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Mr. Leithead and Mr. Howes. The information is as follows: Sir Gerald Hosker KCB QC1960 66: Legal assistant: conveyancing duties
1966 72: Senior legal assistant: legal advice to the Air Ministry and the Ministry of Defence
1973 87: Successively as assistant Treasury Solicitor, principal assistant Treasury Solicitor and deputy Treasury Solicitor: legal advice to Her Majesty's Treasury and associated Departments. 1984 87: Duties as deputy Treasury Solicitor
1987 92: Duties as solicitor to the Department of Trade and Industry
1992 to date: Duties as HM Procurator General, Treasury Solicitor and Queen's Proctor.
Mr. Leithead
1977 to date: Senior legal assistant and from 1982 assistant Treasury Solicitor: legal advice to and civil litigation for the Department of Trade and Industry, the Office of Fair Trading, the Export Credits Guarantee Department, the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and related bodies, and some specialist advice on litigation both civil and criminal.
Mr. Howes
1971 77: Legal assistant and from 1976 senior legal assistant: conduct of prosecutions and civil litigation on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Security
1977 79: Senior legal assistant: advice to the DHSS on employment law and industrial tribunal work
1979 81: Senior legal assistant: advice on employment law and industrial tribunal work for various Government Departments as a member of the Treasury Solicitor's Department
1981 83 Senior legal assistant: European Community litigation 1983 86: Senior legal assistant: Chancery and charity litigation, public inquiries and Lands Tribunal work
1986 to date: Senior legal assistant and from 1989 grade 6: conduct of litigation for the Office of Fair Trading and the Department of Trade and Industry
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Millennium Fund
Mrs. Roche: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage (i) how many bids were made for millennium funding; and what percentage of them were successful (a) in England and (b) in London; [31999]
(2) in which parliamentary constituency each successful millennium bid is situated; and how much each successful project was awarded. [32000]
Mr. Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage in what respect the university of Ulster--peaceline campus of the new millennium project did not meet the Millennium Commission criteria. [31317]
Mr. Dorrell: These are matters for the Millennium Commission. I shall reply to the hon. Members in my capacity as chairman of the commission and place copies of my replies in the Libraries of the House.
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Radio Authority
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will issue guidance to the Radio Authority that efficient use of the spectrum will be assessed by reference to the potential audience reach of the services involved. [31946]
Mr. Dorrell: Section 123 of the Broadcasting Act 1990 requires that the Radio Authority's frequency planning work must be directed towards securing that the frequencies assigned to the authority are used as efficiently as is reasonably practicable. Potential audience demand is one of the factors taken into account by the Radio Authority in discharging this responsibility.
Trafalgar Square, London
Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what proposals his Department has on filling the empty plinth in Trafalgar square, London; and if he will make a statement. [31498]
Mr. Sproat: I am aware that Miss Prudence Leith, OBE, chairman elect of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, is putting proposals together for a statue to go on the empty plinth, which she intends to submit to the Department later this year. We shall carefully consider any proposals received. Under the Public Statute Metropolis Act 1854, the Secretary of State must approve the erection of any statute in London.
Television Franchise Bids
Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what representations he has received on allowing ITV companies to negotiate their franchise bids earlier than the Broadcasting Act 1990 currently allows to free money for programming; and what response he has made. [31917]
BBC (Transmission facilities)
Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what plans he has to privatise the BBC's transmission
facilities. [31908]
Mr. Dorrell: We are considering the options for the future of the BBC's transmission service and will announce our decision in due course.
Private Finance Initiative
Mr. Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage (1) by how much Government spending has changed in 1994 95 as a result of the private finance initiative; what is the estimated effect in 1995 96; how many jobs are to be created by schemes approved to date under the initiative and how many have been lost as a consequence in the public sector; and what is the forecast of transfer of employment from public to private sector over the last five years because of the initiative; [30839]
(2) how many schemes and to what value have been approved in 1994 95 under the private finance initiative; what are the estimates for the current financial year; how many schemes are currently being considered and at what value; for how long have they been
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considered and how many have been in the assessment process for over (a) six months and (b) 12 months; and what was the average length of time taken to assess schemes so far approved. [30838]Mr. Sproat [holding answer 28 June 1995]: My Department operates mainly through its many sponsored bodies and agencies and undertakes little expenditure on its own account. Its effort is therefore largely devoted to encouraging those whom it sponsors to exploit to the full in their own capital programmes the opportunities of the private finance initiative. The cost of this effort within the Department is about £65,000 a year.
One PFI project has so far required to be approved by my Department--the move of the Royal Armouries from the Tower of London to Leeds. The proposal was submitted in May 1992 and approval was given in December 1993. The total cost of the project is £42.5 million. The public sector contribution comprises: £20 million, financed by the Historic Royal Agency from increased receipts at the Tower of London; £5 million from Leeds development corporation; and £3.5 million from Leeds city council. The effect on public sector manpower is neutral, but the project will increase opportunities for private sector employment.
No projects required departmental approval in 1994 95. A number of projects are at various stages of consideration by my Department's sponsored bodies in the current--1995 96--financial year. Of these, it is not possible to estimate the number that will require departmental approval.
AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Arable Area Payments Scheme
Mrs. Ann Winterton: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what recent representations he has received concerning the need for greater flexibility in the arable area payments scheme; and if he will make a statement. [31940]
Mr. Jack: Representations have been received from a wide range of agricultural and environmental bodies concerning proposals issued for consultation on 11 May on exchanges of eligible and ineligible land. These are being considered and details of any arrangements for 1996 will be included in the arable area payments explanatory guide 1995 96 due to be published this summer.
Mrs. Winterton: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action his Department is taking to achieve provision for swapping of eligible and ineligible land under the terms of the arable area payments scheme; and whether those changes will be in place for 1996 integrated administration and control system claims. [31939]
Mr. Jack: A consultation document was issued on 11 May 1995 outlining in broad terms proposals for the conditions under which exchanges of eligible for ineligible land might be permitted. Representations are now being considered and I would expect shortly to take a decision on any arrangements for 1996 claims. Details of any changes will be included in the arable area payments explanatory guide for 1995 96, due to be published this summer.
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Mrs. Winterton: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proposals the European Commission has so far brought forward to ease the setting up of individual base areas in the context of the arable area payments scheme; and if he will summarise them; and what response he has made. [31937]
Mr. Jack: The European Commission has not put forward any proposals on this subject.
Agriculture Council
Mrs. Ann Winterton: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement summarising the decisions taken by the December 1994 meeting of the Agriculture Council in relation to greater flexibility in defining land eligibility under the arable area payments scheme; and what action subsequently has been taken by his Department in relation to those decisions. [31938]
Mr. Jack: At the December 1993 Agriculture Council that agreement was reached, subject to terms to be determined, on greater flexibility on land eligibility. In August 1994, EC Commission implementing regulations were brought into force establishing eligibility for land growing certain multi-annual crops on 31 December 1991; providing for the declaration of new land as eligible following compulsory purchase; for exchanges of land under certain circumstances and for structure plans in certain other member states.
In the light of UK representations, the EC Commission subsequently recognised concerns over conflict between the terms of the Council agreement as laid down in EC Council regulations 1765/92 and the Commission implementing regulations, and indicated that it would consider corrective changes. The Commission determined finally not to take such regulatory action and restricted further amending provisions, which came into force on 22 April 1995, to detailed rules of exchanges of eligible land.
Details on the application of these changes, including any arrangements resulting from consultation on a UK plan for exchanges of eligible land, will be contained in the arable area payments explanatory guide for 1995 96 due to be published this summer.
Butter Council (Advertising)
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he intends to take to counter the Butter Council's use of European funds to finance advertisements against the margarine industry; and if he will make a statement. [32098]
Mr. Jack: A final decision on EC funding for the Butter Council's advertising campaign will be taken by the intervention board when the Council completes its contract later this year. The board will take account of the views which have been expressed by the Advertising Standards Authority on the advertisements. In the meantime, with the Government's support, the EC Commission has decided to prohibit negative comparative advertising in future contracts under the EC scheme for promoting the consumption of milk and milk products.
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HOME DEPARTMENT
Metropolitan Police Committee
Mrs. Roche: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times the Metropolitan police committee has now met; what advice it has proffered to him; and what action has been taken in response to its advice. [32002]
Mr. Maclean: The Metropolitan police committee has held five full committee meetings, various meetings of subgroups and a number of meetings with representatives of the Metropolitan police and local bodies. The committee's advice to the Secretary of State is confidential. Since 1 April 1995 the Home Secretary's actions as police authority for the Metropolitan police have been informed by the Metropolitan police committee's advice.
Elected Police Authority
Mrs. Roche: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice he has received from serving police officers, including senior officers within the Metropolitan police service, regarding the establishment of an elected police authority for London. [32001]
Mr. Maclean: Any advice that Ministers may have received on this topic would be confidential.
Political Asylum
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average time and cost to public funds of processing each application for political asylum. [31852]
Mr. Nicholas Baker: For applications for asylum received since implementation of the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act 1993 and decided in the last six months the estimated average time to process each application is 7.8 months. The average cost of processing each application in the asylum division was £165.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have sought political asylum in the United Kingdom in each of the last three years; and how many applications have been granted. [31856]
Mr. Baker: The information requested is published in table 1.1 of Home Office statistical bulletin issue 15/95 "Asylum Statistics United Kingdom 1994", a copy of which is in the Library.
Dart Harbour and Navigation Authority
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will investigate the reasons for the time taken to consider a request by the Dart harbour and navigation authority for an amendment to its byelaws. [31855]
Mr. Nicholas Baker: My right hon. and noble Friend the Minister of State has considered the matter, which my hon. Friend raised in his letter to her of 6 June, and has today written to him.
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Miss A. O. Bamgbose
Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the report on Miss A. O. Bamgbose was sent by Becket house to the entry clearance officer in Lagos, Nigeria. [32210]
Mr. Nicholas Baker: On 27 March 1995.
Council Property
Mr. Sedgemore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what was the purpose of the meeting held on 31 October 1994 between his Department's officials from the immigration service, Ms Arnfield, Ms Hutcheson and Mr. McCormack on the one hand and Mr. Bernard Crofton and Mr. K. Ostler of Hackney's tenancy audit team on the other: [32166]
(2) what was the status of Mr. Bernard Crofton with Hackney council when he met immigration service officials on 31 October 1994; and what information on this status was available to the officials concerned. [32165]
Mr. Nicholas Baker: Following the suspension of Mr. Croften from his post of director of housing at Hackney council, Mr. Ostler sought a meeting to establish that the immigration service would continue to co-operate with an investigation by Mr. Ostler's tenancy audit team into the misuse of council property, which had already led to the apprehension of a number of immigration offenders and the return of several properties to the council. The officials confirmed that they would continue to co-operate with the tenancy audit team.
Emergency Calls
Mr. Gareth Wardell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information his Department holds and at what level of detail, on the number of 999 calls received by central fire control headquarters in each authority in England and Wales. [31659]
Mr. Nicholas Baker: The information requested is not held centrally.
Asylum Seekers
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the number of people from (a) Sri Lanka, (b) Pakistan, (c) India and (d) Kenya seeking asylum and being held in detention as of 19 June. [31372]
Mr. Nicholas Baker: The available information is that as at 28 June 1995, 22 Sri Lankans, 22 Pakistanis, 91 Indians and six Kenyans who had sought asylum were held in detention. These include people awaiting removal following refusal of the application, as well as those whose applications were under consideration or subject to appeal.
Prison Searches
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many body and cell searches took place in Holloway prison during the week of 19 June. [31276]
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Mr. Michael Forsyth: Responsibility for this matter 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 Brian Landers to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 3 July 1995: The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question about Holloway prison.
Holloway conducted 103 cell searches during the week of 19 June. They also conducted 449 strip searches, which would have occurred as part of cell searches; on reception and discharge; after visits; or as part of the mandatory drug testing programme. Prisoners would also have been subject to rub down searches routinely as they moved around the establishment.
Boot Camps
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information he has received from the United States on the effectiveness of boot camps. [30987]
Mr. Michael Forsyth: Copies of the readily available published reports have been placed in the Library. I have also received advice from officials.
Mr. Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what have been the findings of his Department about boot camps. [30985]
Mr. Forsyth: My right hon. and learned Friend hopes to be able to make an announcement shortly.
Mr. Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research he has conducted as to the proportion of inmates in youth detention centres in the early 1980s who had been (a) in care and (b) were illiterate; and what are the implications of these findings for boot camps. [30986]
Mr. Forsyth: A report, "Tougher Regimes in Detention Centres", was produced in 1984. This report incorporated findings as to the proportion of inmates found to have been in care or illiterate in six detention centres during the period May 1979 to September 1980. In 1991, the national prison survey found that the proportion of young offender population who had spent time in care was very similar to that shown by the 1984 report.
A proposal to introduce a new regime for young offenders based on the more positive aspects of American boot camps is under consideration. Any new regime that is introduced will take into account current knowledge about the backgrounds and attainments of young offenders.
Recidivism
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made as to the extent to which broadening the range and scope of training for offenders reduces recidivism. [30989]
Mr. Maclean: There have been a number of studies on reconviction rates associated with different sentences, including "Explaining Reconviction Rates: a critical analysis", HORS No 136, although these studies have not specifically assessed the impact of training upon reconviction rates.
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We will be evaluating the effectiveness of seven new Home Office training projects announced in May. These projects will fund seven training and enterprise councils to help offenders in the community improve their training and their job prospects. The evaluation will include a reconviction study.Justice and Home Affairs Council
Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the matters discussed and decisions taken at the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council in Luxembourg; and if he will indicate those matters where votes were taken. [31069]
Mr. Howard: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge (Sir M. Shersby) on 22 June, at columns 405 6. The items agreed by the Justice and Home Affairs Council were adopted by unanimity, in accordance with the relevant provisions of title VI of the treaty on European Union.
Civil Servants
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 2 May, Official Report, column 121, if he will provide comparable details on civil service early retirement packages on grounds of inefficiency. [29297]
Mr. Howard [holding answer 19 June 1995]: Inefficiency is a ground for dismissal. Accrued superannuation benefits, which vary for individual members of staff, would normally be preserved for payment at retiring age. Departments may, however, make an immediate lump sum payment of up to two years' salary in cases where compensation is thought to be appropriate; in the case of persons aged over 55, this may be forgone in favour of immediate payment of accrued superannuation benefits. We have no record in the Home Office, excluding agencies, of any compensation payments being made, or of the alternative immediate payment of accrued superannuation benefits, in recent years.
Special Constables
Mr. Churchill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been achieved to date in the drive to recruit 30,000 special constables by the end of 1996. [31763]
Mr. Maclean [holding answer 30 June 1995]: Public response to our recruitment campaign has been very encouraging. Over 38,500 members of the public responded to our advertising and have expressed an interest in joining the special constabulary. Many have gone on to make preliminary applications and these have been passed to police forces. We hope that a significant number of these applications are successful.
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
Internet (Government Information)
37. Sir Graham Bright: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received
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from (a) individuals and (b) organisations who access Government information via the Internet. [30157]Mr. Horam: The majority of representations have been to CCTA, the Government centre for information systems, which manages the worldwide web server on which most Government information on the Internet is made available. There have been 3,000 responses to the comments page of the server, and more than 1,200 contributors to the collaborative open group. Formal submissions and letters have also been received about CCTA's study into the ethical issues relating to information superhighways.
39. Mr. Spring: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations he has received from organisations requesting more Government information on the Internet. [30159]
Mr. Horam: There have been a number of suggestions made to CCTA, the Government centre for information systems, which manages the world wide web server on which most Government information on the Internet is made available. CCTA is discussing with the relevant Departments what further information can be added to the CCTA Government information service, which is expanding every week.
Science Week 1995
38. Mr. Coe: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what representations from broadcasters he has received following Science Week 1995. [30158]
Mr. David Hunt: I have already had meetings with John Birt and Alan Yentob, both of whom were delighted with the success of Science Week 1995. They have already promised the 1996 week their full support.
Citizens Charters
Mr. Barry Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what plans the Government have to involve citizens in the formulation of the citizens charter. [30150]
Mr. Horam: Consultation with people who use services is a key charter principle. Services should talk to their users to find out what they want before making decisions about standards and priorities. Service providers are actively encouraged to involve users when preparing charters and setting standards and are given guidance and help by Departments and the charters unit.
Many service providers involve users when revising national and local charters. For example, the Department of Health asked the public what standards they would want in the revised patients charter. The reduction in waiting time targets, and the inclusion of patients' rights when using NHS dentists and standards for children's services were a result of this consultation. The tenants charter published in June 1995 also benefited from user feedback.
Medical Research
Dr. Charles Goodson-Wickes: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what recent studies he has made of the funding of medical research. [30145]
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