Mr Frank Hooley: asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will strengthen the training component of the youth training scheme.
Mr Frank Hooley: Is the Minister aware that the youth training scheme is a confidence trick—a pretence that 400,000 boys and girls now in the dole queue will have a future under this Government? Is it not true that while the Government pursue their economic policies there is no useful future for them?
Mr Frank Hooley: I am rather puzzled. My impression was that the money came from what is called the Community's own resources. If that is so, how can it additionally be a charge on our aid programme?
Mr Frank Hooley: asked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the latest estimated Government funding of wind, wave, solar and tidal power, respectively, in 1983–84.
Mr Frank Hooley: Bearing in mind that the much-trumpeted 15 GW nuclear power programme announced three and a half years ago has not even commenced, would it not have been wiser to concentrate effort on renewable resources than to squander effort and money on the programme?
Mr Frank Hooley: Will the right hon. Gentleman say whether the new 15 GW nuclear power programme that we heard about three and a half years ago will take as long to implement as the previous programme, which dates back to the early 1960s and has still not been completed?
Mr Frank Hooley: asked the Lord President of the Council if he will make a statement in response to the recent report of the Select Committee on House of Commons (Services) about future accommodation of Members and staff at the House.
Mr Frank Hooley: Does the Lord President agree that this is a constructive and helpful report? If, after the election, he becomes the shadow Leader of the House, will he give us an assurance that he will give it his full support on behalf of his party?
Mr Frank Hooley: asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the cost of air defences of the Falkland Islands in 1983–84.
Mr Frank Hooley: Does the Minister agree that to pour £800 million into the peat bogs of the Falklands to build yet another airfield would be a grotesque waste of taxpayers' money? Is it not time that the Foreign Secretary got on with some sensible negotiations?
Mr Frank Hooley: asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the trend since 1979 in the balance of taxation as between the taxation of personal incomes and the taxation of companies and corporations and the corporate bodies.
Mr Frank Hooley: Is the Minister aware that that is not a reply to my question? He talked about parallel trends, whereas I asked for the balance between the two trends. Will he confirm that the balance has shifted against the individual taxpayer, which is further evidence of the Conservative party's failure to honour pledges that it made before the general election?
Mr Frank Hooley: If the so-called open-ended subsidy is such an appalling phenomenon, why does every other country happily tolerate it?
Mr Frank Hooley: Might not the position be that if a person prepares himself in no way for education he will qualify for an award, but that if he prepares himself he will be disqualified?
Mr Frank Hooley: And Trident.
Mr Frank Hooley: The Government are reaping the fruits of their folly in introducing full cost overseas student fees. At one time, one of the glories of the academic world was that it regarded itself as international and did not take much account of national frontiers. At one time a student could go to Oxford, Paris, Bologna or Prague universities and be part of the fraternity. He did not have to take account...
Mr Frank Hooley: The number of students may have increased at one institution — I cannot dispute that without looking at the figures— but the fact remains that it was the sharp reaction of Malaysia among others that induced the Foreign Office suddenly to look at this problem with new urgency and to decide that something had to be done. If the hon. Gentleman's argument is correct, he must explain why...
Mr Frank Hooley: A student who has put in three years' ordinary residence according to the Scarman definition before 1 September 1982 must be given a mandatory award for 1982–83 if he is otherwise qualified. That is, if he has the three years and is otherwise qualified, he must have the award for 1982–83. I am not sure whether the award will be for the length of his course or just for one year. That is a...
Mr Frank Hooley: That is a help. As I understand it, if the student has had his ordinary residence as per Scarman for three years before 1 September 1982, he must be given a mandatory award for 1982–83 and the remainder of his course if he is otherwise qualified, in accordance with the other regulations. Similarly, a student who has put in three years' ordinary residence according to the Scarman judgment...
Mr Frank Hooley: That is a serious difficulty and it was rehearsed by my hon. Friend the Member for Derby, North (Mr. Whitehead). Without the regulations it is difficult to see where we are going. I should have thought that the Minister could at least have produced an outline along the lines I suggested, subject to the ultimate production of the detailed regulations. There may be problems with the regulations...
