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Mr. Nelson [holding answer 13 March 1995]: On 24 February 1995.
Mr. Cash: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he (a) has given and (b) will give directions under section 4 of the Bank of England Act 1946 to the governor of the Bank of England to appear as a witness in inquiries into the Barings bank collapse.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 9 March 1995]: No.
Mr. Campbell-Savours: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) when the Bank of England was first informed of the previous experience of Barings in establishing banking structures prior to March 1992 where problems arose as referred to in the BAX Memo; (2) on what date the problems of Barings in Japanese markets in 1990 were first drawn to the attention of the Bank of England; (3) on what date reassurances given by Mr. Anthony Hawes, Treasurer of Baring Securities to SIMEX on 8 February as to the ability of Barings to meet its financial commitments were made known to representatives of the Bank of England.
Mr. Nelson: As my right hon. and learned Friend told the House on 27 February, he has asked the Board of Banking Supervision to investigate fully and urgently all aspects of the Barings episode and to report back to him. He expects to publish the full report subject only to the need to protect the legitimate confidentiality of innocent third parties and any other legal constraints.
Sterling
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he is taking to reduce sterling to a
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competitive level against (a) the dollar and (b) the deutschmark.Mr. Nelson [holding answer 13 March 1995]: The Government do not set targets for the exchange rate. Movements in the exchange rate are considered as part of general assessment of monetary conditions in setting monetary policy. United Kingdom firms are very competitive, as shown by our strong export performance; in the fourth quarter of 1994 export volumes, excluding oil and erratics, were up up 13 per cent. on a year earlier.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he is taking to reduce sterling to a competitive level against the ecu currencies other than the deutschmark; and if he will publish a table showing the sterling exchange rate for ecu currencies other than the deutschmark for each month from August 1992.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 13 March 1995]: The Government do not set targets for the exchange rate. Movements in the exchange rate are considered as part of general assessment of monetary conditions in setting monetary policy. United Kingdom firms are very competitive, as shown by our strong export performance; in the fourth quarter of 1994 export volumes, excluding oil and erratics, were up 13 per cent. on a year earlier. Sterling's exchange rate against the ecu currencies can be found in table 7.1A of "Financial Statistics" published by the Central Statistical Office.
Construction Workers
Mr. Berry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are his estimates for (a) the numbers of individuals working in the construction industry on the basis of SC60 certificates and (b) the numbers of individuals operating with 714Is, in each year following the scrutineering exercise in 1990.
Sir George Young: The number of 714I holders, recorded in April of each year--March for 1995--were as follows:
1990: 513,145
1991: 508,710
1992: 485,668
1993: 450,107
1994: 424,185
1995: 414,040
Numbers of individuals taxed on the basis of SC60 deduction are not compiled. But the Inland Revenue believes that, for each of the above years, the numbers have been lower than for 714I holders.
Mr. Berry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the Inland Revenue estimates for change in (a) relative numbers of 714s, SC60s and PAYE individuals in the constructions industry and (b) the respective tax yield of each category as a consequence of the measures related to thresholds for eligibility for 714 certificates introduced in the Finance Bill 1995.
Sir George Young: No firm estimates have been made. But the purpose of the Finance Bill measures is to reduce the number of 714 certificates in use, so that at least 80 per cent. of
subcontractors--mostly those who supply only their own labour--are paid under SC60 deduction. An indirect consequence of the changes may be an increase in the number of individuals in the industry who are directly employed, and therefore taxed under PAYE, but it is impossible to predict the extent of this movement. The overall tax yield from the industry is expected to
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increase significantly by limiting the scope for evasion and non-payment of tax.Water and Sewerage
Mr. Nicholls: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the cost of his Department's expenditure on water and sewerage in (a) the current year and (b) each of three previous years.
Mr. Nelson: The Treasury's expenditure on water and sewerage in the current year and each of the three previous years is as follows:
Year |£ ------------------------- 1994-95<1> |43,392 1993-94 |13,677 1992-93 |25,037 1991-92 |24,790 <1> Expenditure to 10 March 1995.
Debt Relief
Mr. Worthington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the outcome of the recent Paris Club meeting with regard to the debts of Guinea, Togo, Uganda, Chad and Guinea-Bissau; and what is the schedule for further debt relief for other countries.
Mr. Nelson: Since the December Paris Club agreement to offer greater debt relief under the full Trinidad terms, Chad, Togo and Guinea-Bissau have been offered maturities treatment with 67 per cent. debt reduction. Guinea has received maturities treatment with 50 per cent. debt reduction. Uganda was offered a debt stock reduction at 67 per cent.
The Paris Club meets monthly to discuss debt relief for countries on a case -by-case basis.
Disabled People (VAT)
Mr. Keen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the benefits which would accrue from making all special equipment for the disabled VAT exempt on proof of disabled registry.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory: A wide range of goods and services are already zero-rated when supplied to people with disabilities. This includes special equipment designed solely for use by people with disabilities. These reliefs save people with disabilities about £150 million in VAT each year.
Electricity Prices
Dr. John Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Treasury was first told of Professor Littlechild's intention to review electricity price caps, as announced on Tuesday 7 March.
Sir George Young: The Treasury was first told during the afternoon of Monday 6 March that Professor Littlechild had just decided to review further the electricity distribution price caps on the regional electricity companies.
Dr. John Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when Professor Littlechild or his office first informed the Treasury that the Director General of Electricity Supply was considering a new review of electricity price caps.
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Sir George Young: Neither Professor Littlechild nor his office directly informed the Treasury that the Director General of Electricity Supply was considering a new review of electricity price caps. The information initially available to the Treasury came via the DTI.
WALES
Countryside Council for Wales
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what formal representations he has received from the chairman of the Countryside Council for Wales concerning the funding of the council from 1 April 1995.
Mr. Redwood: I held a meeting with the chairman on 10 January and with him and the full council on 24 January. These meetings, and letters exchanged between me and the chairman, covered a wide range of issues including future funding of the Countryside Council for Wales.
Languages
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many teachers are teaching English as a second language in (a) Wales and (b) each of the eight Welsh counties; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Richards: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Child Abuse
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer of 16 February, Official Report , column 766, on what date his Department received copies from other Departments, the Prime Minister's Office and the local government ombudsman of allegations concerning widespread child sexual and physical abuse at north Wales children's homes which were made by a child care officer to the Prime Minister on 17 January 1987, to the Secretary of State for Health dated 29 January 1988, and to the local government ombudsman in late 1986.
Mr. Redwood: The correspondence referred to by the hon. Member concerned allegations of physical abuse at a specific children's home in Gwynedd. It was not until June 1991 that this correspondent made allegations of widespread sexual abuse in children's homes in north Wales. These were already the subject of investigation by the North Wales police.
Cardiff Bay Development Corporation
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer of 6 March, Official Report, column 25, regarding a grant for Crickhowell house, what conditions were applied to the grant in respect of (a) the level of employment in Crickhowell house, (b) the completion of the building to suitable standards of resistance to wind and weather and (c) repayment in whole or in part when the conditions (i) and (ii) are not being met in whole or in part; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: This is an operational matter and I have asked the chief executive of the corporation to respond.
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Wales European Centre
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he has had with the chairman of the Welsh Development Agency concerning the future provision of funding towards the cost of the Wales European centre in Brussels; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: The chairman has raised the issue of WDA support for the centre and I have told him it is a matter for the agency to decide within its budget and Welsh Office guidelines for expenditure.
Prescription Pricing
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what provision he has made in the market testing of the prescription pricing service of the Welsh Health Common Services Authority for the administration of prescriptions dispensed through the medium of Welsh.
Mr. Redwood: The British national formulary advises that the professional communication between prescriber and dispenser should be in English. However, I would expect the Welsh Health Common Services Authority to include, in its specification for the market testing of prescription pricing services, a reference to the possibility that some prescriptions might contain an element of Welsh.
Temporary Contracts
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales for this year and each of the past five years, how many employees in (i) his Department and (ii) all executive agencies for which his Department is responsible who have been employed on temporary contracts of (a) 51 weeks' or (b) less than 51 weeks' duration are re-employed in the same or similar position at a later date.
Mr. Redwood: No staff in my Department or executive agencies have been employed on contracts of 51 weeks. The numbers of temporary staff employed on contracts of less than 51 weeks and then re-employed in each of the last five years was as follows:
(i) Department
1990: 0
1991: 13
1992: 15
1993: 72
1994: 63
1995: 0
(ii) Executive Agencies
1990: 1
1991: 8
1992: 18
1993: 16
1994: 19
1995: 2
The figures include staff employed seasonally. The years relate to the date of re-employment.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many people he expects to employ in (i) his Department and (ii) all executive agencies for which is he responsible on temporary contracts of (a) 51 weeks' or (b) less than 51 weeks' duration in the next three years, in each case specifying the number of employees who had previously been employed in a similar position on the same contract.
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Mr. Redwood: The number of employees in my Department, including Cadw, that will be employed or re-employed on temporary contracts over the next three years is not determined. It will depend on operational requirements.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what guidance has been issued in respect of the recruitment and appointment of non-permanent employees in (a) his Department and (b) all executive agencies supervised by his Department.
Mr. Redwood: Guidance on the recruitment and appointment of non- permanent employees is contained in the Welsh Office terms and conditions code which is available to all staff.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many employees in (i) his Department and (ii) all executive agencies supervised by his Department have been employed on temporary contracts of (a) 51 weeks' or (b) less than 51 weeks' duration for this year and each of the past five years, in each case specifying what percentage of the respective total work force these employees constitute.
Mr. Redwood: These figures are:
51 weeks: none.
less than 51 weeks:
Year Welsh Office Cadw
|Number |Per cent.|Number |Per cent.
------------------------------------------------------------
1990 |122 |5.1 |<1>- |-
1991 |71 |3.0 |<1>- |-
1992 |125 |5.0 |<2>- |-
1993 |140.5 |5.5 |3 |1.1
1994 |239 |9.1 |9 |4.0
1995 |221 |8.8 |7.5 |3.3
Notes:
<1> Cadw became an agency on 1 April 1992.
<2> Separate figure not available.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what positions in (i) his Department and (ii) all executive agencies for which his Department is responsible are filled by employees who are employed on temporary contracts of (a) 51 weeks or (b) less than 51 weeks' duration.
Mr. Redwood: No staff in my Department or executive agencies have been employed on contracts of 51 weeks. Staff employed on temporary contracts of less than 51 weeks are in the following positions: In my Department: administrative assistant; administrative officer; typist; executive officer; higher executive officer; support grades bands I and II; statistician; legal officer; quality surveyor; and assistant information officer.
In the executive agencies: administrative assistant; support grade band I; typist; museum support grade.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish the full terms of employment specified to employees in his Department and all executive agencies for which he is responsible who are employed on a temporary contract of (a) 51 weeks or (b) less than 51 weeks' duration.
Mr. Redwood: A copy of the standard appointment documents issued to temporary staff has been placed in the Library of the House.
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Cardiac Surgery
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the total cost of the market-testing exercise on the cardiac surgery unit for Morriston NHS hospital.
Mr. Redwood [holding answer 13 March 1995]: All proposals for capital developments require the submission of business cases whether market testing is involved or not. Business cases vary according to the particular development proposed and the opportunities for involving public and private sector partners. The cost of producing the business case for the cardiac unit at Morriston hospital was around £287,000, which was met in full by the Welsh Office in view of the distinctive nature of the development. In the case of the Morriston cardiac unit, market testing produced
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innovative proposals which I hope will lead to a high-quality and cost-effective solution.NORTHERN IRELAND
Harbour Grants
Rev. Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what grants have been given from European sources in each financial year since 1973 in respect of (a) Larne Harbour Ltd., (b) Belfast habour board and (c) Warrenpoint harbour board.
Mr. Moss: Details of grant paid prior to 1984 no longer exist. Those for 1984 85 and 1985 86 are incomplete, but available details are set out below together with details of grants paid in each financial year from 1986 87 to 1994 95.
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|Larne |Belfast |Warrenpoint
|£ |£ |£
----------------------------------------------------------------------
1984-85 |- |193,838.66 |-
1985-86 |- |1,000,000.00 |350,000.00
1986-87 |97,633.00 |1,457,920.08 |385,102.00
1987-88 |560,750.00 |325,362.70 |44,465.00
1988-89 |374,981.08 |3,301,363.00 |131,727.50
1989-90 |340,867.50 |1,791,802.11 |467,823.10
1990-91 |340,408.19 |4,447,219.26 |257,655.75
1991-92 |215,649.34 |9,597,176.84 |498,068.25
1992-93 |735,807.24 |5,354,312.58 |322,338.00
1993-94 |2,582,036.41 |21,554,017.10|3,883,668.00
1994-95 |782,831.83 |6,219,782.17 |441,363.00
Total |6,030,964.59 |55,242,794.50|6,782,210.60
Anthrax
Mr. Morley: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many cases of anthrax were reported in each year since 1985.
Mr. Ancram: There have been two cases of anthrax in Northern Ireland since 1985--one animal reported in 1986 and one in 1990.
Hospitals Review
Ms Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what evidence the McKenna review has taken on the future provision of services in the Greater Belfast area from clinicians of hospitals likely to be affected by the outcome of the review; who else has been consulted; and when the review is expected to report.
Mr. Moss: The McKenna review is primarily concerned with services provided by the Royal Group of Hospitals trust and the Belfast City Hospital trust. Clinicians from both these trusts are leading the reviews of their specialities and will be making their
recommendations to the review group. Dr. McKenna has undertaken to consult other trusts whose services may be affected by any of the recommendations made by the group. The group has recently consulted the public on its proposals for the broad direction of services for both trusts, called "In Shape for the Future". The response was generally favourable. The review is expected to take up to two years to complete, but there is likely to be a number of reports during that period.
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Water and Sewerage
Mr. Nicholls: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the cost of his Department's expenditure on water and sewerage in (a) the current year and (b) each of the three previous years.
Mr. Moss: The cost of water and sewerage is not distinguished on the rates bills in Northern Ireland and it would be possible to provide an answer only at disproportionate cost.
Braidside Integrated Primary School
Rev. Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action he plans to take concerning discrimination contained in an advertisement for a religious education teacher in Braidside integrated primary school.
Mr. Ancram: None. Teaching is an excepted employment under section 37 of the Fair Employment (Northern Ireland) Act 1976.
Languages
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many teachers in Northern Ireland are teaching English as a second language in public sector schools; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Ancram: The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
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Temporary Contracts
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what guidance has been issued in respect of the recruitment and appointment of non-permanent employees in (i) his Department and (ii) all executive agencies supervised by his Department.
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