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(a) Operation CAULDRON : the pathogens that cause brucellosis and plague.

(b) Operation HESPERUS : the pathogens that cause brucellosis and tularaemia.

The results of these trials are as indicated in the Official Report, 27 January, column 396-97.

3. The safety aspects of handling, transport and packaging were all carefully addressed to ensure that there was no danger to any of those engaged in the trial whether on land or at sea. As indicated in the Official Report, 9 February, column 360, there is no cause to believe that there was any hazard to the public or the environment and there is no evidence to the contrary. Consequently, there is no reason to commission an independent inquiry into these trials.

Air Training Corps

Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Air Training Corps units there are in England, Scotland and Wales. Mr. Hanley : The information requested, as at 15 February 1994, is as follows :


Column 67


                 |Squadrons       |Detached Flights|Volunteer       |Air Experience                   

                                                   |Gliding Schools |Flights                          

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

England          |733             |68              |21              |11                               

Scotland         |97              |13              |3               |1                                

Wales            |76              |2               |3               |0                                

Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his policy concerning the Air Training Corps.

Mr. Hanley : The Air Training Corps serves not only to foster a practical interest in the RAF and aviation, but to develop qualities such as leadership and self-disclipline. The Air Cadet Organisation is also an effective means of introducing the public to the RAF, particularly in areas where the adult service is not represented. The defence costs study--"Front Line First"--announced by my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 1 December last year, is examining all aspects of support. The Air Training Corps is being studied as part of this process. It is as yet too early to speculate on the outcome of this work.

Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will allocate the Air Training Corps extra moneys to enable it to develop its youth work ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Hanley : There are no plans to provide extra moneys to the Air Training Corps for the purpose of developing its youth work.

Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will visit the Air Training Corps squadron located at Hawarden, Deeside, Clwyd.

Mr. Hanley : My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has no current plans to visit this Air Training Corps squadron.


Column 68

Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Air Training Corps squadrons he has visited in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) Wales.

Mr. Hanley : My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has not visited any Air Training Corps squadrons during his term of office.

British Arms Manufacturers

Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which unit in his Department advises foreign Governments about which British arms manufacturers are suitable contractors ; and to whom this unit is accountable.

Mr. Aitken : The Defence Export Services Organisation, which is accountable to my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Defence, gives advice to foreign Governments on all aspects of procurement of defence equipment from companies in the United Kingdom. The choice of contractor is a matter for the purchaser.

Malaysian Defence Contracts

Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people are working in the unit set up to oversee the defence contracts made between United Kingdom contractors and the Malaysian Government as a result of the 1988 memorandum of understanding ; and how many of these are based (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) in Malaysia.


Column 69

Mr. Aitken : There are 22 people working in the Malaysian project office, of which 10 are based in the United Kingdom and 12 in Malaysia--of those, five are locally employed staff.

Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he has given advice to the Malaysian Government since September 1988 on the suitability of United Kingdom companies to carry out defence contracts ; and to what extent this advice has included the rating of companies by reliability.

Mr. Aitken : My Department frequently advises on the technical competence of companies, but does not make firm recommendations. The choice of contractors lies solely with the Malaysian Government, who have negotiated contracts directly with United Kingdom companies.

Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total value of the loans made available to the Government of Malaysia since September 1988 to assist them in the purchase of defence exports from the United Kingdom ; when these loans will be repaid ; and on what terms.

Mr. Aitken : All the defence purchases by Malaysia under the 1988 memorandum of understanding have been made on a cash basis.

Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contracts have been awarded to United Kingdom companies as a result of the 1988 memorandum of understanding with the Malaysian Government.

Mr. Aitken : Since the 1988 memorandum of understanding was signed defence contracts totalling over £1 billion pounds have been awarded to United Kingdom companies by Malaysia. These contracts cover radars and electronic equipment, training aircraft together with a flight simulator, frigates and associated equipment and air defence missile systems.

Chinook Helicopters

Mr. Wiggin : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the total operating costs of the RAF's Chinook helicopter fleet during the past 10 years ; how many aircraft have been in service on average at any one time out of the total available ; and how many hours of operational flying have been achieved in the same period.

Mr. Hanley [holding answer 26 January 1994] : The total number of hours flown during the past 10 years is 99,528. Records of operating costs are not available prior to 1989-90, since when costs have been approximately £232,000,000 and during which time some 44,200 hours have been flown. Operating costs include personnel costs and fuel and maintenance but exclude depreciation, interest on capital and station and administration costs.

On average, 18 of of 32 aircraft have been available for front-line service at any one time. These figures reflect the need for planned maintenance and servicing.

Piers

Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 30 November, Official Report, column 528, what value was placed by his Department on the piers prior to their sale.


Column 70

Mr. Hanley [holding answer 21 January 1994] : The information is commercial in confidence, but the sale prices represented the market value.

Public Bodies

Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those responsible for making appointments of (a) chairs and (b) members of the boards to each of the executive non-departmental public bodies sponsored by his Department.

Mr. Hanley [holding answer 15 February 1994] : In respect of MOD executive NDPBs, appointments are made as follows :

(a) Chairmen--

Navy Museums

Except for the Fleet Air Arm Museum (ex-officio appointment) chairmen for all other Navy Museums are appointed by the respective Museum Board.

RAF Museum

Appointed by Secretary of State for Defence.

Services Sound and Vision Corporation (SSVC)

Appointed by SSVC council.

Oil and Pipelines Agency (OPA)

Appointed by Secretary of State for Defence.

(b) Members--

Navy Museums

The Director for each Navy Museum is appointed by a special Board of the appropriate museum. All Trustees are appointed by the respective Museum Board.

National Army Museum (NAM)

The Director of the Museum is appointed by the council of the NAM and the Trustees are appointed by the Army Board.

RAF Museum

The Director of the Museum is appointed by the Trustees and the Trustees are appointed by the Secretary of State.

Services Sound and Vision Corporation (SSVC)

The Board of Management is appointed by the SSVC council. Oil and Pipelines Agency (OPA)

Members are appointed by the Secretary of State.

Merchant Navy (Deaths)

Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many men have been killed while serving in the Merchant Navy in each year since 1964.

Mr. Norris : I have been asked to reply.

The number of Merchant Navy personnel reported as having been killed in, or who died as a result of an accident involving a United Kingdom registered merchant vessel of 100 gross tons and over since 1964 is :--


Year             |Number of deaths                 

---------------------------------------------------

1965             |66                               

1966             |122                              

1967             |78                               

1968             |41                               

1969             |50                               

1970             |77                               

1971             |29                               

1972             |95                               

1973             |49                               

1974             |47                               

1975             |71                               

1976             |46                               

1977             |40                               

1978             |71                               

1979             |47                               

1980             |67                               

1981             |38                               

1982             |44                               

1983             |15                               

1984             |14                               

1985             |7                                

1986             |13                               

1987             |44                               

1988             |13                               

1989             |7                                

1990             |5                                

1991             |8                                

1992             |3                                

1993             |4                                

AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD

Goosanders

Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to her answer of 7 February, Official Report, column 107, if she will give details of the number of goosanders shot on the Duke of Devonshire's estates ; and what non-lethal scaring methods were first tried.

Mr. Soames : Between 1 October 1993 and 31 January 1994, seven goosanders have been shot on the Duke of Devonshire's estates. A range of non-lethal scaring methods including human presence, netting and scarecrows have been previously employed.

Birds (Killing)

Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to her answer of 7 February, Official Report, columns 108-09 , if she will give reasons in each case for the granting of licences to kill greenfinches, robins and blackbirds in 1990, and robins, blackbirds, thrush, blue tits and wrens in 1992.


Column 72

Mr. Soames : In each case, the birds were shot for the purpose of preserving public health when they had become trapped inside premises where food supplies were at risk of contamination and where non-lethal methods of removing the birds were ineffective or impractical.

Agricultural Wages Board

Mr. Clifton-Brown : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when she expects to make a decision on the future of the Agricultural wages board.

Mr. Jack : I refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. Friend the Minister gave to the hon. Member for Edinburgh, East (Mr. Strang) on 11 January 1994, Official Report, column 50.

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy

Dr. Strang : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what evidence she has that bovine spongiform encephalopathy is vertically transmissible, from cow to calf, or horizontally transmissible, from cow to cow.

Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Laboratory-based studies and

epidemiological analyses have provided no unequivocal evidence of either vertical or horizontal transmission of BSE. Research is continuing to address these questions and the results will be published in due course.

A letter published in the veterinary record of 12 February stated that the Ministry is aware of 534 confirmed cases of BSE that were offspring of dams which were confirmed cases. This in itself does not prove that transmission was from dam to calf since interpretation of data has been complicated by the fact that most of the positive offspring had also been exposed to ruminant protein.

Mr. Morley : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will list, by county, the number of cases of BSE in each month since January 1992.

Mr. Soames : The numbers of cases of BSE in Great Britain listed by month of confirmation and county from January 1992 to January 1994 inclusive, are as follows :


Column 71


Total number of cases by month confirmed and county                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

County/Month: Year |Jan-92            |Feb-92            |Mar-92            |Apr-92            |May-92            |June-92           |July-92           |Aug-92            |Sept-92           |Oct-92            |Nov-92            |Dec-92            |Total                                

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Avon               |53                |37                |55                |59                |47                |87                |55                |41                |55                |36                |94                |57                |676                                  

Bedfordshire       |7                 |6                 |3                 |12                |12                |7                 |12                |3                 |9                 |10                |4                 |11                |96                                   

Berkshire          |17                |14                |9                 |15                |12                |22                |17                |16                |22                |7                 |14                |17                |182                                  

Borders            |11                |8                 |6                 |5                 |10                |4                 |5                 |9                 |15                |9                 |9                 |9                 |100                                  

Buckinghamshire    |18                |21                |20                |14                |31                |24                |28                |19                |24                |14                |24                |17                |254                                  

Cambridgeshire     |7                 |14                |5                 |6                 |11                |7                 |9                 |7                 |8                 |5                 |8                 |4                 |91                                   

Central            |4                 |4                 |1                 |3                 |1                 |1                 |4                 |1                 |5                 |3                 |6                 |5                 |38                                   

Cheshire           |86                |75                |111               |89                |174               |122               |209               |98                |182               |167               |118               |86                |1,517                                

Cleveland          |5                 |1                 |4                 |2                 |4                 |3                 |4                 |1                 |6                 |3                 |6                 |2                 |41                                   

Clwyd              |31                |36                |31                |63                |51                |59                |38                |33                |47                |52                |45                |51                |537                                  

Cornwall           |200               |181               |180               |201               |260               |309               |170               |184               |166               |244               |185               |175               |2,455                                

Cumbria            |92                |85                |54                |101               |103               |132               |86                |97                |102               |115               |107               |79                |1,153                                

Derbyshire         |74                |64                |60                |58                |109               |72                |93                |62                |78                |55                |86                |65                |876                                  

Devon              |216               |263               |240               |253               |344               |427               |264               |236               |235               |337               |250               |200               |3,265                                

Dorset             |185               |191               |174               |199               |165               |272               |145               |130               |148               |117               |205               |127               |2,058                                

Dumfries           |67                |40                |36                |26                |22                |49                |54                |36                |52                |41                |51                |44                |518                                  

Durham             |9                 |10                |12                |5                 |19                |26                |13                |7                 |21                |17                |14                |12                |165                                  

Dyfed              |144               |147               |159               |118               |199               |219               |146               |146               |155               |165               |121               |144               |1,863                                

Essex              |7                 |8                 |15                |19                |9                 |15                |22                |5                 |10                |13                |18                |27                |168                                  

Fife               |3                 |4                 |6                 |4                 |5                 |7                 |0                 |4                 |3                 |2                 |5                 |12                |55                                   

Glamorgan Mid      |7                 |2                 |1                 |5                 |2                 |2                 |1                 |6                 |4                 |7                 |6                 |2                 |45                                   

Glamorgan South    |10                |7                 |13                |7                 |11                |6                 |9                 |11                |10                |10                |11                |5                 |110                                  

Glamorgan West     |2                 |0                 |1                 |2                 |2                 |5                 |2                 |5                 |5                 |1                 |2                 |1                 |28                                   

Gloucestershire    |53                |38                |46                |56                |49                |87                |46                |63                |69                |38                |61                |61                |667                                  

Grampian           |15                |14                |14                |26                |14                |26                |22                |22                |26                |27                |30                |31                |267                                  

Gwent              |15                |16                |30                |17                |21                |21                |18                |16                |15                |20                |27                |16                |232                                  

Gwynedd            |8                 |6                 |8                 |13                |14                |14                |12                |14                |18                |13                |17                |18                |155                                  

Hampshire          |63                |60                |39                |59                |58                |77                |86                |54                |52                |41                |65                |75                |729                                  

Hereford and                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

 Worcester         |32                |26                |60                |38                |56                |65                |55                |26                |79                |46                |32                |32                |549                                  

Hertfordshire      |5                 |4                 |4                 |9                 |6                 |12                |16                |6                 |7                 |15                |9                 |6                 |99                                   

Highland           |4                 |2                 |6                 |5                 |4                 |4                 |1                 |4                 |10                |6                 |7                 |7                 |60                                   

Humberside         |8                 |10                |12                |3                 |15                |22                |7                 |3                 |11                |10                |12                |22                |135                                  

Isle of Wight      |14                |8                 |9                 |13                |10                |18                |11                |9                 |19                |7                 |9                 |10                |137                                  

Kent               |46                |33                |20                |26                |44                |44                |39                |32                |21                |21                |32                |41                |399                                  

Lancashire         |70                |89                |70                |121               |104               |142               |107               |125               |86                |147               |124               |115               |1,300                                

Leicestershire     |65                |45                |43                |35                |58                |59                |47                |59                |67                |41                |60                |36                |615                                  

Lincolnshire       |15                |15                |14                |19                |13                |20                |25                |16                |17                |13                |9                 |21                |197                                  

London             |2                 |2                 |1                 |2                 |3                 |3                 |4                 |1                 |1                 |1                 |1                 |2                 |23                                   

Lothian            |6                 |3                 |0                 |3                 |7                 |3                 |1                 |1                 |3                 |5                 |7                 |3                 |42                                   

Manchester         |3                 |5                 |3                 |5                 |1                 |5                 |3                 |4                 |6                 |7                 |9                 |6                 |57                                   

Merseyside         |4                 |3                 |1                 |5                 |1                 |4                 |4                 |2                 |4                 |1                 |4                 |1                 |34                                   

Norfolk            |80                |64                |26                |55                |96                |109               |87                |59                |49                |33                |52                |86                |796                                  

Northamptonshire   |32                |26                |9                 |20                |31                |17                |14                |29                |15                |20                |28                |28                |269                                  

Northumberland     |7                 |11                |11                |21                |34                |31                |21                |8                 |24                |19                |31                |22                |240                                  

Nottinghamshire    |14                |19                |7                 |10                |24                |18                |31                |18                |14                |7                 |28                |16                |206                                  

Orkney             |0                 |3                 |0                 |2                 |2                 |0                 |1                 |1                 |2                 |3                 |3                 |3                 |20                                   

Oxford             |60                |51                |28                |30                |54                |48                |56                |32                |34                |24                |28                |58                |503                                  

Powys              |29                |20                |25                |32                |59                |63                |51                |23                |45                |43                |37                |34                |461                                  

Shropshire         |49                |40                |82                |50                |81                |131               |73                |66                |91                |69                |64                |63                |859                                  

Shetland           |0                 |0                 |0                 |2                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |2                                    

Somerset           |239               |239               |214               |249               |209               |361               |206               |187               |204               |164               |309               |126               |2,707                                

Staffordshire      |39                |64                |70                |87                |95                |141               |81                |43                |116               |89                |76                |59                |960                                  

Strathclyde        |41                |34                |23                |18                |25                |31                |43                |25                |43                |46                |40                |29                |398                                  

Suffolk            |32                |32                |17                |19                |36                |37                |44                |35                |31                |24                |25                |24                |356                                  

Surrey             |20                |27                |15                |20                |30                |25                |27                |21                |22                |13                |17                |30                |267                                  

Sussex, East       |38                |35                |23                |30                |32                |46                |39                |19                |37                |11                |27                |37                |374                                  

Sussex, West       |70                |56                |43                |62                |62                |58                |52                |43                |57                |28                |46                |68                |645                                  

Tayside            |3                 |11                |4                 |7                 |6                 |8                 |3                 |6                 |17                |18                |15                |14                |112                                  

Tyne and Wear      |2                 |0                 |1                 |0                 |1                 |2                 |0                 |0                 |2                 |1                 |1                 |0                 |10                                   

West Midlands      |1                 |0                 |4                 |0                 |3                 |6                 |4                 |2                 |3                 |2                 |2                 |0                 |27                                   

Warwickshire       |21                |19                |22                |18                |31                |47                |31                |11                |20                |18                |17                |39                |294                                  

Wiltshire          |124               |111               |127               |136               |103               |182               |154               |94                |119               |119               |69                |98                |1,436                                

Yorkshire, North   |96                |97                |106               |95                |153               |175               |124               |85                |164               |115               |120               |141               |1,471                                

Yorkshire, South   |4                 |6                 |11                |10                |6                 |16                |12                |5                 |12                |10                |16                |8                 |116                                  

Yorkshire, West    |12                |9                 |18                |11                |24                |24                |13                |3                 |25                |19                |17                |20                |195                                  


Column 73


Total number of cases by month confirmed and county                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

County/Month: Year |Jan-93            |Feb-93            |Mar-93            |Apr-93            |May-93            |June-93           |July-93           |Aug-93            |Sept-93           |Oct-93            |Nov-93            |Dec-93            |Total                                

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Avon               |82                |63                |65                |55                |59                |53                |38                |37                |31                |57                |58                |37                |635                                  

Bedfordshire       |11                |8                 |13                |7                 |4                 |11                |8                 |6                 |6                 |2                 |9                 |13                |98                                   

Berkshire          |21                |14                |14                |8                 |18                |9                 |8                 |13                |13                |15                |17                |7                 |157                                  

Borders            |15                |20                |15                |11                |15                |15                |5                 |9                 |10                |10                |13                |16                |154                                  

Buckinghamshire    |46                |37                |30                |23                |33                |21                |19                |27                |19                |23                |34                |21                |333                                  

Cambridgeshire     |14                |15                |13                |7                 |12                |16                |11                |7                 |6                 |9                 |12                |8                 |130                                  

Central            |3                 |9                 |10                |1                 |5                 |2                 |11                |5                 |3                 |4                 |9                 |5                 |67                                   

Cheshire           |166               |172               |136               |122               |115               |142               |98                |125               |100               |109               |166               |106               |1,557                                

Cleveland          |6                 |8                 |7                 |4                 |4                 |5                 |0                 |9                 |2                 |5                 |3                 |5                 |58                                   

Clwyd              |48                |67                |54                |53                |39                |67                |51                |50                |48                |54                |49                |44                |624                                  

Cornwall           |145               |318               |222               |209               |129               |205               |156               |79                |151               |218               |135               |157               |2,124                                

Cumbria            |149               |134               |117               |150               |88                |94                |79                |83                |104               |90                |145               |95                |1,328                                

Derbyshire         |96                |84                |130               |75                |54                |103               |47                |64                |79                |63                |96                |50                |941                                  

Devon              |285               |330               |250               |242               |209               |218               |214               |281               |232               |208               |253               |190               |2,912                                

Dorset             |180               |181               |162               |203               |107               |181               |110               |163               |124               |131               |178               |102               |1,822                                

Dumfries           |72                |58                |68                |45                |66                |66                |36                |56                |22                |68                |68                |46                |671                                  

Durham             |23                |16                |14                |12                |13                |14                |3                 |12                |12                |20                |16                |16                |171                                  

Dyfed              |190               |229               |179               |157               |151               |149               |136               |119               |133               |130               |194               |136               |1,903                                

Essex              |20                |14                |21                |13                |19                |18                |14                |18                |11                |15                |22                |14                |199                                  

Fife               |13                |8                 |7                 |8                 |10                |6                 |3                 |9                 |10                |8                 |9                 |14                |105                                  

Glamorgan Mid      |5                 |4                 |5                 |5                 |3                 |4                 |4                 |1                 |4                 |1                 |10                |5                 |51                                   

Glamorgan South    |8                 |16                |11                |5                 |9                 |7                 |7                 |8                 |9                 |9                 |10                |7                 |106                                  

Glamorgan West     |6                 |2                 |1                 |0                 |6                 |3                 |3                 |0                 |2                 |6                 |4                 |3                 |36                                   

Gloucestershire    |95                |57                |82                |52                |50                |40                |31                |47                |41                |60                |63                |34                |652                                  

Grampian           |35                |43                |29                |36                |26                |34                |29                |21                |27                |36                |47                |33                |396                                  

Gwent              |27                |37                |31                |19                |25                |11                |16                |22                |13                |13                |23                |18                |255                                  

Gwynedd            |17                |20                |19                |11                |14                |12                |9                 |12                |16                |17                |17                |22                |186                                  

Hampshire          |91                |39                |106               |51                |81                |63                |51                |49                |67                |40                |72                |29                |739                                  

Hereford and Worcester 54              77                 52                 55                 61                 38                 35                 50                 58                 50                 70                 46                 646                                  

Hertfordshire      |17                |9                 |12                |6                 |19                |22                |4                 |15                |8                 |14                |16                |14                |156                                  

Highland           |12                |7                 |7                 |5                 |4                 |9                 |4                 |11                |4                 |6                 |9                 |11                |89                                   

Humberside         |31                |19                |19                |15                |20                |16                |12                |22                |17                |16                |13                |14                |214                                  

Isle of Wight      |14                |8                 |24                |14                |13                |18                |3                 |5                 |8                 |11                |13                |6                 |137                                  

Kent               |64                |17                |34                |25                |63                |52                |23                |30                |48                |25                |35                |39                |455                                  

Lancashire         |158               |105               |130               |173               |103               |125               |78                |89                |104               |95                |120               |75                |1,355                                

Leicestershire     |88                |38                |67                |59                |37                |68                |51                |39                |61                |38                |78                |40                |664                                  

Lincolnshire       |27                |5                 |24                |13                |23                |31                |11                |16                |14                |34                |25                |29                |252                                  

London             |2                 |1                 |8                 |3                 |3                 |4                 |0                 |4                 |1                 |3                 |1                 |4                 |34                                   

Lothian            |8                 |8                 |5                 |6                 |3                 |8                 |3                 |4                 |3                 |9                 |3                 |8                 |68                                   

Manchester         |9                 |3                 |12                |8                 |12                |12                |6                 |4                 |4                 |8                 |11                |5                 |94                                   

Merseyside         |2                 |1                 |4                 |5                 |0                 |1                 |1                 |1                 |5                 |0                 |4                 |1                 |25                                   

Norfolk            |106               |25                |80                |29                |95                |107               |80                |111               |76                |64                |105               |88                |966                                  

Northamptonshire   |43                |15                |30                |17                |35                |23                |15                |20                |22                |19                |23                |20                |282                                  

Northumberland     |38                |18                |32                |13                |22                |20                |13                |23                |14                |33                |19                |35                |280                                  

Nottinghamshire    |19                |18                |26                |21                |27                |19                |13                |16                |19                |9                 |19                |6                 |212                                  

Orkney             |2                 |4                 |5                 |3                 |2                 |1                 |1                 |2                 |2                 |5                 |3                 |3                 |33                                   

Oxford             |66                |39                |44                |44                |33                |39                |21                |49                |20                |24                |46                |29                |454                                  

Powys              |56                |59                |46                |49                |33                |47                |45                |48                |56                |36                |66                |53                |594                                  

Shropshire         |98                |98                |80                |68                |74                |90                |59                |79                |61                |71                |101               |67                |946                                  

Shetland           |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                 |0                                    

Somerset           |287               |268               |270               |220               |110               |316               |163               |167               |216               |175               |227               |116               |2,535                                

Staffordshire      |78                |113               |97                |67                |72                |118               |70                |96                |92                |66                |74                |49                |992                                  

Strathclyde        |59                |66                |47                |29                |47                |50                |19                |32                |26                |60                |61                |44                |540                                  

Suffolk            |56                |22                |33                |35                |48                |54                |22                |44                |28                |32                |47                |43                |464                                  

Surrey             |36                |11                |32                |17                |40                |24                |16                |13                |17                |16                |26                |21                |269                                  

Sussex, East       |50                |19                |36                |26                |48                |49                |13                |26                |22                |24                |50                |31                |394                                  

Sussex, West       |97                |36                |62                |51                |80                |66                |42                |58                |50                |40                |58                |62                |702                                  

Tayside            |19                |13                |11                |12                |13                |4                 |12                |10                |10                |17                |11                |12                |144                                  

Tyne and Wear      |3                 |3                 |2                 |1                 |1                 |2                 |1                 |1                 |0                 |1                 |0                 |1                 |16                                   

West Midlands      |3                 |1                 |4                 |5                 |3                 |1                 |1                 |3                 |2                 |0                 |7                 |5                 |35                                   

Warwickshire       |34                |27                |43                |27                |34                |29                |22                |35                |27                |30                |35                |27                |370                                  

Wiltshire          |168               |163               |166               |108               |123               |127               |79                |93                |97                |85                |145               |81                |1,435                                

Yorkshire, North   |181               |151               |164               |97                |160               |130               |106               |157               |97                |143               |93                |141               |1,620                                

Yorkshire, South   |14                |16                |24                |8                 |9                 |7                 |12                |13                |12                |15                |5                 |10                |145                                  

Yorkshire, West    |29                |26                |20                |13                |21                |16                |17                |23                |12                |25                |18                |23                |243                                  


Number of confirmed cases in January 

1994 by county                       

                       |Number       

-------------------------------------

Avon                   |19           

Bedfordshire           |5            

Berkshire              |8            

Borders                |20           

Buckinghamshire        |18           

Cambridgeshire         |6            

Central                |8            

Cheshire               |102          

Cleveland              |7            

Clwyd                  |44           

Cornwall               |79           

Cumbria                |69           

Derbyshire             |78           

Devon                  |93           

Dorset                 |75           

Dumfries               |86           

Durham                 |17           

Dyfed                  |131          

Essex                  |9            

Fife                   |7            

Mid Glamorgan          |1            

South Glamorgan        |10           

West Glamorgan         |2            

Gloucestershire        |21           

Grampian               |29           

Gwent                  |10           

Gwynedd                |10           

Hampshire              |90           

Hereford and Worcester |21           

Hertfordshire          |5            

Highland               |13           

Humberside             |27           

Isle of Wight          |11           

Kent                   |14           

Lancashire             |76           

Leicestershire         |49           

Lincolnshire           |11           

London                 |1            

Lothian                |6            

Manchester             |4            

Merseyside             |3            

Norfolk                |38           

Northamptonshire       |13           

Northumberland         |40           

Nottinghamshire        |19           

Orkney                 |3            

Oxfordshire            |20           

Powys                  |55           

Shropshire             |70           

Somerset               |115          

Staffordshire          |62           

Strathclyde            |53           

Suffolk                |30           

Surrey                 |9            

East Sussex            |31           

West Sussex            |40           

Tayside                |18           

Tyne and Wear          |3            

West Midlands          |1            

Warwickshire           |18           

Wiltshire              |41           

North Yorkshire        |161          

South Yorkshire        |19           

West Yorkshire         |30           

Grants and Licences

Mr. Tyler : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will list all grants and licences issued by her Department ; what is the target response time


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for applications for these grants and licences ; in what form this information is published ; and what was the comparable situation in April 1992.

Mr. Jack : An extensive, but not exhaustive, list of grants and licences with relevant target times was published in the Ministry's regional service standard "Commitment to Service" in December 1992. A copy of that document is in the Library of the House. It is planned to publish a revision of "Commitment to Service", which will extend targets to other grant and licence schemes, in May this year. Comparative information on performance against targets will be published later in the year and copies will be available on request from Ministry regional service centres.

EU Fisheries Policy

Mr. Wallace : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what consultations she proposes to have with representatives of the fishing industry to discuss the EU proposal for a Council regulation fixing management objectives and strategies for certain fisheries or groups of fisheries for the period 1994 to 1997 ; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. Jack : This complex proposal has recently been published by the European Commission. It requires clarification and careful study, including by scientists. When Fisheries Departments have obtained fuller information from the Commission and have analysed its implications, discussion will be arranged with representatives of the fishing industry.

Sheep Scab

Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will make it her policy to grant notifiable livestock disease status to sheep scab ; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. Soames : Most of the detailed measures on the control of sheep scab were removed by the repeal of secondary legislation in July 1992. The Government have already announced that they intend to use the deregulation order making powers in the Deregulation and Contracting Out Bill, if enacted, to complete this process by amending the Animal Health Act 1981 to remove (a) the powers of Ministers to make orders under it on the periodic treatment of sheep scab and (b) the obligation on farmers to notify outbreaks of sheep scab. We propose to achieve the second point by removing sheep scab from the definition of "disease" in the Act.

I have no other plans to require the notification of sheep scab.

Bovine Immunodeficiency Virus

Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will make it her policy to grant notifiable livestock disease status to bovine immunodeficiency virus ; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. Soames : We have no such plans. I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for North Cornwall (Mr. Tyler), Official Report, 10 February column 430.


Column 78

Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many incidents of bovine immunodeficiency virus have been reported for each of the last five years ; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. Soames : No cases of disease caused by bovine immunodeficiency virus have been identified by the Department in the last five years. I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for Clwyd, South-West (Mr. Jones), Official Report, 18 February column 1057-58.

Agricultural Development Operational Programme

Mr. McGrady : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what discussions she has had with her ministerial colleague in Northern Ireland concerning the reinstatement of the agricultural development operational programme scheme ; and if she will make a statement.

Mr. Ancram : I have been asked to reply on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. She has not had any discussions with my noble Friend concerning the reinstatement of the ADOP scheme. The successor to ADOP forms part of the Northern Ireland structural funds plan that has been submitted direct to the European Commission. Officials from the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland are currently negotiating with the Commission on the detail of the new community support framework, which will implement the plan, and it is hoped that agreement will be reached by May with implementation following as soon as possible thereafter.

Special Conservation Areas

Mr. Etherington : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans she has to ensure that additional resources will be made available to (a) English Nature, (b) the Countryside Council for Wales, (c) the Nature Conservation Committee and (d) Scottish Natural Heritage for the designation and management of special areas of conservation in accordance with the EC habitants and species directive 43/92/EEC.

Mr. Atkins : I have been asked to reply.

Grant-in-aid to English Nature for the financial year 1994-95 will be £40.4 million, an increase of 6.5 per cent. over 1993-94. Scottish Natural Heritage will receive £39.9 million and the Countryside Council for Wales £20.6 million, increases of 10.4 per cent. and 3.8 per cent. respectively. The Joint Nature Conservation Committee receives its funding from the grants-in-aid made to the other nature conservation agencies, but the level of their funding for 1994-95 has not yet been determined. Resources made available to all the agencies responsible for countryside and nature conservation have increased by over 240 per cent. in real terms over the past 10 years. The Secretaries of State for the Environment, Scotland and Wales have asked nature conservation agencies to give implementation of the habitats directive the highest priority for available resources.

TRANSPORT

Rail Services (Competition)

11. Mr. Willetts : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what priority the Government will give to competition in the future development of rail services.


Column 79

Mr. Freeman : One of the objectives of our railway policy is to increase competition. This will be achieved by, for example, the competitive letting of passenger franchises and by competition between rail freight operating companies.

East London River Crossing

15. Mr. Cyril D. Townsend : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the future route of the east London river crossing.

Mr. Norris : The way ahead for the crossing is being considered as part of the national review of the trunk road programme. An announcement will be made in due course.

Blackwall Third Crossing

16. Mr. Austin-Walker : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to make an announcement about the Blackwall third crossing.

Mr. Norris : We still need to give a good deal of thought to what we should do to respond to the public consultation exercise. Considerable concern was expressed about the environmental consequences of the bridge option. But I also recognise that development of the Greenwich peninsula and other areas of docklands could be hampered by ever-increasing congestion at the current Blackwall crossings. I will make an announcement in due course.

Rail Privatisation

17. Mr. Whittingdale : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what evidence he has from previous privatisations of transport industries that passengers will benefit from the privatisation of British Rail.

Mr. Freeman : British Airways has been transformed into one of the world's leading airlines since privatisation, with passengers benefiting from its innovative approach and commitment to high standards of service which regularly win international awards. The privatisation of bus companies has resulted in great efficiency, more choice, more bus miles, innovative services and lower cost to the taxpayer.

The best way to achieve our obective of improving the quality of service for rail users is to give the private sector similar opportunities to provide existing, and new, rail services.

Heathrow (Night Flights)

18. Mr. Khabra: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received about the current restrictions on night flights at Heathrow.


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