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Health and Safety
Mr. Ian McCartney: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if his Department has signed the Melbourne declaration on injury prevention and control, adopted on 22 February. [7945]
Mr. John M. Taylor: The third international conference on injury prevention, held in Melbourne in February 1996, brought together representatives of the international injury prevention and control community, but was not an intergovernmental conference.
The so-called "Melbourne declaration", adopted by the conference, addresses certain recommendations to Governments, among others, but does not provide for formal endorsement by Governments of its conclusions.
Public Holidays
Mr. Flynn: To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many public holidays there were in each of the past five years in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland, (c) Northern Ireland, (d) England, (e) the Netherlands, (f) France and (g) Italy. [7497]
Mr. John M. Taylor [holding answer 9 December 1996]: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Wales | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Scotland(1) | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8(2) | 8 |
| N.Ireland | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Netherlands(3) | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Italy | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9(4) |
| France | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
Source:
Official Journals of the European Communities.
Notes:
(1) Subject to regional, local and institutional variations.
(2) There was an additional bank holiday on the 8 May 1995 to link with commemorative arrangements for the 50th anniversary of VE Day. This was in addition to the existing 1 May 1995 bank holiday; in practice, most employers in Scotland observed one of these two holidays.
(3) Liberation day (5 May) is observed in the civil service and by some trade groups. It is listed as a public holiday in the "Official Journal of the European Communities" in some years but not others.
(4) Immaculate Conception Day (8 December) is not listed as a holiday in the "Official Journal of the European Communities" for 1996 but remains a public holiday in Italy.
Regional Selective Assistance
Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade on what occasions Mr. A, whose name has been supplied to him, advised the DTI on Synex Ltd.'s application for regional selective assistance. [6236]
10 Dec 1996 : Column: 88
Mr. Lang [holding answer 27 November 1996]: In respect of the application by Synex Ltd. Mr. A provided written accountancy advice on three occasions, through reports dated 7 January 1995, 19 January 1995 and 22 February 1995. Mr. A however ceased to be retained by the Department as an advisor before appraisal of all aspects of the case was completed. The accountancy aspects of the case were therefore fully reviewed by the Department's central industrial development unit.
Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade on what dates the South-West industrial development board discussed the application of Synex Ltd. for regional selective assistance; and which members were present. [6229]
Mr. Lang [holding answer 27 November 1996]: The application was referred to at five meetings of the board. Three of these, on 21 December 1994, 12 April 1995 and 28 June 1995, were simply reports on the receipt of the application or its progress. The application was discussed substantially at two meetings held on 25 January 1995 and 22 February 1995 when the board members present were as follows:
25 January 1995
Mr. R. Harris (Chairman)
Mr. N. Falls
Mr. P. Gregory
Mr. M. Jordan
Mr. A. Loze
22 February 1995
Mr. R. Harris (Chairman)
Mr. N. Falls
Mr. P. Gregory
Mr. M. Jordan
Mr. A. Loze
Mr. V. Parsons
Mr. Lang [holding answer 27 November 1996]: It is not recorded that Mr. B made a declaration of interest in the application by Synex Ltd.
At the meeting of the SWIDB held on 21 December 1994 members were informed about an imminent application from Synex Ltd. Mr. C declared immediately he had an interest in the case. Mr. C did not attend the meeting on 25 January 1995 when the application by Synex Ltd. was first substantively discussed, and absented himself from the discussion which took place on 22 February. The two subsequent meetings on 12 April and 28 June were essentially updating the board about progress of the case and it was not felt necessary for Mr. C to withdraw.
10 Dec 1996 : Column: 89
Mr. Jamieson:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what factors underlay the decisions by (a) DTI South-East to award a regional selective assistance grant to Synex Ltd. and (b) DTI South-West to refuse such a grant; [6232]
Mr. Lang
[holding answer 27 November 1996]: Each application for regional selective assistance is determined on its merits against the common criteria for the scheme, which are explained in the Department's brochure, "Investing in the Assisted Areas", a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. The project as presented to Government office SW was judged not to have satisfied the criteria.
Mr. Kirkwood:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment he has made of the consumer protection regime governing the market for funeral pre-payment plans sold by companies to elderly people on the endorsement of registered charities. [7456]
Mr. John M. Taylor
[holding answer 9 December 1996]: I addressed this matter in the recent consultation paper published by my Department in July on pre-paid funerals. The question of endorsements by registered charities in England and Wales is a matter for the Charity Commission. Charities are also subject to regulation in Scotland through the Scottish charities office. Advertisements featuring such endorsements are subject to controls by the Advertising Standards Authority. In the consultation document, it was proposed that the nature of the relationship between the plan provider and the charity--or the charity's trading subsidiary--should be made clear to the customer. I am currently reviewing the responses on this and the rest of the proposals.
Mr. Milburn:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many cars were produced in the United Kingdom in each year since 1979 by (i) United Kingdom companies and (ii) United Kingdom-owned companies. [7827]
Mr. Greg Knight
[holding answer 6 December 1996]: Figures showing the number of cars produced in the United Kingdom each year, including production by company, are published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders Ltd. whose publication, 'World Automotive Statistics', with figures for the years in question, are available in the Library of the House. The ownership of UK car manufacturers may also be derived from commercial databases such as The Financial Times "Profile" also available in the Library of the House. However, assembling the information on UK-owned car manufacturers for this time period could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Nicholas Winterton:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will make a statement on duties on cotton loomstate imports of cloth from (a) China, (b) Egypt, (c) India, (d) Indonesia, (e) Pakistan and
10 Dec 1996 : Column: 90
(f) Turkey; if he will list the levels of import duties; when those duties came into effect; and for what reasons they were introduced; [8267]
(3) what assessment he has made as to the extent to which European Union demand for 72 by 96, 30's/30's cc 4 by 1 weft sateen 50 inch and 56 inch, 100 per cent. cotton fabric and 140 by 48, 30's/10's cc 5 by 1 warp satin 50 inch and 59 inch, 100 per cent. cotton fabric exceeds European Union manufactured supply of these fabrics; and if he will make a statement; [8271]
(4) what recent representations he has received from those in the textile and clothing industries about the effect of recent increases in import duties on cotton fabrics; what assessment he has made of the impact of increased costs associated with such duties on profitability and company viability in the British textile and clothing sector; and if he will make a statement; [8268]
(5) what studies his Department undertook prior to the imposition of higher import duties on cotton fabrics from (a) China, (b) Egypt, (c) India, (d) Indonesia, (e) Pakistan and (f) Turkey on the extent to which the fabrics could be sourced within the European Union; and if he will make a statement. [8270]
Mr. Nelson
[holding answer 9 December 1996]: On 21 November 1996 the European Commission imposed provisional anti-dumping duties for six months on imports of unbleached cotton fabrics from China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkey. The duty rates are set out in Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2208/96 of 18 November 1996 published in the Official Journal of the European Communities No. L295 of 20 November 1996. This is available in the Library of the House. The decision followed the Commission's preliminary investigation of a complaint that the products were being dumped in the Community by the countries concerned.
(2) what factors underlay the refusal by his Department's south-west office to award a regional selective assistance grant to Synex Ltd. [6233]
(2) if he will make it his policy to renegotiate import duties on cotton fabrics from (a) China, (b) Egypt, (c) India, (d) Indonesia, (e) Pakistan and (f) Turkey; and what discussions his Department has had on these matters with the European Commission; [8269]
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