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Written Answers to Questions
Monday 27 March 1995
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Disability Discrimination Bill
Mr. Berry: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) which Minister in his Department has responsibility for the Disability Discrimination Bill in respect of the provision of goods and services; [16366]
(2) what discussions he or his ministerial colleagues have held with Ministers in other Departments in respect of the Disability Discrimination Bill; [16364]
(3) what is his Department's policy in respect of the Disability Discrimination Bill; [16365]
(4) what consideration his Department has given to the effects of specific clauses of the Disability Discrimination Bill in respect of (a) small businesses, (b) medium-size businesses and (c) large businesses; [16363]
(5) if officials in his Department have at any point been involved in discussions concerning any aspect of the Disability Discrimination Bill; [16362]
(6) what future role he expects his Department to play in respect of the Disability Discrimination Bill; [16361]
(7) what discussions his Department has held with non-Government bodies in respect of the Disability Discrimination Bill; [16360] (8) what role his Department played in the development of the cost compliance assessment for the Disability Discrimination Bill; [16359]
(9) what assessment his Department has made of the effects of the Disability Discrimination Bill on industry; [16358]
(10) what discussions his officials have held with other Departments in respect of the Disability Discrimination Bill. [16357]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: My right hon. and noble Friend Earl Ferrers has responsibility for all aspects of consumer affairs. As well as my responsibility for corporate affairs, I have the responsibility, as deregulation Minister, for leading, under the authority of my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade, the Government's deregulation initiative, ensuring, across all Departments, that any proposals that may impose burdens on business are properly appraised. DTI Ministers and officials play and continue to play a full part in collective and bilateral discussion with their Government colleagues in developing the Government's policies in areas such as disability, consulting as necessary representative bodies, businesses and consumers on the affects such measures may have and their impact on business compliance costs.
The Government's assessment of the impact of the Disability Discrimination Bill on business is set out in the compliance cost assessment "Ending Discrimination against Disabled People", issued in January 1995 by the
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Department of Social Security, which has the policy lead in Government on disability issues. The role of the DTI deregulation unit in relation to CCAs is to monitor their quality, coverage of smaller firms, and ensure a consistent approach across Government. The unit provides guidance and acts as a source of advice to those requiring help with the preparation of CCAs.Pembroke Power Station
Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what plans his Department has to hold a public inquiry into National Power's plans to burn orimulsion fuel in Pembroke; and if he will make a statement. [16631]
Mr. Page: National Power plc submitted an application on 5 January 1995 under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 for the President of the Board of Trade's consent to retrofit flue gas desulphurisation plant at the Pembroke power station in order to use emulsified hydrocarbons as the fuel.
Should a relevant planning authority object to the application, my right hon. Friend would be obliged to hold a public inquiry before reaching his decision on it.
If there is no objection from a relevant planning authority, my right hon. Friend may still call for a public inquiry to be held at his own discretion.
Renewable Energy
Mr. Colvin: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will publish a list of the measures his Department has taken to encourage greater use of renewable energy following the Government's acceptance of the conclusions and recommendations of the United Nation conference on the environment and development. [15655]
Mr. Wallace: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what measures his Department proposes to encourage greater use of renewable energy in pursuance of the Government's support for the declarations and undertakings made at the Rio climate summit in 1992. [15518]
Mr. Page: The Government are stimulating the development of new and renewable energy sources and industrial and market infrastructure through a market enablement strategy. The strategy was published as "Energy Paper 62" in March 1994.
The strategy's principal measure involves stimulating an initial market for electricity-producing technologies close to commercial competitiveness via renewables orders made under the non-fossil fuel obligation. Other measures are aimed at assessing and developing technology options, ensuring that the market is fully informed, removing inappropriate market barriers and encouraging
internationally competitive industries to develop.
The first and the second renewables orders set an obligation of renewables- sourced electricity for approximately 600 MW. The Government announced a third renewables order, for 626.92 MW, in December 1994. They expect this to lead to a further 300 to 400 MW of new capacity.
The Government intend to work, through the NFFO, towards a figure of 1,500 MW of new renewable electricity generating capacity in the UK by the year 2000,
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thus contributing to the UK's international environmental commitment.Mr. Frank Cook: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what measures his Department is taking as a result of the declaration of Madrid "An Action Plan for Renewable Sources in Europe", 16 to 18 March 1994; and if his Department is taking part in the proposed EC discussions on renewable energy. [15966]
Mr. Page: A Department of Trade and Industry representative attended the conference on renewable energy in Madrid in March 1994 and my Department is monitoring developments with regard to the establishment of the EU's European Forum on Renewable
Energies--EUFORES.
The Government are stimulating the development of new and renewable energy sources and industrial and market infrastructure through a market enablement strategy. The strategy was published as "Energy Paper 62" in March 1994.
The strategy's principal measure involves stimulating an initial market for electricity-producing technologies close to commercial competitiveness via renewables orders made under the non-fossil fuel obligation. Other measures are aimed at assessing and developing technology options, ensuring that the market is fully informed, removing inappropriate market barriers and encouraging
internationally competitive industries to develop.
The first and the second renewables orders set an obligation of renewables- sourced electricity for approximately 600MW. The Government announced a third renewables order, for 626.92MW, in December 1994. They expect this to lead to a further 300 to 400MW of new capacity.
The Government intend to work, through the NFFO, towards a figure of 1,500MW of new renewable electricity generating capacity in the UK by the year 2000, thus contributing to the UK's international environmental commitment.
Turkey
Mr. Corbyn: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what discussions have been held with Turkey about increasing trade and the customs union with the EU; and what links have been made to human rights abuse in Turkey. [16682]
Mr. Ian Taylor: We have a continuing dialogue with our Turkish partners on a wide range of trade issues; there is no direct linkage between customs union and Turkey's record on human rights. However, the Turks are well aware of the importance that we and our EU partners attach to a raising of standards to western norms.
Business Links
Dr. John Cunningham: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement about the funding of Business Links and the progress they have made. [15184]
Mr. Heseltine: Business Links have been designed to increase the effectiveness and improve the quality of local business support services by bringing together their delivery and avoiding overlap and duplication.
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Each Business Link is a private sector company which receives part of its funding from my Department, part from local partner organisations, and part from charging for its services. My Department is providing £38.5 million in 1995 96 towards the start-up costs of Business Links and is committed to providing on-going funding after the three-year start-up phase to contribute towards the cost the services offered by Business Links. In 1995 96 our contribution towards services will amount to around £50 million.The Business Link programme continues to make good progress with 75 Business Links now open and over 50 more due to open by the end of April. The programme is well on course to reach its target for a national network of 200 Business Links by the end of 1995.
Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd.
Mr. Dewar: To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he expects to receive the Monopolies and Mergers Commission's report on the bids for VSEL by GEC and British Aerospace; and how soon after the receipt of that report he will be in a position to announce the Government's decision. [16160]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: My right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade has allowed a single extension of time, to 12 April 1995, for the Monopolies and Mergers Commission to report on the bids for VSEL by GEC and British Aerospace. The Department aims to publish MMC merger reports, along with the decision of the President of the Board of Trade on any action which he considers necessary in the event of the MMC finding that a merger is against the public interest, within 20 working days of receipt.
Rural Post Offices
Mr. Donohoe: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment the Post Office has made of the impact of franchising of Crown post offices on the services offered to postal customers with particular reference to rural areas. [16308]
Mr. Page: The Post Office believe that the franchising of Crown post offices has a beneficial effect on the services offered to customers in rural areas. When a Crown post office is converted, it is located in the same general vicinity, if not in the same premises, and offers the same range of services. Additional facilities such as longer opening hours are often also provided. The lower costs to the Post Office of providing services through franchise offices assist in maintaining the network of rural post offices.
Companies (Complaints)
Mr. Gapes: To ask the President of the Board of Trade in how many cases in England in each year in the period 1984 until 1994 the official receiver has been unable to pursue an in-depth investigation into complaints against companies because of expenditure restrictions; and if he will make a statement. [15828]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: The information requested is not maintained centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
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Lindane
Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what prohibitions exist for companies that wish to export products containing lindane, gamma HCH, or gamma BHC to (a) Switzerland, (b) Germany and (c) the United States of America; and if he will make a statement. [15513]
Mr. Ian Taylor: Products containing lindane, gamma HCH or gamma BHC require an export licence, under the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994, only if the exporter knows or suspects that the goods might be used for purposes connected with weapons of mass destruction. If an export licence is required, it will be required for any destination including Switzerland, Germany or the United States of America.
Parliamentary Space Committee
Sir Michael Marshall: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what recent discussion his Department has had with the parliamentary space committee; and if he envisages further consultations in the run-up to the European Space Agency ministerial conference. [16686]
Mr. Ian Taylor: I held a meeting with the parliamentary space committee on 16 March, at which we had a fruitful discussion of a range of issues, including Earth observation activities, satellite-based telecom- munications and broadcasting, and satellite navigation. At the meeting, I announced additional Government funding of £2.612 million for the European Space Agency GNSS satellite navigation programme, £1.5 million for the ESA ARTES4
telecommunications technology programme and £1 million to cover the cost of delay to the launch of ESA's ERS2 remote sensing satellite. I would be glad to hold further consultation with the committee in the run-up to the ESA ministerial conference.
Fireworks
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what is the effect of the revocation of the Fireworks (Safety) Regulations 1986/1323 on the supply of fireworks to children under 16 years. [15818]
Mr. Ian Taylor: After revocation of the Fireworks (Safety) Regulations 1986 it will remain illegal to supply fireworks to those aged under 16 as such supply would breach section 31 of the Explosives Act 1875, as amended by the Explosives (Age of Purchase) Act 1976. Breaches of this prohibition are triable by a magistrates court and currently may result in a fine of up to £5000. The 1986 regulations are being repealed as they reproduced the provisions of the 1875 Act as amended and also empowered the courts to impose a custodial sentence of up to six months for those convicted of the sale of fireworks to persons under 16. I understand the courts have never imposed a custodial sentence. Bearing in mind the scale of the fines which may now be imposed, the Government believe that it is no longer necessary to provide for a custodial sentence.
Post Office
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to give the Post Office the commercial freedom it seeks. [16379]
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Mr. Eggar: The Post Office operates several businesses. We are actively engaged in widening the opportunities for Post Office Counters and are helping to automate its services.
We will announce any plans to change the present arrangements governing the remainder of the Post Office in due course.
Deregulation
Mr. Steen: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will ensure that his ministerial management information system for establishing objectives for his Department includes deregulation objectives (a) for him and (b) for each of the Ministers within his Department. [15567]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: One of the principal aims of the Department is to work to reduce regulatory and administration burdens on business. Each Minister has to pursue this objective in the policy areas for which he or she is responsible. There is also a Minister with particular responsibility for promoting deregulation in the Department.
Mr. Steen: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what targets he has for withdrawing regulations within his Department. [15551]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: Under the deregulation initiative, which is co- ordinated by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade, over 1,000 regulations have been targeted by Departments for amendment or repeal to remove unnecessary burdens on business. Other prime targets are:
ensuring that new regulations, whether UK or EC, are introduced only if they are needed and have the minimum possible compliance costs;
making enforcement procedures more business friendly--one aim is to see 100 local business partnerships established by March 1996; and
promoting a deregulatory approach in the European Union.
National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux
Mr. Wigley: To ask the President of the Board of Trade how much funding his Department is giving to the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux in 1995 96; how much it would have been if the 1994 95 level had been fully increased to reflect the change in the cost of living; and what assessment he has made of the effect of this change in funding in real terms on the number of regional offices sustained by the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux. [14670]
Mr. Ian Taylor: Funding from my Department for the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux for 1995 96 will be £11,916, 000. Core funding for 1994 95 was also £11,916,000. Based on the adjusted gross domestic product deflator given in the Treasury Red Book, annexe A to chapter 6, this figure would have increased to £12, 297,312. It is for the association to decide how best to use the resources which are available to it, and it would not be appropriate for the Department to intervene in operational decisions such as the number of regional offices which are sustained by the association.
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Argentina
Mr. Wilson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will state the value of (a) exports to and (b) imports from, the Argentine in each of the past five years. [16232]
Mr. Ian Taylor: The information is published by the Central Statistical Office in "Overseas Trade Statistics of the United Kingdom", available in the Library of the House.
LORD PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL
Deregulation
Mr. Steen: To ask the Lord Present of the Council (1) if he will ensure that his ministerial management information system for establishing objectives for his Department, includes deregulation objectives (a) for him and (b) for each of the Ministers within his Department; [15569]
(2) what targets he has for withdrawing regulations within his Department. [15561]
Mr. Newton: The objectives in question are not applicable to the Privy Council Office, which does not itself generate regulations.
LORD CHANCELLOR'S DEPARTMENT
Mr. Mohd Ashfaq
Mr. Madden: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if leave to appeal to the Immigration Appeal Tribunal has been granted to the Home Office in the case of Mr. Mohd Ashfaq, Ref: TH/1740/94;IMM/C2021. [L16629]
Mr. John M. Taylor: The application by the Home Office is currently being considered by the Immigration Appeal Tribunal.
Special Advisers
Mr. Campbell-Savours: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what facilities in terms of (a) access to telephones, (b) use of equipment, (c) use of offices, (d) access to ministerial meetings, (e) sight of correspondence, (f) attendance at interdepartmental meetings and (g) access to civil servants are available to specialist advisers in his Department. [15620]
Mr. John M. Taylor: The Lord Chancellor's Department does not currently employ any specialist advisers.
Political Advisers
Mr. Campbell-Savours: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the names of those persons appointed as political advisers to his Department since May 1992. [15621]
Mr. John M. Taylor: There have been no political advisers appointed to the Lord Chancellor's Department since May 1992.
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ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Political and Special Advisers
Mr. Campbell-Savours: To ask the Attorney-General (1) if he will list the names of those persons appointed as political advisers to his Department since May 1992; [15637]
(2) what facilities in terms of (a) access to telephones, (b) use of equipment, (c) use of offices, (d) access to ministerial meetings, (e) sight of correspondence, (f) attendance at interdepartmental meetings and (g) access to civil servants are available to specialist advisers in his Department. [15636]
The Attorney-General: There are and have been no such political or specialist advisers in any of the Departments for which I have been responsible since May 1992.
HEALTH
Redundancy Payments
Mr. Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the cost of redundancy payments to national health service staff (a) in each of the regional health authorities, and (b) for the national health service as a whole for each of the last 10 years. [15366]
Mr. Malone: The available information will be placed in the Library.
Private Practice
Mr. Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimates her Department has made as to the cost to public funds of providing private health care within the NHS including the costs of capital investment and training of medical staff. [15767] (2) if her Department will commission an independent inquiry to establish the full costs of providing private health care within the NHS; including the costs of capital investment and training of medical staff. [15766]
Mr. Sackville: Private practice in the national health service results in further funds being made available to improve services for all patients and reduces the burden on public funds. Private patients are charged at a commercial rate. The availability of private practice in the NHS increases choice for patients. An independent inquiry would divert resources unnecessarily from patient care.
Nurses
Mr. Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of all (a) C grade, (b) D grade, (c) E grade, (d) F grade and (e) G grade nursing posts remained vacant as at 1 April on each of the last 10 years for each regional health authority. [15769]
Mr. Sackville: This information is not available centrally. Figures on nursing vacancies collected by the Office of Manpower and Economics are available in the annual report of the Review Body for Nursing Staff, Midwives,
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Health Visitors and Professions Allied to Medicine. Copies of the review body's report are placed in the Library each year.Dental Services
Mr. Skinner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will instruct family health services to stop the practice of allowing dental contractors to take early retirement other than for genuine medical reasons. [16390]
Mr. Malone: Under the limited early retirement scheme agreed with the dental profession, decisions on which applicants to accept are taken centrally on the advice of a selection panel. Full account is taken of the need to maintain the accessibility of general dental services.
Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will make a statement on the long-term effects on health of exposure to fluoride; [16336]
(2) if she will indicate the ways she has considered of delivering fluoride to its target population other than through the main water supplies; and if she will make a statement; [16335]
(3) what has been the incidence of caries in (a) fluoridated areas and (b) unfluoridated areas, for each year since 1990; and if she will make a statement. [16337]
Mr. Malone: Information, by year, about the incidence of caries compared between fluoridated and non-fluoridated areas is not readily available. However, epidemiological evidence in general continues to support the Government's position on the positive benefits of fluoridation. Studies which have been carried out contrasting comparable fluoridated and non-fluoridated areas have consistently shown that the reduction in dental decay is between one third to one half greater in the fluoridated than in the comparable
non-fluoridated area.
The long-term health effects of fluoride have been a widely considered aspect of this issue over the 50 years since water fluoridation began. No significant long-term ill effects have ever been found to exist as a result of domestic water fluoridation at the optimum level of one part per million.
There may be a number of alternative ways of delivering fluoride to the target population, and we are considering what these are, but it is generally held that fluoridation of domestic water is the most efficient means of delivery, and offers the best cost benefit. The Government remain convinced that fluoridation of drinking water is a safe, effective and cost -effective public health measure and will continue to support the introduction of such schemes, particularly where the dental health of the population is known to be poor. In 1994 the Government agreed to help with the capital funding of seven schemes in the north of England which would bring fluoridation to 1.7 million more people.
Road Accident Victims
Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will order the South Birmingham health trust to cease soliciting payments, under the Road Traffic Acts, from road accident victims. [16247]
Mr. Sackville: Health service hospitals are empowered to collect the emergency treatment fee under section 158 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. The fee must be covered by
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