional strategy of the Royal Philharmonic orchestra, for which it will also provide financial support.
The Council will be discussing this approach, and its longer-term policies with the Philharmonia and London Philharmonic orchestras, and with the Royal Philharmonic orchestra. In formulating its policies, the Council will take account of the general review of orchestral provision now being undertaken jointly with the BBC, and of the timing of decisions to be taken by the South Bank Board on the future of the orchestral residency at the royal festival hall.
Television (Children)
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what evidence he has on the numbers of children watching after the 9 pm watershed.
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Mr. Brooke : Statistics on the make-up of television audiences are not collected by my Department, but the table sets out data, compiled by the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board and interpreted by the BBC, on television viewing by children during a recent period.
Estimated average numbers of
children aged 4 to 15 years,
watching
TV channels (including satellite)
after 9 pm
in period 5 to 10 December 1993
|Million
----------------------------------
9.00 to 9.30 pm |2.0
9.30 to 10.00 pm |1.8
10.00 to 10.30 pm |1.1
10.30 to 11.00 pm |0.7
11.00 to 11.30 pm |0.5
11.30 to 12.00 pm |0.3
HOME DEPARTMENT
Joy Gardner
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will announce the outcome of his internal review of deportation policies and procedures following the death of Joy Gardner ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Burton (Sir I. Lawrence) on 12 January, Official Report , columns 212 13 .
Vehicle Theft
Mr. Amess : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will arrange to publish statistics showing separate figures for reported thefts of (a) cars and motorcycles, (b) light commercial vehicles and vans and (c) heavy commercial vehicles.
Mr. Maclean : The information collected centrally relates to the total number of offences of theft or unauthorised taking of a motor vehicle recorded by the police. It is not possible to identify the type of vehicle stolen and there are no plans to collect such information.
Football (Arrests and Ejections)
Mr. Pendry : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the Carling premiership and Endsleigh Insurance league clubs together with the total season's attendance at (a) matches played in the Carling premiership and Endsleigh Insurance leagues and (b) matches played in the FA cup, Coca-Cola cup and Autoglass trophy with the total numbers of (i) arrests, (ii) ejections and (iii) arrests plus ejections as a percentage of the total attendance at each category of such matches, accurate to four decimal places, for the seasons 1991 92 and 1992 93 ; and if he will make a statement on attendance rates and arrest rates at each category of such matches.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I will write to the hon. Member.
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Interception of Communications
Mr. Hutton : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many warrants were issued under section 2 of the Interception of Communications Act 1985 in each year since 1986 ; and how many such warrants are still in operation.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The numbers of warrants issued by the Home Secretary and the Secretary of State for Scotland and of those remaining in force at the end of each year are published in the annual reports of the commissioner appointed under the Interception of Communications Act 1985, copies of which are in the Library of the House.
Road Accidents
Mr. Rendel : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what evidence he has on the level of involvement in serious road accidents of persons found to be under the influence of alcohol while being below the legal limit of intoxification for driving a car in each year from 1980.
Mr. Maclean : The only available information relates to the years 1987 to 1991 and was published in Home Office statistical bulletins "Breath Test Statistics". This suggests that the following percentages of persons were found to be below the legal limit in England and Wales when required to submit to an evidential test following a positive roadside screening breath test after a road accident :
|Per cent.
------------------------------
1987 |15
1988 |14
1989 |13
1990 |14
1991 |14
Homosexual Offences
Mr. Mackinlay : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions and convictions there have been involving homosexual offences committed by consenting persons in private over the past five years where any person involved was aged between 16 and 21 years of age.
Mr. Maclean : The table gives information on consensual acts of buggery or attempted buggery of a male of, or over 21, with another male under the age of 21, with consent--Sexual Offences Act 1956, section 12 as amended by the Sexual Offences Act 1967, section 3(1).
Number of persons prosecuted and convicted for
consensual
sexual offences<1>, 1988-92
England and Wales Number of
|persons
Year |Prosecutions|Convictions
----------------------------------------------------
1988 |19 |24
1989 |8 |17
1990 |10 |9
1991 |19 |10
1992 |14 |12
<1>Buggery or attempted buggery of a male of, or
over 21 with another
male under the age of 21 with consent.
Game Shooters
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what plans he has to ensure that all game bird shooters have a licence to shoot ;
(2) how many prosecutions of game bird shooters have taken place under the Game Licence Act 1860 in each of the last five years ; and what plans he has to more rigorously enforce the Act ;
(3) how many game licences have been issued in each of the last five years ; and what proportion this represents of the number of game bird shooters.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The information requested is as follows :
Game Licences issued,
1988-89 to 1992-93
|Number
----------------------
1988-89 |40,600
1989-90 |43,600
1990-91 |43,300
1991-92 |46,700
1992-93 |43,900
There is no information currently available on the extent of licence evasion.
Defendants proceeded against in magistrates' courts for offences under the Game Licence Act 1860, 1988-92 England and |Number Wales ------------------------------------ 1988 |61 1989 |76 1990 |86 1991 |76 1992 |70
Enforcement of the law is a matter for the police.
We are currently consulting interested groups to see how far the game licences continue to meet their original objectives of combatting poaching and enforcing the statutory close seasons, or whether there may be better means of achieving the same object.
Murder
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children have been murdered or are suspected to have been murdered by members of their immediate families or by those with whom they have been placed in each of the last 10 years.
Mr. Maclean : The table shows the number of offences currently recorded as homicide in England and Wales where the victims were persons under the age of 16 years and the suspect was the parent, other relative or a child minder or nurse :
Year |Number --------------------- 1983 |57 1984 |62 1985 |79 1986 |37 1987 |58 1988 |80 1989 |47 1990 |51 1991 |76 1992 |59
Children at Risk
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is taking to ensure that local police officers are informed of the names and addresses of all children recorded as being at risk ; and if he will advise all police forces and local authority social services departments that it is essential for relevant information to be passed both organisations.
Mr. Charles Wardle : Detailed guidance on liaison arrangements between the police, social services departments, and other agencies concerned with child protection is contained in "Working Together : A guide to arrangements for inter-agency co-operation for the protection of children from abuse" which was published by the Government in October 1991. Copies were distributed to all police forces. This document emphasises the importance of sharing information between agencies and the requirements of confidentiality. The detailed arrangements are a matter for local operational decision.
Mr. Stefan Kiszko
Mr. Mullin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Lancashire police commenced their investigation into the conviction of Stefan Kiszko ; when he expects it to be complete ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The investigation started on 10 May 1991. A report was submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service on 3 June 1993, and is now under consideration.
Organised Crime
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will set up an inquiry into organised crime and protection racketeering in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Charles Wardle : I have no plans to do so. However, the hon. Member may be aware of an inquiry into organised crime currently being undertaken by the Home Affairs Committee to examine the threat from organised crime and to consider the most effective ways of responding to that threat.
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has been given by the chief constable of Northumbria regarding the prevalence of protection rackets and organised crime in his region.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The chief constable is aware of media reports about organised crime in his force area. He acknowledges that protection rackets do exist in some parts of Tyne and Wear. Concerted efforts are being made by Northumbria police to tackle this type of crime. These are operational matters for which the chief constable is responsible.
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Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to deal with protection rackets in the leisure industry in major cities.
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