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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 14 January 1998
WALES
Welsh Assembly
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many civil servants are currently working on the siting of the Welsh Assembly; and what has been the cost to public funds to date of work on the siting of the assembly. [20084]
Mr. Ron Davies: There are currently no civil servants working full time on the siting on the Assembly. Eight civil servants currently devote a proportion of their time to the siting of the Assembly. The cost to date of finding a site for the Assembly is included in the running cost expenditure of my department which is published in the Welsh Office Departmental Report 1997 (Cm 3615).
Cycle Spaces
Mr. Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many secure cycle spaces there are in his Department. [22682]
DEFENCE
Minimum Wage
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to seek exemptions for any of its (a) civilian and (b) military employees from the minimum wage. [22639]
Mr. George Robertson: I refer the right hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Moray (Mrs. Ewing) on 12 January 1998, Official Report, column 13.
Ulster Defence Regiment
Mr. Maginnis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what delays there have been in issuing those qualifying ex-members of the Ulster Defence Regiment with their Accumulated Service Medal; how many qualify for this medal; how many have been issued to date; and what has been the situation in respect of other UDR members who transferred to the Royal Irish Regiment. [22799]
Mr. Spellar:
The delay in issuing the Accumulated Service Medal (ACSM) to former members of the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) has been caused by the large number of applications received from all sections of the Army since the medal's introduction, and the decision to afford priority of assessment and issue to serving members of the Armed Forces. In addition, the absence of detailed records of operational duties for part-time ex-UDR/Royal Irish Regiment members has presented
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some difficulties in establishing entitlement. There has, however, been little delay in issuing medals once an individual's entitlement has been confirmed.
A total of 12,500 successful applications for the ACSM have been processed by the Army Medals Office since the commencement of Issues in January 1995, of which 4,779 ACSM's have been made to former members of the UDR, serving and ex-members of the Royal Irish Regiment. The entitlement to the medal of some 600 former UDR and Royal Irish Regiment members has still to be established, but is being reviewed expeditiously.
Cycle Spaces
Mr. Brake: To ask the President of the Board of Trade how many secure cycle spaces there are in her Department. [22675]
Mr. Nigel Griffiths: There are 21 cycle racks with capacity for 158 cycles in the Department's four buildings in the Victoria area. There is room for more racks should demand increase.
Biotechnical Inventions
Mr. Alan Clark: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action the Government intend to take on the EU Directive, Legal Protection of Biotechnological Inventions; and what amendments they propose in respect of its provisions on the patentability of the human body. [22728]
Mr. Ian McCartney: The Government recently joined other Member States in supporting a Common Position which was reached by the Internal Market Council on 27 November 1997. The Common Position includes a provision which excludes the human body, at the various stages of its formation and development, from patentability. This provision fully reflects the views of the European Parliament, and the Government did not seek to amend the text.
The Common Position will now be sent to the European Parliament for second reading.
New Statesman and Society
Mr. Redwood: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action her Department is taking to ensure accounts for the New Statesman and Society are filed. [22344]
Mrs. Beckett [holding answer 12 January 1998]: The Registrar of Companies has responsibility under the Companies Acts 1985 and 1989 for ensuring that up-to-date information on limited companies is available for public inspection.
In line with normal procedures, a letter was sent on 16 December to New Statesman Limited at its registered office warning of the consequences of continued default and requesting that overdue accounts be delivered within one month. Should the company not comply, formal warnings of prosecution proceedings will be sent to the directors.
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Mr. Redwood:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade in what circumstances her Department prosecutes directors of companies in respect of a failure to file accounts on time if the director for the trading period concerned has resigned. [22347]
Mrs. Beckett
[holding answer 12 January 1998]: In line with the guidance issued by the Attorney-General in his "Code For Crown Prosecutors", Companies House institutes criminal proceedings against directors who fail to comply with the disclosure requirements of the Companies Acts 1985 and 1989.
The aim of these proceedings is to secure compliance and, as a general rule, prosecution would not normally take place against a former director who would no longer be able to influence the company's affairs and would, therefore, not be capable of remedying a default.
It is possible, however, to depart from these general rules where there is an indication that a director has resigned purely to avoid compliance or conviction.
Mr. Redwood:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade in what circumstances her Department grants an extension for the filing of accounts; and what actions her Department takes to ensure that accounts are filed on time. [22348]
Mrs. Beckett
[holding answer 12 January 1998]: Short extensions to the time allowed for the delivery of accounts to the Registrar are granted by Companies House, on a discretionary basis, where the reasons for the delay can be demonstrated to be unforeseen and outside the control of the company and its auditors. Applications for such extensions are considered on their merits.
As far as compliance is concerned, the Registrar reminds all companies of the requirement to deliver accounts to him, prior to the date when accounts fall due to be delivered. This is followed up by a further series of reminders once the accounts are overdue. Continued failure to deliver accounts may render the directors liable for prosecution. In addition, where accounts are filed late, the company is subject to a civil late filing penalty. Specific guidance is also provided to assist first time directors to become more aware of their statutory obligations to deliver accounts and adhere to their statutory filing responsibilities.
Mr. Chaytor:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to her answer of 10 December 1997, Official Report, column 548, if she will list the international experts consulted since 1988 in the review of measures to protect against terrorist activity directed at nuclear materials in transit; and if she will list the research her Department has evaluated on this subject. [22300]
Mr. Battle
[holding answer 12 January 1998]: In accordance with the requirements of the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, government security experts co-operate, exchange information and consult directly with experts in other governments so as to ensure that nuclear material in international transportation is protected adequately and effectively. All
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relevant available information is reviewed on a case by case basis before movements of sensitive quantities of nuclear material.
Mr. Chaytor:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade if the United Kingdom representatives on the informal group on guidelines for the management of plutonium proposed that details of plutonium isotopic quality be included in section 9 on nuclear material accountancy and control in the report on the guidelines recently placed in the Library. [22285]
Mr. Battle
[holding answer 12 January 1998]: In many respects the guidelines represents a reaffirmation of existing obligations and commitments. Section 9 concerning nuclear material accountancy and control is a case in point and accords with the provisions in the participating countries' respective safeguards agreements with the IAEA and, in the case of the United Kingdom, France Germany and Belgium, Euratom. The inclusion in the guidelines of details of plutonium isotopic quality would not have been consistent with these agreements which, with one minor exception, do not distinguish between plutonium of different isotopic composition.
Mr. Yeo:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade when she will announce the outcome of her review of Renewable Energy. [22290]
Mr. Battle
[holding answer 12 January 1998]: I am expecting an interdepartmental review group to present me with a number of policy options shortly. I will then need to consult with colleagues, and perhaps with industry and other interested parties, before announcing the outcome of the review as soon as possible this year.
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