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Regional Funding
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many applications under objective 3 for European funding for retraining have been submitted on behalf of areas of Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Applications under objective 3 for European funding for Great Britain are submitted to the Department of Employment. Until the negotiations on the objective 3 plan to use European social fund resources throughout Great Britain have been concluded, it is not possible for the Department of Employment to approve any application for 1994.
Selar Grasslands (Opencast Mine)
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what advice he has received from the Countryside Council for Wales regarding an application to establish an opencast mine on the Selar grasslands site of special scientific interest ; and if he will make a statement.
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Sir Wyn Roberts : The Countryside Council for Wales has requested the Secretary of State to call in for his own decision the planning applications for an opencast site including the Selar farm grasslands site of special scientific interest. This request is now being considered.
Pharmacists
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he last met leaders of the pharmaceutical profession in Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales has not yet met any leaders of the pharmaceutical profession in Wales.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many pharmacists in Wales operate retail outlets.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : There are 712 pharmacies in Wales where the pharmacist is contracted with the NHS to provide pharmaceutical services. There are, in addition,
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some pharmacies which do not provide pharmaceutical services under the NHS, but the Welsh Office has no record of their numbers.Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many general practitioners practices operate their own pharmacies.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 24 May 1993, columns 467-68.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on his policies concerning pharmaceutical services in the national health service.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Our aim is to ensure that the public are provided with reasonable access to the full range of pharmaceutical services, and to take account of the cost to the taxpayer of providing pharmaceutical services.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many local pharmaceutical committees he has met.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales has not yet met any local pharmaceutical committees in Wales.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many pharmaceutical centres there are in the hospitals of Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : There are 40 hospitals in Wales with their own pharmacy departments.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what measures he is taking to assist existing retail pharmacies in Wales to remain open and profitable.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 26 May 1993, column 639 .
Wepre Pharmacy, Deeside
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will visit the Wepre pharmacy, Deeside, Clwyd.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales has no plans to do so.
Further Education
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list those who responded to the consultation paper of the Further Education Funding Council for Wales on the funding of further education.
Sir Wyn Roberts : This is a matter for the Further Education Funding Council for Wales. I have asked the chief executive of the funding council to let the hon. Gentleman have the information he requires.
Cadw
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales who are the members currently appointed to Cadw.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Cadw, Welsh Historic Monuments, has an advisory committee whose role is to advise on the agency's policy, strategy and performance. The membership of the committee is as follows :
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Mr. George Craig (Chairman)Principal Establishment Officer, Welsh Office
Mr. Thomas Lloyd
Chairman, Historic Buildings Council for Wales (ex-officio) Professor Glanmor Williams
Chairman, Ancient Monuments Board for Wales (ex-officio) Mr. Tony Lewis
Chairman, Wales Tourist Board (ex-officio)
Mr. Clifford Evans
President , Wallace Evans and Partners
Road Tolls
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he proposes to charge tolls on the proposed third River Dee crossing and Deeside relief road ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Wyn Roberts : I am aware of no such proposals. This is a matter for Clwyd county council as the responsible local highway authority.
Speech Therapy
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will clarify the legislative basis on which his Department made the statement in a letter of 21 January to the chairman of Gwynedd education committee, that the primary responsibility for the provision of speech therapy services lies with health authorities ; in which guidelines these responsibilities are placed on health authorities ; and what steps he takes to monitor health authority performance of such responsibilities.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The general provision of speech therapy services is the responsibility of health authorities under the National Health Service Act 1977. The level of provision is a matter for health authorities to determine in the light of local need, competing demands and resources available. The performance of health authorities is monitored during the annual review process. In the case of a child who has a statement of special educational needs, his/her local education authority must secure any special educational provision which is required to meet those needs and is specified in the statement. Where such special educational provision includes speech therapy, this must be provided in accordance with the statement.
Learner Drivers
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what dates he consulted the Welsh Language Board on the issue of allowing the use of the letter D as a symbol for learner drivers in Wales ; on what date he received a response from the board ; and when he expects to be in a position to make a statement on this matter.
Sir Wyn Roberts : My officials have had frequent informal discussions with officials of the Welsh Language Board since I announced last November that this matter is being reviewed. We will announce our conclusions as soon as possible.
School Children
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will review the recent reports which have been compiled on the average attainment levels in Welsh school children between the ages of 11 and 13 years whose first language is English ; and if he will make a statement.
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Sir Wyn Roberts : Pupil attainment arising from the 1992 pilot assessment exercise for end of key stage 3--14-year-olds--assessment in mathematics and science has been reviewed. A review of the attainments resulting from the 1993 tests for 14-year-olds was not possible because of the boycott by teachers. The outcome from this summer's statutory assessment for seven and 14-year-olds and the voluntary pilot exercise for 11-year-olds will provide information on pupil attainment in English, Welsh, mathematics and science.
School Governors
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what is the total estimated cost of the survey of school governors currently being undertaken by Touche Ross management consultants on behalf of the Welsh Office ; how many forms have been sent out ; and for what purpose the information is being sought ;
(2) when he intends to publish the information gathered through the survey of school governors undertaken by his Department ; and whether each subsection and possible answer will be comprehensively included in the publication ;
(3) if he will make it his policy that no disciplinary action will be taken against any school governor in Wales who refuses to fill in the survey of school governors questionnaire.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The cost of the survey of school governors in Wales is in the region of £40,000. Some 26,000 forms have been distributed to governing bodies in Wales. The survey will provide information on the background, experience, and work load of governors and will be of help to both the Welsh Office Education Department and local education authorities.
The results of the survey should be available in the summer. The exact form in which the results will be published has yet to be decided.
There is no question of any sanction whatsoever being taken against schools or governors who do not participate in the survey. Clearly the value of the survey is increased if as many governors as possible participate.
Porthmadog Bypass
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the estimated date of commencing work on the Porthmadog bypass on the A487 trunk road ; and what is the target date for opening this road.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The scheme is shown in the 1993 supplement to "Roads in Wales" as unlikely to begin before April 1999. It will take about two years to complete. My right hon. Friend is reviewing strategic road needs in Wales and is considering the scope for bringing forward the more important improvements.
Environmentally Sensitive Areas
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to increase annual payments to farmers in the existing environmentally sensitive areas in Wales ; and what plans he has to deregulate the amount of capital grant available for conservation works in the environmentally sensitive areas.
Mr. Redwood : I will be announcing the revised scheme arrangements and payment rates for the Cambrian
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mountains extension and Lleyn peninsula ESAs shortly. Payment rates in these ESAs will be reviewed in 1996. The Cambrian mountains original ESA was revised in 1992 and will be subject to a payment review later this year. These payment reviews will include an assessment of the capital grant arrangements.Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he expects the proposed new environmentally sensitive areas in Wales to be launched ; when the first agreements will start ; when the first payments will be made ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : The new ESA schemes in Preseli and the Clwydian range will be open for application shortly. The first payments to farmers will be made six months after the signing of the first management agreements.
Planning Policy Guidance
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received on planning policy guidance note 6 : "Town Centres and Retail Developments" ; and if he will make a statement.
School Playing Fields
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he will announce his decisions concerning the sale of school playing fields.
Sir Wyn Roberts : As I have already indicated, the consultation exercise has been completed and I hope to announce the outcome in the near future.
Countryside Council for Wales
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to increase funding, in grant-in-aid, for the Countryside Council for Wales for 1994-95 ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The Countryside Council for Wales grant in aid for 1994-95 is £20.635 million, which represents a 4 per cent. increase on last year's provision.
Green Barriers and Belts
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he proposes to announce his policies concerning green barriers and green belts.
Sir Wyn Roberts : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is currently considering the advice of the Assembly of Welsh Counties on strategic planning guidance in Wales, including that on green barriers and belts.
Wrexham to Bidston Railway Line
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the chairman of British Rail concerning the long-term future of the Wrexham to Bidston railway line ; and if he will make a statement.
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SCOTLAND
Advertising
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list all television advertising, newspaper advertising, radio advertising and other promotional campaigns with a budgeted cost in excess of £10,000 conducted by (a) his Department and (b) his agencies (i) in the current financial year and (ii) planned for 1994-95, showing for each the objectives and mechanisms for assessing the effectiveness of the advertising.
1993-94
Children's Panel Recruitment
Press (£80,000) : Objectives--to attract caring, responsible adults, particularly men, from all socio-economic groups to apply to become panel members. Effectiveness measure--by number of responses received.
Electoral Registration
Television/Press (£46,000) : Objectives--to advise adults over 18 years and those who will come of age to complete the Electoral Registration Forms, and to encourage voters, particularly 18-year-olds and those who have moved home, to check for their names on the draft Electoral Registers. Effectiveness measure--by number of registrations in the annual autumn canvas.
Further and Higher Education Charter
Press, radio, outdoor posters (£86,000) : Objectives--to raise awareness of the Charter and to promote its take-up among students, particularly in the 16-20 year-old age group. Effectiveness measure--demand for copies ; research on response to be undertaken later this year.
Accessibility to the Scottish Office
Press (£150,000) : Objectives--to promote easy accessibility by members of the public to The Scottish Office through an enquiry telephone line. Effectiveness measure--pre- and post-campaign qualitative research into awareness of The Scottish Office and new telephone number.
Teacher Recruitment
Press (£27,000) : Objectives--to promote teaching as a profession, to recruit graduates and post-graduates, particularly in shortage subjects. Effectiveness measure--by response through a freepost coupon.
Drugs and Solvent Misuse
Television, booklet (Scottish element £130,000) : Objectives--to encourage parents to discuss the dangers of drugs and solvents with their children and to publicise a confidential helpline and advice booklet. Effectiveness measure--pre-campaign qualitative research, number of responses to helpline and booklets issued.
Fire Prevention
Television (£125,000) : Objectives--to alert householders to the dangers of failing to maintain smoke alarms. Effectiveness measure-- qualitative research to assess awareness of the commercial and response triggered to be carried out when campaign ends. Organ Donors
Television (63,000) : Objectives--to urge carriers of the donor card to advise their families of their wish to donate. Effectiveness measure-- research undertaken with the Scottish transplant community. Road Safety
Television (£250,000) : Objectives--to reduce child pedestrian road casualties by encouraging children to be more responsible and more safety- conscious. Effectiveness measure--qualitative research into campaign awareness.
Right to Buy
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Television, Press (£300,000) : Objectives--to inform public sector tenants of the house purchase schemes available. Effectiveness measure--response for information booklet triggered by freephone number and coupon.National Continence Week
Press, Bus interiors (£11,000) : Objectives--to publicise National Continence Week and to encourage those suffering from incontinence to contact the helpline. Effectiveness measure--response to the telephone helpline.
Offshore Europe exhibition
Exhibition stand (£35,000) : Objectives--to promote Government schemes of financial assistance and advice available to existing and potential exporters to stimulate and support business growth in Scotland. Effectiveness measure--number of visitors to the stand and resultant follow -up enquiries.
Europartenariat Scotland
Exhibition stand (£40,000) : Objectives--to assist in business transactions between Scottish companies and visiting international representatives, and to promote Government assistance to Scottish companies. Effectiveness measure--number of visitors to the stand and resultant follow-up enquiries.
Details of the advertising campaign programme for my Department for 1994-95 have not yet been finalised.
Agencies
Historic Scotland--
Promotion of Properties
Television, Bus Sides, printed material (£260,000) : Objectives--to increase the number of visitors to Historic Scotland's properties and to increase the income raised from visitors and from the hiring out of properties for functions, events and filming. Effectiveness measure-- achievement of targets set within the overall advertising and marketing strategy.
Details of the advertising initiatives for 1994-95 have not yet been finalised.
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