| Home Page |
Column 377
Written Answers to Questions
Monday 30 April 1990
ENVIRONMENT
Civil Servants (Accommodation)
65. Mr. Beith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what recent discussions he has had about standards of accommodation for civil servants working in central London.
Mr. Chope : Guidance on standards of accommodation for civil servants in London and elsewhere is contained in the office accommodation standards code which is maintained by my Department. I have not been involved in any recent discussions on this issue.
Beaches
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will arrange for the monitoring results of all designated beaches in the European Community sampled in the summer of 1989 to be placed in the Library ;
(2) which designated bathing waters beaches in Europe under the 1976 EC directive, had a higher level of total coliforms and faecal coliforms for the 1989 season than Seaton Carew centre.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : This information is collated and published by the Commission of the European Communities, in accordance with article 13 of directive 76/160/EEC. Information in respect of United Kingdom bathing waters for the 1989 bathing season was sent to the Commission on 8 February 1990. The information is held in the House of Commons Library. The latest report published by the Commission relates to the 1987 bathing season.
Local Government Finance
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether community charge regulations enable poll tax arrears and payments to be deducted at source from the payments made to (a) non-employed trainees and (b) employed trainees ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : Where a charging authority has obtained a liability order--that is, an order under regulation 29 of the Community Charges (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1989--in respect of arrears of community charge, it may make an attachment of earnings order under regulation 32 of those regulations. Such an order requires the employer to make deductions from the debtor's earnings. For these purposes "earnings" has the meaning given in section 24 of the Attachment of Earnings Act 1971. Since an attachment of earnings order can operate only where there is an employer-employee relationship, payments made to non-employed trainees
Column 378
cannot be the subject of such an order. To the extent that the pay of employed trainees falls within the definition of "earnings" in the 1971 Act, it is attachable.Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he holds on current local authority charges in England and Wales concerning the collective community charge ; and what was the equivalent level of rates for 1989-90.
Mr. Chope : Contributors to the collective community charge are liable to pay the same amount (on a daily basis) as the amount set for the personal community charge in that area. The amounts reported to the Department for each authority's average charge for 1990-91 were placed in the Library of the House on 18 April 1990, together with a comparison with the average rate bill in 1989-90. Local authorities estimated that as at 1 December 1989 the number of people liable to contribute to the collective community charge over a full year reduced by 5 per cent. to cover the cost of collection to which the landlords are entitled was 30,000.
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to review the community charge in the light of experience and representation in respect of (a) joint and several liability and (b) second home charge where it is a second home only because it is for sale.
Mr. David Hunt : We continue to keep all aspects of local government finance policy under review. On second homes, I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Gillingham (Mr. Couchman) on 21 March, Official Report, column 658. In particular, we have prescribed that local authorities may not levy a standard charge for at least three months where a property is unoccupied and substantially unfurnished. This is similar to the arrangements under domestic rates.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his most up-to-date assessment of the numbers of local authorities in England which are charging standard community charge on empty properties at (a) the single rate, (b) the double rate, (c) zero rate, (d) 0.5 rate and (e) 1.5 rate.
Mr. Chope : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester (Mr. French) on 20 April, Official Report, column 1033.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the effect of the current levels of standard community charge levied on empty properties on (a) inter-regional labour mobility, (b) regional economic development and (c) the housing market.
Mr. Chope : We have given charging authorities the discretion to set standard charge multipliers for properties in their area at 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 or 2 times the personal community charge. We have prescribed nine categories of property in respect of which no standard charge is payable and two where the multiplier may not exceed unity. As with domestic rates, we have prescribed that no standard charge is payable in respect of unoccupied, unfurnished properties until three months after they become unoccupied. Authorities have wide discretion to specify
Column 379
additional classes of property which enables them to respond to local factors. This discretion contrasts with the lack of such discretion that existed under domestic rates.Mr. Hardy : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give such information as he has available on (a) the sums which will be received from standard community charge in each local authority in England during 1990-91 and (b) which authorities are not charging at the level of twice the personal community charge.
Mr. Chope : This information is not available.
Bulb Trade
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether his Department has obtained a copy for its library of the article, "The Bulb Trade--A Threat to Wild Plant Populations", in volume 23 of the FFPS journal, "Oryx"; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : Yes. Endangered species of bulbs are already afforded strict protection under the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (CITES). The United Kingdom plays a full and active part in the CITES plants committee and in discussions with our EC partners concerning the trade controls on bulbs. At the seventh CITES conference in 1989, we supported the addition to the appendices of the genus Galanthus (snowdrop) and were successful in proposing the addition of the genus Sternbergia (autumn daffodil), thereby ensuring the regulation of trade in these species.
Column 380
Peat
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will ban all use of peat by his Department ; whether he will formulate a national peatlands conservation policy ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : We already use alternatives to peat whenever appropriate. We will carefully consider extending their use, but it is considered premature at this stage to ban the use of peat completely.
The Government recognise the nature conservation importance of the peatlands and are aware of the concerns expressed about the effects of peat extraction on them. We believe the best way of resolving these complex issues is within the established planning and conservation framework. We shall of course take account of forthcoming advice from the Nature Conservancy Council, together with the views expressed by the voluntary conservation bodies in their "Peat Report", the horticultural industry and many others. In England and Wales, mineral planning authorities are undertaking reviews of mineral working sites and permissions under the Town and Country Planning (Minerals) Act 1981 and will be considering peat working in this context.
Pollution Inspectors
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many of Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution inspectors he expects to retire in the next year and in each of the next five years, by divisions.
Mr. Trippier : The number of inspectors reaching retirement age over the period is as follows :
Column 379
Divisions |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94 |1994-95 |1995-96
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Director |- |- |1 |- |- |-
Regulatory standards |- |- |1 |- |2 |-
East |1 |- |- |1 |1 |1
West |- |2 |- |- |1 |1
North |- |- |2 |- |- |1
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |1 |2 |4 |1 |4 |3
Sellafield
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if his Department was represented at the seminar on the environmental impact of Sellafield, held at Chilton, sponsored by the National Radiological Protection Board, on 23 March.
Mr. Trippier : My Department was represented at the seminar by the director of Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution.
Radiation
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he, or officials of his Department, have been invited to participate in, or been observers at, the sixth international standing conference on low level radiation and health, to be held at the University college of North Wales, Bangor, on 7 to 8 July.
Column 380
Mineral and Peat Extraction
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment on how many occasions since 1981 mineral planning authorities have made orders modifying the planning permission for mineral and peat extraction or requiring the use of land to be discontinued or continued subject to conditions.
Mr. Moynihan : According to our records, since 1981 no orders have been made which relate to peat extraction. Six orders have been made relating to other minerals.
Nature Conservation
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those nature conservation orders which have been made since the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 came into force ; and if he will list those applications which have been submitted by the Nature Conservancy Council to himself and been rejected.
Mr. Trippier : The number of orders made or rejected in England is as follows :
Column 381
|Made |Rejected
------------------------------------
1981 |- |-
1982 |2 |-
1983 |3 |1
1984 |4 |1
1985 |5 |2
1986 |1 |-
1987 |2 |-
1988 |- |-
1989 |6 |-
1990 |1 |-
In addition, it has been unnecessary for the Secretary of State to make an order on about 10 occasions because agreement was reached with the owner- occupier of the land concerned or the threat to the land did not materialise. Furthermore, agreement has been reached on seven occasions after the making of an order and the orders have been subsequently revoked. The responsibility for making orders in Wales and Scotland rests with the respective Secretaries of State.
Airborne Emissions
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list by year for the last five years the number of buildings that have suffered damage problems from airborne emissions of (a) lead, (b) carbon monoxide and (c) particulates.
Mr. Trippier : No case of damage to buildings from airborne emissions of lead or carbon monoxide have been reported. These substances would not be expected to damage buildings. Particulates from diesel-engined vehicles and some industrial processes can give rise to soiling of buildings especially in urban areas, but are not known to cause structural damage.
Ordnance Survey
Mr. Wood : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made in establishing Ordnance Survey as a next steps agency.
Mr. Trippier : Ordnance Survey becomes an executive agency on 1 May and Mr. Peter McMaster, a barrister and professional surveyor who is the present director general, will be its first chief executive. Ordnance Survey will continue to be a separate Government department, but as an agency it will be able to develop and expand its business on increasingly commercial lines. It will be expected to achieve progressively more demanding targets and for 1990-91 we have brought forward by one year the agency's key financial target to recover not less than 55 per cent. of the total annual cost of core activities ; this will rise to 65 per cent. by 1992-93. Other financial objectives are :
to recover at least 100 per cent. of the total cost of public sector repayment at home and overseas ;
to maximise the return on small scales and special products and recover not less than 110 per cent. of the total cost in that category.
These targets are subsumed in the principal financial target shown at paragraph (a).
For 1990-91 the performance of Ordnance Survey will be monitored by the following financial, productivity and quality of service targets which are linked to the strategic objectives set out in the framework document :
(a) to recover at least 65 per cent. of the total cost incurred by the agency ;
Column 382
(b) to survey 0.93 million house units (based on construction forecasts for major developments) so as to keep the national mapping of Great Britain up-to-date ;(c) to increase from 81,000 to 97,000 the number of basic scale maps available in digital form ;
(d) to publish on microfilm within four months, each large-scale map reaching the criteria and specification for reproduction ; (e) to dispatch within seven working days (including the day the order is received), 90 per cent. of orders for 1 : 50,000 folded maps.
The levels of delegation to the director general for capital expenditure and new information technology projects have been increased to £1 million and £2 million respectively.
Copies of the framework document have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Housing Action Trust, Sunderland
Mr. Clay : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the actual expenditure by his Department on the ballot arranged by the Electoral Reform Society in connection with the proposed housing action trust in Sunderland.
Mr. Chope : We expect the cost for conducting the ballot to be around £12,300.
Mr. Clay : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total cost of the consultation and consultants' reports to his Department in connection with the proposed housing action trust in Sunderland.
Mr. Chope : The initial consultants' report and subsequent tenant consultation exercise cost around £620,000 including VAT.
House Building Land
Mr. David Porter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to permit the release of more house building land outside the restraints of existing plans ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Moynihan : We announced last year that, in order to meet needs for low-cost housing in rural areas, planning authorities may exceptionally grant planning permission for the development of small unallocated sites which would not ordinarily be released for general housing development. We emphasised that such sites must be sensibly related to existing settlements, and that arrangements must be in place to reserve the housing in question for local needs. The full policy is set out in the draft revision of "Planning Policy Guidance Note 3 (Housing)" issued last October.
Energy Consumption
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give the target reductions for energy consumption in the buildings occupied by his Department.
Mr. Chope : The target reduction for energy consumption in my Department's buildings is 15 per cent. over the five-year period ending in April 1995.
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give the energy consumption, broken down by fuel, of the buildings occupied by his Department, for the latest year available.
Column 383
Mr. Chope : The latest estimate of energy consumption for buildings occupied by my Department for 1989-90 is :
|Consumption
------------------------------------------------------
Electricity |34,000,000 Kwh
Gas | 2,600,000 therms
Liquid Fuel | 3,300,000 litres
Solid Fuel | 70 tonnes
Empty Farm Cottages
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will fix the standard community charge on empty farm cottages in England and Wales on the same basis as that in Scotland.
Mr. David Hunt : The Government have provided that local authorities may not levy a standard charge for at least three months where properties, including farm cottages, are empty and substantially unfurnished. Local authorities have discretion to increase this period if they wish ; and to levy a standard charge of less than the maximum if they want to. This discretion has been given to authorities precisely so that they can reflect local circumstances. We will be monitoring the position closely over the next few months to see if changes are necessary for 1991-92.
Industrial Development Grants
Mr. Colin Shepherd : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list in the Official Report the grants made by his Department under section 13 of the Industrial Development Act 1982 showing the value of the grant as a percentage of the whole project cost.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : I shall write to my hon. Friend.
Owls
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the approximate number of (a) barn owls and (b) tawny owls reported found dead whose death is ascribed to collisions with traffic in 1989.
Mr. Trippier : The approximate numbers of barn owls and tawny owls reported as found dead from collisions with traffic in 1989 are 480 and 450 respectively.
Water Supply
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the operation of section 7 of the Water Supply and Sewerage Services (Customer Service Standards) Regulations 1989 (S.I., 1989, No. 1159).
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : Under regulation 7 of the Customer Service Standards Regulations domestic customers may in some circumstances be eligible to claim payments or credits against water charges of £5 per day, if their water supplies have been interrupted or cut off and not restored within specified time limits. Such payments or credits are initially a matter for the water companies. Disputes as to eligibility may be referred by either party to the Director General of Water Services.
Column 384
Water Pollution
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a further statement on the presence of carbon tetrachloride in public water supplies near the Harwell Atomic Energy Authority site.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : Thames Water Utilities has kept the Department informed of the results of monitoring for carbon tetrachloride in the water taken from its Blewbury borehole and put into public supply. Since the beginning of April the water has contained between 0.7 and 1.6 micrograms per litre which is well below the prescribed concentration of 3 micrograms per litre in the Water Quality Regulations.
Environment White Paper
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a further statement on the proposed White Paper on the environment ; and when he expects to introduce legislation on this subject.
Mr. Trippier : The White Paper on the environment will be published in the autumn and will include any proposals for further legislation.
GEC-Marconi (Toxic Gas Leak)
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has concerning the leak of toxic chemical gases from the GEC -Marconi research centre at Great Baddow, Essex, on 13 April ; and if he will instruct Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution to conduct an investigation into the incident.
Mr. Nicholls : I have been asked to reply.
Inspectors from the Health and Safety Executive have investigated the circumstances of the fire which occurred on 13 April 1990 at the GEC- Marconi research centre at Great Baddow, Essex. The exact composition of the fumes released during the fire is unknown, but I can assure the hon. Gentleman that despite media reports to the contrary no cyanide was involved.
Waste Disposal
Mr. Rost : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those bodies responsible for each of the research projects currently undertaken by his Department into waste management, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Devizes (Sir C. Morrison), 23 April, Official Report, column 2.
Mr. Trippier [holding answer 27 April 1990] : I regret that for reasons of commercial confidence I cannot associate the names of contractors with the costs for each project already given.
PRIME MINISTER
Pensioners
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Prime Minister what further steps she proposes to make additional financial provision for pensioners whose sole income is provided by their state pension.
The Prime Minister : Most such pensioners are already entitled to additional help through income support,
Column 385
housing benefit and community charge benefit. Pensioners have a higher entitlement to these benefits through the pensioner premiums, which were increased earlier this month and will continue to be reviewed annually. In addition, a special increase in the premiums made in October 1989 has given extra help totalling £200 million a year to over 2.5 million less well-off disabled and older pensioners.Birmingham Pub Bombings
Mr. Mullin : To ask the Prime Minister if the case of the Birmingham pub bombings was raised by either side during her recent meeting with the Irish Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister : The subject was not discussed.
Energy Consumption
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Prime Minister if she will give the energy consumption, broken down by fuel, of the buildings occupied by the Cabinet Office, for the latest year available.
The Prime Minister : The latest available breakdown (1988-89) of energy for accommodation occupied by the Cabinet Office is as follows :
|£
----------------------------------
Electricity |294,485.22
Gas |53,904.17
Liquid fuel |39,905.96
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Prime Minister if she will give the target reductions for energy consumption in the buildings occupied by the Cabinet Office.
The Prime Minister : The Cabinet Office target will be to achieve savings rising over five years to 15 per cent. of the current annual costs.
ANZAC Day
Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister what factors she took into account when selecting the official party to represent Britain on ANZAC Day in Turkey.
The Prime Minister : As Prime Minister of a nation which lost so many lives in the campaign, I decided that I should attend the Gallipoli ceremonies. My right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary also attended. No official invitations were issued.
Mr. Martin Galvin
Mr. Teddy Taylor : To ask the Prime Minister if she will raise at the next meeting of the European Council the decision of the Irish Government to offer Irish citizenship to Martin Galvin, who has been banned from entering the United Kingdom on security grounds, and the consequent decision of the Home Office to raise the ban on Mr. Galvin's admission because of EEC rules ; if she will invite the Council to consider the implications for the security of member states of decisions similar to that of the Irish Government ; and if she will make a statement.
The Prime Minister : I understand that Mr. Galvin was registered as a citizen of the Republic of Ireland in 1986 in accordance with that country's law. This fact was one
Column 386
factor among others in the reconsideration of the 1984 decision to exclude him from the United Kingdom. Should circumstances change materially, it will remain open to my right hon. and learned Friend to reimpose a ban as necessary. It follows that there are no grounds for raising the matter in the European Council.TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Film Production
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assistance he proposes to give to feature film production in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Forth : The Government provide support of £1.5 million a year through British Screen Finance Ltd. for feature film production, together with a further £500,000 a year for short films and script development. Our present five-year commitment to British Screen is due to expire at the end of this year, but we announced in July 1989 that funding will continue at the present level of £2 million a year for a further three years, until the end of 1993.
Baldrige National Quality Award
Mr. Sayeed : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he has any plans to institute an award for quality similar to the Baldrige national quality award in the United States of America.
Mr. Douglas Hogg : We have no such plans.
| Next Section
| Home Page |