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Mobile Phones

Mr. Donohoe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what agreements his Department and its executive agencies have with companies for the provision of mobile

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and car phones; and if he will list the companies having these contracts, the duration of the contracts, the number of phones covered by each agreement and the cost to public funds of each agreement. [9740]

Mrs. Angela Knight [holding answer 17 January 1996]: Due to the very low demand for mobile and car phones within HM Treasury, the office of the Paymaster General and the Royal Mint, they have been purchased as required.

The Central Statistical Office employs an enabling agreement with BT which is renewable annually. This does not involve a commitment to purchase an agreed total. Two car phones have been purchased in the current financial year at a cost of £400 per instrument.

The Valuation Office uses Inland Revenue procedures to obtain mobile and car phones. Current agreements are with DVH, FGE, BT and Vodafone. These agreements are short term and are based on best value for money, without a commitment to purchase any specific number of instruments.

Information concerning the cost to public funds of these agreements is currently unavailable.

Mr. Donohoe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what costs his Department and executive agencies have incurred as a result of withdrawing from contracts under which mobile phones are provided; and if he will list the companies concerned. [9742]

Mrs. Knight [holding answer 17 January 1996]: HM Treasury, the office of HM Paymaster General, the Central Statistical Office, the Royal Mint and the Valuation Office have not withdrawn from any such contracts.

Mr. Donohoe: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what procedures were used by his Department in awarding contracts for the supply of mobile and car phones to his Department and its executive agencies; and which companies were involved in tendering for these contracts. [9741]

Mrs. Knight [holding answer 17 January 1996]: Due to the very low demand for mobile and car phones within HM Treasury, the office of the Paymaster General and the Royal Mint there has been no need to initiate a formal tender.

The Central Statistical Office employs an enabling agreement which was concluded after an informal evaluation of the market based on functionality, service and price.

The Valuation Office uses Inland Revenue procedures.

Absenteeism

Mr. Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of absenteeism rates in days per annum for staff in his Department for each of the years (a) 1979-80, (b) 1989-90, (c) 1991-92, (d) 1993-94, (e) 1994-95 and (f) 1995-96. [11369]

Mrs. Angela Knight [holding answer 25 January 1996]: Information relating to the years 1979-80, 1989-90 and 1991-92 is not held centrally, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Information relating to the other years requested is as follows:

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	1993-94	1994-95	1995-96(1)
Absences
(average days per member of staff)	5.8	8.5	7.3

(1) To date.

Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood

Mr. Tony Banks: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 17 January, Official Report, column 610, how many staff are currently employed in maintaining the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood; and how many insignia are accounted for in the 1994-95 costs of £204,000. [11566]

Mr. Kenneth Clarke [holding answer 29 January 1996]: The Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood employs 11 staff. In 1994-95, 3,877 insignia were accounted for.

Finance Bills (Drafting)

Mrs. Roche: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many pages of the Finance Bill were drafted otherwise than by parliamentary counsel; which were the outside agencies employed to draft sections of the Bill; how many pages were drafted by each agency; and how much was paid to each such agency for the pages drafted by it. [11946]

Mr. Jack [holding answer 29 January 1996]: The following sections of the Finance Bill were drafted by the private sector:

	Pages
Clauses 6 and 11, legislating two Customs and Excise extra-statutory concessions	1
Mrs. Margaret Leates, a draftsman in private practice
Clauses 21 to 25 and Schedule 2, putting into UK law the second VAT directive	11½
Nabarro Nathanson
Clause 146 and schedule 27, introducing new arrangements for the deduction of tax on foreign dividends by paying and collecting agents	14
Freshfields
Clause 186 and schedule 35, legislating 11 Inland Revenue extra-statutory concessions	6
Members of Pump Court Tax Chambers
Total	(2)32½

(2) Thirty-one of these pages are in schedules which are set in the Finance Bill with a smaller typeface than the clauses.

The total payment to these draftsmen for work done up to the publication of the Bill is expected to be £130,000. This includes the cost of one page of legislation which Ministers decided, for policy reasons, not to include in this year's Bill.

The amount paid to each agency is a matter of commercial confidence.

VAT (Disabled People)

Mr. Dafis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received regarding the levying

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of VAT on computer and computer-related equipment purchased by disabled people and charities helping disabled people; if he will place a copy of the directive used by Customs and Excise head office to local offices regarding such imposition; and if he will make a statement. [12412]

Mr. Heathcoat-Amory [holding answer 29 January 1996]: I have received a number of representations. Customs and Excise has not issued any general directive on the liability of computers supplied to disabled people. General purpose computer equipment is not, and never has been, relieved from VAT when supplied to disabled people. Relief is, however, available for adaptations designed to make it easier for disabled people to use the equipment. I have placed in the Library a copy of the Customs notice "VAT reliefs for people with disabilities", which is freely available in local VAT offices.

TRANSPORT

Air Traffic Control (Heathrow Airport)

Mr. Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the recent changes in air traffic control procedures at Heathrow airport. [10671]

Mr. Norris: The Civil Aviation Authority is responsible for the provision of air traffic control at Heathrow airport. My noble Friend the Minister of Aviation and Shipping has asked the chairman of the CAA to write to the hon. Member.

Regional Airports

Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what provisions exist in respect of local authority-owned regional airports from borrowing money for airport development. [11305]

Mr. Norris: Capital finance for local authority-owned airports in England and Wales is governed by part IV of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. This applies directly in the case of the smaller airports. In the case of the larger airports, which are structured as public airport companies, part IV has been applied by the Public Airport Companies (Capital Finance) Order 1990, as amended. It is open to local authorities to make use of their basic credit approvals or of any other forms of credit cover available to them under the 1989 Act. For public airport companies, this includes in particular their undistributed profits. In addition, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport may issue supplementary credit approvals--SCAs--for specified projects. For Scotland, borrowing consents under section 94 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 may be considered.

Lorry Ban, London

Ms Glenda Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he intends to replace the London lorry ban permit scheme. [11224]

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Mr. Norris: I will discuss the next steps with the local authorities and other interested parties once I have received and considered the interim report form the consultants studying the options for improving the enforcement of the ban.

Positive about Disabled People Symbol

Mr. Barnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list for his Department and each of the agencies for which he is responsible if it uses the Employment Service's positive about disabled people symbol for (a) external recruitment and (b) internal recruitment and promotion. [11913]

Mr. Norris: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and the Transport Research Laboratory have been symbol users for some time. The Department is encouraging its other agencies to follow suit while actively working with the Employment Service towards adopting the symbol centrally as a demonstration of on-going commitment towards achieving equality of opportunity for disabled people.

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