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Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has for those local authorities which, because of a lack of development potential, are unable to secure material private sector involvement in city challenge schemes.
Mr. Portillo : All of our inner cities have development potential, as has been shown by the success of urban development grant and city grant, among other programmes. City challenge offers the opportunity for local authorities to establish effective and wide ranging partnerships with the private sector and others which draw on additional resources, and local enterprise, knowledge and imagination.
Price Fixing Cartels
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action his Department intends to take to ensure that local authorities are able to avoid becoming the victims of price fixing cartels.
Mr. Portillo : This is properly a matter for the Office of Fair Trading. Any authority which suspects that it may be the target of a price fixing cartel should report the circumstances to the Director of Fair Trading.
Flue Gas Desulphurisation
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the sites used for limestone quarrying to provide material for the flue gas desulphurisation programme ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy is responsible for consents necessary to fit flue gas
desulphurisation plants. I understand that at present, two such consents have been granted, at Ratcliffe-on Soar in Nottinghamshire and Drax in North Yorkshire. Individual sites for extraction of limestone to be used in the process have not been identified. However, my right hon. Friend has stipulated in his consents that the limestone will not be obtained from within the national
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parks. Any planning applications for limestone extraction for this purpose will, of course, be dealt with on their individual merits.Water Quality
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many people are currently supplied with water which does not comply with the standards of the EC water quality directive in (a) each region of the United Kingdom and (b) each of the other European Community countries.
Mr. Baldry : The drinking water inspectorate's report for 1990, a copy of which has been placed in the Library, showed that 99 per cent. of the 3.3 million analytical determinations made in England and Wales confirmed compliance with the relevant standard in the Water Quality Regulations, which incorporate the requirements of the EC drinking water directive and are in some respects more stringent. The report also gives information about non-compliance in individual supply zones, but statistics of the actual populations served are not readily available.
Similarly in Scotland and Northern Ireland the whole of the population receive water which complies with the overwhelming majority of the EC directive's standards. In Scotland, 391 supply zones serving a population of about 2.7 million do not at present fully comply with the standards. In most cases, non-compliance is intermittent and in respect of only one or two parameters. In Northern Ireland there is the potential for non- compliance with the aluminium standard in 39 supply zones serving a population of approximately 383,000 and a general potential for non- compliance with the iron standard because of the number of iron mains still in service.
The information requested is not available on a Community-wide basis nor, so far as we are aware, for any other member state. We hope that the standardised reporting directive, agreed by the Environment Council on 1 October, will in due course considerably increase the information available about non-compliance in other member states.
In all parts of the United Kingdom a programme of work is in place to remedy existing breaches of the standards as quickly as possible taking practicalities into account. We believe that no other member state has such a rigorous, committed and fully funded programme for compliance.
Water Abstraction
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list, in tabular form, the latest available figures for water withdrawal from (a) ground water sources and (b) surface water sources for (i) the United Kingdom and (ii) each of the other European Community countries.
Mr. Baldry : The latest available figures for water abstraction in England and Wales and the percentage that were from ground water are set out in table 7.2 (p. 98) of issue No. 13 of the "Digest of Environmental Protection and Water Statistics", HMSO, 1991. Water in Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for my right hon. Friends the respective Secretaries of State. My Department holds no comparable figures for other European Community member states.
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Municipal Waste
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list, in tabular form, the amount of municipal waste per capita produced in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) each of the other European Community countries for the latest year for which figures are available.
Mr. Baldry : Based on OECD statistics for 1989, the information is as follows :
Municipal waste produced per capita per annum Country |Tonnes ------------------------------------ United Kingdom |0.31 Republic of Ireland |0.31 Belgium |0.31 Denmark |0.47 Germany |0.32 Greece |0.31 Spain |0.32 France |0.30 Italy |0.30 Luxembourg |0.27 Netherlands |0.47 Portugal |0.23
It should be borne in mind that the term municipal waste may be defined differently by different member states.
Energy and Land Use
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has any plans to issue a draft planning policy guidance note on energy and land use.
Mr. Yeo : In the environment White Paper the Government proposed a joint Department of the Environment/Department of Transport study to look at the relationship between land use and transport and the part planning could play in reducing fuel use and carbon dioxide emissions. The study was commissioned in February this year and should be completed in May 1992. The research findings will feed into planning guidance on the relationship between energy conservation and the location of development.
The Government has published planning policy guidance note No. PPG15 about the preparation of development plans which asks planning authorities to have particular regard to the conservation of resources such as land and energy. That approach has been considerably amplified in annex A to a draft revision combining planning policy guidance notes 12 and 15, issued for public consultation on 4 September.
Draft policy guidance on renewable energy and the planning system is being prepared by officials in the Department of Energy, the Welsh Office and in my Department. I hope to issue a draft for public consultation later this year.
World Habitat Day
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what contribution Her Majesty's Government made to World Habitat Day on shelter and the human environment, on 7 October.
Mr. Baldry : A habitat day seminar was organised to focus attention on the main issues raised by rapid urbanisation in developing countries. The seminar drew
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together experts from government, aid agencies and non-government organisations. A report of the seminar proceedings will be distributed widely.Green House Programme
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total value of the bids he received from English local authorities under the 1990-91 green house programme ; and what sum he allocated.
Mr. Yeo : In 1991 the Department received £150 million worth of bids for the £10 million available in the first year of the green house programme, 1991-92. Up to £50 million is currently earmarked for the programme in 1992-93.
Water Pollution
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the progress towards reducing toxic substances in the aquatic environment by 50 per cent. by 1995.
Mr. Trippier : Good progress has been made in meeting the targets agreed at recent North sea conferences for reducing inputs to the sea of substances that are toxic, persistent and liable to
bio-accumulate. Data collected as part of an international exercise organised by the Paris Commission show the following reductions of inputs to the United Kingdom's coastal waters between 1985 and 1990 :
<
Estimates of percentage reductions of inputs of substances
to the
North sea between 1985 and 1990
|Per cent.
------------------------------------------------------------
Mercury |51
Cadmium |61
Lindane |30
Copper |28
Zinc |0 |Lead |89
I am confident that further substantial reductions will be achieved for these substances and other red list substances during the 1990s through controls on discharges by the National Rivers Authority, and through the application of integrated pollution control by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution.
Racial Attacks
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action his Department has taken in response to the recommendations in paragraphs 27 and 28 of the 1989 Home Affairs Select Committee report on racial attacks and harassment which are his responsibility ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Yeo : We agree with the Home Affairs Select Committee that local authorities should be encouraged to follow the recommendations of the racial attacks group--RAG--report and its good practice guidance on tackling racial violence and harassment in local authority housing. We sent copies of the report and the guidelines to all housing authorities in England, in July 1989.
Earlier this year we initiated research to see how far local authorities had acted on this advice. The results have been encouraging and a report has been made to the RAG which I understand that the Home Office hope to publish by the end of the year.
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The existing grounds for eviction in the Housing Act 1985 were considered adequate by the Home Affairs Committee who saw no need for separate provisions specifically concerned with racial harassment. However, we have said that if evidence should come to light that the existing law was ineffective, we would look at it again.Chlorofluorocarbons
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the scientific evidence for the impossibility of maintaining an immediate freeze in the level of CFC emissions at the 1990 level ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Trippier : The Montreal protocol, and the European regulation which implements it, control production and consumption of CFCs rather than emissions. Between 1986 and 1989 the United Kingdom cut its consumption by 50 per cent. and consumption continues to fall. CFCs are still needed in some applications where substitutes are not yet available. We will be pressing for the earliest possible phase out of CFCs and other ozone- depleting substances in the negotiations towards the 1992 protocol revision which start early next year.
Tyre Disposal
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what he assesses will be the implications for environmental protection of future programmes of tyre disposal.
Mr. Trippier : Future programmes of tyre disposal will need to meet the environmental standards set by current and forthcoming waste management legislation, including the "duty of care" regulations due to be introduced in April 1992. These regulations and other provisions of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 should lead to higher scrap tyre recycling rates.
The European Commission is also now considering scrap tyres as a "priority waste stream" and it is likely that this exercise will result in the introduction of tyre recycling targets.
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the number of obsolete tyres awaiting disposal ; and what proposals he has for their disposal.
Mr. Trippier : We have no information at present on which to base an estimate, but my Department intends to conduct a survey of local authorities shortly to assess the numbers of tyres awaiting disposal.
The Government's new environmental legislation makes the use of scrap tyres as a fuel or secondary raw material more commercially viable. As a result, the prospects for using scrap tyres productively have increased in recent years and a number of companies are now developing schemes to use tyres.
We will be monitoring the situation to see whether these initiatives make sufficient inroads into the stockpiles of used tyres or whether further action is necessary.
Mr. Graham : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps the Government are taking to ensure that carbon black waste from tyres is safely
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disposed of ; and what assessment he has made of the danger that can occur if such waste is left exposed to the environment.Mr. Baldry : Carbon black waste is released from tyres only if they are burnt. If allowed into the air it can be visually offensive, but could only be harmful to the environment if contaminated with other constituents of rubber tyres such as phenols. Incineration schemes for tyres would need appropriate gas cleansing and residue control measures and any disposal of contaminated carbon black waste to landfill would need to be properly licensed by local authorities and subject to suitable safeguards.
Organic Solvents
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the decision to set an inspection level of the use of 2 tonnes of organic solvent within a 12-month period under the pollution control regulations ; and what representations he has received seeking a lower figure at 0.25 tons.
Mr. Baldry : Under the Environmental Protection (Prescribed Processes and Substances) Regulations 1991, the new system of local authority air pollution control provided for in part I of the Environmental Protection Act will apply to road vehicle respraying processes which are likely to use two tonnes or more of organic solvents in any 12-month period. The Vehicle Builders and Repairers Association--VBRA--and 19 of its members have made representations seeking a reduction in the exemption threshold to 0.25 tonnes per year. The Department have sought further information from the VBRA, when this is to hand, my right hon. Friend will consider its representations further.
Council Tax
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what discussions he has held on the council tax and the application for section 28 of the Data Protection Act 1984 with the Data Protection Registrar ; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr. Key : Officials in my Department have had discussions with the Data Protection Registrar's office on all aspects of the council tax.
Walpole Estate, Woolwich
Mr. Cartwright : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what proposals his Department's estates action team has considered for improving the Walpole estate, Woolwich ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) whether officials from his Department's estates action team will visit the Walpole estate, Woolwich to discuss a programme of possible improvements with tenants' representatives.
Mr. Yeo : Officials from my Department's London region office visited the Walpole estate on 14 June 1991 to discuss with council officers and tenants a proposed scheme for Walpole and the adjacent Connaught estate which the London borough of Greenwich had been invited to work up for the 1991-92 estate action programme. The scheme was subsequently withdrawn by the authority. I
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understand that a more comprehensive scheme for both estates is likely to be the subject of an estate action bid in a future year. Approval would depend on the quality of the proposed scheme in competition with other bids received.Ivory
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is Her Majesty's Government's policy towards the continued ban on the export of ivory from southern African countries under the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species ; and whether Her Majesty's Government will raise the matter at the forthcoming Commonwealth conference in Harare.
Mr. Baldry : We are firmly committed to maintaining the ivory trade ban for as long as it is necessary to ensure the survival and recovery of elephant populations. The United Kingdom would not support any proposal to relax the current restrictions unless we were fully satisfied that it met the criteria established at the last conference of the parties to the convention.
This issue was not raised at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting.
Carbon Dioxide Emissions
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list, in tabular form, the latest figures available for (a) carbon dioxide emissions per unit of gross national product and (b) carbon dioxide emissions per capita in (i) the United Kingdom and (ii) each of the other OECD countries.
Mr. Trippier : Estimated carbon dioxide emissions from energy use, per unit of gross national product and per capita for OECD countries, 1989, are as follows :
|tonnes C<1> |tonnes C<1> per
|per capita |thousand US$
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Canada |5.2 |0.26
United States of America |5.9 |0.29
Japan |2.3 |0.10
Australia |4.5 |0.27
New Zealand |2.4 |0.20
Austria |2.2 |0.14
Belgium |3.4 |0.22
Denmark |3.2 |0.16
Finland |3.7 |0.16
France |2.0 |0.12
Germany |3.6 |0.23
Greece |2.3 |0.42
Iceland |2.4 |0.12
Ireland |2.3 |0.27
Italy |2.0 |0.14
Luxembourg |7.1 |0.29
Netherlands |3.6 |0.24
Norway |2.5 |0.12
Portugal |1.3 |0.29
Spain |1.6 |0.17
Sweden |2.5 |0.12
Switzerland |1.8 |0.06
Turkey |0.8 |0.54
United Kingdom |2.9 |0.20
Sources: OECD Environmental Data Compendium 1991; OECD Annual National
Accounts, Volume 1.
<1>Calculated using amount of carbon released.
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Defective Housing
Mrs. Ann Winterton : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to increase the amount of usable housing capital receipts available to Congleton borough council to enable it to proceed with the rebuilding of Airey type properties in Solly crescent, Congleton.
Mr. Key : The Local Authorities (Capital Finance) Regulations 1990 already provide for certain relaxations in the normal rules requiring a proportion of capital receipts to be set aside for debt redemption. In the case of houses that are designated as defective within the meaning of part XVI of the Housing Act 1985 the provisions allow authorities to offset the cost of the replacement dwellings against the capital receipt received from the disposal. It is for individual local authorities to determine whether their proposals meet the requirements of the regulations.
Lead Shot
Sir Hugh Rossi : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if his Department has conducted any research into the development of environmentally less damaging alternatives to lead shot ; (2) what representations he has received concerning the effects of lead shot on the environment ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : Hon. Members have raised questions in this House or have written to my right hon. Friend about the effects of lead shot on the environment. Conservation bodies have also drawn attention to lead shot poisoning of waterfowl.
My Department has not itself conducted research in this specific area but officials met recently with interested bodies to discuss the introduction of non-toxic alternatives to lead gunshot in wetland areas. A working group was established to develop proposals for a programme for introducing non- toxic shot.
Lead
Sir Hugh Rossi : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what criteria will be used to determine whether land contaminated with lead will be included in the contaminated land register ; (2) whether areas of land on which shotguns are frequently discharged will be considered for inclusion in the contaminated land register.
Mr. Trippier : Local authority registers of land which may be contaminated will be compiled in accordance with regulations under section 143 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. The regulations will specify contaminative uses of land. Consideration is being given to the inclusion of any use of land which results in its being contaminated with lead, including land used for shooting.
Green Belt
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the Government's policy towards the maintenance of the green belt.
Mr. Yeo : We remain firmly committed to the purposes of the green belt in checking unrestricted urban sprawl,
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safeguarding the surrounding countryside, preventing neighbouring towns from merging, preserving the special character of historic towns, and assisting urban regeneration. Since 1979 the extent of green belts in England has more than doubled. Policy on green belts remains as set out in planning policy guidance note 2 ; updated guidelines on redundant hospital sites are in DOE circular 12/91.Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if a public inquiry will be held in respect of the planning decision to allow factory building in the green belt at Woodlands in Bradford South ; and what account is taken in such inquiries of whether proposals depart from the relevant local authority's planning map.
Mr. Yeo : Bradford city council has referred to the Secretary of State a planning application for industrial development at Woodlands for Ramfield plc. He is considering whether to call it in for his own determination. If he decides to do so a public inquiry will be held, and he will determine the application in accordance with the development plan unless material consideration indicate otherwise.
Environmentally Friendly Buildings
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will set out in the Official Report the details of the scheme for the certification of environmentally friendly buildings launched on 23 September.
Mr. Baldry [holding answer 17 October 1991] : Two versions of the Building Research Establishment environmental assessment method for new building designs were launched on 23 September 1991. BREEAM 2/91 relates to new superstores and supermarkets ; BREEAM 3/91 relates to new housing. The assessment of a design is carried out with respect to a number of environmental issues and a certificate is given to illustrate the environmental performance of the design. This scheme is voluntary and financially self-supporting. BREEAM has been developed with sponsorship from the private sector. Further details are available from the Building Research Establishment.
Departmental Reports
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when his Department published its report "Monitoring Environmental Assessment and Planning" ; how many copies were printed on the initial print run ; and what has been the cost of production of the report.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1991] : The research report by the EIA centre, Manchester university, "Monitoring Environmental Assessment and Planning" was published by HMSO on behalf of the Department on 2 August 1991 ; a copy was placed in the Library of the House at that time. A total of 3,000 copies of the report have been printed. The printing and publishing costs are borne in full by HMSO and the costs recovered through revenue from sales.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many copies of his departmental MINIS 12 document on plans and objectives for his Department have been printed ; and where copies can be obtained by the general public.
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Mr. Heseltine [holding answer 18 October 1991] : I informed the House on 23 July 1991, Official Report column 524 , that MINIS 12 would be published on that day. Copies were placed in the Libraries of both Houses. To date, 45 sets of MINIS 12 have been printed. Members of the public can purchase copies from the Department's publications sales unit, building 1, Victoria road, South Ruislip, Middlesex, HA4 0NZ.Advisory Committee on Business and the Environment
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answers to the hon. Member for Newport, West, Official Report, 14 May, columns 67-68, (a) how many meetings of the advisory committee on business and the environment have been held, (b) on how many occasions Ministers or officials of his Department have met the committee, (c) whether the committee has produced any reports to Ministers on its work to date and (d) if he will make a statement on progress made by the committee.
Mr. Baldry [holding answer 18 October 1991] : The advisory committee on business and the environment has had two full meetings since it was established by my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State and the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in May 1991. It has also established three working groups on recycling, global warming and environmental management, each of which has met several times. My right hon. Friends and I, and other ministerial colleagues, have met members of the committee on several occasions, and our officials have done so frequently. We have received an initial report from the chairman of the committee, John Collins, to which we intend to respond shortly.
East Thames Corridor
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment in the light of experience in other areas of high development, what measures he proposes to take to ensure that any development of the east Thames corridor has adequate strategic transport infrastructure.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1991] : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment has announced his intention to commission consultants to make an appraisal of the development capacity of the east Thames corridor. They will also consider the transport implications. The consultant's findings will be considered in close liaison with the Department of Transport.
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he proposes to allow planning authorities in the south of England to revise their structure or local plans during the 1990s if there should be significant additional housebuilding in the east Thames corridor.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1991] : Local planning authorities revise their structure and local plans when they consider it appropriate to do so. Those plans need to conform with the current regional guidance.
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the scope of the study which he proposes to commission into the development possibilities of the east Thames corridor.
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Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1991] : The proposed terms of reference for the consultant's study of the east Thames corridor have been published and I am placing a copy in the Library.
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what consideration he will give to representations about the desirability of development in the east Thames corridor from local authorities and planning bodies not directly affected by any such development.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1991] : SERPLAN, which represents all the local planning authorities in the south-east region, has already made representations about the desirability of development in the east Thames corridor. The development capacity of the corridor will now be considered by consultants. In due course my right hon. Friend will issue draft revised regional planning guidance on which there will be full consultation.
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his policy regarding development in the east Thames corridor on open sites not currently earmarked for development in local plans.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1991] : It is for the local planning authorities concerned to consider, in the first instance, any proposal for development on open sites in the east Thames corridor not currently earmarked for development in local plans. In doing so they will have regard to national planning policy guidance, regional guidance, relevant policies in structure and local plans, for example on the green belt, and any other material considerations.
EMPLOYMENT
Low Pay
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will estimate the number of part-time and full-time employees earning (a) below the PAYE threshold and (b) below the national insurance contributions lower earnings limit in 1989, 1990 and 1991, respectively.
Mr. Jackson : Broad estimates, based on the new earnings survey and estimates of the number of employees in employment, are as follows :
<
Number (millions) earning less
than
April each |PAYE |National
year |threshold |insurance
|lower
|earnings limit
------------------------------------------------------------
1989 |3.5 |3
1990 |3.5 |3
1991 |3.5 |3
It is estimated around 10 per cent. of these employees are full-timers, most of whom fell below the amounts specified because their earnings were affected by absence in the survey period.
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Labour Statistics
Mr. Allen : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish the number of employees, broken down into full-timers and part- timers who are (a) under 18 years, (b) 18 years and over and (c) 21 years old and over in the following standard industrial
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classifications (i) zero to nine, (ii) one to five, (iii) two to four, (iv) six to nine, (v) zero, (vi) 43, (vii) 45, (viii) six,(ix) 64 and 65 and their subgroups, (x) 66 and its subgroups, (xi) eight, (xii) 91, (xiii) 92, (xiv) 93, (xv) 95, (xvi) 96, (xvii) 97 and (xviii) 98, respectively.Mr. Jackson : Estimates from the 1990 labour force survey, as requested, are given in the table :
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