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Cod (North Sea)
Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the decline in cod stocks in the North sea; and by what percentage total stocks have declined over the last 12 years. [18017]
Mr. Baldry: The advisory committee on fishery management of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea has estimated that the spawning stock biomass of North sea cod declined by 16 per cent. over the period 1985 to 1996 inclusive. The total allowable catch set for 1997 by the Fisheries Council in December 1996 reflected concern about the pressure on this important stock and provides for the spawning stock biomass to increase by 38 per cent. over the period 1996 to 1998.
Cloning
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will establish a review of the ethical issues relating to the cloning of animals and birds threatened with extinction. [18390]
Mrs. Browning:
The breakthrough in cloning technology has the potential to be used to save animal and bird species threatened with extinction, but it has yet to be shown to be possible in species other than the sheep. A review of the ethics of the application of this technique to threatened species would be premature.
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 572
Mr. Tony Banks:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what guidance his Department issues to fruit growers regarding the prevention of damage caused by bullfinches. [18365]
Mrs. Browning:
Advice to fruit growers regarding the prevention of damage caused by bullfinches is provided, on request, by ADAS (Statutory), the Ministry's wildlife adviser. The basis of the advice is that, wherever possible, non-lethal means of preventing any damage, for example the use of netting or fine threads spread over trees, should be used. Advice on longer-term measures, such as future planting strategies to reduce the risk of damage, would also be available.
Mr. Banks:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many individual licences have been issued by his Department for the killing or taking or bullfinches since the restriction on general licences to the county of Kent; and how many bullfinches have been killed or trapped during that period. [18364]
Mrs. Browning:
One individual licence has been issued since the restriction on the general licence to kill or take bullfinches to the county of Kent came into effect on 1 November 1996. The licensee is not required to submit details of the number of bullfinches killed or taken until after the licence has expired. As the licence is still in force, this information is not yet available.
Mr. Banks:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what data he has collated on the damage to fruit orchards by bullfinches; how those data were gathered; and how often the situation is reviewed.[18366]
Mrs. Browning:
Past evidence and the best advice currently available to the Ministry are that bullfinches can cause serious damage to fruit orchards; this can happen very quickly and is often unpredictable. The Ministry's experience in dealing with problems caused by bullfinches has shown that whole trees can be affected, resulting in total crop losses. The situation is kept under continual renewal.
Mr. Banks:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) how many bullfinches have been killed or taken under general licences issued by his Department in each of the past five years; [18367]
(2) what data he has collated on the number of bullfinches killed or taken under general licence in Kent in each of the past five years. [18368]
| Year | Within all areas in England covered by the general licence, including Kent | Within the County of Kent |
|---|---|---|
| 1991-92 | 433 | 341 |
| 1992-93 | 620 | 567 |
| 1993-94 | 326 | 312 |
| 1994-95 | 262 | 262 |
| 1995-96 | 317 | 317 |
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 573
Swine Fever
Mr. Mike O'Brien: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many cases of classical swine fever were recorded in the United Kingdom in each year, from 1992 to 1996; and how much compensation was paid to the owner of those animals in each year. [18359]
Rabies
Mr. Tony Banks: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what data he has collated relating to rabies in those parts of Europe where it is a serious hazard. [18362]
Mrs. Browning: Those data are available from a quarterly report entitled "Rabies Bulletin Europe", which is compiled and published by the World Health Organisation collaborating centre for rabies surveillance and research in Tubingen, Germany.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Housing Executive
Mr. A. Cecil Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the number of Housing Executive properties (a) demolished and (b) replaced in each local authority catchment area since 1992. [17744]
Mr. Moss: This is a matter for the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, but I am advised that the information, for the period 1 April 1992 to 25 February 1997, is as follows:
| District council area | Demolitions | Completions |
|---|---|---|
| Belfast | 2,921 | 790 |
| Antrim | 111 | 0 |
| Ballycastle | 23 | 23 |
| Ballymena | 90 | 9 |
| Ballymoney | 39 | 0 |
| Carrickfergus | 105 | 38 |
| Coleraine | 72 | 0 |
| Larne | 59 | 27 |
| Newtownabbey | 446 | 26 |
| Armagh | 8 | 4 |
| Banbridge | 34 | 0 |
| Newry and Mourne | 10 | 21 |
| Craigavon | 194 | 65 |
| Castlereagh | 41 | 0 |
| Down | 54 | 13 |
| Lisburn | 36 | 1 |
| Newtownards | 127 | 116 |
| North Down | 0 | 0 |
| Cookstown | 2 | 0 |
| Dungannon | 66 | 0 |
| Fermanagh | 38 | 6 |
| Limavady | 0 | 0 |
| Derry | 127 | 100 |
| Magherafelt | 1 | 0 |
| Omagh | 16 | 5 |
| Strabane | 20 | 6 |
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 574
Housing Executive
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he last met members of the Northern Ireland Housing Council to discuss the budget of the Northern Ireland Housing Executive. [17742]
Mr. Moss: My right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has not met the members of the Northern Ireland Housing Council, but I met them on 4 April 1996 at which time we discussed several matters including the allocation of resources for 1996-97 for the Northern Ireland Housing Executive and housing associations.
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many submissions he has received (a) in favour of and (b) opposed to, his proposals to subject Northern Ireland Housing Executive functions to compulsory competitive tendering; and if he will make a statement. [17745]
Mr. Moss: Over 130 copies of the proposal for the Housing (Northern Ireland) Order, which included provisions subjecting the Northern Ireland Housing Executive functions to compulsory competitive tendering, were issued on 19 January 1996. Thirty-four submissions were received, of which two were in favour of, and eight were opposed to, the proposals to subject Northern Ireland Housing Executive functions to compulsory competitive tendering.
Water Service Staff
Mr. Mallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many posts within the Water Service were transferred to Craigavon from (i) Newry, (ii) Armagh, (iii) Belfast and (iv) elsewhere, in each of the past five years; [17803]
- (2) how many people are employed in design in the Water Services in (i) Craigavon, (ii) Armagh and (iii) Newry; and what proposals there are for future staffing levels in those offices; [17807]
(3) how many posts within the Water Service were transferred to Belfast from (i) Newry, (ii) Armagh, (iii) Craigavon and (iv) elsewhere, in each of the past five years; [17805]
(4) how many employees there were in Water Service in (i) Armagh, (ii) Craigavon and (iii) Newry and Mourne in each of the past five years; [17804]
(5) what were the (a) numbers and (b) grades of recruits to the Water Service in (i) administration, (ii) personnel, (iii) design, (iv) accountancy and (v) other disciplines, in each of the past five years, indicating the location of each post; [17808]
(6) what are the projected staffing levels in the water service in (i) Armagh, (ii) Craigavon, (iii) Newry and (iv) Belfast, for the next three years. [17806]
Mr. Moss:
Responsibility for the subject in question has been delegated to the Water Service under its chief executive, Mr. H. R. F. Plester. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 575
| Newry | Armagh | Belfast | Elsewhere | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| 1993 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1994 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1995 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 576
No 387
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people are employed in design in the Water Services in (i) Craigavon, (ii) Armagh and (iii) Newry; and what proposals there are for future staffing levels in those offices.
Twenty-seven people based in Craigavon are employed in design which is taken to include construction supervision and direct administrative support. Overall design manning in the Water Service is being reduced so that engineering staff can be redeployed to enable the filling of key vacancies directly related to the provision of customer services. One option under consideration would involve a reduction of about ten staff in the Craigavon design section (together with slightly greater numbers in Belfast). Water Service is currently considering this and alternative options in line with business needs, the expressed wishes of staff and their career development, together with any possible differential impact in relation to Equal Opportunities taking full account of Government's commitments to TSN and PAFT concerning possible disparity of effect in community or sectional terms. You will be aware that Water Service Design Group does not provide direct services to the public. All staff under consideration are in mobile grades available for posting throughout Northern Ireland. Water Service has, at present, no staff involved in design permanently based in either Armagh or Newry and no change in this situation is envisaged.
No 389
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many posts within the Water Services were transferred to Belfast from (i) Newry, (ii) Armagh, (iii) Craigavon and (iv) elsewhere, in each of the past five years.
No Water Service posts were transferred to Belfast during the past five years with the exception of five posts transferred from Craigavon in 1995.
No 392
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many employees there were in Water Services in (i) Armagh, (ii) Craigavon and (iii) Newry and Mourne in each of the past five years.
The information requested is shown in the table.
| Armagh | Craigavon | Newry and Mourne | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 71 | 219 | 104 |
| 1993 | 65 | 230 | 101 |
| 1994 | 64 | 222 | 97 |
| 1995 | 62 | 207 | 96 |
| 1996 | 53 | 221 | 89 |
| Number | Grade | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | ||
| 2 | Administrative Assistant | Belfast |
| 1 | Administrative Officer | Belfast |
| 1 | Typist | Belfast |
| 1993 | ||
| 3 | Administrative Assistant | Belfast |
| 1 | Administrative Trainee | Belfast |
| 1 | Administrative Assistant | Cookstown |
| 1 | Administrative Officer | Belfast |
| 1 | Typist | Belfast |
| 1994 | ||
| 0 | ||
| 1995 | ||
| 2 | Administrative Assistant | Belfast |
| 1 | Typist | Belfast |
| 1996 | ||
| 1 | Administrative Assistant | Belfast |
| 1 | Administrative Officer | Belfast |
| 1 | Management Trainee | Belfast |
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 577
| Number | Grade | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | ||
| 0 | ||
| 1993 | ||
| 0 | ||
| 1994 | ||
| 1 | Grade 5 Director of Finance | Belfast |
| 3 | Grade 7 Accountant | Belfast |
| 1995 | ||
| 0 | ||
| 1996 | ||
| 1 | Staff Officer Accountant | Belfast |
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 578
4 Mar 1997 : Column: 579
No 396
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what are the projected staffing levels in Water Services in (i) Armagh, (ii) Craigavon, (iii) Newry and (iv) Belfast, for the next three years.
Water Service staffing levels currently under review include scientific services, design services and administrative support for operational services. The outcome of these reviews will not be known for some months. It is not, therefore, possible to provide the detailed information requested for these locations at this time. When concluded the outcome of these reviews will, however, if significant changes are involved, be communicated to elected representatives. Staffing matters are regularly the subject of trade union consultation
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