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The Prime Minister [holding answer 22 February 1994] : There are a number of such items.
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Public Appointments
Dr. Wright : To ask the Prime Minister if he will give details of the public appointments he is responsible for making in addition to those identified in "Public Bodies 1993" including non-executive agency and other departmental management boards.
The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 17 January, Official Report, columns 367-68. The public bodies referred to in that answer, which are not listed in "Public Bodies 1993", are the Kennedy Memorial Trust together with the Chequers Trust, the Chevening Trust and the Dorneywood Trust.
I make no appointments to non-executive agencies and other departmental management boards.
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Prime Minister what percentage of public appointments was taken by women in 1993 ; and if he will make a statement.
The Prime Minister : On 1 September 1993, 28 per cent. of appointments to public bodies were held by women, compared with 26 per cent. in 1992 and 23 per cent. in 1991.
All Departments have drawn up objectives and goals to achieve further progress in this area over the years to 1996 and beyond. A summary of the departmental plans was published on 16 November 1992, and a copy is available in the Library of the House.
Council of Europe
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 21 February, Official Report, columns 32-33, if he will list those conventions of the Council of Europe to which the Government have refused to accede from 1964.
The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. and learned Friend the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to the hon. Member for Bournemouth, East (Mr. Atkinson) on 17 January, Official Report, columns 354-55.
Lady Thatcher (Foreign Visits)
Sir David Steel : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list all visits made by Lady Thatcher, when Prime Minister, to Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, with a list in each case of all the business people who accompanied her on those visits.
The Prime Minister : My right hon. and noble Friend, when Prime Minister, made the following visits to Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. My right hon. and noble Friend was not accompanied by business people on any of these visits.
Indonesia
9-11 April 1985
Malaysia
5-8 April 1985
6 August 1988
18-24 October 1989
Thailand
6-9 August 1988
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Malaysia
Sir David Steel : To ask the Prime Minister what discussions were held with Malaysians concerning the construction of military bases in Malaysia by British companies during his visit in September 1993.
The Prime Minister : Commercial discussions were held by British companies on a number of issues during the course of the visit.
Sir David Steel : To ask the Prime Minister what offers of ECGD credits were made during his visit to Malaysia in September 1933 ; and for which purposes.
The Prime Minister : No offers of ECGD credits were made during my visit to Malaysia in September 1993.
Sir David Steel : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list all those who accompanied him on his visit to Malaysia in September 1993.
The Prime Minister : I was accompanied by my hon. Friend the Minister for Trade and a party of senior business men representing BICC, Biwater, British Aerospace, British Gas, Cable and Wireless, GEC, John Laing, Johnson Matthey, the National Grid, North West Water, PowerGen, Rolls-Royce and Trinity Holdings, together with my wife, officials, support staff and members of the press.
Thailand
Sir David Steel : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list all visits of Government Ministers and officials to Thailand since 1979 with dates and their purpose of each visit.
The Prime Minister : The information requested is not held centrally and could be made available only at disproportionate cost.
Jewellery
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Prime Minister if he will give details of all items of jewellery available for wearing by the Prime Minister and his family ; and to whom such jewellery belongs.
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the items of jewellery in the ownership of the state but kept at No. 10 Downing street.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Prime Minister if he will publish the inventory of Downing street jewellery, its source, a statement of ownership and who has the rights to wear such jewellery.
The Prime Minister [holding answer 22 February 1994] : Nearly all the jewellery available for wearing by my family belongs to my wife personally. I have no intention of providing the hon. Member with the details he seeks. There are, in addition, a number of items given to previous Prime Ministers and kept at No. 10 on the official inventory.
Pergau Dam
Mr. Alan Williams : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 21 February, Official Report , column 33 , on what date in February 1991 he was first
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informed that the Foreign Secretary intended to issue a direction to the accounting officer in respect of the Pergau project.The Prime Minister [holding answer 24 February 1994] : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs drew my attention to the concerns of the Overseas Development Administration accounting officer when he minuted me on 16 February 1991 recommending aid and trade provision support for this project on the basis of commitments previously given. The need for a direction to the accounting officer was reported in the subsequent ministerial correspondence.
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Bacterial Infections
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what provision he is proposing to increase the level of research into staphylococcus aureus and enterococcus faecium and the development of antibiotics to counteract them ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Waldegrave : As part of its clinical research initiative in Nottingham, the Medical Research Council is building up support for several groups studying bacterial infections. One of them has a particular interest in staphylococcal infections. The council is also reviewing the literature relating to septic shock, especially in relation to possible studies of monoclonal antibody therapy. In addition, the Public Health Laboratory Service--a non-departmental public body--is undertaking surveillance programmes to monitor the incidence of multiple antibiotic resistance to staphylococcus aureus and to enterococcus faecium. The development of new antibiotics is principally a matter for the pharmaceutical industry.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Car Parks
Mr. Sheerman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many criminal offences occurred in premises of major car parking providers in each of the last five years ; (2) how many violent attacks on women occurred in car parks in each of the last five years.
Mr Maclean : The information requested is not held centrally. However, the British Crime Survey indicates that in 1991 some 7 per cent. of the 15 million offences counted in the survey took place in publicly and privately owned car parks of any sort. A breakdown of the types of offences involved is in table. The survey indicates that in 1991, 1 per cent. of assaults--woundings, common assaults and sexual offences--against women occurred in car parks, representing two incidents mentioned by the 5,600 women interviewed in the survey.
Offences in car parks in 1991: British Crime Survey
|Percentage of
|different offences
|of all offences in
|car parks<1>
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Assaults |4
Robbery/theft from person |1
Bicycle theft |1
Vehicle thefts<2> |77
Vehicle vandalism |16
|--
All offences in car parks<3> |100
<1> Public and private car parks in a wide variety of locations,
including
car parks at the workplace.
<2> Thefts of vehicles, thefts from vehicles, and attempts.
<3> Excludes threats.
Criminal Injuries Compensation Board
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the cost of awards made by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board in each of the last three available years ; and what is the estimated cost in 1994-95 after the introduction of the tariff scales.
Mr. Maclean : Compensation paid by the board in the last three years, and estimated compensation in the current financial year and in 1994 -95 is as follows, in cash terms :
Financial year |Compensation
|paid
|(£ million)
---------------------------------------------
1990-91 |109.33
1991-92 |143.66
1992-93 |152.49
1993-94 |164.00
1994-95 |188.00
Public Appointments
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of public appointments made by his Department in 1993 were of women ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Howard : The readily available information about public appointments for which my Department is responsible is given in "Public Bodies". A copy of the 1993 edition is in the Library.
Film Classifications
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to create a not suitable for home viewing classification for films in the United Kingdom ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : I have no such plans. I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy (Mr. Llwyd) on 16 December 1993, column 780 .
Young Offenders
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many 15-year-old girls were found guilty in (i) magistrates courts and (ii) Crown courts in (a) 1992 and (b) 1993 ; and for which offences ;
(2) how many 15-year-old girls were cautioned or found guilty in (a) 1992 and (b) 1993 ; and for which offences ;
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(3) how many 15-year-old boys were found guilty in (i) magistrates courts and (ii) Crown courts in (a) 1992 and (b) 1993 ; and for which offences ;(4) how many 15-year-old boys were cautioned or found guilty in (a) 1992 and (b) 1993 ; and for which offences.
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Mr. Maclean : Information for 1992 is given in the tables. Data for 1993 will not be available until autumn 1994.
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Table A: number of 15-year-old females cautioned and/or found guilty of all offences at all courts by
type of offence and type of court
England and Wales 1992
Found guilty
Offence |Cautioned |Magistrates'|Crown Court |Total cau-
|courts |tioned or
|found guilty
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indictable offences
Violence against the person |786 |173 |3 |962
Sexual offences |7 |2 |- |9
Burglary |188 |69 |5 |262
Robbery |22 |26 |9 |57
Theft and handling stolen goods |4,713 |332 |- |5,045
Fraud and forgery |98 |6 |- |104
Criminal damage |41 |20 |3 |64
Drug offences |94 |4 |- |98
Other (excluding motoring offences) |24 |26 |- |50
Motoring offences |<1> |- |- |-
|--- |--- |--- |---
Total |5,973 |658 |20 |6,651
Summary offences
Offences (excluding motoring offences) |837 |155 |- |992
Motoring offences |<1> |9 |- |9
|--- |--- |--- |---
All offences |6,810 |822 |20 |7,652
<1> Not applicable.
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Table B: number of 15-year-old males cautioned and/or found guilty of all offences at all courts by
type of offence and type of court
England and Wales 1992
Found guilty
Offence |Cautioned |Magistrates'|Crown Court |Total cau-
|courts |tioned or
|found guilty
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indictable offences
Violence against the person |1,783 |692 |26 |2,501
Sexual offences |284 |44 |16 |344
Burglary |2,213 |1,415 |64 |3,692
Robbery |79 |161 |48 |288
Theft and handling stolen goods |8,784 |1,843 |14 |10,641
Fraud and forgery |196 |40 |- |236
Criminal damage |402 |211 |19 |632
Drug offences |676 |70 |4 |750
Other (excluding motoring offences) |308 |215 |19 |542
Motoring offences |<1> |74 |1 |75
|--- |--- |--- |---
Total |14,725 |4,765 |211 |19,701
Summary offences
Offences (excluding motoring offences) |4,791 |1,718 |6 |6,515
Motoring offences |<1> |380 |2 |382
|--- |--- |--- |---
All offences |19,516 |6,863 |219 |26,598
<1> Not applicable.
Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many incidents of self-harm involving 15-year-old girls on remand in penal custody were recorded in each month of 1993 ; and in which institutions these incidents occurred ;
(2) how many incidents of self-harm involving 15-year-old boys on remand in penal custody were recorded in each month of 1993 ; and in which institutions these incidents occurred.
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Mr. Peter Lloyd : Responsibility for these matters has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Derek Lewis to Ms Joan Ruddock, dated 28 February 1994 :
The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent questions about self-harm by 15 year olds in prison custody.
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The information you have requested is not routinely collected centrally, and could not be obtained except at disproportionate cost.Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many 15-year-old girls were remanded in custody pending trial or sentence in 1993 and received custodial sentences at the conclusion of their trial ;
(2) how many 15-year-old boys were remanded in custody pending trial or sentence in 1993 and received custodial sentences at the conclusion of their trial.
Mr. Maclean : The latest information is for 1992 and is provisional. During that year 377 males aged 15 were received as untried or convicted unsentenced by a Prison Service establishment in England and Wales, of whom 141
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were recorded as being subsequently received under a custodial sentence. No female aged 15 was received as a remand prisoner in 1992.Ms Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many 15-year-old girls were sentenced to immediate custody in each month of 1993 ; and for which offences ;
(2) how many 15-year-old boys were sentenced to immediate custody in each month of 1993 ; and for which offences.
Mr. Maclean : The available information for receptions of sentenced prisoners into Prison Service establishments in England and Wales in 1993 is given in the tables.
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Provisional Receptions of 15-year-old males into prison service establishments, England and Wales each Month by Offence in
1993<2>
Month |Violence |Sex offences|Burglary |Robbery |Theft and |Other offen-|Offence not |Total
|against the |handling |ces |recorded |offences
|person
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January |3 |1 |11 |2 |6 |5 |1 |29
February |4 |2 |10 |4 |14 |2 |1 |37
March |4 |3 |14 |7 |14 |6 |2 |50
April |1 |- |13 |6 |10 |9 |- |39
May |6 |1 |22 |6 |7 |7 |- |49
June |3 |- |15 |4 |19 |3 |2 |46
July |1 |2 |18 |7 |20 |6 |1 |55
August |8 |- |15 |- |21 |5 |2 |51
September |1 |- |22 |6 |13 |<3>7 |2 |51
October |5 |- |18 |7 |13 |6 |1 |50
November |7 |- |26 |9 |9 |4 |3 |58
December |3 |- |18 |3 |8 |3 |3 |38
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |46 |9 |202 |61 |154 |63 |18 |553
<1> Aged 15 years as at date of sentence.
<2> Excludes those committed in default of payment of a fine.
<3> Includes 2 inmates received for drugs offences.
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Provisional receptions of 15-year-old females<1> into prison service establishments, England and Wales
each month by offence 1993<2>
Month |Violence |Robbery |Theft and |Other offences|Total offences
|against the |handling
|person
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January |- |- |1 |- |1
February |- |- |1 |- |1
March |1 |- |- |- |1
April |- |- |1 |- |1
May |1 |- |- |- |1
June |1 |- |- |- |1
July |3 |- |1 |- |4
August |- |1 |- |- |1
September |- |1 |1 |1 |3
October |3 |2 |- |- |5
November |1 |2 |- |1 |4
December |- |- |- |2 |2
|------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |10 |6 |5 |4 |25
<1> Aged 15 as at date of sentence.
<2> Excludes those committed in default of payment of a fine.
Deportees
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to which countries deportees escorted in 1993 by the police forces of (a) Cambridgeshire, (b) Devon and Cornwall, (c) Durham, (d) Greater Manchester, (e) Leicestershire, (f) Norfolk, (g) West Mercia, (h) South Wales, (i) the Metropolitan police and (j) the Royal Ulster Constabulary were being deported.
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Mr. Charles Wardle : In-flight escorts were provided, as follows : Police force and country to which person removed
Cambridgeshire
Slovakia
Devon and Cornwall
Bermuda
Durham
Jamaica
Greater Manchester
Jamaica
Leicestershire
Hong Kong
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NorfolkAlgeria
West Mercia
Israel
South Wales
Hong Kong
Metropolitan Police
Algeria, Angola, Canada, Croatia, Egypt, Ghana, Jamaica, Nigeria, Portugal, Sierra Leone, Sir Lanka, Tanzania, Trinidad, Turkey, Uganda and the United States of America
Royal Ulster Constabulary
New Zealand
Medomsley Prison
Ms Armstrong : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what discussions she has had about recommissioning Medomsley prison ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what plans he has for the former prison in Medomsley, Consett.
Mr. Maclean : I understand from the Director General of the Prison Service that there are currently no plans to recommission Medomsley. The site is surplus to prison service requirements. An appraisal has been conducted of the Medomsley site to assess whether it might prove a suitable location for a new secure training centre for persistent juvenile offenders. No final decisions have yet been reached on sites for secure training centres.
Public Alert Systems
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the need for a national public alert system, and of the cost of establishing one ; and what provisions currently exist for a public alert system.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : The then Home Secretary, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr. Clarke), announced on 12 November 1992 that the national siren warning system was to be closed and that future warning arrangements would be based around television and radio broadcasts. Such arrangements already exist and studies are being carried out to see what enhancements may be required and at what cost.
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has made on the future of emergency planning and public alert systems as part of the local government review.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : In response to a request from the Local Government Commission for England, my officials have recently written to suggest that while firm arrangements must depend on local government structures finally adopted, it will be important that those who provide local services are able to be linked with a coherent strategic framework that can ensure an effective response to major emergencies.
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