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Parliament (Dissolution)

33.

Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Lord President of the Council what functions he discharges in relation to the dissolution of Parliament. [13378]

Mr. Newton: In my capacity as Lord President, I would expect to attend the meeting of the Privy Council at which the proclamation dissolving Parliament is signed.

Prime Minister's Question Time

34. Mr. Tony Banks: To ask the Lord President of the Council what proposals he has to change the format of Prime Minister's Question Time. [13380]

Mr. Newton: My position remains as set out in my speech in the debate on parliamentary procedure on 11 July 1996, Official Report, columns 631-71.

Undelivered Speeches

35. Mr. Cohen: To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will introduce a procedure to allow hon. Members who have attended a debate but not been able to speak to have their speeches printed in the Official Report. [13381]

Mr. Newton: I have no plans to do so.

Parliamentary Proceedings

36. Mr. Jacques Arnold: To ask the Lord President of the Council what steps he is taking to increase the opportunities for Back Benchers to initiate proceedings in the House. [13382]

Mr. Newton: The introduction of Wednesday morning sittings as part of the Jopling reforms has substantially increased the number of occasions on which Back Benchers can initiate debates on subjects of their choice. I have no current plans for further changes.

Points of Order

37. Mr. Flynn: To ask the Lord President of the Council what proposals he has to review parliamentary procedures relating to points of order. [13383]

Mr. Newton: None; but the hon. Gentleman may wish to draw any concerns or suggestions he has to the attention of the Procedure Committee.

Divisions

Mr. Harry Greenway: To ask the Lord President of the Council if he will take measures to limit the length of time permitted for Divisions; and if he will make a statement. [13709]

Mr. Newton: Standing Order No. 37(3) provides that "at least eight minutes" must elapse between the calling of the Divisions and the locking of the doors into the Division Lobbies. I do not believe that this period could be shortened without causing significant inconvenience to Members based in 7 Millbank, and I therefore have no proposals to change the Standing Order.

10 Feb 1997 : Column: 29

SCOTLAND

Ministerial Meetings

Sir David Steel: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many meetings of the Council of Minsters have been attended as participants by Scottish Office Ministers in each year since 1992; how many of these attendances related to agriculture and fisheries; and what was the total number of meetings held by the Council of Ministers in that period. [14225]

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton: The information is as follows:

	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996
Scottish Office Ministers' attendance	8	8	8	7	15
of which related to agriculture and fisheries	7	6	5	5	13
Total number of meetings held by the Council of Ministers in that period(12)	87	94	92	81	88

(12) The information for 1992 to 1994 is contained in the 40th, 41st and 42nd "Review of the Council Work", in the secretary general's report, which forms the foreword in each of the reviews. The summary of Councils held between 1995 and 1996 is as yet unpublished but is obtainable from the press office of the Council of the European Union.

Water and Sewerage Charges

Mr. Macdonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects to achieve full equalisation of water and sewerage rate charges across the north of Scotland area. [15206]

Mr. Kynoch: The annual charges for water and sewerage services are a matter for the North of Scotland Water Authority, subject to approval from the Scottish Water and Sewerage Customers Council. I understand that

10 Feb 1997 : Column: 30

progress with harmonisation of charges to domestic customers has been made in 1996-97 and that the authority expects to make further progress over the next few years.

Psychotic Diseases

Mr. Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will estimate how many people in Scotland were registered suffers of (a) Alzheimer's disease, (b) schizophrenia and (c) other psychotic diseases in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [14662]

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 7 February 1997]: Information on the number of mentally ill people with a particular diagnosis is not collected centrally. We estimated that there were around 60,000 people in Scotland with a diagnosis of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, in 1994.

Doctors' Disbursements

Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the payments made (a) to dispensing doctors for prescriptions dispensed and items personally administered and (b) to non-dispensing doctors for items personally administered, by the Prescription Pricing Authority in Scotland, broken down by (i) net ingredient cost, (ii) discounted cost, (iii) VAT, (iv) oxygen etcetera, (v) container allowance, (vi) dispensing fees, and (vii) on cost and in total in each year since 1990-91. [14143]

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton: The payments made to dispensing doctors by way of remuneration and reimbursement in respect of their dispensing activities are set out in the table. The total value of remuneration for the supply of oxygen is less than £1,000 in any year.

The personal administration scheme does not apply in Scotland and no payments to GPs are authorised by the prescription pricing division of the Common Services Agency other than those mentioned in the table or for the supply of oxygen.

10 Feb 1997 : Column: 29

Remuneration and reimbursement payments to dispensing doctors 1990-91 to 1995-96

	1990-91	1991-92	1992-93	1993-94	1994-95	1995-96
Number of prescriptions (000s)	1,570	1,662	1,731	1,828	1,891	1,882
£000
Value of ingredients before discount	8,579	9,904	11,131	12,383	13,463	13,992
Value of ingredients after discount	8,221	9,457	10,701	11,872	12,880	13,421
On cost allowances	892	1,029	1,169	1,300	1,414	1,469
Dispensing fees	1,386	1,471	1,536	1,613	1,723	1,711
Container allowances	60	63	66	69	72	72
Reimbursement of value added tax	1,242	1,666	1,884	2,090	2,267	2,361
Total value of payment	11,799	13,686	15,356	16,945	18,355	19,034

Source

Prescription Pricing Division, Common Services Agency.

10 Feb 1997 : Column: 31

Mr. Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the evidence submitted to the Doctors and Dentists Pay Review Body regarding disbursements to doctors in Scotland. [14144]

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton: As the Health Department's evidence to the Doctors and Dentists Pay Review Body was made available to the "Health Service Journal" in October 1996, there are no plans to publish it.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Armoured Vehicles (Indonesia)

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the amount and types of plastic bullets and tear gas products which were licensed for export to Indonesia in each year since 1990. [14264]

Mr. Nelson: Since 1991--the period from which records are readily available--there have been no exports of tear gas products and only one export--in 1992--of 10,000 rounds of 9 mm inert plastic training cartridge cases to Indonesia.

I must point out, however, that the computer records cannot always identify individual items on an export licence application if they are part of a larger export.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to the answer of 23 January, Official Report, columns 708-709, on the export of armoured vehicles to Indonesia, what was the monetary value of the vehicles and associated equipment covered by the export licence. [14113]

Mr. Nelson [holding answer 3 February 1997]: This is a commercial matter between the exporter and the Indonesian Government.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answers of 9 December, Official Report, columns 29-30, and 23 January, columns 708-709, in respect of exports to Indonesia if he will place a list of the associated equipment in the Library; how many categories of equipment as detailed in the export control regulations are included in the export licences; and if he will list the categories in each licence. [14266]

Mr. Nelson: No. Such detailed lists are a commercial matter between the company, the Indonesian Government and the licensing authority. However, the licensability of the Alvis applications was determined under ML6 and ML3 of the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994.

Licensability for the Procurement Services International application was determined under ML6 of the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 9 December, Official Report, columns 29-30, if he will place a copy of the export licence in the Library. [14261]

Mr. Nelson: No; the licence itself is a matter between the company and the licensing authority.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 23 January, Official Report, columns 708-709, if he will list the

10 Feb 1997 : Column: 32

communications and surveillance equipment installed in the eight Tactica command and communications vehicles.[14265]

Mr. Nelson: Detailed lists of this kind are a commercial matter between the company and the Indonesian Government and disclosed only to the licensing authority.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 23 January, Official Report, columns 708-709, if he will list the design and deployment descriptions of each of the armoured vehicles. [14304]

Mr. Nelson: The design is a matter for the company. Information on the vehicles that is in the public domain can be found in the "British Defence Equipment Catalogue".

Deployment will be a matter for the Indonesian Government.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 23 January, Official Report, columns 708-709, relating to the training of Indonesian personnel in the use of water cannon or armoured vehicles, if he will identify the company.[14262]

Mr. Nelson: The hon. Member's original question related to the Tactica family. The company concerned is the supplier of the vehicles, Procurement Services International Ltd.

Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade under which category the marker dye used in the Tactica water cannon is controlled within the United Kingdom strategic export control system; and if the licence granted for the Tactica covers such products when licences have previously been granted for the export of marker dye to Indonesia. [14263]

Mr. Nelson: Detailed lists of this kind are a commercial matter between the company and the Indonesian Government and disclosed only to the licensing authority.

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