The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 1990-1997

1993Prime Minister (1990-1997)

PMQT Written Answers – 22 July 1993

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Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 22nd July 1993.

PRIME MINISTER:

 

Bermuda

Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he has had with the Bermuda Government about bringing the law on consensual sexual relations between adult men in private into line with the legislative position in Britain.

The Prime Minister : This is primarily a matter for the Government of Bermuda.

 

Ministerial Advisers

Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 18 November, Official Report, column 216, if he will publish the current list of special advisers attached to Ministers stating the Minister they work for, the date of their appointment and the name of their previous employer before their initial appointment as a special adviser attached to a Minister.

The Prime Minister [holding answer 20 July 1993] : There are currently 41 special advisers attached to Ministers. The names of the advisers, the Ministers they work for, the date of the appointment and the name of their previous employer before their initial appointment as a special adviser is as follows :

Name |Minister(s) served |Date of appointment |Previous employer

———————————————————————————————————————————————–

  1. Adams |Secretary of State for the Environment |28 May 1993 |Rt. Hon. John Gummer
  2. Barnes |Secretary of State for Social Security |3 May 1993 |Boston Consulting Group
  3. Blunt |Secretary of State for Defence |15 February 1993 |PI Political Consultants

Sir R. Braithwaite* |Prime Minister |1 June 1992 |Foreign and Commonwealth Office

  1. Burke* |Secretary of State for the Environment |10 April 1992 |Green Alliance
  2. Caine |Secretary of State for Northern Ireland |17 June 1992 |Conservative Central Office
  3. Cameron |Jointly to the three Ministers of State and |21 June 1993 |Conservative Central Office

the Under Secretary of State in the Home Office

Dr. E. Cottrell |Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food |27 May 1993 |Conservative Central Office

Dr. W. Eltis* |President of the Board of Trade |1 January 1993 |National Economic Development Office

Sir C. Foster* |Secretary of State for Transport |1 June 1992 |Coopers and Lybrand Deloitte

  1. Fraser |Minister of State for Overseas Development |10 April 1992 |Conservative Central Office
  2. Grantham |Secretary of State for Education |11 April 1992 |Westminster Briefing
  3. Gray |Jointly to the Ministers for Local |27 May 1993 |GNI Ltd.

Government and Inner Cities; Environment and Countryside and Housing and Planning

  1. Green |Prime Minister |1 June 1992 |Business Television

Professor P. Hall* |Secretary of State for Environment |27 May 1993 |University of California

Mrs. S. Hogg |Prime Minister |10 April 1992 |Daily and Sunday Telegraph

Ms S. Hole |Chief Whip |13 April 1992 |Lord Rothschild

  1. Kemp* |President of the Board of Trade |28 May 1992 |CDP Nexus Ltd.

Mrs. T. Keswick |Chancellor of the Exchequer |28 May 1993 |Cluff Investments and Trading

Mrs. E. Laing |Secretary of State for Transport |13 April 1992 |Shopping Hours Reform Council

  1. Leggett* |Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food |21 June 1993 |National Farmers Union
  2. Loehnis |Secretary of State for National Heritage |7 November 1992 |Sunday Telegraph
  3. Mackay |Secretary of State for Scotland |8 May 1992 |Pieda plc
  4. MacLay |Secretary of State for Foreign and |19 July 1993 |The European

| Commonwealth Affairs

  1. Marsh |Secretary of State for Health |21 April 1992 |Conservative Central Office

Ms S. McEwen |Chief Whip (House of Lords) |29 June 1992 |Namara Cowan Ltd.

  1. McManus |Secretary of State for Employment |28 May 1993 |Conservative Central Office

Dr. J. Nicholson* |Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster |1 September 1992 |John Nicholson Associates Ltd.

Sir I. Pearce* |Secretary of State for Transport |16 June 1992 |Richard Ellis and English Estates

Lord Poole |Prime Minister |13 May 1992 |James Capel

Mrs. K. Ramsay |Prime Minister |2 June 1992 |Conservative Central Office

  1. Rock |Home Secretary |28 May 1993 |Conservative Central Office
  2. Rosling |Prime Minister |10 April 1992 |Hanson plc
  3. Ruffley |Financial Secretary |28 May 1993 |Clifford Chance
  4. Salmon* |Secretary of State for Transport |18 January 1993 |Cuff & Co. Ltd. and Fund Holdings Ltd.
  5. Stewart |Lord President |27 April 1992 |Conservative Central Office

Lady Strathnaver |President of the Board of Trade |21 April 1992 |Haymarket Publishing Services Ltd.

  1. Swift* |Secretary of State for Transport |18 January 1993 |Barrister
  2. True |Prime Minister |10 April 1992 |Public Policy Unit
  3. Wilton |Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster |27 April 1992 |Conservative Central Office
  4. Young |Secretary of State for Scotland |8 May 1992 |-

* Special advisers fall into two categories, political and those with specialised expertise relevant to their appropriate Secretary of State. The latter are indicated by an asterisk.

 

Engagements

Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 22 July.

Sir Peter Tapsell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 22 July.

The Prime Minister : This morning, I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in this House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

 

Olympic Bid

Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister how many times (1) he has met the leaders of Manchester city council to discuss the bid to stage the Olympic games; (2) how much financial support the Government have committed to the Manchester bid to stage the Olympics; and how much money has so far been paid over.

The Prime Minister : I have met the leader of Manchester city council with other members of the bid committee three times to discuss the British Olympic bid; I launched the formal bid document with the committee at Downing street on 17 February; and I have met them informally on a number of other occasions.

Up to £75 million has been made available by the Government for the bid itself and for the construction of key facilities. Of that, some £22 million has been spent to date. If the bid is successful, the Government will ensure that all the necessary facilities are built by a mixture of private and public finances and that the funding necessary to stage and organise the games is provided.

 

Meetings

Mr. Vaz : To ask the Prime Minister when he last met (a) Sheikh Zayed of Abu Dhabi and (b) the Pakistan high commissioner to the Court of St James.

The Prime Minister : I last met Sheikh Zayed of Abu Dhabi on 25 July 1989 when I was Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. I last met the Pakistan high commissioner on 29 March this year.

 

Yugoslavia

Mr. Wareing : To ask the Prime Minister what pressures Her Majesty’s Government are putting on the Government of Bosnia-Herzegovina to attend and fully co-operate with the peace talks in Geneva; and if he will make a statement.

The Prime Minister : We are encouraging the Bosnian presidency to engage in direct negotiations with the other parties under the auspices of Lord Owen and Mr. Stoltenberg. We have repeatedly made clear that a lasting and equitable peace can be achieved only by a negotiated settlement freely agreed by all three parties. We will not accept a territorial solution for Bosnia dictated by the Serbs and Croats at the expense of the Bosnian Muslims.

 

Wild Birds

Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Prime Minister (1) what plans he has to discuss the EC directive on the conservation of wild birds at the forthcoming United Kingdom/French summit; and if he will make representations to the French Government over the fulfilment of the directive’s protection for migratory birds from netting, shooting and trapping; (2) what discussions he has had with the Prime Minister of France concerning the requirements under the EC directive on the conservation of wild birds to control the hunting and shooting of wild birds.

The Prime Minister : I am not aware of any proposals by the French Government for the amendment to the birds directive. Nor do I expect the matter to be raised at the meeting between Heads of State currently planned. There have been discussions by EC Environment Ministers on proposals by the Commission to amend annex III of the directive, but no agreement has yet been reached.

 

Security Service

Mr. Allason : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the directive circulated to former members of the security service regarding the biographer of the late Sir Dick White.

The Prime Minister : There is no authorised biographer of Sir Dick White. Although the Government have recently taken a number of significant steps towards greater openness for the security and intelligence services, they continue to attach the highest importance to maintaining the principle that members and former members of those services are under a lifelong duty of confidence to the Crown in relation to information deriving from their employment.