| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
WALES
Regional or Minority Languages
Sir Wyn Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans the Government have to sign the Council for Europe charter on regional or minority languages. [25128]
Mr. Hague: The Government have given thorough consideration to the merits of signing this charter. We believe that, in the United Kingdom's case, the Government are better placed to assess the needs of, and determine the level of support for, indigenous minority languages. For this reason, we have decided not to sign.
Purchase Grant Scheme
Sir Wyn Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he plans to consult on his proposals to exempt rural communities from the purchase grant scheme; and if he will make a statement. [25129]
Mr. Gwilym Jones: We have today issued a consultation paper asking for comments from local authorities, housing associations and other interested parties on our proposals for exempting rural communities from the new purchase grant scheme.
As is made clear in the recent White Paper, "A Working Countryside for Wales", we recognise the particular difficulty in building or finding replacement properties for rent in rural areas, and the planned statutory scheme for future publicly funded developments will not therefore apply to rural communities across Wales which have a population density of less than 150 persons per sq km. This will help ensure the availability of affordable housing for rent in rural Wales where this issue is of special concern.
The Housing Bill currently before Parliament would give my right hon. Friend the power to designate by order rural areas where the new right would not arise.
3 Apr 1996 : Column: 242
In the case of the voluntary scheme, the statutory list of exempted areas will be available for associations to use.
The consultation paper sets out the way we propose to implement this designation and invites comments on the methodology and on the list of areas we plan to exempt. Copies have been deposited in the Library of the House.
Mr. Llwyd:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much funding will be allocated to Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin 1996 by his Department; and if he will make a statement. [23179]
Mr. Richards:
For 1996-97, the Welsh Office has allocated total funding of £689,872 to Mudiad Ysgolion Meithrin comprising £537,000 under section 26 of the Development of Rural Wales Act 1976 and £152,872 under the support for child and family services grant scheme.
Mr. Sweeney:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list by rank order the A-level examination results for each Welsh education authority and show beside each result, together with the education authority's rank order for each statistic, (a) the GCSE result, (b) the average number of pupils in each primary class in that authority, (c) the average number of pupils in each secondary class in that authority, (d) the cost per primary pupil place, (e) the cost per secondary pupil place, (f) the primary school pupil-teacher ratio and (g) the secondary school pupil-teacher ratio. [23665]
Mr. Richards:
The information requested is contained in the following table.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average A/AS level point score for 16 to 18-year-old candidates entered for 2 or more A levels or AS equivalent in 1995(1) | Percentage of 15-year-olds achieving 5 or more GCSEs grades A to C in 1995 | Average primary school class size at January 1995 | Average secondary school class size at January 1995(2) | ||||
| Maintained Schools in: | Percentage | Rank | Rank | Rank | |||
| Dyfed | 16 | 47 | 2 | 22.6 | 7 | 19.5 | 6 |
| Powys | 16 | 50 | 1 | 22.4 | 8 | 17.0 | 8 |
| South Glamorgan | 16 | 41 | 5 | 27.1 | 2 | 22.0 | 1 |
| West Glamorgan | 16 | 38 | 6 | 25.9 | 5 | 20.5 | 3 |
| Clwyd | 15 | 42 | 3 | 26.6 | 4 | 21.0 | 2 |
| Gwent | 15 | 37 | 7 | 27.8 | 1 | 20.5 | 3 |
| Gwynedd | 15 | 42 | 3 | 22.8 | 6 | 19.0 | 7 |
| Mid Glamorgan | 13 | 33 | 8 | 27.1 | 2 | 19.6 | 5 |
Figures are ranked from highest to lowest.
(1) The A/AS level score is calculated for each pupil who was entered for A/AS level examinations on the basis of scores as follows:
A level: A = 10 points, B = 8, C = 6, D = 4, E = 2.
AS levels: A = 5 points, B = 4, C = 3, D = 2, E = 1.
(2) Data are for a specific period in the school timetable on the census enumeration date.
3 Apr 1996 : Column: 243
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net funding per pupil in LEA maintained nursery & primary schools at cash prices, 1993-94 | Net funding per pupil in LEA maintained secondary schools at cash prices, 1993-94 | Primary school pupil teacher ratio at January 1995 | Secondary school pupil teacher ratio at January 1995 | |||||
| Maintained schools in: | £ | Rank | £ | Rank | Rank | Rank | ||
| Dyfed | 1,865 | 1 | 2,206 | 6 | 19.9 | 8 | 16.3 | 4 |
| Powys | 1,683 | 3 | 2,254 | 3 | 20.5 | 7 | 14.6 | 8 |
| South Glamorgan | 1,455 | 7 | 2,116 | 8 | 22.2 | 4 | 16.6 | 2 |
| West Glamorgan | 1,644 | 4 | 2,383 | 2 | 21.2 | 6 | 15.9 | 5 |
| Clwyd | 1,428 | 8 | 2,133 | 7 | 24.9 | 1 | 17.0 | 1 |
| Gwent | 1,532 | 6 | 2,214 | 5 | 23.8 | 2 | 16.4 | 3 |
| Gwynedd | 1,696 | 2 | 2,410 | 1 | 21.2 | 5 | 15.0 | 7 |
| Mid Glamorgan | 1,539 | 5 | 2,228 | 4 | 23.6 | 3 | 15.8 | 6 |
Figures are ranked from highest to lowest.
3 Apr 1996 : Column: 243
House Building
Mr. Barry Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) how many council houses were built in (a) 1976, (b) 1986, (c) 1989, (d) 1994 and (e) 1995 in each local authority area; and if he will make a statement; [23752]
3 Apr 1996 : Column: 244
- (2) how many houses were built by housing associations in each local authority area in (a) 1976, (b) 1986, (c) 1989, (d) 1994 and (e) 1995; and if he will make a statement. [23753]
Mr. Gwilym Jones: The information requested is given in the following table:
| 1976 | 1986 | 1989 | 1994 | 1995 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local authority | Housing association(4) | Local authority | Housing association | Local authority | Housing association | Local authority | Housing association | Local authority | Housing association | |
| Aberconwy | 30 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 24 | 20 | 72 | -- | 87 |
| Alyn and Deeside | 115 | -- | 33 | 19 | 29 | 26 | 16 | 23 | -- | 107 |
| Arfon | 111 | -- | -- | 9 | 31 | 40 | -- | 79 | -- | 29 |
| Blaenau Gwent | 269 | -- | -- | 38 | 39 | 64 | -- | 3 | 26 | 71 |
| Brecknock | 289 | -- | -- | -- | 12 | 65 | -- | 71 | -- | 54 |
| Cardiff | 471 | -- | -- | 38 | -- | 462 | -- | 385 | 1 | 356 |
| Carmarthen | 228 | -- | 18 | -- | 4 | 2 | -- | 24 | -- | 23 |
| Ceredigion | 161 | -- | 41 | 17 | 3 | 83 | -- | 12 | -- | 32 |
| Colwyn | 22 | -- | 18 | -- | -- | 34 | -- | 36 | -- | 52 |
| Cynon Valley | 165 | -- | -- | 40 | -- | 67 | -- | 36 | -- | 50 |
| Delyn | 177 | -- | -- | 16 | -- | 12 | -- | 46 | -- | 49 |
| Dinefwr | 30 | -- | 34 | -- | -- | 22 | -- | 7 | -- | 16 |
| Dwyfor | -- | -- | 4 | -- | -- | 8 | -- | 17 | -- | 4 |
| Glyndwr | 67 | -- | -- | 8 | 42 | 7 | -- | 25 | -- | -- |
| Islwyn | 102 | -- | 40 | -- | 28 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 9 |
| Llanelli | 238 | -- | 40 | -- | 81 | 4 | 45 | 6 | 78 | 27 |
| lliw Valley | 122 | -- | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | -- | 71 | 29 | 27 |
| Meirionnydd | 103 | -- | -- | -- | 12 | -- | -- | 32 | -- | 51 |
| Merthyr Tydfil | 187 | -- | -- | -- | 20 | 26 | -- | 51 | -- | 51 |
| Monmouth | 108 | -- | 74 | -- | 16 | 121 | -- | 39 | -- | 89 |
| Montgomeryshire | 110 | -- | 26 | 19 | 15 | 79 | -- | 203 | -- | 56 |
| Neath | 119 | -- | 26 | 10 | 4 | -- | -- | 60 | -- | 69 |
| Newport | 462 | -- | 119 | 74 | 105 | 65 | 108 | 10 | 4 | 49 |
| Ogwr | 504 | -- | 40 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 234 | -- | 55 |
| Port Talbot | -- | -- | -- | 39 | -- | 40 | -- | 72 | -- | 11 |
| Preseli Pembrokeshire | 110 | -- | 9 | 29 | 20 | 29 | 12 | 72 | -- | 73 |
| Radnorshire | 146 | -- | 2 | 37 | -- | 4 | 6 | 38 | -- | 50 |
| Rhondda | 74 | -- | -- | 12 | -- | 73 | -- | 79 | -- | 40 |
| Rhuddlan | 17 | -- | 44 | -- | 24 | 16 | -- | 108 | 16 | 30 |
| Rhymney Valley | 267 | -- | 15 | 27 | 24 | 80 | -- | 38 | -- | 69 |
| South Pembrokeshire | 95 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 95 | 6 | 39 |
| Swansea | 530 | -- | -- | 33 | 9 | 112 | 20 | 369 | 6 | 356 |
| Taff-Ely | 136 | -- | 12 | 20 | 24 | 16 | -- | 82 | -- | 67 |
| Torfaen | 307 | -- | 34 | 7 | -- | -- | -- | 105 | 10 | 79 |
| Vale of Glamorgan | 670 | -- | 36 | -- | 6 | 21 | -- | 41 | -- | -- |
| Wrexham Maelor | 242 | -- | 11 | 28 | 12 | 24 | -- | 200 | -- | 17 |
| Ynys Mon | 80 | -- | 34 | -- | -- | 23 | -- | -- | -- | 14 |
Notes:
(3) This information is based on local authority returns which may underestimate the level of building activity.
(4) Data for 1976 were collected jointly with other public sector completions. The total for all categories was 285.
Source:Local authority returns.
3 Apr 1996 : Column: 243
3 Apr 1996 : Column: 245
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |