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TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Cosmetics (Animal Testing)

Mr. Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if the Government supports a ban on the sale of cosmetics tested on animals. [158496]

Dr. Howells [holding answer 23 April 2001]: The Government are seriously committed to ensuring the protection of animal welfare and to improving animal welfare standards. Currently the UK has a voluntary ban on animal testing for cosmetic products. The proposed 7th Amendment to the Cosmetics Directive introduces a mandatory testing ban on cosmetic products and their ingredients throughout the European Union. If adopted, it will help advance the protection of animal welfare in every member state of the European Union.

24 Apr 2001 : Column: 226W

Miners' Compensation

Mr. Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many widows are awaiting their claims to be resolved for their late husbands' mining compensation scheme for (a) Barnsley and (b) Doncaster. [158195]

Mr. Hain: To date, in the Barnsley area, as defined by the postcodes S70, S72 and S73, there are 644 claims associated with miners' widows. A bereavement award is made in cases where the death certificate cites one of the following eight qualifying descriptors: emphysema; chronic obstructive airways disease; chronic obstructive lung disease; chronic airways disease; chronic airflow limitation; chronic airflow obstruction; chronic bronchitis; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. These qualifying conditions were agreed between the Department and the solicitors representing the claimants. In Barnsley, 188 widows have received bereavement awards, totalling £1.6 million.

In the Doncaster areas, as defined by the postcodes DN1, DN3-5 and DN9, there have been 269 claims in relation to miners' widows. Of these 184 have received bereavement awards totalling £1.5 million.

Mr. Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the medical assessment rate per month is for claims that are waiting to be completed for the miners' compensation scheme for (a) Barnsley and (b) Doncaster. [158194]

Mr. Hain: Claimants are usually invited to attend an appointment to undergo the Medical Assessment Procedure, MAP, at a centre within a 25-mile radius of their residence. In the Barnsley area, as defined by the postcodes S70, S72, S73 and S75, there is a test centre serving residents and the surrounding 25-mile region. Claimants residing in Doncaster are served by centres in Huddersfield, Leeds, Mexborough, Pontefract and Sheffield. Each centre, when fully resourced with a respiratory specialist, lung function technician and administration staff, is capable of carrying out a minimum of 20 appointments per week, 40 in the case of Barnsley. The table shows the number of MAPs undertaken and appointments booked to date at each centre:

Test centre	MAPs undertaken	Appointments booked
Barnsley	523	163
Leeds	284	3
Huddersfield	37	6
Mexborough	408	181
Sheffield	443	115
Pontefract	586	214

The number of MAPs undertaken per week depends largely on the availability of respiratory specialists. Over the next three months, two new respiratory specialists working a minimum of 10 sessions per week each are scheduled to start work in Yorkshire and north-east England. Three more specialists working between six and 10 sessions per week each are also scheduled to start over this period.

24 Apr 2001 : Column: 227W

Mr. Denis Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much compensation has been paid to miners, ex-miners and miners' families in respect of chronic bronchitis and emphysema in the Wansbeck constituency. [158460]

Mr. Hain: To date, IRISC, the Department's claims handlers, have registered 2,315 claimants in the Wansbeck constituency, as defined by the postcodes NE22 and NE61-64. There have been 524 individual payments, including interims and full and final settlements, totalling £2.1 million.

Offshore Windfarms

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of United Kingdom electricity generation is expected to be represented by the offshore windfarm sites announced on 6 April. [158135]

Mr. Hain: Depending on the proportion which go ahead and their capacity, these initial projects might contribute around 1 per cent. of UK electricity generation by 2010.

Trading Standards (Test Purchases)

Mrs. Gilroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had with other Government departments on the use of children of compulsory school age in undertaking test purchasing on behalf of local authority trading standards departments during school hours; and if he will make a statement. [158494]

Dr. Howells: I have had no discussions with other Government Departments on this matter. However, as Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs I have always made it clear that the primary responsibility for avoiding illegal sales to children rests with retailers. They need to be aware of their legal obligations, and can help themselves to stay within the law by displaying notices detailing age restrictions; by asking a person's age if they have even the slightest doubt; and by being more ready to insist on seeing some form of proof of age.

Nuclear Power

Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps the Government are taking to reduce the contribution of nuclear power to generating electricity as a proportion of the United Kingdom's energy supply. [158655]

Mr. Hain [holding answer 23 April 2001]: The Government have no plans to reduce the contribution of nuclear power to the nation's electricity supply needs. Generators can continue to operate nuclear plant as long as it remains safe and economical to do so.

MOX Fuel

Mr. Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the notifications he has received from BNFL of contracts secured for the importation of irradiated MOX fuel for each of the last 10 years, in each case indicating (a) the originating company and country and (b) the quantity of material. [158412]

24 Apr 2001 : Column: 228W

Mr. Hain: BNFL provides information to DTI, as its shareholder, about the company's commercial activities, including new contracts.

Since 1990, BNFL has concluded reprocessing contracts with customers in Europe which include provision for a proportion of the fuel to be reprocessed to be MOX. The details and quantities of individual contracts are commercial matters for BNFL and its customers.

Mr. Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the applications he has received from BNFL in each of the last 10 years for the reprocessing of irradiated MOX fuel, in each case indicating (a) the originating company and country and (b) the quantity of material and the decision he has made on the application. [158413]

Mr. Hain: My Department has received no such applications. BNFL will need to satisfy the relevant regulators before reprocessing irradiated MOX.

TREASURY

Minimum Wage (Witney)

Mr. Woodward: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) employees and (b) women in Witney have had their pay increased as a result of the minimum wage. [158123]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Shaun Woodward, dated 24 April 2001:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about the number of employees and women in Witney who have had their pay increased as a result of the national minimum wage (NMW) (158123).

The Office for National Statistics has published estimates of the number of jobs paid at less than NMW rates for 1998, 1999, and 2000. These include estimates for the UK broken down by gender. These estimates are based on an improved methodology using data from the New Earnings Survey (NES) and Labour Force Survey (LFS). This methodology provides the best estimates for the number of jobs in the UK paid below low hourly rate thresholds and was developed to overcome the deficiencies inherent in using the NES and LFS separately for measuring low pay.

Estimates for the United Kingdom and Government Office Regions are posted on the National Statistics website at: www.statistics.gov.uk/nsbase/themes/labour-market/nmw-lowpay-tables.asp

Estimates for Parliamentary Constituencies of numbers of jobs paid below NMW rates are not available on the basis of the methodology applied for producing the national and regional level figures.

Agricultural Suicides

Mr. Opik: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many suicides there have been of individuals identified with the agricultural industry in each month since January 2000; and if he will make a statement. [158719]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.

24 Apr 2001 : Column: 229W

Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Lembit Opik, dated 24 April 2001:

As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question about the number of suicides of those identified with the agriculture industry in each month since January 2000 (158719).

The figures requested are not yet available. Two sets of annual mortality data are routinely released each year. Figures for deaths registered during 2000 are due to be published in May 2001. Figures for deaths which occurred during 2000 are due to be published in October 2001. For some deaths, including suicides, where the death has been referred to the coroner, there is a delay between the occurrence of the death and the subsequent registration. As a result of this delay, figures based on registration data do not provide an accurate indication of the number of suicides which occur each month.

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