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Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will detail the community charge
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liability of a carer who resides part-time in his other home and the remainder of the time in the home of the persons being cared for when the homes are in different boroughs ; whether he will make the necessary arrangements to ensure that the carer pays only the equivalent of one poll tax however that is distributed between the two boroughs concerned ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. David Hunt : My right hon. Friend intends to bring forward regulations providing for a separate class of standard charge property. The new class will include property which is unoccupied as a result of a person receiving care because of illness or infirmity, and will enable relief from the standard charge to be given in respect of such property. The precise details of the relief will be the subject of consultation in due course.
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether an individual (i) receiving and (ii) applying for severe disablement allowance will be exempt from the poll tax ; whether any doctor can declare a person eligible as required for severe disablement allowance ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : Individuals in receipt of severe disablement allowance will be exempt from the personal community charge if they satisfy the definition of severely mentally impaired persons set out in schedule 1 of the Local Government Finance Act 1988. Details of the procedure to be followed to qualify for the exemption are set out in practice note 19, copies of which have been available from the Library of the House since 10 May.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list for each charging authority area, attributing grant income received by precepting authorities under the current grant system to each area in proportion to the aggregate of rateable values in that area (a) the estimated rate support grant for 1989-90, (b) the estimated amount of revenue support grant which would have been payable in 1989-90 under the proposed new grant system, had the system been in its first year of operation in 1989-90 within full safety nets and assuming needs assessment at 1989-90 grant-related expenditure levels, (c) the estimated amount of revenue grant payable in 1989-90 under the proposed new grant system after the end of safety nets and assuming needs assessment at 1989-90 grant- related expenditure levels, (d) the difference between (a) and (b) , (e) the difference between (a) and (c) , and (f) the difference between (b) and (c) , showing aggregates for each figure for each class of charging authority and for each region, showing inner London, outer London and the rest of the south east separately.
Mr. David Hunt [holding answer 26 July 1989] : A table giving the information requested has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list for each charging authority area, attributing business rate income received by precepting authorities under the current system to each area in proportion to the aggregate of rateable values in that area (a) the estimated revenue from the non-domestic rate in 1989-90, (b) the estimated amount which would have been raised in revenue by the national non-domestic rate in 1989-90 after the end of transitional arrangements and assuming rateable values at current levels, (c) the
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amount which would have been paid from the national non-domestic rating pool to each area in 1989-90, (d) the difference between (a) and (b) , (e) the difference between (b) and (c) and (f) the difference between (a) and (c) showing aggregates for each figure for each class of charging authority and for each region, showing inner London, outer London and the rest of the south-east separately.Mr. David Hunt [holding answer 26 July 1989] : A table giving the information requested has been placed in the Library. For the purpose of illustration, it is assumed that the national non-domestic rate multiplier is set to raise the same level of income as under the present system.
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance he has given to community charge registration officers on possible penalties and actions against individuals for non-payment of the poll tax in England and Wales; and if he will list these.
Mr. David Hunt : Guidance on recovery and enforcement of the community charge has been prepared jointly by the Government and the local authority associations in practice note No. 15 which we intend to distribute to local authorities next week. Copies of the document are available in the Library of the House.
The practice note lists the measures currently available for the enforcement of domestic rates, explains how these are to be applied to community charges, and gives details of additional remedies available to charging authorities through magistrates' courts.
Yorkshire and Humberside (Heritage and Culture)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has for further promoting Yorkshire and Humberside heritage and culture.
Mr. David Hunt : We shall continue to promote the conservation, preservation and presentation of the heritage in all regions through funding and support to English Heritage, the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and a wide range of national and regional voluntary heritage organisations.
Hertfordshire Groundwork Trust
Mr. David Evans : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much grant was paid by the Countryside Commission to the Hertfordshire Groundwork Trust; whether the grant required his approval; and what monitoring of the use made of the grant is undertaken by (a) his Department or (b) the Countryside Commission.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : In 1988-89 the Countryside Commission paid £7,728 to the Hertfordshire Groundwork Trust by way of grants under the provisions of section 9 of the Local Government Act 1974. The grants did not require the approval of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment. Applications for grant in the current financial year are still under consideration.
Letting Statistics
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the number of dwellings available for letting in each year since 1970 in the
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private and public sectors, respectively, in total and as a proportion of the housing stock : if he will give a regional breakdown ; and what is his estimate of the proportion in France, Germany and Italy.Mr. Chope : The available information has been placed in the Library.
Housing Associations
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many (a) houses and (b) flats were built by housing associations in the last year for which figures are available.
Mr. Chope : It is estimated that in 1988 housing associations completed 1,900 new houses and 7,200 new flats.
Sheltered Housing
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many sheltered and very sheltered housing units were started and completed in the last financial year by (a) the public sector, (b) housing associations and (c) the private sector other than housing associations.
Mr. Chope : Numbers of new sheltered dwellings started and completed by sector appear in table 1.5 of "Housing and Construction Statistics part 1, No. 37", a copy of which is in the Library. Information about very sheltered housing is not available.
Housing (Young People)
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many single person flats suitable for young adults were built in the last financial year in (a) the public, (b) the private and (c) housing association sectors ; and what information he has on the availability of such accommodation nationally and regionally.
Mr. Chope : Housebuilding statistics are not classified in this way. However, regional and national estimates of completions of new one-bedroom flats appear in table 6.8(a) of "Housing and Construction Statistics 1977- 1987". For recent quarters, the percentages of new flats with one bedroom (excluding housing association completions) appear in table 1.6 of the quarterly publication "Housing and Construction Statistics. Part 1, No. 37". Copies of both publications are in the Library.
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is considering legislation to place a responsibility on local authorities to house single young persons, and to make adequate resources available to local authorities for the new build required.
Mr. Chope : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment is reviewing the homelessness legislation and hopes to announce conclusions soon.
Housing (Capital Resources)
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will give an account of capital resources available to the Yorkshire and Humberside region from the Government for housing purposes for each year from 1979 to 1989 ;
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(2) if he will give an account of capital resources available to Wakefield metropolitan district council, from the Government for housing purposes for each year from 1979 to 1989.Mr. Chope : The information requested is listed in the table. Since 1981-82 local authorities have been able to supplement their allocations by expenditure financed by capital receipts. Nationally, two thirds of local authorities' spending power on housing in 1989-90 is expected to come from capital receipts.
Total housing investment programme allocations
£ thousands
|Wakefield |Yorkshire and Humberside
|region
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1979-80 |16,577 |216,000
1980-81 |13,459 |190,027
1981-82 |10,177 |168,366
1982-83 |15,367 |214,813
1983-84 |11,267 |210,798
1984-85 |10,026 |166,769
1985-86 |8,474 |140,326
1986-87 |7,136 |125,312
1987-88 |7,897 |125,103
1988-89 |7,654 |123,706
1989-90<1> |4,683 |91,372
<1> Allocations issued to date.
Winget Houses
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made in establishing an agreed method of repair for Winget-type houses.
Mr. Chope : None. Under the housing defects legislation, if reinstatement is not likely to be economic or feasible, assistance will be by repurchase.
Housing Improvement Grant
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what studies he has carried out on the cost-effectiveness of (a) means- testing of individual applicants for housing improvement grants and (b) the present system of block grants.
Mr. Chope : Provision has been made in the Department's research programme to monitor the effectiveness of both means-tested renovation grants and block repair schemes.
Water Disconnections
Mr. Boswell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the number of disconnections for non-payment in the year to April 1989 for each of the water authorities and statutory water companies in England and Wales.
Mr. Howard : The information requested by my hon. Friend regarding the English water authorities and statutory water companies is contained in the following table. Any request for information on the Welsh water authority, the Chester waterworks company and the Wrexham and East Denbighshire water company should be adressed to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.
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Disconnections in 1988-89
(Domestic and non-domestic)
|1988-89
------------------------------------
Authorities
Anglian |1,880
Northumbrian |870
North West |779
Severn Trent |1,101
Southern |1,354
South West |100
Thames |935
Wessex |73
Yorkshire |999
Water companies
Bournemouth |13
Bristol |108
Cambridge |177
Cholderton |n/a
Colne Valley |141
East Anglia |16
Eastbourne |10
East Surrey |120
East Worcestershire |15
Essex |1,109
Folkestone |120
Hartlepool |120
Lee Valley |420
Mid Kent |20
Mid Sussex |20
Mid Southern |573
Newcastle |558
North Surrey |110
Portsmouth |n/a
Rickmansworth |126
South Staffordshire |1,790
Sunderland |70
Sutton District |11
Tendering Hundred |30
West Hampshire |110
West Kent |0
York |79
n/a-Not available.
Environmental Assessments
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what information, including baseline data, other than that submitted by the developer he has when determining whether environmental assessment is required ; and if he will make public all the information used in determining whether or not environmental assessment is required for schedule 2 projects ;
(2) what matters other than those referred to in general terms in paragraphs 18-29 and appendix A of circular 15/88 have been taken into account when determining whether environmental assessment is required for schedule 2 projects ; and if he will give details of variations and the reasons therefore ;
(3) what variations there have been, and on what basis, in adherence to the numerical criteria and thresholds in appendix A of circular 15/88 when directing whether environmental assessment is required.
Mr. Moynihan : Environmental assessment is required for any projects of the types listed in schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (Assessment of Environmental Effects) Regulations 1988 which are likely to have significant environmental effects. Whether or not any particular project is likely to have significant effects so that environmental assessment is required is a matter of judgment from case to case. In exercising that judgment for the purpose of directing whether or not environmental
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assessment is required for any particular case the Secretary of State takes account of relevant information in his possession about the nature, size and location of the project and will if appropriate seek further information from the developer, the local planning authority or others with information in their possession. The Secretary of State has regard to the general guidance in DoE circular 15/88. That guidance, however, is indicative in nature and does not obviate the need for a judgment to be made in each case. The guidance in circular 15/88 will be amended or augmented from time to time in the light of the decisions which have been made. However, such amendment has not been necessary so far.Compulsory Purchase Payments
Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) whether he will extend entitlement to farm loss payments to those displaced from only part of a holding ; and whether he proposes to give effect to the proposals relating to farm loss payments in the Green Paper, "Land Compensation and Compulsory Purchase Legislation", dated March 1989 ;
(2) whether he will introduce an additional allowance payable when land is compulsorily purchased to compensate for the factor of compulsion, as proposed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors ;
(3) whether he will introduce legislation in the next parliamentary Session to simplify and strengthen the compensation code for compulsory acquisition.
Mr. Moynihan : We are at present considering the responses to the consultation paper on land compensation and compulsory purchase legislation dated 7 March 1987 with a view to introducing legislation as soon as the parliamentary timetable permits. In this context we are also considering the recommendations in the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' memorandum on compensation for compulsory acquisition, including its proposal for an additional allowance to compensate for the factor of compulsion.
Clearance (Market Value)
Mr. Gerald Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will give effect to the proposal in the Green Paper, "Home Improvement--A New Approach", dated May 1985, that the arrangements for compensating those affected by clearance should be simplified and in future that all owners will be entitled to market value as of right.
Mr. Chope : Part IV of schedule 8 to the Local Government and Housing Bill contains provisions repealing the existing measures relating to compensation for unfit housing which is compulsorily acquired. The effect of this is that compensation for housing in clearance areas will be assessed in the same way as for any other compulsory acquistion, and owners will qualify for market value compensation.
Statutory Instruments
Dr. David Clark : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment for each of the last five parliamentary Sessions including the 1988-89 Session, if he will list the number of Statutory Instruments that were issued by his Department ; how many were negative and how many affirmative ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Patten : The following is the information requested by the hon. Member as to the number of statutory instruments issued by my Department :
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Parliamentary session |Number issued |Negative |Affirmative
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1984-85
(6 November 1984 to 30 October 1985) |186 |85 |5
1985-86
6 November 1985 to 7 November 1986) |159 |94 |8
1986-87
(12 November 1986 to 15 May 1987) |82 |46 |4
1987-88
(25 June 1987 to 15 November 1988) |131 |90 |10
1988-89
(22 November 1988 to date) |130 |87 |6
Note:
In each case the balance represents those instruments, chiefly orders changing parish boundaries, which are subject neither to
the affirmative nor to the negative procedure.
Pollution
Mr. Roberts : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list in the Official Report the appeals under section 10 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 currently under consideration by his Department ; and if he will indicate the dates such appeals were first lodged and indicate when decisions will be reached.
Mrs Virginia Bottomley : Following is the list of appeals currently under consideration showing the dates they were first lodged. Decisions are issued as quickly as possible bearing in mind the detailed technical nature of the issues involved, the need for full information and to provide for exchange of representations between the parties.
|Date
---------------------------------------------------------------
Seal Sands |26 June 1984
Soothill Brickworks |11 January 1985
Empire Brickworks (4) |8 September 1986
East Tilbury Marshes |26 March 1987
Bradleys Sand Pit |28 May 1987
Aveley Clay Pit |10 July 1987
Auckland Road |21 July 1987
Charleston Road |10 August 1987
Gilbey Road |7 September 1987
Cabbage Hill |12 November 1987
Warren Vale |24 November 1987
Old Railway Cutting |7 December 1987
Unit 3, Hartlepool |7 December 1987
Springwell Hill |9 December 1987
Norwood Industrial Estate |3 February 1988
Florence Not Mine |2 June 1988
Whinfield Farm |23 June 1988
Mummery's Copse |27 June 1988
Springwell Hill |1 August 1988
Disused Railway Cutting |4 August 1988
Calf Fallow Farm |11 August 1988
Unit 10, Edderbridge |19 August 1988
Redbournbury Plant |24 November 1988
Grazebrook Industrial Estate |6 January 1989
Leabrook Road |10 January 1989
Butterley Hole |6 February 1989
Bakers Hole |8 March 1989
Martin Earles Pit (2) |8 March 1989
140 Moss Lane |13 March 1989
Grazebrook Industrial Estate |4 May 1989
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Ministerial Cars (Washing)
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what recent instructions have been given about the washing of ministerial cars ; how many and which have been washed since his appeal to car owners to desist from washing their cars ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : Washing of Ministers' cars ceased from midday on 24 July.
The ban will stay in force until the London water shortage eases, except in circumstances where the safety of the vehicle would be adversely affeced.
Shooting Rights
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment why he has forbidden the Nature Conservancy Council from (a) acquiring shooting rights in the process of setting up nature reserves, and (b) giving grants to other bodies for purchasing lands which carry the shooting rights ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : In considering land purchase proposals whether from themselves or by grant aid to NGOs, the NCC and the Government are agreed that traditional rights over uses of the land should be interfered with only when that use is incompatible with the interests of conservation.
African Elephants
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to offer compensation and assistance to those east African countries which approve the transfer of African elephants to appendix I of CITES ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : We do not propose to consider offering compensation to East African countries which support the transfer of the African elephant to appendix I of CITES. Elephants can be of greater financial value to these countries as living tourist attractions than when killed for their ivory. We remain ready to discuss with African Governments further ways of helping them to conserve their wildlife resources, including elephants.
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Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations have been received from ivory dealers in Hong Kong relating to the timetable for transfer of African elephants to appendix I of CITES ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The Government have received several letters from representatives of the Hong Kong ivory trade about the implications of the proposal to transfer the African elephant to Appendix I of CITES. These issues will be considered by the forthcoming conference of the parties to CITES.
Sir George Young : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will announce the outcome of his consultations on his proposal to establish a London pensions fund.
Mr. David Hunt : My right hon. Friend has now considered all the representations made on his proposal to transfer the superannuation fund and associated func-tions, rights and liabilities which the London residuary body (LRB) inherited on the abolition of the former Greater London council to a new corporate body, the London pensions fund, on 1 April 1990.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment has decided, in the light of these consultations, to lay before Paliament an order providing for the establishment of the new London pensions fund, a corporate body with a membership of between seven and 11 members appointed by him. As previously proposed it would have an independent chairman with the remaining board members being drawn equally from London local government and independent sources. The London local authorities via their associations are being invited to put forward recommendations for the initial board appointments from London local government and to establish a voluntary consultative committee which my right hon. Friend might consult over future appointments to the board. The proposal to retain existing ILEA contributors in the fund has also been preserved.
It is intended that the LPF should come into corporate existence on 31 October 1989, to allow time for it to prepare for its new responsibilities, and my right hon. Friend will shortly be consulting the London boroughs, including the City, and other interested parties on the text of the draft order.
Audit Commission
Mr. Wood : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what changes are proposed to the structure of the Audit Commission and the procedures for appointing commissioners when the remit of the Commission is extended to the Health Service.
Mr. Chris Patten : The Government propose to increase the size of the Commission from 13 to 17 members to 15 to 20 members when its remit is extended to the Health Service. All members, including the chairman and deputy chairman, would be appointed jointly by my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and me. It is also intended to amend the existing statutory requirement to provide that in future we should be required before making an appointment to consult such persons and bodies as we think fit. We would of course, continue to consult the local authority associations, the
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accountancy bodies, the CBI and the TUC, as now. The Government intend to seek the necessary statutory provision for these changes in the proposed legislation on the reform of the Health Service.Uniform Business Rate
Mr. Gwilym Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has completed his consideration of the representations received in response to the consultation paper issued on 15 February on the Government's proposed transitional arrangements for the new uniform business rate ; whether he has any further information about the likely effects of the 1990 revaluation of business properties ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chris Patten : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I received some 150 initial responses to the consultation paper and further representations from all the major business organisations. We have considered them carefully, and have decided to make a number of modifications to the proposed transitional arrangements.
We believe that our proposals achieve a satisfactory balance in the transitional period, with long overdue reductions in rates being realised as quickly as is consistent with the need to provide adequate protection for businesses which must bear increases. We intend therefore to proceed with our proposals to limit the year-on-year changes resulting from the introduction of the uniform business rate and the non-domestic revaluation. For businesses which in 1990-91 will have larger bills in real terms than in 1989-90, the ceiling will be 20 per cent. in real terms for larger businesses and 15 per cent. for smaller ones as we proposed. But, in the light of representations received, we have concluded that the threshold of rateable value below which this lower ceiling will apply should be doubled to £15,000 in London and £10,000 elsewhere. For businesses which in 1990-91 will have smaller bills in real terms than in 1989-90, we estimate that the annual limits on reductions will be about 15 per cent. for businesses with rateable values below the revised threshold and about 10 per cent. for those with rateable values above the revised threshold. The precise figures for reductions will be calculated, once we have fuller information about the revaluation being undertaken by the Inland Revenue valuation office, so as to allow the limits to be set as high as possible consistent with the requirement that reductions must balance the cost of protection for those facing increases, so that the total yield of rates from the private sector and the nationalised industries remains broadly the same in real terms. Over 75 per cent. of all businesses will benefit from the more generous rateable value threshold. At the same time, we propose to raise the de minimis threshold, below which transitional arrangements will not apply, from a new rateable value of £200 to £500 for all properties, except for advertising hereditaments which will not be subject to any limit.
As proposed, properties first occupied after 1 April 1990 will not benefit from the transitional arrangements. Furthermore, for consistency with these proposals generally, we have decided that transitional protection for those facing increases should apply only to those who occupy property as at 31 March 1990 and continue to do so after that date. If a property changes hands on or after 1 April 1990, the new occupier will pay any increase due in full.
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Reduction in rate bills will continue to be subject to annual limits, however, whether or not there is a change of occupier. We propose to give effect to the transitional arrangements by way of legislative amendments which will be introduced into the Local Government and Housing Bill after the recess.I am also placing in the Library today a copy of the latest sample survey by the Inland Revenue of the combined effects of the 1990 revaluation and the introduction of a uniform business rate. This incorporates the results of a large number of actual revaluations. In general the survey confirms the results published with the consultation paper on 15 February. The new sample suggests that on average values after revaluation will be 7.7 times the current average rateable value for non-domestic properties in England, and 7.8 times in Wales ; that the poundage, in 1989-90 prices, is expected to be in the range of 32 to 36p in England, compared with a locally set average poundage of some 258p in 1989-90, and in the range 34 to 38p in Wales compared with an average 1989-90 poundage of around 283p ; and that the new arrangements, once the transition is complete, will reduce the rate burden or businesses in the north and midlands by about £1 billion.
Limestone Mines
Mr. Cran : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what consideration he has given to the second report of the black country limestone advisory panel on "A Strategy for Limestone Mines" ; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr. Moynihan : I have considered the second report of the black country limestone advisory panel and have taken into account the views expressed by the local authorities in the black country and Shropshire and by private sector financial institutions. Earlier this year my hon. Friend the former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Mr. Trippier), met the chairman and members of the panel to discuss the issues raised by this report.
The Government welcome and endorse the strategy as proposed by the panel. They agree that overall priority should be given to action to protect public safety and that the protection of existing property and the potential for new development or re-development are important considerations. To that end, they will continue to give high priority to funding investigations of the limestone mines and to remedial action where it is appropriate and represents value for money. Over £20 million has already been spent under the derelict land grant provisions and a further £6 million will be spent in 1989-90. I understand that the first two targets established by the panel, for completion of initial desk appraisals and of investigations to establish the physical condition of a mine, are well on the way to being met. Only at the completion of these stages can the implications of the limestone problems be understood in their entirety and only then can a definitive programme of action to resolve the problems be established. I am, therefore, asking the panel to keep me informed on a regular basis on progress with investigations and proposals for remedial action so that the programme can be kept under review.
It is important to recognise, however, that the amounts of money involved, while they cannot as yet be precisely
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defined, are substantial. The timetable proposed by the panel may therefore need to be extended in view of the many competing demands for the limited resources which are available. It must also be recognised that it will not be possible to treat every individual mine immediately the need for treatment is identified. Following the panel's strategy, however, would enable all concerned to know what action would be taken, how priorities would be assessed and when they could expect the problems to be resolved. This should assist in removing a great deal of the uncertainty which has existed to date. Given these constraints, it would seem reasonable to suggest that it should be possible to resolve the bulk of the limestone problems in the west midlands by the middle to late 1990s.However, resolution of the problems does not necessarily mean complete in- filling of every mine, as has been recognised by the panel in its report. There may well be cases where the most cost-effective solution will be to repair any damage caused by subsidence as and when it occurs. In such cases, the Government would look to both local authorities and the private sector to work together with central Government as outlined in the Secretary of State's response to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Mr. Shepherd) of 6 April 1987. I believe that such a co-operative response, taken with the Government's endorsement of the panel's strategy, should go a long way in restoring confidence in the area and relieving the understandable concern that has arisen due to the presence of old limestone mine workings and the threat of subsidence that they pose.
Maidenhead Sewage Plant (Discharges)
Dr. Glyn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he has taken to ensure that the relaxation of standards for discharged effluent, proposed by Thames water authority, for the Maidenhead sewage plant, is adequate in terms of public health standards ; and how long he anticipates this temporary relaxation will continue before being replaced by permanent measures.
Mr. Howard : I will write to my hon. Friend.
Mr. J. A. Reeves
Mrs. Roe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will ensure that an urgent reply is given to the letter of 24 July from the hon. Member for Broxbourne concerning the future pension of Mr. J. A. Reeves, an employee of Thames water authority.
Mr. Howard : I will write to my hon. Friend.
London Residuary Body (Properties)
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give details of the 65 applications by the London residuary body to his Department for consent to dispose of properties by means of voluntary sales to licensee occupiers at discounted prices.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : I will write to the hon. Member.
Nature Reserve (Sheffield)
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what consideration he has given to the proposals by the Yorkshire water authority (a) to create
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a nature reserve at Blackburn meadows in Sheffield and (b) to do this through specified leasing arrangements ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Howard : I will write to the hon. Member.
Asset Sales
Mr. Lewis : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what arrangements exist for the public to inspect details of asset sales by the residuary bodies.
Mr. David Hunt : Section 79 of the Local Government Act 1985 provides for local electors to inspect residuary bodies' accounts and documents relating to them. Details of individual sale transactions are, however, matters for the vendor and purchaser and therefore commercially confidential.
Broadwater Lake, Harefield
Mr. Shersby : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information his Department has concerning any undertakings given by those concerned when gravel was extracted from what is now known as Broadwater lake, Harefield, in the London borough of Hillingdon, concerning its refilling and re-instatement as agricultural land ; what representations he has received to the effect that the lake should not now be refilled ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope [holding answer 26 July 1989] : A condition attached to the planning permission requires the site to be refilled. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has received representations from my hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge about a change in the restoration proposals for the site. The enforcement or modification of conditions attached to a planning permission is, in the first instance, a matter for the local planning authority's consideration.
Sports and Leisure Facilities
Dr. Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will list in the Official Report the individuals and organisations who have responded to the draft order on the Local Government Act 1988 (Competition in Sports and Leisure Facilities) ; and if he will place copies of responses in the Library ; (2) when he will lay before Parliament the Local Government Act 1988 (Competition in Sports and Leisure Facilities) Order ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chris Patten [holding answer 26 July 1989] : The Local Government (Competition in Sports and Leisure Facilities) Order will be laid later this year. The individuals and organisations which have responded to my Department on the draft order are listed as follows. I am sending the hon. Member a copy of their responses. Further copies are available from my Department's library.
Local authority organisations
Association of District Councils
London Boroughs Association
Association of Metropolitan Authorities
Local Authorities
Leicester City Council
Congleton Borough Council
Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council
Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council
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