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Magnox
Mrs. Beckett: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, (1) pursuant to paragraph 8.21 of the nuclear review White Paper, Cm 2860, if he will estimate the extent to which sufficient funds will be (a) generated by the Magnox stations and (b) realised by the privatisation of the advanced gas-cooled reactors and pressurised water reactors to meet the cost of the liabilities which remain in the public sector; [30384]
- (2) what is the undiscounted cost of the liabilities remaining in the public sector; and how those liabilities will be met; [30393]
(3) when the Magnox stations will exhaust their existing sources of funding including, income from generation and outstanding fossil fuel levy and cash and investments currently held on current assumptions and calculations; and when the Government expect to contribute to reprocessing waste management and decommissioning costs. [30385]
Mr. Lang: The undiscounted cost of Magnox Electric plc's nuclear liabilities will be shown in the company's annual report and accounts, which I understand will be published shortly. The sources of funding of these liabilities were described in the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Industry and Energy to the hon. Member for Colchester, South and Maldon (Mr. Whittingdale) on 10 May 1996, Official Report, columns 294-96.
The timing and amount of funding of these liabilities by Magnox and the Government are dependent on a number of factors. These include the level of Magnox's future income, which is dependent on among other things, interest rates and electricity prices, the potential for further improvements in the understanding and control of decommissioning costs and other nuclear liabilities, and the benefits to be derived from the proposed integration of Magnox with British Nuclear Fuels plc.
22 May 1996 : Column: 270
Mr. Wilshire:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he has reached a decision on the future of the BBSRC's agriculture and plant sciences institutes; and if he will make a statement. [30818]
Mr. Lang:
Prior options reviews have been completed of the Institute of Arable Crops Research, the Institute of Grassland and Environment Research, the John Innes Centre and the Silsoe Research Institute. I am satisfied that the functions of these institutes are needed and that they should retain their separate existence.
They are currently constituted as distinct legal entities with charitable status but are regulated by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. Their staff are members of the research councils pension scheme and BBSRC carries contingent liability for staffing. They are consequently subject to public sector financial controls.
I have concluded that full independence from the public sector, with the greater freedom this will provide the institutes to direct their own affairs, would be a desirable option which merits further consideration. This will therefore by the subject of further work led by the Prime Minister's adviser on efficiency, Sir Peter Levene. The institutes would remain eligible to compete for research funding from BBSRC and other public sector funders.["30329"]
Mr. Ingram:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he expects to make an announcement on the current review of the research establishments under the control of the BBSRC.
Mr. Ian Taylor
[holding answer 21 May 1996]: My right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade announced the timetable for the reviews on 26 January 1996, Official Report, columns 421-23.
Four BBSRC institutes were included in the first tranche of reviews. These were the Institute of Arable Crops Research, the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, the John Innes Centre and the Silsoe Research Institute. I expect an announcement on the outcome of these reviews to be made shortly.
Four further BBSRC institutes were included in the timetable. The reviews of the Babraham Institute, the Institute for Animal Health and the Roslin Institute are due to be completed by the end of July 1996. The review of the Institute of Food Research is due to be completed by the end of December 1996. Announcements on the outcome of each of these reviews will be made as soon as possible.
Mr. Wilshire:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the outcome of the prior options review of the National Weights and Measures Laboratory. [30817]
Mr. John M. Taylor:
The Government have accepted the review team's recommendations that NWML should remain an executive agency of DTI.
22 May 1996 : Column: 271
In reaching this decision the Government took into account the advantages of maintaining the existing integration between NWML's technical and policy functions, for which support has been received from industry.
Mr. Wilshire:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he has reached a decision on the future of the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils; and if he will make a statement. [30814]
Mr. Lang:
I announced to the House on 17 November 1995, Official Report column 10, that the Daresbury and Rutherford Appleton laboratories, which together form the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils, were to be the subject of a prior options review.
The review found that the functions performed by the CLRC are needed and that it should remain in the public sector as a non-departmental public body of the Department of Trade and Industry, through the Office of Science and Technology. The Government are content to proceed on this basis while asking that further work on the involvement of the private sector should be carried out as described later. I am also satisfied that the current arrangements, whereby CLRC obtains the great majority of its income from competitively won contracts and service level agreements, bring suitable market forces to bear on it and that these should continue.
The Government have agreed with the recommendations of the steering committee for the review that the laboratory should work to achieve further reductions in its overhead costs, and that work should be done to put in place a sound, longer-term planning model between CLRC and its research council customers. In addition, I have agreed that the CLRC should be set targets for broadening its customer base, and that further work should be carried out to identify and overcome, where appropriate, any barriers to greater private sector involvement with the laboratory, and on potential private sector interest in operating the establishment. These matters will be investigated by my Department.
I believe that these steps will enable the Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils to build upon the success of the first year of its existence and will ensure that it remains well placed to contribute fully to the science and engineering base of the UK.
Mr. Wiltshire:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what progress has been made on the prior options reviews of public sector research establishments. [30815]
Mr. Lang:
I announced the timetable for the prior options reviews of public sector research establishments on 26 January, Official Report columns 422-23. The reviews are being conducted in three tranches, with a view to the major part of the work being completed by the end of 1996.
The Government have been considering the outcome of the first tranche of reviews. Our objective is to ensure that the Government receive the best quality scientific and technical services, with the best possible value for money for the taxpayer.
22 May 1996 : Column: 272
An announcement on the Building Research Establishment was made on 2 April, Official Report, columns 163-64, by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment.
I and my hon. Friend the Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs are today making announcements on a number of establishments for which I have responsibility:
Mr. Fabricant:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the current state of industrial relations between management and employees. [29119]
Mr. John M. Taylor:
There has been an immense improvement in relations between management and employees in recent years, as shown by the 94 per cent. reduction in the strike rate since the 1970s. The Government's step-by-step reform of industrial relations and trade union law has undoubtedly contributed significantly to this improvement.
Research Council
Announcements are also being made today by the responsible Minister for each of the following establishments:
Central Laboratory of the Research Councils
Institute of Arable Crops Research
Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research
John Innes Centre
National Weights and Measures Laboratory
Silsoe Research Institute
Decisions on other establishments will be announced as soon as possible.
Directorate of Fisheries Research
Fisheries Research Services
Forestry Commission Research Division
Macaulay Land Use Research Institute
Scottish Agricultural Science Agency
Scottish Crop Research Institute
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