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of these figures by age-group for 1974 onwards is given in part (i) of table 25 in the annual reference volume "Abortion Statistics" series AB1 nos. 1 to 18 ; copies of which are available in the Library.
Legal abortions in England and Wales to women
usually resident<1> in the
Channel islands and Isle of Man.
|Channel |Isle of Man
|Islands
------------------------------------------------
1970 165
1971 215
1972 295
1973 306
1974 371
1975 373
1976 336
1977 389
1978 413
1979 457
1980 484
1981 455
1982 467
1983 462
1984 454
1985 515
1986 |418 |148
1987 |416 |158
1988 |445 |182
1989 |488 |221
1990 |465 |232
1991 |462 |191
<1>Data by country of usual residence are not
available for 1968 and 1969.
EMPLOYMENT
Industrial Diseases
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will review the conditions of eligibility for compensation under the Pneumoconiosis, etc. (Workers' Compensation) Act 1979 following the acceptance by the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council of industrial causes of chronic bronchitis and emphysema in order to include sufferers from chronic bronchitis and emphysema, who had previously worked at industries recognised as causing industrial lung diseases and who hitherto have been excluded from compensation under the Act.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : I have no plans to do so.
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Radiation
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many deaths have been recorded in each year since 1979 arising from the over-exposure to radiation doses from X-ray equipment used to examine industrial welds and other industrial uses.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : Neither the national mortality statistics nor the Health and Safety Executive's database of fatal accidents show any deaths from acute overexposure to any type of radiation in the period 1979 up to April 1992--latest available information. However figures from the Department of Social Security show that between 1983 and 1988 there were five awards of industrial death benefit for the prescribed diseases due to electro-magnetic radiations, other than radiant heat, or to ionising particles. It is not possible to say whether these individuals were industrial radiographers, or other exposed workers. Nor is it possible to determine when these individuals were exposed.
WALES
Training and Enterprise Councils
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list for each training and enterprise council in each of the last three years and endorsements for training purposes categorised, A, B and C.
Sir Wyn Roberts : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Employment on 16 May at column 363 .
Education Expenditure
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the level of expenditure on (a) primary education and (b) secondary education in (i) money terms and (ii) real terms in each of the past five years in each local education authority in Wales.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The available information is given in the following tables. Information on individual education authorities is not available on a comparable basis for 1989-90. It is not possible to disaggregate pre-primary and primary expenditure. Figures on capital expenditure for 1993-94 are not yet available.
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Education net current expenditure (a) (cash prices)
£000
1990-91 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 (b)(c)
|Pre-Primary |Pre-Primary|(b) |Pre-Primary|(b) |Pre-Primary
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clwyd |47,127 |54,720 |52,327 |61,190 |62,187 |73,006 |61,638 |66,289
Dyfed |48,617 |47,673 |53,297 |52,420 |65,421 |61,025 |62,734 |61,643
Gwent |59,471 |60,846 |57,474 |62,138 |76,862 |73,861 |77,471 |73,830
Gwynedd |29,333 |33,692 |32,107 |37,893 |37,759 |42,335 |36,225 |40,227
Mid Glamorgan |72,870 |72,453 |84,616 |84,270 |92,159 |98,730 |101,981 |102,613
Powys |15,201 |15,164 |18,129 |16,029 |22,647 |20,110 |21,177 |21,401
South Glamorgan |44,718 |48,440 |51,269 |53,256 |62,228 |61,237 |61,276 |56,721
West Glamorgan |48,641 |51,084 |53,396 |54,965 |68,418 |59,833 |64,523 |59,585
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total Counties |365,978 |384,072 |402,615 |422,161 |487,681 |490,137 |487,025 |482,309
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Education net current expenditure (a) (constant 1993-94 prices)
£000
1990-91 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 (b)(c)
|Pre-Primary |Pre-Primary|(b) |Pre-Primary|(b) |Pre-Primary
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clwyd |53,726 |62,382 |56,102 |65,604 |64,208 |75,379 |61,638 |66,289
Dyfed |55,425 |54,349 |57,142 |56,201 |67,547 |63,008 |62,734 |61,643
Gwent |67,799 |69,366 |61,620 |66,620 |79,360 |76,261 |77,471 |73,830
Gwynedd |33,440 |38,410 |34,423 |40,626 |38,986 |43,711 |36,225 |40,227
Mid Glamorgan |83,074 |82,598 |90,720 |90,349 |95,154 |101,939 |101,981 |102,613
Powys |17,330 |17,287 |19,437 |17,185 |23,383 |20,764 |21,177 |21,401
South Glamorgan |50,980 |55,223 |54,967 |57,098 |64,250 |63,227 |61,276 |56,721
West Glamorgan |55,452 |58,237 |57,248 |58,930 |70,642 |61,778 |64,523 |59,585
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total Counties |417,225 |437,853 |431,658 |452,614 |503,531 |506,066 |487,025 |482,309
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Education gross capital expenditure (cash prices)
£000
1990-91 1991-92 1992-93
|Pre-Primary and|Secondary |Pre-Primary and|(b) |Pre-Primary and|(b)
|Primary |Primary |Secondary |Primary |Secondary
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clwyd |3,258 |2,691 |5,223 |2,942 |4,208 |2,337
Dyfed |2,226 |2,391 |3,093 |2,893 |3,267 |2,567
Gwent |7,635 |1,175 |4,669 |1,415 |8,751 |1,421
Gwynedd |1,210 |1,260 |1,391 |1,372 |431 |776
Mid Glamorgan |3,706 |3,613 |2,909 |3,225 |2,337 |3,672
Powys |631 |548 |933 |840 |1,495 |1,635
South Glamorgan |2,890 |3,382 |5,000 |1,989 |5,200 |2,233
West Glamorgan |1,182 |5,022 |2,739 |1,877 |3,891 |2,736
-------
Total Counties |22,738 |20,082 |25,957 |16,553 |29,580 |17,377
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Education gross capital expenditure (constant 1993-94 prices)
£000
1990-91 1991-92 1992-93
|Pre-Primary and|Secondary |Pre-Primary and|(b) |Pre-Primary and|(b)
Secondary |Primary |Secondary
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clwyd |3,714 |3,068 |5,600 |3,154 |4,345 |2,413
Dyfed |2,538 |2,726 |3,316 |3,102 |3,373 |2,650
Gwent |8,704 |1,340 |5,006 |1,517 |9,035 |1,467
Gwynedd |1,379 |1,436 |1,491 |1,471 |445 |801
Mid Glamorgan |4,225 |4,119 |3,119 |3,458 |2,413 |3,791
Powys |719 |625 |1,000 |901 |1,544 |1,688
South Glamorgan |3,295 |3,856 |5,361 |2,132 |5,369 |2,306
West Glamorgan |1,348 |5,725 |2,937 |2,012 |4,017 |2,825
-------
Total Counties |25,922 |22,894 |27,829 |17,747 |30,541 |17,942
(a) Excludes school catering.
(b) Excludes grant maintained schools.
(c) Revised Estimates. Inter-authority recoupments are not available at school level from revised estimates and are therefore
excluded.
Revised estimates also exclude some central expenditure on the provision of education support services.
Severn Bridge
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his assessment of the number of lorries diverted from the Severn bridge in a westerly direction through Gwent roads since each of the last two increases in tolls on the Severn bridge.
Sir Wyn Roberts : There have been increases in the numbers of heavy goods vehicles entering Gwent from England over the last two years, but I cannot say that all are due to the effects of tolling. From the limited data available, it is estimated that the increases in daily flows are :
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200 on the A48 in Chepstow150 on the A40 in Monmouth
320 on the A4136 at Monmouth
In March 1994 the Highways Agency commissioned traffic surveys to establish the true extent of the problem. The report of the survey is not expected until mid June.
Employment
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the latest estimate of the proportion of men between the ages of 60 and 65 years in Wales who are gainfully occupied.
Mr. Redwood : According to the autumn 1993 labour force survey there were 25,000 men in Wales aged 60 to 64 who were in employment, representing 35 per cent. of all males aged 60 to 64. The figure includes all men who were
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doing some paid work in the referene week, those who had a job that they were temporarily away from and those doing unpaid family work for a business that they or a relative owned.Head Teachers (Dismissal)
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales in what circumstances he will dismiss head teachers ; and what will be the process involved.
Sir Wyn Roberts : My right hon. Friend and I expect the governing bodies of all schools to keep under review the performance of the headteacher and consider what action might be appropriate when the school is underperforming. When a school is identified in a report by Her Majesty's inspectorate of schools or a registered inspector as failing to provide acceptable standards of education, and my right hon. Friend is not satisfied with the action the school proposes to take to address the shortcomings, he has the power to establish an education association to take over the running of the school. We would expect any education association to look at the position of the headteacher and other staff in considering its plan of action. My right hon. Friend has the power to require the association to do so. The circumstances in which headteachers can be fairly dismissed are the same as those for other employees. There can be no hard and fast rules about what action should be taken in respect of the headteacher : each case would have to be considered on its merits. Any dismissal would have to be in accordance with the procedures and requirements set out in the Employment Protection (Consolidation) Act 1978.
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NHS Trusts
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on which date notice was given to each NHS trust in Wales of their funding for the financial year 1994-95 ; what plans he has regarding the timing of notice to trusts in regard to pay awards ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend's announcement of 16 March, which sets out the external financing limits for NHS trusts in 1994-95 together with the allocations to health authorities and family health services authorities. The external financing limits, however, relate only to new borrowing or the use of reserves by NHS trusts. Their general funding is determined via the contractual negotiations with the various health authorities and GP fundholders which they serve. The Government's acceptance of the recommendations of the pay review bodies was conveyed to health authorities and NHS trusts in February with notification of the increases payable to relevant staff groups from 1 April followed in March. The notification of pay awards for other staff groups entitled to Whitley council terms and conditions of service is totally dependent upon the conclusion of 1994-95 pay negotiations within each of the functional councils. The amount and timing of pay awards to staff employed on local terms and conditions is a matter for each individual NHS trust.
Birds of Prey
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many incidents were reported of (a) thefts and (b) poisonings or shootings of buzzards, kestrels and sparrowhawks in each year since 1989.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Information on thefts of birds or their eggs is not held by the Department.
Details of confirmed poisoning incidents in Wales are as follows :
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Species |1989 |1990 |1991 |1992 |1993 ------------------------------------------------------------ Buzzard |10 |1 |1 |1 |4 Kestrel |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 Sparrowhawk |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
The only confirmed shootings of any of these species during the period were those of two buzzards in 1992.
Health Service Funding
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Clwyd, North-West (Mr. Richards) of 16 March, Official Report, column 698, if he will explain on what figure he bases his claim that the £1,295 million available for current spending on health authorities is a 4.3 per cent. increase on 1993-94 plans, and where that figure appears in the Welsh Office's published expenditure plans 1994-95 to 1996-97 (Cm 2515).
Mr. Redwood : The £1,295 million which I announced on 16 March as available for hospital and community health services current spending in 1994-95 represents a cash increase of 4.3 per cent. over the £1, 242 million planned spend on comparable services in 1993-94. These amounts are encompassed in the provision shown in figure
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9.01 of Cm 2515 as planned expenditure in 1993-94 and 1994-95 for current spending on hospital and community health services and--in anticipation of the transfer of funding from health authorities to GP fundholders for their spending on hospital and community health services--within the current expenditure provision for family health services.1994 GCSE Examinations
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultation he has had with the chairman of the Welsh Joint Education Committee in relation to irregularities in the conduct of the 1994 GCSE examinations and access given to the candidates to the examination papers before time ; if the school was in the state sector ; what guidelines he has issued with respect to disciplinary proceedings in relation to the teacher concerned ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : None. The school was in the state sector. The WJEC has investigated this matter thoroughly
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and is satisfied that a change to the current instructions about the security of examination papers which it issues to all examination centres, is not required.The matter of disciplinary proceedings in relation to an individual teacher, is primarily a matter for the school concerned.
Dearing Report
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the (a) estimated and (b) out-turn cost of printing and delivering copies of the Dearing report, "The Review of School Curriculum and Assessment" to all schools.
Mr. Redwood : Copies of the Dearing report were issued to schools in Wales together with copies of the final report of the Curriculum Council for Wales. The final cost of printing and distribution of these reports was £42,108.
Cross-border Tendering
Mr. Hanson : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when his proposed consultation on cross-border tendering will take place ; what will be its format ; whom he proposes to consult ; if he will make the consultation results public ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : My officials have written to the Council of Welsh Districts and Assembly of Welsh Counties inviting them to submit written comments preferably by Tuesday 7 June. I will place copies of any responses received in the Library of the House. I propose to announce the conclusions I have reached during report stage of the Local Government (Wales) Bill.
Canton Area Traffic Management Scheme
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received from (a) the South Glamorgan county councils and (b) others in relation to the funding of the Canton area traffic management scheme ; what decisions he has made and announced in relation to grant aid for the scheme or further studies in relation to it ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : South Glamorgan county council submitted a proposal for a £1.5 million scheme last year and the hon. Member wrote in support. Under current arrangements for transport grant the Department can support only schemes costing over £5 million. Funding for smaller schemes has to be found from the unhypothecated annual settlements for capital and revenue spending. It is possible that elements would be eligible for strategic development scheme assistance. The council was advised of our conclusion on 12 January.
TRANSPORT
Noise Regulations
Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will publish the draft noise regulations for new railway lines.
Mr. Freeman : Comments on the draft already issued for public consultation are currently being considered. Our aim is to present draft regulations to Parliament during the summer.
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Transport Research Laboratory
Mrs. Roche : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of proposals for the Transport Research Laboratory to be allowed to undertake commercially-funded research.
Mr. Key : The Transport Research Laboratory already undertakes commercially-funded research. The Government's assessment is that the laboratory will be much better placed to compete for
commercially-funded work when it is in the private sector.
M25
Mr. Jim Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what representations he has received from members of the public in Coventry regarding the effect on the environment of proposals to widen the M25 ; and what proposals he has for minimising the effects these proposals will have on the environment ;
(2) how the sites of special scientific interest affected by the proposed widening of the M25 will be protected ; what representations he has received about these proposals ; if he will list them ; and what consultations he has carried out with members of the public or organisations.
Mr. Key : These questions relate to operational matters of the Highways Agency. I have asked the chief executive, Mr. Lawrie Haynes to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Lawrie Haynes to Mr. Jim Cunningham, dated 23 May 1994 :
The Minister for Roads and Traffic, Mr. Key, has asked me to write to you in reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about widening the M25 motorway.
I am sorry, but information about representations received from particular locations is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Similarly, many thousands of representations have been received about the widening proposals and I am afraid it would not be practicable to list them as you requested. About 70 per cent. of the proposed M25 widening will be undetaken within existing highway boundaries to limit the effects on surrounding areas. Where environmental effects cannot be avoided, a range of measures are proposed to keep them to a minimum. Depending on the particular location, the measures include the provision of noise and visual screens, landscaping, noise insulation to properties and, where appropriate, the use of porous asphalt to reduce traffic noise.
It is not currently expected that any land will be required from Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) except possibly for a small area which may be needed from Ockham and Wisley Commons SSSI which surrounds Junction 10.
We have consulted the public and a wide range of organisations, including English Nature, Countryside Commission and National Rivers Authority, on all M25 widening proposals published to date. Environmental statements have been published for comment on each of these proposals (except for proposed link roads between junctions 15-16 which is at an earlier stage of development and where an Assessment Report was published) and public exhibitions held in each case.
Roads (Land Acquisition)
Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what will be the impact of the review of the road programme upon land acquisition costs over the next five years ; and to what extent he expects the review to lead to the disposal of any land.
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Mr. Key : As the information requested relates to operational matters of the Highways Agency I have asked the chief executive to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Lawrie Haynes to Mr. John Marshall, dated 19 May 1994.
I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the impact of the review of the road programme upon land acquisition costs and the extent to which it will lead to the disposal of any land.
The decision to withdraw schemes from the road programme, announced by the Secretary of State on 30 March, will result in a reduced spend on land acquisition over the next 5 years. It is not possible to give precise figures since the amount of land required for those schemes has, in many cases, not been determined and acquisition costs are subject to general fluctuations in the property market.
Where land has already been purchased for those schemes--for example under blight powers--it will be disposed of at the earliest opportunity consistent with sound management and disposal practice and Government Accounting requirements.
Seat Belts
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which countries in the European Union require the fitting of seat belts in minibuses and coaches.
Bridges (Lorry Strikes)
Mr. Snape : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department has taken to prevent lorries from striking rail bridges.
Mr. Key : We work closely with Railtrack and other bridge owners, local authorities, bus operators and the haulage industry to monitor and reduce bridge strikes. Local authorities have been given guidance on the use of traffic signs to warn drivers of high vehicles in good time ; and at 21 low bridges of particular concern we have installed automatic signs which are switched on by detectors of vehicles that are too high.
Piggyback Rail Corridor
Mr. Robert Ainsworth : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are his plans to respond to the report of the Piggyback consortium and the proposals from Central Railways to provide a piggy back rail corridor ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : I congratulate the Piggyback consortium on its report and would like to see the initiative taken forward to the next stage. To this end, the Government will be prepared to support the consortium's bids for European funds, subject to eligibility and competing pressure on available funds.
The central Railway group's proposal is an entirely private sector venture that would need in due course to obtain statutory authorisation by means of the procedures established in the Transport and Works Act. It would, therefore, be inappropriate for me to comment at this stage.
Four-wheel Drive Vehicles
Mr. Enright : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what research his Department has conducted into the change in the numbers of safari-type four-wheel drive vehicles ;
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(2) what research his Department has conducted into the impact on pedestrian safety of the level of ownership of safari-type vehicles.Mr. Key : Market trends and predictions from the motor industry suggest that the market share for four-wheel-drive vehicles typified by the Land/Range Rover is rising rapidly and may reach 3 per cent. of the car population by 1996.
The Department has not carried out any research in terms of the level of ownership of safari type vehicles. But Transport Research Laboratory tests on such vehicles fitted with bull bars showed that the rigidity of the metal bars could cause an increase in pedestrian injuries. We have now taken steps to identify accidents involving a vehicle with bull bars and a pedestrian to ascertain whether bull bars are causing increased injuries. We do not expect to see results from this exercise before the end of 1994.
Cars (Safe Manufacture)
Mr. Enright : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research his Department has conducted into the safe manufacture of cars in respect of the severity of the effect on pedestrians of accidental impact.
Mr. Key : For nearly 20 years the Transport Research Laboratory has been studying pedestrian safety and the mechanism of injury when struck by a car. The United Kingdom has led the European research institutes in the preparation of a draft directive. We are now awaiting a proposal for a directive from the EC Commission. Independent research carried out in the United Kingdom, supported by similar research in Germany, suggested that if all cars were softened to meet the proposals 7 per cent. of fatalities and 21 per cent. of serious injuries due to impacts by cars would be avoided. This might save approaching 100 lives per annum in the United Kingdom.
M5
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what were his reasons for approving the J17 link road from the M5 to Weston-Super- Mare town centre.
Mr. Key : Various stages of the Weston-super-Mare primary distributor road between the M5--junction 21--and the town centre have been supported with transport supplementary grant. This scheme meets the criteria for acceptance of expenditure on TSG, being an improvement to the primary route network which relieves a residential area from the effects of through traffic. It was given a high priority by Avon county council, the local highway authority responsible for all aspects of its planning and design.
New Road Schemes
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he or any members of his Department have received from persons or organisations concerned with the strategic importance of proposed new road schemes.
Mr. Key [holding answer 20 May 1994] : My right hon. Friend receives many representations from individuals and organisations about all aspects of proposed new road schemes, including questions of strategic importance.
Information about specific schemes in the road programme is available from the chief executive of the Highways Agency, Mr. Lawrie Haynes.
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Family Railcards
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish a table showing for each of the past five years, and as a total over the same period, the total amount spent on saver and supersaver tickets by rail passengers using family railcards, broken down into
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discounted adult fares and discounted child fares, together with the level of discount on saver and supersaver tickets for each year afforded to rail passengers using family railcards.Mr. Freeman [holding answer 20 May 1994] : This is a commercial matter for British Rail, but I understand that the information requested is as follows :
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|1989-90 |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saver and Supersaver discounted adult spend |N/A |N/A |N/A |£17.825 million|£18.706 million
Saver and Supersaver discounted child spend |N/A |N/A |N/A |£0.997 million |£0.956 million
Saver and Supersaver Total adult and child |N/A |N/A |£17.231 million|£18.822 million|£19.622 million
Adult Saver discount |34 per cent. |25 per cent. |25 per cent. |25 per cent. |25 per cent.
Adult Supersaver discount |34 per cent. |25 per cent. |25 per cent. |25 per cent. |25 per cent.
Child discount |£1 flat rate |£1 flat rate |£1 flat rate |£1 flat rate |£1 flat rate
N/A = Not available-These figures are not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
EDUCATION
Teachers, Kent
Mr. Dunn : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teaching staff and non-teaching staff were employed by the Kent local education authority for each year since 1988.
Mr. Robin Squire : Information on the number of employees of each local education authority is compiled by the local government management board from data collected on behalf of the joint staffing watch. The table shows the data available for the Kent local authority.
Teachers and Education Other
lecturers
March |Full-time|Part-time|Full-time|Part-time
------------------------------------------------------------
1990 |12,496 |5,006 |3,999 |9,653
1991 |12,087 |4,176 |3,655 |7,854
1992 |11,504 |5,379 |3,657 |9,064
1993 |10,857 |5,592 |3,546 |9,692
1994 |8,708 |4,189 |2,706 |9,970
1. The table covers all staff in the LEA maintained nursery,
primary and secondary schools sector, special and further
education, and central administration. Staff employed by
self-governing-GM-schools are not included. The 1994
figures exclude colleges which transferred to the new FE
sector in April 1993.
2. "Education-Other" includes educational support, clerical,
school meals and premises related staff employed in
schools and colleges, together with central services and
administration within the education service.
Dearing Report
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what is the (a) estimated and (b) out-turn cost of printing and delivering copies of the Dearing report on the review of school curriculum and assessment to all schools.
Mr. Robin Squire : The out-turn printing and distribution costs of Sir Ron Dearing's final report on the national curriculum published in January 1994 were £460,000 ; the bulk of this expenditure was in respect of copies of the report sent to schools but a precise breakdown is not available.
In line with Sir Ron Dearing's recommendations, proposals were published earlier this month for a slimmed down national curriculum in all subjects. The estimated
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cost of printing and distributing 120,000 sets of these consultation documents is about £700,000. About two- thirds have been sent to schools.Student Statistics
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many mature students attended universities and colleges in each of the last three years.
Mr. Boswell : The table shows the number of students on their first year of an higher education course in Great Britain who were defined as mature in each of the last three academic years.
1990-91 |1991-92|1992-93 -------------------------------- 262,249 |308,147|352,258 <1>Mature students are defined as those who at the start of their undergraduate course are aged 21 and over, and for those commencing a postgraduate course 25 years old and over.
Mr. Robert Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many mature students currently in higher education are aged over 30 years.
Mr. Boswell : In the academic year 1992-93, there were 163,446 students aged over 30 years in their first year of study, of whom 154,219 were United Kingdom domiciled.
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