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Joint Rapid Deployment Force
Mr. David Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to improve the capability of the joint rapid deployment force. [38804]
Mr. Portillo: The Government are committed to the joint rapid deployment force which will become operational on 1 August. Our amphibious capability will play a key role in that force: the Royal Marines' ability to mount amphibious operations is critically dependent on the landing platform docks, currently HMS Fearless and HMS Intrepid. Both vessels have given long and distinguished service, including in the Falklands campaign, but will soon be approaching the end of their operational lives. I am pleased, therefore, to be able to announce that I am today placing a contract with GEC Marine to design and build two replacement ships at the Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd. shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness. The new LPDs will be called HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark. They displace 13,000 tonnes, have a maximum speed of 18 knots and have a crew of just over 320. They can carry up to 650 troops, a range of vehicles, including tanks, and eight landing craft. They also have a flight deck that can accommodate two EH101 helicopters or one Chinook. They are expected to enter service early in the next decade. This order will be warmly welcomed by the Royal Navy and will also be good news for Barrow and for the many subcontractors throughout the UK, providing weapons systems, marine equipments and other components for the ships. The order, worth more than £450 million to GEC Marine and its sub-contractors, will help to sustain some 2,000 jobs in the UK.
Married Quarters
Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many units of service married quarters accommodation are currently under construction; and at what cost to his Department. [37738]
Mr. Soames [holding answer 16 July 1996]: Some 53 officers' married quarters are currently being demolished and rebuilt at an estimated cost of £4.5 million.
Dr. Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the cost of constructing new married quarters at Catterick garrison. [37737]
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Mr. Soames [holding answer 16 July 1996]: The provision of 86 quarters at Belton park, Catterick, at the end of last year cost £4.7 million. Further plans to demolish and rebuild 529 quarters at Pleasantdale, Leadmill and Waitwith/Warell estates will cost in the region of £33 million.
Benefit Fraud
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what inquiries to detect fraud by cross-checking his Department's payroll with details of those claiming benefit he has undertaken; when these exercises took place; and how many staff were (a) suspended, (b) dismissed and (c) prosecuted as a result. [37705]
Mr. Arbuthnot [holding answer 17 July 1996]: None. The Ministry of Defence has neither the information nor the responsibility to make such checks. However, it would respond to inquiries made by the Benefits Agency if there were reasonable grounds for suspicion that an individual might be involved in benefit fraud.
Britannia
Mr. Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the programme for Her Majesty's yacht Britannia up to decommissioning. [37722]
Mr. Soames: Her Majesty's yacht Britannia is to be decommissioned in 1997. Until then, she will fulfil an active programme in support of the royal family's commitments at home and abroad, and of promotion of British commercial interests overseas. However, as with all Royal Navy vessels, we do not provide details in advance of Britannia's programme.
PRIME MINISTER
European Central Bank
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Prime Minister what consultations the Governor of the Bank of England held with him in drawing up the Maastricht proposals for a European central bank; and if he consented to those proposals. [37825]
The Prime Minister: The predecessor of the existing Governor of the Bank of England was a member of a committee which compiled the so-called Delors report on economic and monetary union, published in April 1989. Although influenced by this report, the plans for economic and monetary union set out in the EC treaty as amended at Maastricht were the result of negotiations between member states' Governments and were ratified according to national constitutional requirements. In particular, protocol No. 11 to the EC treaty requires Parliament and the Government to give consent to the United Kingdom's participation in the third stage of economic an monetary union, on the terms contained in the treaty, before the United Kingdom would be able to take part. The Government have stated that they will seek to participate in the third stage only if they believe that it would be in the national interest to do so, on the basis of a full assessment of the implications for the United Kingdom at the appropriate time.
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Monetary and Exchange Rate Policy
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Prime Minister (1) what steps he will take in the intergovernmental conference to ensure that decisions of the EU, the European system of central banks and the European Court of Justice concerning monetary and exchange rate policy are not binding on the United Kingdom; [37829]
- (2) if he will ensure at the intergovernmental conference that no restriction, with special reference to the role of the Bank of England and EU institutions, is placed directly or indirectly on the power of the United Kingdom Government to determine monetary and exchange rate policy. [37828]
The Prime Minister: Protocol No. 11 to the EC treaty on certain provisions relating to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland states that the United Kingdom shall not be obliged or committed to participate in the third stage of economic and monetary union without a separate decision to do so by the Government and Parliament. Paragraph 4 of the protocol states that the United Kingdom would
"retain its powers in the field of monetary policy according to national law" were it to notify the Council of Ministers that it did not intend to move to the third stage. Paragraphs 5 and 8 of the protocol list those articles from the treaty and the statute of the European system of central banks from which the United Kingdom would be specifically excluded in these circumstances.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Prime Minister if he will set up an inquiry to examine (a) the reasons for the spread of BSE, (b) the use of animal material in feedstuffs, (c) the effectiveness of the measures taken to deal with the situation since 1986 and (d) the quality of the advice available to the Government on this matter.[38003]
The Prime Minister: No. These are essentially technical scientific issues which have been considered many times by the Government's own committee of independent scientific advisers, the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee. I have every confidence in the quality of the advice from SEAC.
Engagements
Mr. Harry Greenway: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 18 July. [36683]
Sir Peter Tapsell: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 18 July. [36685]
The Prime Minister: This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.
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Burma
Mr. Fatchett: To ask the Prime Minister what representations he has made to the Burmese Government about the death of James Leo Nichols, a United Kingdom citizen; and if he will make a statement. [37477]
The Prime Minister [holding answer 17 July 1996]: Together with our EU partners, we issued a statement on 5 July calling for a full and satisfactory explanation from the Burmese authorities of the circumstances leading up to and surrounding the death on 22 June of Mr. Nichols, who was a Burmese citizen. The statement also called for an investigation into Mr. Nichols' death by the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Burma.
HEALTH
General Practitioners
Mr. Redmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will ensure that health authorities consult community health councils on proposals to establish GP out-of-hours treatment centres; and if he will make a statement; [36191]
- (2) if he will ensure that community health councils are given the right to be formally consulted about the services commissioned from general practitioners; and if he will make a statement; [36189]
(3) if he will make it his policy that health authorities consult community health councils on proposals to establish general practitioner out-of-hours treatment centres; and if he will make a statement. [36293]
Mr. Horam: Under the Community Health Councils Regulations 1996, health authorities are required to consult their local community health council
"on any proposals which the Health Authority may have under consideration for any substantial development of the health service in the Council's district and on any proposals to make any substantial variation in the provision of such service".
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the total number of general practitioners (a) born outside the EC and (b) who qualified outside the EC by region. [37147]
Mr. Malone [holding answer 12 July 1996]: The latest available information is shown in the table. Data on country of birth of general practitioners is derived from General Medical Council data, which are incomplete and unreliable.
| Region | Total number of unrestricted principals | Number of unrestricted principals qualified outside EC |
|---|---|---|
| Northern and Yorkshire | 3,749 | 550 |
| Trent | 2,555 | 406 |
| Anglia and Oxford | 2,932 | 258 |
| North Thames | 3,776 | 1,144 |
| South Thames | 3,640 | 669 |
| South and West | 3,860 | 111 |
| West Midlands | 2,799 | 672 |
| North Western | 3,391 | 770 |
| Total | 26,702 | 4,580 |
18 Jul 1996 : Column: 650
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