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Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to take further powers to prevent undue pressure on tenants of a local authority in relation to their right to determine whether to transfer to alternative landlords ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : My right hon. Friend has no plans to do so. Although some local authorities have sought to dissuade public sector tenants from pursuing their statutory rights under tenants' choice unbiased information and advice is already available to tenants from the Housing Corporation. Next week I will be launching a series of four explanatory videos which the corporation will be ready to show to interested tenants' groups.
Mr. Conway : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what proportion of expenditure by Shrewsbury and Atcham and Shropshire county council will be raised by the uniform business rate ; and what were the Government's original estimates if councils had kept to spending guidelines ;
(2) what proportion of expenditure by Shrewsbury and Atcham and Shrophire county council will be raised by the community charge for the area ; and what were the Government's original estimates if councils had kept to spending guidelines.
Mr. Chope : Business rates formed 36 per cent. and community charges 41 per cent. of the income required to finance Shrewsbury and Atcham district council's demand and its share (23 per cent.) of Shropshire county council's aggregate precepts. Had the authorities spent at the level of their standard spending assessments, the proportions would have been 38 per cent. and 37 per cent. respectively. Charge yield is gross of community charge benefits and transitional relief grant.
Mr. Ian Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what discretion is given to local authorities to vary the level of community charge in those areas where the cost of some local services is borne directly by local residents.
Mr. Chope [holding answer 23 April 1990] : Authorities have no discretion to vary the level of community charge in those areas where the cost of some local services is borne directly by local residents, but they can vary the level of charge so that their special expenses are borne only by those charge payers of the area to which the expenses relate. An authority may treat the following as its special expenses :
--the expenses of meeting a levy or special levy issued to it ;
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--the expenses incurred by it in performing in a part of its area a function performed elsewhere in its area by a body with power to issue a levy or special levy to it, provided that it has also resolved to treat the expenses of meeting that levy or special levy as its "special expenses" ;--expenditure which it incurs in performing in a part of its area a function performed elsewhere in its area by the sub-Treasurer of the Inner Temple, the under-treasurer of the Middle Temple, a parish or community council or the chairman of a parish meeting ;
--expenditure relating to a property held in trust for part of its area.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish details of (a) the amount of staff time and (b) the total cost of recent exercises by his Department attempting to exemplify systems of local government finance favoured by the opposition parties.
Mr. Portillo [holding answer 8 May 1990] : When hon. Members table questions asking for exemplifications of different systems of local government finance, these are provided when the costs of doing so are not disproportionate bearing in mind the normal guidelines for preparing answers to parliamentary questions.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of local authority revenue expenditure in 1990-91 will be met by (i) central Government grant, (ii) national non-domestic rate, and (iii) poll tax expressed both in £ million and percentage terms.
Mr. Portillo [holding answer 8 May 1990] : The figures for England are :
|£ million|per cent. --------------------------------------------------------- Government grants |19,700 |48 National non-domestic rate |10,700 |26 Community charges |10,400 |26
The above table understates central Government support, as it excludes community charge rebates, and other grants outside aggregate Exchequer finance. If these amounts are included within Government grants the figures are :
|£ million|per cent. --------------------------------------------------------- Government grants |19,700 |48 National non-domestic rate |10,700 |26 Community charges |10,400 |26
Sir Richard Body : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether a seaman is exempt from the community charge if his period of service on board a ship is continuous for eight months or amounts to a total of eight months in a year.
Mr. Portillo : In the first instance, this is a matter for the community charges registration officer for the area in which the seaman lives. It is open to any charge payer to appeal to his local valuation and community charge tribunal against a decision by his registration officer.
Mr. Adley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those English local authorities which have offered single household payment arrangements to householders for payment of the community charge ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Chope : My Department does not hold this information, but I understand that many local authorities are offering this arrangement.Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he or officials of his Department have been invited to participate in the seminar "Dealing with Waste : the Emerging Regulatory Framework" organised by the Centre for International Environmental Law, to be held in London on 5 June.
Mr. Trippier : Officials have received an invitation, but I regret that, owing to other commitments, it is not possible for the Department to supply a speaker on this occasion.
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what amount, in 1990 prices, was spent to promote the right to buy in England and Wales in each full year of operation.
Mr. Chope : Expenditure incurred by the Department on specific publicity to draw the attention of tenants in England and Wales to their right to buy their homes is set out in the table, at 1989-90 prices :
|£ thousands ------------------------------------ 1980-81 |1,109 1981-82 |369 1982-83 |121 1983-84 |- 1984-85 |1,710 1985-86 |373 1986-87 |805 1987-88 |29 1988-89 |80 1989-90 |-
In addition, costs have been incurred on the on-going projects of printing the booklet "Your right to buy your home", and in distributing the video "Buying your council home" ; in 1989-90, these are estimated at about £66,000.
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to introduce regulations relating to the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : The Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989 makes provision for the registration of carriers of controlled waste and extends the powers available to regulation authorities to deal with vehicles used in the illegal disposal of waste. The registration of carriers is closely related to the new duty of care in the Environmental Protection Bill and the 1989 amendment Act as a whole will greatly assist the deterrence, detection and prosecution of fly-tippers. It is our intention to implement all of the measures in the 1989 Act at the earliest possible date. The regulations necessary to bring the Act into force are therefore being prepared and will be issued for consultation as soon as possible.
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Mr. David Nicholson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the implementation of the Housing Act 1988.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The Housing Act 1988 laid the foundations for a revitalised independent rented sector and enabled an expansion of housing association activity using private finance. It gave public sector tenants new opportunities to choose their landlord or become home owners, and required local authorities to make annual reports to their tenants on their housing management performance. The main effects have been as follows :
(a) there are clear indications of a revival of activity in the private rented market : some £480 million has so far been invested in rented property under the business expansion scheme, which should produce an additional 8,000 homes for letting ;
(b) new grant arrangements for housing associations were introduced in April 1989. Massive increases in public funding, together with the growing use of private loan finance, should come close to doubling the annual output of new housing association homes by 1992-93 ; (
(c) the introduction of tenants' choice has already had an important effect on local housing authorities' attitudes to, and readiness to communicate with, their tenants, and the Housing Corporation is helping many tenants' groups up and down the country to explore the new opportunities now available to them ;
(d) tenants of public sector housing designed or adapted for disabled people have been able to exercise the right to buy and tenants have made good use of a new sanction against reluctant or inefficient landlords who delay sales ;
(e) local authorities have used their new power to pay cash incentives to help existing tenants to buy homes of their own and so release vacancies for reletting to homeless families : 44 authorities had schemes approved in 1989-90, and in the current year 80 schemes have been approved with the potential to release 2,555 homes.
Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how many tenants' choice transfers of housing stock have been agreed under the Housing Act 1989 ; and where they are located ;
(2) how many tenants' choice transfers of housing stock have been attempted unsuccessfully under the Housing Act 1985 ; and where they are located ;
(3) how many tenants' choice transfers of housing stock have been attempted unsuccessfully under the Housing Act 1988 ; and where they are located ;
(4) how many tenants' choice transfers under the Housing Act 1988 are pending.
Mr. Michael Spicer : The term "tenants' choice", is used to refer only to transfers of housing stock under part IV of the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. One formal application has been made to acquire property under those provisions, on the Walterton and Elgin estate, Westminster. That application is still in progress.
Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many transfers of housing stock have been made made under the Housing Act 1985 ; and where they are located.
Mr. Michael Spicer : Sections 32 and 43 of the Housing Act 1985 give powers to local authorities to dispose of
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housing and housing land and relate to a wide range of disposals. Where a disposal takes place under a general consent, the authority is under no obligation to inform the Department that the disposal has taken place.Among the disposals to which consent has been given under these powers are voluntary transfers by five authorities of most or all of their housing. The authorities are : Broadland district council ; Chiltern district council ; Newbury district council ; Sevenoaks district council ; and Swale borough council.
Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many transfers under the Housing Act 1985 are pending.
Mr. Michael Spicer : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is currently considering six applications from local authorities to transfer tenanted housing to new landlords.
Mr. Onslow : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the National Rivers Authority has told his Department which 20 rivers in England and Wales it is giving priority to investigating, in order to formulate solutions to low flows during the summer months ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : The Department would not expect to be involved in the detail of the National Rivers Authority's work on this or other of its statutory responsibilities until the authority was in a position to put forward specific proposals. I am sure, however, that the authority would be happy to provide my right hon. Friend with the information he requires.
Mr. Soley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is planning to discontinue the system of revision of bench mark levels in the British Isles.
Mr. Trippier : Bench marks established by Ordnance Survey in Great Britain are maintained at predetermined levels which are dependent on the type of terrain and degree of land development. Levelling policy is kept under periodic review.
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to the answer of 30 April, Official Report, column 383, if he will give the expenditure on energy consumption, broken down by fuel, of the buildings occupied by his Department for the latest year available.
Mr. Chope : The latest estimate of expenditure on energy for buildings occupied by my Department for 1989-90 is :
|£ -------------------------------- Electricity |1,593,562 Gas |831,377 Liquid Fuel |362,696 Solid Fuel |4,003
Mr. Mans : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has reached a decision about the scheme proposed by the North West water company to discharge sewage via a long sea outfall into the Lune deep.
Mr. Trippier : The Secretary of State has given careful consideration to the applications submitted by the then North West water authority, to the representations received and to the benefits of the proposed scheme. He has also had regard to his policy announcement on 5 March that all substantial discharges of sewage should be treated. In the light of these considerations, he has decided not to give his consent to the proposed scheme which does not incorporate treatment and where there is no guarantee that a suitable site for a treatment works will become available. Letters have gone today to the North West Water plc and to the National Rivers Authority informing them of this decision. All those who made representations about this scheme will be informed in due course.
Mr. Harris : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has reached a decision about the scheme proposed by the South West water company to discharge sewage via a long sea outfall into the sea at Gwithian.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : The Secretary of State has given careful consideration to the applications submitted by the then South West water authority, to the representations received and to the benefits of the proposed scheme. He has also had regard to his policy announcement on 5 March that all substantial discharges of sewage should be treated. In the light of these considerations he has decided that he can give his consent to the proposed scheme on the conditions that it be modified to incorporate primary treatment and that there must be scope for the addition of secondary treatment later should this prove necessary. Letters have gone today to South West Water plc and to the National Rivers Authority informing them of this decision. All those who made representations about this scheme will be informed in due course.
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to ensure that the unclean areas within the Members' Tea Room are properly and urgently cleaned ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope [holding answer 3 May 1990] : Discussions are taking place about possible changes in the arrangements for cleaning the Members' Tea Room.
Mr. John Garrett : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will take steps to extend the conditions for the payment of war pensions which apply to the widows of officers to the widows of other ranks.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The basic condition for entitlement to a war widows pension, namely, that the husband's death was due to or substantially hastened by service in the armed forces, applies to the widows of officers and the widows of other ranks alike.
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The hon. Member may be referring to the different provisions which apply to the widows of officers and those of other ranks if they remarry. All war widows pensions cease on remarriage and the widows of other ranks receive a gratuity equal to one year's pension. The widow of an officer does not receive a gratuity but, if she is widowed again, her war widows pension may be restored in whole or in part, subject to her other income. These long-standing provisions have been discussed with organisations representing the interests of war widows, with a view to change, but no consensus emerged on what that change should be.Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to the answer of 30 April, Official Report, column 419, if he will give the expenditure on energy consumption, broken down by fuel, of the buildings occupied by his Department, for the latest year available.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The latest available figures are for the financial year 1988-89. The division of the administration of Department of Health and Social Security was not completed at that time and the figures therefore reflect the cost of consumption of both Departments.
|£ million -------------------------------- Gas |2.78 Electricity |6.51 Solid fuel |0.27 Liquid fuel |0.41
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he has assessed the effect of erythropoletic porphyria on the mobility of children ;
(2) if he will widen the criteria for mobility allowance so as to include those unable to walk in daylight because of the disorder congenital erythropoletic porphyria.
Mr. Scott [holding answers 3 May 1990] : We are aware of the recent representations made on behalf of a child suffering from this disorder. Apart from the recent extension we have made to deaf-blind people, the current criteria for award of mobility allowance do not provide for people who are able to walk but are restricted in the extent to which they can use this ability. We have no current plans to extend these criteria to meet the effects of particular disorders. I have written to the right hon. Member about the particular case which I believe underlies his concern.
Mr. Devlin : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what value for money savings have been achieved by his Department in the last year ; and how much of this was as a result of advice from the Central Unit on Purchasing.
Mr. David Hunt : In the year 1989-90 the Welsh Office expenditure on purchasing totalled £155 million against
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which it achieved value for money savings of £14.4 million. It is not possible to attribute particular value for money savings to advice from the Central Unit on Purchasing. The role of the unit is to provide advice and guidance on best purchasing practice ; it provides overall support and guidance and encourages value for money across all Departments.Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when the Gwynedd health authority last provided his Department with strategic plans concerning Health Service provision in the Caernarfon area ; and at what date he expects updated plans to be made available to him.
Mr. Grist : Gwynedd health authority submitted its last service-wide strategic plan to the Welsh Office in 1986. It is currently proposed to ask health authorities to submit their next long-term plans by December 1991.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether the chairman of Gwynedd health authority has informed him as to whether revenue resources provided by the Welsh Office to that authority, are adequate for the maintenance of current standards of health care by that authority in Gwynedd ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Grist : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply which I gave to him on Wednesday 9 May which indicated that neither my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State nor his predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Worcester (Mr. Walker), had received any recent representations from the chairman of the Gwynedd health authority concering the adequacy of that authority's current level of revenue provision.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether any changes have been instituted following the report of Welsh Office consultants on the financial position of Gwynedd health authority in September 1987, concerning the budgetary control procedures of that authority ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Grist : Gwynedd health authority's budgetary control procedures, along with those of all other health authorities in Wales, were examined by the statutory auditor during the course of his 1987-88 audit round. The auditor found that the criticisms of such procedures as had been made previously by Deloitte Haskins and Sells in its 1987 report on the authority's financial position were being addressed and, in keeping remedial action under review, he did not find cause to report on progress during his 1988-89 audit round. Indeed, I would expect all of the weaknesses in the authority's control procedures that were identified in 1987 to have been remedied by now, particularly since my right hon. Friend's predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Worcester (Mr. Walker) wrote to all DHA chairmen in 1989 stressing the need for strict budgetary control and received an assurance from each chairman that this need was well appreciated. However, the apparent further deterioration in Gwynedd health authority's financial position during 1989-90 suggests that action taken to date by the authority to restore budgetary control has not been sufficient. My right hon. Friend and I therefore await the findings of the further study by Coopers and Lybrand, Deloitte which has recently been commissioned by the authority together with
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any further reports which the statutory auditor may choose to issue during the course of his current audit round.Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish the names of those appointed by him to the Gwynedd health authority currently serving on that authority ; and, for each member, what was the date of appointment and the date on which the appointment terminates or comes up for re-appointment.
Mr. Grist : The information requested is as follows :
|Date current |Date current |appointment made|appointment |expires ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mrs. N. L. Edwards CBE (Chairman) |1 August 1986 |31 July 1990 Dr. J. B. T. Griffiths |22 August 1986 |31 July 1990 Mr. G. Hulse |19 August 1988 |31 July 1992 Mr. G. W. Jones |1 August 1986 |31 July 1990 Dr. J. H. Jones |1 August 1988 |31 July 1992 Mr. R. H. P. Oliver |1 August 1988 |31 July 1992 Lt. Col. Prescott Walker |1 August 1986 |31 July 1990 Lady Jane Stanley |1 August 1986 |31 July 1990 Mr. T. Thomas |19 August 1988 |31 July 1992 Mrs. M. P. Wiliam |1 August 1986 |31 July 1990 Mr. J. L. Williams |1 August 1988 |31 July 1992
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he has given the Gwynedd health authority permission to plan a reduction in services to the public during 1990-91 involving increasing hospital waiting lists ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Grist : The permission of my right hon. Friend is not required for planned changes in health services solely on the basis that they might affect hospital waiting lists.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish a table showing for each of the past 10 years the expenditure funded by his Department for current account spending of Gwynedd health authority in terms of (a) current money figures and (b) constant money figures.
Mr. Grist : The information requested is shown in the table :
Revenue charge against cash limit |At outturn |At constant |prices |1988-89 prices |(£000) |(£000)<1> ------------------------------------------------------------ 1979-80 |23,169 |43,602 1980-81 |30,153 |47,949 1981-82 |34,023 |49,277 1982-83 |37,212 |50,267 1983-84 |39,146 |50,522 1984-85 |44,250 |54,407 1985-86 |47,794 |55,775 1986-87 |49,903 |56,323 1987-88 |55,841 |59,818 1988-89 |62,637 |62,637 <1>Outturn prices adjusted by reference to the gross domestic product index of general inflation. Source: Health authority annual accounts.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether Welsh Office approval was sought or needed by Gwynedd healh authority for the reduction in services in the Arfon area caused by the reduction of four nursing posts in the Arfon unit community service ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Grist : No approval was needed or sought.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list, by items, the proposed annual revenue savings of the action plan proposed by Welsh Office consultants in September 1987 for cost reduction by Gwynedd health authority ; and for the last recent available date what is the extent to which each of these items has been achieved or will be achieved in the financial year 1990-91.
Mr. Grist : I shall write to the hon. Gentleman and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will take steps under the default powers of section 85 of the National Health Service Act 1977 to remove every nominated member of Gwynedd health authority from their office in favour of new appointees.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he is satisfied that the Gwynedd health authority acted within its statutory powers and responsibilities during the financial year 1989-90.
Mr. Grist : I have no reason to believe that the Gwynedd health authority did not act within its statutory powers and
responsibilities, but in common with all other health authorities in Wales the authority will be subjected to an annual review of its performance in 1989-90 conducted by the executive committee of the health policy board.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he still accepts the report of Deloitte Haskins and Sells, on the financial position of the Gwynedd health authority, as the guiding document for the financial restructuring of the Gwynedd health authority ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Grist : The action plan aimed at bringing the Gwynedd health authority back into financial balance which was drawn up by the general manager of the authority early in 1988 with the help of the management consultants, Deloitte Haskins and Sells remains the agreed strategy for the financial restructuring of the authority. However, in the light of the apparent further deterioration in its financial position, the authority, with some Welsh Office financial assistance, has re-engaged the consultants to help review the situation, to identify whatever further action is necessary to restore financial balance, and to produce a pathfinder business plan for the contractual provision of services from 1 April 1991.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish a table for each of the district health authorities in Wales showing how much (a) capital work was funded from revenue and (b) revenue work was funded from capital receipts, for each of the past five years.
Mr. Grist : The information requested is set out in the following table and relates to the virement exercised by district health authorities between their discretionary capital and revenue allocations :
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£ million 1985-86 1986-87 1987-88 1988-89 1989-90 District Health |Capital |Revenue |Capital |Revenue |Capital |Revenue |Capital |Revenue |Capital |Revenue Authority |to |to |to |to |to |to |to |to |to |to |revenue<1> |capital |revenue<1> |capital |revenue<1> |capital |revenue<1> |capital |revenue<1> |capital ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Clwyd |- |1.200 |1.000 |1.936 |- |1.150 |- |1.450 |0.044 |- East Dyfed |- |0.250 |- |- |- |- |0.147 |- |- |1.700 Gwent |0.125 |0.391 |- |1.994 |- |2.050 |0.150 |1.889 |1.230 |0.021 Gwynedd |0.142 |- |0.170 |- |- |0.392 |0.019 |- |1.350 |- Mid Glamorgan |2.280 |0.434 |0.960 |- |0.988 |- |0.254 |- |- |- Pembrokeshire |0.126 |0.748 |- |0.815 |- |1.250 |- |1.170 |- |0.970 Powys |- |0.100 |- |0.289 |0.087 |0.070 |- |0.053 |- |- South Glamorgan |0.269 |2.045 |0.400 |2.456 |- |1.397 |1.355 |0.231 |1.916 |3.458 West Glamorgan |- |3.625 |- |5.148 |- |4.000 |- |3.956 |- |2.976 <1> It is not possible to identify separately, revenue work funded from capital receipts. The information provided relates to the totality of DHAs' discretionary capital allocations and receipts.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish a table showing for each of the past five years the level of capital expenditure of each of the nine district health authorities in Wales.
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Mr. Grist : The information requested is shown in the following table :
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