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National Forest

Mr. Booth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to report on progress in implementation of the national forest. [8090]

Mr. Clappison: I have today arranged for copies of the National Forests Company's 1996 annual report and accounts to be available in the House Library.

Valuation Tribunal Service

Mr. Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the forthcoming finance, management and policy review of the valuation tribunal service. [8089]

Sir Paul Beresford: As part of the Government's programme of regular five-yearly finance, management and policy reviews of non-departmental public bodies, my Department will conduct a thorough review of the valuation tribunal service beginning on 5 December. The first stage of the review will take the form of a prior options study. This will assess the extent to which the functions that the valuation tribunal service performs are necessary for the achievement of the Government's policies, and whether there is scope for privatising, contracting out or transferring all, or part, of its functions to another body.

The progress made by the valuation tribunal service since the previous review in 1992 will be examined and the results of that examination and of the prior options study will inform a detailed review of the service's policy and financial management systems. To minimise the uncertainty that the prior options study will cause, I expect this part of the review to be completed within six months. The time required for the more detailed review cannot be foreseen, but I would expect it also to last no longer than six months.

In carrying out the study, my Department will consult widely with all parties with an interest in the work of the valuation tribunal service.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Environmental Auditing

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Attorney-General, pursuant to his answer of 25 November, Official Report, column 82, regarding examples of improving efficiency through environmental auditing, if he will list the occasions on which environmental considerations have been taken into account in respect of procurement and accommodation management matters. [7198]

The Solicitor-General: All four Law Officers' Departments keep environmental aspects of their accommodation and procurement activities under regular review. Examples of action already taken in one or more of the Departments are: the fitting of new controls on

5 Dec 1996 : Column: 737

heating and air conditioning plant to reduce energy consumption; the use of energy efficient lamping; the installation of modern flushing systems and rapid response arrangements for reported leaks; furniture purchase contracts which specify that wood should be from sustainable resources; and the stipulation in cleaning contracts that only environmentally friendly cleaning products should be used.

EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT

National Vocational Qualifications

Mr. Bryan Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many national vocational qualifications awarded by the end of December 1995 were achieved by (a) private sector and (b) public sector employees. [6942]

Mr. Paice: Data are not available on the number of national vocational qualifications awarded to private sector and public sector employees.

Open University

Mr. Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans she has to introduce a right for students of the Open university to have their examination papers re-marked on appeal. [7420]

Mr. Forth: It is for the Open university, as an autonomous higher education institution, to establish its own procedures for marking examination papers and to set up appropriate appeals procedures.

Education Expenditure

Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what amounts have been requested by way of capital spending in 1997-98 by each local education authority; and what has been the total amount requested in England. [7473]

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the schools capital expenditure annual capital grants bid for each local education authority for 1997-98. [7711]

Mrs. Gillan: Each year we invite LEAs to submit their plans for education capital expenditure so that we can determine the level of their annual capital guidelines. The following table shows the total of each LEA's planned expenditure for 1997-98, as submitted to the Department in October.

LeaTotal planned expenditure (£000)
Barking and Dagenham3,584
Barnet8,143
Barnsley5,361
Bath and North-east Somerset4,,382
Bedfordshire9,897
Berkshire5,892
Bexley7,787
Birmingham53,490
Bolton5,872
Bournemouth7,179
Bradford63,643
Brent10,278
Brighton and Hove4,311
Bristol3,024
Bromley3,974
Buckinghamshire13,740
Bury1,900
Calderdale9,121
Cambridgeshire27,575
Camden4,933
Cheshire39,356
City0
Cornwall9,605
Coventry12,334
Croydon6,736
Cumbria20,529
Darlington3,488
Derby8,837
Derbyshire30,355
Devon38,113
Doncaster3,527
Dorset14,341
Dudley5,505
Durham49,951
Ealing67,218
East Riding of Yorks2,872
East Sussex24,747
Enfield22,652
Essex84,555
Gateshead10,282
Gloucestershire31,964
Greenwich10,568
Hackney9,073
Hammersmith and Fulham9,371
Hampshire28,299
Haringey16,573
Harrow16,926
Hartlepool3,921
Havering5,851
Hereford and Worcester10,890
Hertfordshire27,171
Hillingdon3,814
Hounslow7,447
Hull12,826
Isle of Wight12,094
Isles of Scilly49
Islington8,839
Kensington and Chelsea2,555
Kent50,939
Kingston5,969
Kirklees6,795
Knowsley2,901
Lambeth22,534
Lancashire34,469
Leeds42,407
Leicester1,486
Leicestershire6,375
Lewisham30,904
Lincolnshire8,936
Liverpool23,325
Luton8,568
Manchester48,375
Merton6,552
Middlesbrough2,198
Milton Keynes12,179
North Somerset5,269
North Tyneside8,169
North Yorkshire29,821
North-east Lincolnshire14,471
Newcastle5,372
Newham10,461
Norfolk23,979
North Lincolnshire6,007
Northamptonshire20,729
Northumberland1,799
Nottinghamshire24,672
Oldham8,048
Oxfordshire30,218
Poole4,442
Portsmouth9,438
Redbridge12,611
Redcar and Cleveland2,856
Richmond4,685
Rochdale8,669
Rotherham4,770
Rutland290
South Gloucestershire8,367
South Tyneside9,677
Salford29,083
Sandwell11,982
Sefton3,521
Sheffield51,309
Shropshire5,981
Solihull4,708
Somerset12,130
Southampton3,229
Southwark8,260
St. Helens5,310
Staffordshire24,120
Stockport6,028
Stockton on Tees5,754
Stoke on Trent9,147
Suffolk21,155
Sunderland9,010
Surrey25,683
Sutton8,071
Tameside5,901
Thamesdown5,269
Tower Hamlets12,595
Trafford8,957
Wakefield27,486
Walsall6,804
Waltham Forest11,937
Wandsworth4,439
Warwickshire5,528
West Sussex12,920
Westminster4,853
Wigan16,365
Wiltshire10,760
Wirral9,976
Wolverhampton12,798
York5,223
Totals1,903,343

5 Dec 1996 : Column: 739

TREASURY

Gross Domestic Product

Mr. Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the level of United Kingdom gross domestic product for each year since 1970 at (a) current prices and (b) 1996 prices; what has been the annual percentage change in United Kingdom gross domestic product at constant prices for each of these years; what was the Government take of gross domestic product in each of these years at (a) current prices and (b) 1996 prices; and what was the annual percentage change in this Government share of gross domestic product at constant prices in each of these years. [5570]

Mrs. Angela Knight: Figures for GDP at current and constant prices are published in table 1.1 of the "United Kingdom National Accounts--The Blue Book".

5 Dec 1996 : Column: 740

Government receipts as a percentage of money GDP are provided in the "Financial Statement and Budget Report". This shows that general Government receipts as a percentage of money GDP are currently lower that at any time during the last Labour Government.

Women

Ms Janet Anderson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to measure and evaluate the effect of his Department's policies on women. [5478]

Mrs. Angela Knight: In July this year the model guidance on policy appraisal for equal treatment was revised and circulated at Cabinet level for Departments to adapt to their own circumstances. A copy was placed in the Library of the House. Advice based on this model will be circulated to officials in the Treasury.


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