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Chemical Weapons Bill
Mr. Cousins: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the names of those individuals or organisations making representations to his Department on the draft Chemical Weapons Bill; and if he will place all such representations except for parts that may be commercially confidential in the Library. [538]
Mr. Oppenheim: On 19 July my Department circulated 500 copies of a draft Bill, and invited comments. A revised draft Bill, taking account of all the views received, was published on 2 November.
In general, industry representatives indicated that they were in agreement with the provisions of the Bill. Other views emphasised the need for the operations of the
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DTI as national authority to be transparent, that it should be accountable, and that the Crown should be bound by the provisions of the Bill. However, those people and organisations who responded had no reason to expect that their names, or individual views, would be made public. In view of this it would not be proper to place their representations in the Library of the House.
Mr. Jim Cunningham:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what his Department has spent on research and development within the environmental industry in each year since 1992-93. [1160]
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Mr. Ian Taylor:
The Department has supported research and development on technologies with a specific environmental function as follows:
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| 1992-93 | 2.09 |
| 1993-94 | 2.05 |
| 1994-95 | 1.49 |
| Total | 5.63 |
In the same period my Department spent £69.9 million on new and renewable technologies and £19.7 million on clean coal technologies.
Some of the research and development supported under general DTI programmes, such as SMART--small firms merit award for research and technology--SPUR-- support for products under research--Link and EUREKA, and through the OST's funding of the research councils, will also be relevant to the environmental technology industries.
Mr. Donohoe:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what discussions officials of his Department have had with British Telecom relating to the impact of national phoneday on the service being delivered to users of the telephone network. [1743]
Mr. Ian Taylor:
Numbering issues are the responsibility of the Director General of Telecommunications. My officials have not met BT to discuss the impact of the phoneday changes.
Mr. Donohoe:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what figures his Department has received from British Telecom relating to the number of users of the telephone network making calls erroneously using the old national dialling codes; and if he will make it his policy for these figures to be published. [1742]
Mr. Taylor:
My Department has not received any figures from BT relating to the number of wrongly dialled calls. Any decision on a policy of publishing such figures would be a matter for the Director General of Telecommunications. However, OFTEL has conducted a customer survey which revealed that the vast majority, 85 per cent. of those surveyed, did not find the changes a significant problem.
Mr. Harvey:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the prevention of sub-post offices from selling British Legion scratchcards for the poppy appeal. [1002]
Mr. Oppenheim:
This is an operational matter for the Post Office.
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Mr. Hinchliffe:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what investigations his Department is carrying out into complaints made against Pearl Assurance's handling of insurance claims. [123]
Mr. Jonathan Evans:
The Department does not comment on matters relating to individual companies.
Dr. Lynne Jones:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what Government financial assistance is available to exporters of (a) civilian goods and (b) military equipment. [1568]
Mr. Oppenheim:
My Department, together with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, offers a full range of assistance of all types to exporting companies through Overseas Trade Services. Details of these services are contained in the British Overseas Trade Board's annual report and forward plan, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. In addition, support to civil and military exporters is available through the Export Credits Guarantee Department.
Dr. Lynne Jones:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade if it is the practice of his Department to make an assessment of the loss of earnings by British exporters, excluding military equipment, which may be caused as a result of war or internal conflict. [1569]
Mr. Oppenheim:
My Department, together with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, alerts British exporters to potential difficulties in repatriation of export earnings that may occur as a result of war or internal conflicts abroad. Further action is then a matter for the individual companies. We have no central figures for the total amount involved in loss of earnings as a result of such actions.
Mr. Pearson:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many awards of regional selective assistance, and of what value, have been made to firms in the Dudley metropolitan borough in each of the past five years. [581]
Mr. Oppenheim:
The number of offers, and value of regional selective assistance made to businesses in the Dudley metropolitan borough over the past five years is shown in the table:
| Local authority district--Dudley | Number of approvals | Grant approved £ thousands |
|---|---|---|
| 1 April 1990-31 March 1991 | 30 | 1,325 |
| 1 April 1991-31 March 1992 | 19 | 693 |
| 1 April 1992-31 March 1993 | 16 | 616 |
| 1 April 1993-31 March 1994 | 22 | 1,175 |
| 1 April 1994-31 March 1995 | 33 | 1,253 |
In the current year the number of offers and value of assistance has been:
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| Local authority district--Dudley | Number of approvals | Grant approved |
|---|---|---|
| £ thousands | ||
| 1 April 1995 to 31 October 1995 | 31 | 1,184 |
Mr. Morgan: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what sum was originally provided for regional selective assistance in 1994-95; and what was the eventual figure. [1327]
Mr. Oppenheim [holding answer 21 November 1995]: The estimate for regional selective assistance in 1994-95 was £101.2 million. Actual expenditure was £113.1 million.
The figures are available respectively in the Government's expenditure plans 1995-96 to 1997-98 and the Industrial Development Act annual report.
Local Government
Mr. Vaz: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the Acts of Parliament and Consolidation Acts that affect local government that have been introduced by his Department since January 1994. [41]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: The following Acts of Parliament that affect local government have been introduced by this Department since January 1994:
The Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994
The Coal Industry Act 1994
The Trade Marks Act 1994
The Gas Act 1995
Nigeria
Mr. Tony Lloyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the dates and location of conferences supported by the British Government to encourage British investment and trade with Nigeria since 18 November 1993; what plans his Department has to support further events in Nigeria or in Britain; and if he will make a statement on his Department's support for such ventures in the future. [1207]
Mr. Oppenheim [holding answer 21 November 1995]: Officials of my Department have taken part in seminars on trading with Nigeria since 18 November 1993 that have been organised by the following:
February 1994: Bristol Chamber of Commerce
May 1994: Kent Export Forum
August 1994: Sheffield Mining Forum
October 1994: London Chamber of Commerce/BEAMA
November 1994: Thames Valley Export Forum
June 1995: Thames Valley Export Forum
July 1995: Energy Council
October 1995: Nigeria-British Chamber of Commerce.
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