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Human Rights in Foreign Policy

International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW)

Tropical Forests

Twelfth World Trade Union Congress, November 1990

WFTU : New Wine in Old Bottles

UNCED 1992 : The United Kingdom Approach

TRANSPORT

Harbour Revision Orders

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his reply of 7 November, Official Report, columns 189-90, if he will name the further two applications for harbour revision orders for which the authorisation of specific works projects fell within annex 11 to Council directive 85/337/EEC, indicating in respect of each with whom he consulted and what procedure he adopted before deciding that an environmental impact assessment was not necessary.

Mr. McLoughlin : The two other applications for harbour revision orders which fell to be considered within annex II to Council directive 85/337/EEC were in respect of Portsmouth Flathouse quay and Portsmouth Mile End quay. In both cases this Department consulted the Department of the Environment about the need for an environmental assessment and they in turn consulted the former Nature Conservancy Council to establish whether the project was likely to have any impact on the SSSI at Portsmouth. In neither case was any significant environmental implication identified, and, having regard to the scale and location of the proposed works, no environmental assessment was called for by the Secretary of State.

Trust Ports

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which trust ports have included environmental objectives in their objectives of sale under the privatisation process.

Mr. McLoughlin : The Medway ports authority has included in their objectives for sale the following objectives :

"consultation procedures with local authorities and environmental bodies will be maintained.

"The Authority would wish to see the continuance of existing environmental and conservation protection."

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of the trust ports which have submitted schemes for privatisation contain sites of special scientific interest or other recognised designation within their harbour limits.

Mr. McLoughlin : The Tees and Hartlepool port authority, the Medway ports authority, and the Clyde ports authority have sites of special scientific interest within their harbour limits.

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport further to his answer of 7 November, Official Report, columns 189-90, which of the 35 applications for harbour revision orders since 1988 contain SSSIs or other similar designation within their harbour limits.

Mr. McLoughlin : The information cannot be provided in the form requested except at disproportionate cost.

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However, there are SSSIs and areas with similar designations in the vicinity of the following harbours which have applied for harbour revision orders since3 August 1988 :

Bristol

Colliestone

Great Yarmouth

Harwich (Parkestone Quay)

Heysham

Langstone

Manchester Ship Canal

Medway

Newport (Gwent)

Portsmouth

Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will place in the Library in respect of each trust port seeking privatisation a copy of the objectives on the sale as agreed between him and the authority.

Mr. McLoughlin [holding answer 12 November 1991] : Yes.

South Circular Road

Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what investigations there have been into the safety of the South Circular road at its junction with Lancaster avenue and Rosendale road, London SE21.

Mr. Chope : As part of a backlog inherited from Lambeth council, the previous trunk road agents, our consultant agents for the A205 south circular road are currently undertaking safety studies at both the Lancaster avenue and the Rosendale road junctions. We expect a report with recommendations for appropriate action to be received early in the new year.

Oxleas Wood

Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the EC first suggested that the road proposed for Oxleas wood did not meet the environmental requirements of EC directives.

Mr. Chope : The Commission wrote to the Government in October 1989 about a complaint that it had received alleging that the United Kingdom had not complied with the European directive 85/337/EEC on environmental assessment in respect of the east London river crossing. A response was made to the Commission in December 1989. This directive is concerned with procedures that member states are required to follow to ensure that the environmental effects of certain projects are assessed. The environmental merits of the east London river crossing are not at issue. That, as the Commission fully recognises, is for the United Kingdom Government to determine.

Association of County Councils Report

Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations his Department has had with the Association of County Councils over the contents of their report, "Towards a Sustainable Transport Policy", launched on 7 November.

Mr. McLoughlin : My right hon. and learned Friend has written to the Association of County Councils welcoming the report as a contribution to the increasingly important debate on how we should respond to the continuing

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growth in demand for travel, both in urban areas and between them. We look forward to working together with the Association of County Councils and the other local authority associations in improving the measures available to deal with the country's transport needs.

Hot Air Balloons

Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what restrictions are imposed on the flight of hot air balloons over built-up areas ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. McLoughlin : Rule 5, paragraph (1)(a) of the Rules of the Air Regulations 1991 provides that an aircraft--a term which includes a hot air balloon--

"shall not fly over any congested area of a city, town or settlement below (i) such height as would enable the aircraft to alight clear of the area and without danger to persons or property on the surface, in the event of failure of a power unit ; or (ii) a height of 1,500 feet above the highest fixed object within 2,000 feet of the aircraft : whichever is the higher".

The term "congested area" is defined in article 106 of the Air Navigation Order 1989

"in relation to a city, town or settlement"

as being

"any area which is substantially used for residential, industrial, commercial or recreational purposes".

Traffic Calming

Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has any plans to clarify the law on the application of traffic calming measures.

Mr. Chope : If road humps conform to the Road Hump Regulations 1990, then they are legal. A clarifying power in the Road Traffic Act 1991 places it beyond doubt that, additionally, the Secretary of State has the power to authorise humps on roads including those subject to30 mph speed limits or less.

We have been considering the extent to which changes in the law are needed to clarify the powers to provide other traffic calming measures. Amending legislation will be sought at the earliest convenient opportunity.

Trunk Roads

Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will list the trunk road schemes in the United Kingdom for which environmental impact assessments have been prepared under EC directive 85/337/EEC since it came into force on 21 July 1988 ; (2) if he will list the trunk road schemes for which draft line orders have been published since 21 July 1988, but which he deemed did not require environmental impact assessment under EC directive 85/337/88.

Mr. Chope : All schemes in the national programme have for many years been subject to a very full environmental appraisal. An environmental statement has been published in respect of the following schemes :

A1 Alconbury to Peterborough

A5 Little Brickhill Bypass

A6 Clapham Bypass

A10 Wadesmill High Cross and Colliers End Bypass

A11 Roudham Heath to Attleborough

A11 Besthorpe to Wymondham

A11 Four Wentways to Newmarket

A41 Aston Clinton Bypass

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A47 Walpole Highway to Tilney High End

A47 East Dereham to North Tuddenham

A47 Norwich Southern Bypass (Keswick Section and Trowse Newton) A140 Scole Bypass

A428 Bedford Southern Bypass

M1-A1 Link (Re-alignment of Naseby--Sibertoft Supplementary Order) M25 Junctions 15-16 Widening from Dual 2-4 Lanes

M40 Widening : junctions 4-5 Buckinghamshire

A6 Great Glen Bypass

A6 Rushden and Higham Ferrers Bypass

A16 Spalding to Sutterton Improvement

A17 Leadenham Bypass

A43 Silverstone Bypass

A46 Leicester Western Bypass

A564 Stoke-Derby Link Derby Southern Bypass

A564 Foston Hatton Hilton

A13/A117 Junction Improvement

A13 West of Heathway-Wennington--Mar Dyke

A406 ELRC Proposed Design changes (A13-A2016)

A406 Gunnersbury Avenue Improvement

A406 Golders Green Road/Brent Street Junction Improvement A406 Bounds Green to Green Lanes Improvement

M1 Junction 1 Improvement

M1 Widening : Junction 9 Northbound

M5 Widening Warndon-Strensham Junctions 6-8

A167 Durham Western Bypass

A590 Dalton-in-Furness Bypass

A66 Stainmore to Banksgate

A500 Basford/Hough/Shavington

M56 Widening Junctions 4-6

M6 Widening Between Junctions 20 and 21A

M6 Widening and Improvements Junctions 30 to 32

M62 Widening Junctions 14-17

M62 Widening Junctions 17-18

M65 Bamber Bridge-Whitebirk Section (Blackburn Southern

Bypass)

M66 Manchester Outer Ring Road Denton--Middleton

(A576-M62)

M66 Manchester Outer Ring Road Denton--Middleton

(M67-A576)

A3 Milford Bypass

A23 Pease Pottage-Handcross

A27 Crossbush Bypass

A27 Patching Junction Improvement

A27 Westhampnett Bypass

A34 Newbury Bypass--Andover Road Junction

A249 Iwade Bypass

A249--M2 Bobbing Improvement

A249 Brielle Way

A249 Stockbury--Sheerness

A259 Brookland Diversion

M20 Improvement Junctions 5-8 (Maidstone Bypass)

A30 Okehampton--Launceston Improvement

A30 Shallowater Hill Improvement

A30/A39 Indian Queens, Fraddon and St. Columb Road

Bypasses

A31 Ashley Heath Grade Separated Junction

A35 Tolpuddle Puddletown

A39 Wadebridge Bypass

A417 Brockworth Bypass

A419 Latton Bypass

Batheaston/Swainswick Bypass and A36 Link

M5 Junction 18 Improvement and Avonmouth Relief Road

Second Severn Crossing and Approach Roads

A5 Fazeley/Two Gates/Wilnecote Bypass

A49 Onibury--Stokesay Improvement

A49/A465 Hereford Bypass

A50 Blythe Bridge--Queensway Stoke on Trent

A435 Norton Lenchwick Bypass

A435 Studley Bypass

A1(M) Walshford to Dishforth

A63 Selby Bypass

A65 Manor Park Improvement

A65 Gargrave Bypass

A65 Hellifield and Long Preston Bypass

A65/A660 Burley-in-Wharfedale Bypass

A650 Airedale Route Section 3 Crossflats--Cottingley Bar

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