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Private Rented Sector
Mr. Walden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proportion of housing was accounted for by the private rented sector for (a) 1980, (b) 1985 and (c) 1990.
Mr. Yeo : Estimates of total stock by tenure are shown in table 9.3 of "Housing and Construction Statistics : Great Britain : 1980-1990". A copy is in the Library.
Humber Estuary
Mr. Morley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will designate the Humber estuary as a special protection area.
Mr. Baldry : Consultations with Government Departments and land owners are continuing on those parts of the Humber estuary which have been proposed as a special protection area. A decision on designation will be made as soon as these are satisfactorily completed. The announcement yesterday of the designation of the Exe estuary, Lindisfarne and Old Hall marshes illustrates the Government's firm commitment to the designation of further special protection areas.
Wild Birds
Mr. Morley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the nature of the last three communications received by him from the European Commission on the subject of special protection areas under the wild birds directive.
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Mr. Baldry : The European Commission is in regular contact with officials over special protection areas under the EC birds directive. Such communications are confidential between Government and the Commission.
Travelling Showpeople
Mr. Nellist : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what requirements his Department places on local authorities to assist travelling showpeople regarding winter quarters ; how many local authorities provide sites ; how many sites are known to be in dispute regarding planning permission ; and what proposals he has to assist in the securing of suitable land for sites.
Mr. Yeo : My Department's circular 22/91--"Travelling
Showpeople"--gives advice to local planning authorities about planning consideration relating to travelling showpeople. Information about sites is not held centrally.
Ozone Depletion
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what advice he gives to consumers on purchasing ozone- friendly fridges ;
(2) what advice he makes available to consumers who wish to avoid purchasing products that contain, or have been manufactured, by using ozone -depleting chemicals.
Mr. Trippier : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Swindon (Mr. Coombs) on 10 March 1992, Official Report, columns 450-51.
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to use his powers under part I, section 3 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to prohibit the production and release of ozone-depleting chemicals.
Mr. Trippier : My right hon. Friend does not intend to do so--the production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances is controlled by EC regulation 594/91, which is directly applicable in United Kingdom law.
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the amount in tonnes of
chlorofluorocarbons recycled in the United Kingdom in each year from 1985 to 1991 inclusive.
Mr. Trippier : This information is not available.
Mr. Wlin Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish annually the United Kingdom consumption and production of ozone-depleting chemicals.
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Mr. Trippier : Figures for United Kingdom production of ozone-depleting substances are supplied to the Government on a confidential basis. Consumption figures are collected on a European Community basis and not broken down between member states. However, a 1990 Department of Trade and Industry study indicated that United Kingdom consumption fell by 50 per cent. between 1986 and 1989, a rate faster than that claimed by any other developed country.Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement outlining his policy on the production and emission of hydrochlorofluorocarbons.
Mr. Trippier : The Government have proposed a phase-out of hydrochlorofluorocarbons early next century, together with controls on the level of consumption and on applications in which these substances can be used. These proposals will be considered by the EC Environment Council on 23 March.
Mr. Win Griffiths : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all essential uses of ozone-depleting chemicals that would be exempt from currently proposed EC legislation.
Mr. Trippier : Decisions on any essential use exemptions from the regulations controlling ozone-depleting substances will be made closer to the final phase-out dates. These will be taken at the European Community level, and no member state will be able to make unilateral decisions.
Council Tax
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the numbers of single people with incomes of over £50,000 per annum who will qualify for a 25 per cent. discount under his council tax proposals.
Mr. Portillo : I have no estimate of the numbers of single people with incomes of over £50,000 per annum who will qualify for a 25 per cent. discount when the council tax is introduced.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the size of the council tax bill on a property located in Westminster worth £1,000,000 in April 1991 with (a) two or more adults and (b) one adult.
Mr. Portillo : Illustrative council tax bills based on 1991-92 budgets were published and placed in the Library on 23 April 1991. I have made no subsequent estimates.
Air Pollution
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when his Department will publish the results of the recent national nitrogen dioxide diffusion tube air pollution survey.
Mr. Trippier : I hope these will be available by the end of next month.
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been his response to the complaint by Commissioner Ripa di Meana in the European Parliament of 27 November 1991 regarding the adequacy of the United Kingdom air pollution monitoring network.
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Mr. Trippier : Signor Ripa di Meana's remarks related to the United Kingdom network for monitoring nitrogen dioxide for purposes of European Community directive 85/203/EEC. They were made in answer to a question in the European Parliament and were not addressed to the Government. The basis on which monitoring sites were selected for this purpose has been explained to the Commission in previous correspondence.
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many times, and where, the EC directive limits for nitrogen dioxide have been breached since 1980.
Mr. Trippier : The EC directive on nitrogen dioxide has been breached once at the west London monitoring site in 1989, in exceptional circumstances which were not truly representative of local air quality.
Mrs. Ann Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether the planned enhanced urban network will meet the regulations of the EC directive 85/203/EEC for monitoring nitrogen dioxide.
Mr. Trippier : In the Government's view the existing arrangements for monitoring nitrogen dioxide already comply with the requirements of the directive. The enhancement of the urban monitoring network will however usefully supplement the data currently available on concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and a range of other air pollutants.
Environment Agency
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make available a list of the responses to the recent consultation paper on the Government's proposals for an environment agency.
Mr. Trippier : A list of the responses received has been placed in the Library of the House. Copies of individual responses may be obtained through the Library of the Department. In addition, responses were submitted by six individuals and bodies on a confidential basis.
Planning (Hazardous Substances) Act 1990
Mr. Summerson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to bring into force the Planning (Hazardous Substances) Act 1990 ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir George Young : A commencement order has now been made, and regulations laid before the House, which enable the provisions of the Planning (Hazardous Substances) Act 1990 to be brought into force on 1 June 1992.
The Act paved the way for important new planning controls over the storage and use of hazardous substances. It requires consent to be obtained from local authorities for the presence of these materials in prescribed quantities. This will give authorities the opportunity to consider whether the storage or use of a significant quantity of a hazardous material is acceptable in a particular location. The regulations define the substances and amounts to be controlled and contain detailed procedures for obtaining consent and for enforcement. These regulations will be followed by an explanatory circular for local authorities and a guidance booklet for industry.
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Planning Inspectorate
Mr. Stevens : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress he has made in establishing the planning inspectorate executive agency under the "next steps" initiative.
Sir George Young : The planning inspectorate will be launched as an executive agency on 1 April 1992. A framework document setting out the organisational, financial and management structure of the agency will be published at that time.
The key objectives for the agency will be to preserve the impartiality and quality of the inspector's work while seeking to improve efficiency. A board of visitors will be established to ensure that quality standards are maintained. In addition, I have set the following key targets for the agency's work in England for 1992-93 : Timeliness : Eighty per cent. of planning appeals by written representation to be decided within 22 weeks and to provide an inspector for local plan inquiries on request within 26 weeks of the end of the objection period ;
Financial : Unit costs (average) of these appeals not to exceed £706 per case ;
Efficiency : Generate a 2 per cent. efficiency improvement in the use of gross running costs compared with 1991-92 ;
Quality : High Court appeals and/or other justified complaints allowed against Inspectors' decisions not to exceed 1 per cent. of intake ;
Volume : To determine 24,600 planning and enforcement appeals subject to intake not declining ;
Information and Guidance : To complete a customer survey by 31 December 1992.
These and other performance targets for the agency will be included in its business plan for 1992-93 which will be published shortly.
Separate targets for the agency's work in Wales are being announced today by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.
Local Government Finance
Mr. Irvine : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to take his capping decisions ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Portillo : On 26 November 1991 my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, announced his proposed capping criteria for 1992-93. On 23 January 1992 he reaffirmed that he was minded to adopt those criteria, and they remain his firm intentions for criteria for 1992-93.
However, under the statute my right hon. Friend cannot take his decisions on the criteria to select authorities for capping, and the level of proposed caps for any authority designated, until he has considered authorities' budgets. Information on authorities' budgets must be submitted to the Secretary of State by 8 March in the case of precepting authorities and 18 March in the case of charging authorities.
My right hon. Friend intends to take his capping decisions as soon as is practicable and appropriate after the receipt of budget information. However, such decisions are of a kind which by convention Ministers do not take during an election campaign. My right hon. Friend therefore does not intend to consider these matters until the earliest practical opportunity after the election. When he comes to take his decisions my right hon. Friend will have regard to all appropriate considerations
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including the budgets which authorities have set and his provisional criteria. In the light of information on the budgets he will decide on the principles for capping which he should adopt, on which his present intention is set out in the provisional criteria. On the basis of those principles he will designate authorities for capping. For each designated authority he will decide on a proposed cap. The proposed cap which he will set for any designated authority will represent my right hon. Friend's view of the appropriate and achievable level for that authority's budget in the light of all its circumstances.At that point each authority may accept either its proposed cap, and proceed with re-billing if that is necessary, or challenge the proposed cap seeking that the Secretary of State should vary his proposal as to the amount of the cap. Authorities have 28 days from designation in which to challenge their cap.
Outdoor Advertisements
Mr. Irvine : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he proposes to issue the planning policy guidance on outdoor advertisement control, of which a consultative draft was circulated in July 1991.
Mr. Yeo : We are today publishing planning policy guidance note 19 about outdoor advertisement control in England and Wales. I am arranging for copies to be placed in the Library of the House.
Derelict Land Grant
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total amount of derelict land grant made available by his Department in each of the last five years ; and how many acres have been brought into use as a result for (a) housing, (b) industry, (c) recreation and (d) public buildings.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 11 March 1992] : The information requested is as follows. Statistics are not held on land brought back into use for public buildings.
1. Derelict Land Grant paid
1986-87 to 1990-91.
|£ million
------------------------------
1986-87 |68.359
1987-88 |75.295
1988-89 |67.126
1989-90 |90.804
1990-91 |71.300
2. Land reclaimed for housing, industry and sport and
recreation
1986-87 to 1990-91 (acres)
|Residential|Industry |Recreation/
|Public
|Open Space
------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87 |131 |595 |1,161
1987-88 |124 |615 |1,635
1988-89 |185 |1,077 |1,228
1989-90 |104 |842 |1,252
1990-91 |22 |316 |1,005
EMPLOYMENT
Disabled People (Employment Quotas)
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish a table of the percentage of (a) private sector employers and (b) public sector
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employers satisfying their quota obligations under the Disabled Persons (Employment) Act 1944, in each of the last five years ; and if he will also give the most recent available figures.Mr. Jackson : I regret that the information is not available in the form requested. However, tables showing the number and percentage of registered disabled people employed by a wide range of individual public sector employers are published in the Employment Gazette,
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copies of which are in the Library. The most recent complete published set of figures, is in the February 1991 gazette and relates to June 1990, A partial set of figures, relating to June 1991, is in the February 1992 gazette.The percentage of registered disabled people employed, on average by employers whose individual figures are in the gazette, together with estimated comparisons for the private sector, for the years 1986 to 1990, are in the table. later comparable information is not yet available.
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Percentage of registered disabled people employed
|1986 |1987 |1988 |1989 |1990
|per cent.|per cent.|per cent.|per cent.|per cent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private sector (approximate figures) |1 |1 |1 |0.9 |0.9
Public sector (based on gazette figures) |0.8 |0.8 |0.8 |0.8 |0.8
Training Schemes
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of youth training leavers in the London borough of Newham were unemployed immediately after leaving in each of the last five years.
Mr. Jackson : Information is not available in the form requested.
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the unit price for youth training places in each training and enterprise council and local enterprise company.
Mr. Jackson : Unit prices per training week delivered and per national vocational qualification achieved in YT are agreed in contracts between the Departmental and individual TECs and are commercially confidential. Matters relating to LECs are for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland.
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of employment training leavers in the London borough of Newham in each of the last five years were unemployed within three months of leaving ; and what percentage obtained qualifications.
Mr. Jackson : Information is not available in the precise form requested.
Employment training started in September 1988 and national follow-up of leavers started in July 1989. Results are given for the East London TEC area which includes the London borough of Newham. Those show that for the period July 1989 to June 1990, 57 per cent. of leavers were unemployed three months after leaving and 14 per cent. of all leavers gained a qualification or a credit towards one. For the period April 1990 to March 1991, 67 per cent. were unemployed three months after leaving and 23 per cent. of all leavers gained a qualification or a credit towards one.
Mr. Leighton : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what percentage of youth training leavers obtained qualifications in the London borough of Newham in each of the last five years.
Mr. Jackson : Reliable information is not available in the form requested. The results available are for the East London area office which included the London borough of Newham. Information is available for the periods April 1986 to March 1990 and shows that the percentage of YT leavers gaining qualifications was as follows :
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April 1989-March 1990 38 per cent.April 1988-March 1989 39 per cent.
April 1987-March 1988 25 per cent.
April 1986-March 1987 11 per cent.
Labour Statistics
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are currently in work ; what were the figures 10 and 15 years ago ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : The work force in employment in the United Kingdom stood at 24,835,000 in September 1976, at 24,198,000 in September 1981 and at 25,807,000 in September 1991. The number of people in work is now 442,000 higher than in June 1979.
Earnings
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment by how much average male earnings have increased in real terms since 1979.
Mr. Forth : Information on average male earnings in April of 1979 and of each year up to 1991 is published in table 1 of part A of the new earnings survey report for the year concerned.
Information on the retail prices index, all items, to convert 1979 figures to 1991 prices is published in table 6.4 of the latest Employment Gazette for April 1991, and in table 26 of the annual supplement to "Economic Trends" for April of earlier years. Copies of the publications are available in the Library.
Training and Enterprise Councils
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will make a statement on the new financial incentives for TECs in relation to people with learning difficulties ; and whether the same unit price has been given by the Training, Enterprise and Education Directorate to TECs for the achievement of wordpower and numberpower as for any level of national vocational qualification.
Mr. Jackson : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 2 December 1991, Official Report, column 26.
TECs contract individually for an agreed rate of output-related payment. TECs will receive multiples of the agreed rate for trainees achieving national vocational qualifications. In the case of wordpower at foundation,
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half the agreed rate of output-related payment is payable. An identical unit price is payable for achievement of foundation level numberpower. Where it is agreed that a trainee requires both wordpower and numberpower then the TEC will receive two payments of half the agreed rate of output-related payment. In addition, TECs will receive further output-related payment for any trainees who progress to achieve national vocational qualifications.Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received from TECs about the training of people with learning difficulties, with particular reference to special needs training being provided outwith the remit of TECs ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : I have received no such representations.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will provide details of Government financial support to each training and enterprise council during 1990-91 and 1991-92 ; identifying separately resources made available after the beginning of the financial year and funding for each of (a) adult training, (b) youth training, (c) enterprise, (d) local initiatives and (e) management ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson : [holding answer 11 March 1992] : The total figure allocated by the Government to training and enterprise councils in 1990-91 was £1,571.91 million and in 1991-92 £1,838.66 million. The breakdown of these figures requested in the question is available only at disproportionate cost.
Expenditure, London
Mr. Gould : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what was the budget and forecast actual expenditure for 1991-92 and 1992-93 of (a) his Department's London regional office and (b) the nine training and enterprise councils operating in London.
Mr. Jackson : The total budgetary allocation for the Department's Training Enterprise and Education Directorate's London region in 1991-92 was £167.263 million.
The budgets for the nine London TECs are shown in the table :
|£ million
------------------------------
AZTEC |10.742
CENTEC |11.951
CILNTEC |8.124
LETEC |27.618
NLTEC |9.690
NWLTEC |5.625
SOLOTEC |18.555
STTEC |20.510
WLTEC |8.945
Footnote:
The regional total figure
includes expenditure by
residual TEED
area offices for those areas
where TECs began operations
during the
financial year 1991-92,
experience on technical
vocational and
education initiative, and
regional office running
costs.
Forecasts of outturn expenditure are produced for internal management purposes only. Budgets for 1992-93 are still subject to negotiation.
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