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Departmental Expenditure
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what has been the total expenditure and the breakdown of expenditure in her Department since May 1997 on (a) public opinion research, (b) television, radio and newspaper advertising and (c) direct mail. [63919]
Clare Short: Since May 1997 the Department for International Development has spent:
- (a) around £43,000 on public opinion research; and
- (b) around £1.2 million on recruitment advertising in newspapers and journals.
- (c) No expenditure on direct mail.
Multilateral Development Projects
Mr. Howard: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she has taken to ensure that multilateral development projects make full use of the skills of United Kingdom business. [63543]
Clare Short: We work with the Department of Trade and Industry's Development Business Team, which has specific responsibility to help UK business secure trade opportunities from multilateral development projects. DFID staff ensure that DTI has access to good information about the pipeline and strategies of the multilateral organisations.
British firms do well from multilateral procurement. For example, in fiscal year 1996, British firms secured contracts worth around £458 million from the World Bank, over twice the amount of the British government's annual contribution to the Bank in that year.
PRIME MINISTER
Devolution
Mr. Wigley: To ask the Prime Minister where responsibility will lie for determining what programmes and bodies will be ultra-vires for the purpose of UK-wide funding after the establishment of the National Assembly for Wales and the Scottish Parliament; and if he will make a statement. [63659]
The Prime Minister: Under the terms of the Scotland Act 1998 and the Government of Wales Act 1998, Scottish Ministers and the National Assembly for Wales will assume responsibility for a range of functions which will depend, in part, on secondary legislation which has yet to be passed.
In the case of Scotland, Government Departments are reviewing their programmes in the light of the Scotland Act to determine the extent of programme expenditure which may relate to functions which will transfer to Scottish Ministers.
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In the case of the National Assembly for Wales, the Transfer of Functions Order, which was published in draft form for public consultation on 12 November, will transfer certain ministerial functions to the National Assembly for Wales. Work continues on finalising the draft Order and determining the programme expenditure which relates to those functions which will transfer.
Following devolution, the question of whether or not expenditure by UK Ministers is ultra vires will rest primarily with those Ministers acting on the advice of their Accounting Officers. In the unlikely even that there is a disagreement over whether such funding is ultra vires for UK Ministers, as defined by both primary and secondary legislation, the disagreement would usually be resolved through discussion between the relevant administrations. Failing this, the final arbiter would be the courts.
Mr. Gordon Prentice:
To ask the Prime Minister if he will review the criteria used in formulating advice on appointments to the Privy Council. [62165]
The Prime Minister:
Membership of the Privy Council is normally reserved for those who are involved in affairs of State and who have a close and confidential relationship with the Crown. In practice, this means those who have obtained high office in the executive or the judicial branches of the State either in this country or in one of the countries of which The Queen is Head of State. It follows that most new Privy Councillors are serving Ministers, Judges or Commonwealth appointments. I have no plans to review the criteria.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Attorney-General which law officers have met the Foreign Minister of Chile in the past two months; and for what purpose. [63524]
The Attorney-General:
Neither.
Fuel Duty (Northern Ireland)
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what schemes he has evaluated to assist petrol retailers in Northern Ireland to cope with differential rates of excise duty in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. [62236]
Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 3 December 1998]: The lead on this is being taken by HM Customs & Excise which, in conjunction with other authorities, including the Royal Ulster Constabulary, is acting to counter the threat posed to legitimate petrol retailers, the wider business community and the collection of revenue. While my right hon. Friend sees no grounds for specific assistance to Northern Ireland petrol retailers, some of the measures in the £315 million Economic Initiative he announced last May are likely to be directly beneficial to Northern Ireland petrol retailers. The measures included the extension of 100 per cent. capital
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allowances on expenditure by small and medium enterprises on machinery or plant used in Northern Ireland and a substantial and extensive capital investment in Northern Ireland's road network.
Mr. Blunt:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is his estimate of the length of the current economic cycle. [62439]
Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 8 December 1998]: The Pre-Budget Report (cm. 4076) reported that the economy is estimated to have been on trend in the first half of 1997 (paragraph A39), and is not assumed to reach an equivalent point until 2002 (paragraph A54, chart A4 refers).
Mr. Gerrard:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer by what area of residence, other than health authorities, statistics are collected on abortions performed by the NHS. [63606]
Ms Hewitt:
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Director of the Office for National Statistics. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Tim Holt to Mr. Neil Gerrard, dated 14 December 1998:
Mr. Edwards:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were in April the number and proportion of (a) male, (b) female and (c) all (i) full-time manual, (ii) full-time non-manual and (iii) full-time employees on adult rates earning less than (1) £181.40, (2) £241.86 and (3) £261.46 per week excluding overtime in (A) each county and unitary authority in England, (B) each unitary authority in Wales, (C) each London borough, (D) each unitary authority in Scotland, (E) Great Britain as a whole, (F) England as a whole and (G) each Government office region. [63496]
Ms Hewitt:
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Director of the Office for National Statistics. I have asked him to reply. A copy of the tables referred to will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Tim Holt to Mr. Huw Edwards, dated 14 December 1998:
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Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will list the areas of tax policy in which the Paymaster General has been involved since 2 May 1997; and if he will make a statement; [63498]
(3) what are the reasons for changes in the policy responsibilities of the Paymaster General in relation to tax matters in the last eight months; and if he will make a statement. [63497]
Mr. Gordon Brown:
I am responsible for all decisions on matters of tax policy.
Mr. Gibb:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes he plans in the responsibilities of the Paymaster General. [63511]
39. Mr. Baker:
To ask the President of the Council what progress she has made in modernising the procedures of the House. [62170]
Mrs. Beckett:
The House recently approved the Modernisation Committee's proposals on the scrutiny of European documents and will consider its report on the parliamentary calendar this Wednesday.
As Director of the Office of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your recent question on the areas for which abortion statistics are collected.
Under Section 2(2) of the Abortion Act 1967, registered medical practitioners must notify the Chief Medical Officer of every completed termination of pregnancy, and the ONS undertakes the statistical processing of the abortions data. Data is currently published at NHS Executive Regional Office level and health authority level.
As the Director of the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your recent question requesting earnings information for a range of geographical areas.
The latest available information, from New Earnings Survey (NES) April 1998, is contained in the attached tables.
I will arrange for a copy of this letter to be placed in the Library.
(2) which Minister is responsible for the review of corporate taxation; and if he will make a statement; [63499]
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