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British Coal
Mr. Nicholas Winterton : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to refer to the Pensions Law Review Committee matters relating to the British Coal staff superannuation scheme.
Miss Widdecombe : None. Matters relating to the British Coal staff superannuation scheme are for my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade.
Emphysema and Bronchitis
Mr. Eric Clarke : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will launch a campaign to publicise the new rights for people affected by emphysema and bronchitis.
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Mr. Scott : The addition of chronic bronchitis and emphysema to the list of prescribed diseases, for which industrial injuries disablement benefit is payable, will be well publicised. Details of how people can claim will be announced well before the implementation date of 13 September 1993.
Mr. Eric Clarke : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will have consultations with the mining trade unions and other interested parties prior to starting up the processing of claims for bronchitis and emphysema.
Mr. Scott : Discussions are already under way with British Coal and officials will shortly be writing to the mining trade unions about the arrangements for handling claims. Discussions will be held with other interested parties as necessary.
Mr. Clapham : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if the procedures for diagnosing coal miners suffering from emphysema and bronchitis will be carried out by the Pneumoconiosis Medical Board ;
(2) if the appeals procedure for coal miners suffering from emphysema and bronchitis will be carried out by the Pneumoconiosis Medical Appeals Tribunal.
Mr. Scott : Diagnosis will be carried out by specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioners or special medical boards at the Department's medical boarding centres. Appeals will be dealt with by the independent tribunal service ; those against the decision of a SQAMP or SMB will be dealt with by medical appeal tribunals ; those against the decisions of the Department's adjudication officers will be dealt with by social security appeal tribunals.
Mr. Eric Clarke : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make it his policy to provide a pension for widows and dependents and for posthumous claims to be processed by the Pneumoconiosis Medical Appeal Tribunal.
Mr. Scott : There is provision in the industrial injuries disablement benefit scheme for widows to make posthumous claims for benefit. Widows may also qualify for widows benefit where the death of their husband was caused by occupational injury or prescribed disease.
Mr. Clapham : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security from what date the procedures for diagnosing coal miners suffering from emphysema and bronchitis will come into force.
Mr. Scott : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 29 March 1993 at column 77.
Sickness and Invalidity Benefits
Mr. Dobson : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people received (a) sickness benefit and (b) invalidity benefit in each month since January 1992.
Mr. Scott : Information is not available in the form requested. Such information as is available is in the table, and is obtained from a 100 per cent. count of cases by benefit offices at the end of each month, rounded to the
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nearest thousand. In particular, the sickness benefit figures include cases registered sick that are not receiving benefit but are receiving national insurance credits.Date |Sickness benefit |Invalidity benefit ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- January 1992 |461,000 |1,393,000 February 1992 |474,000 |1,404,000 March 1992 |479,000 |1,413,000 April 1992 |465,000 |1,437,000 May 1992 |472,000 |1,443,000 June 1992 |472,000 |1,456,000 July 1992 |487,000 |1,466,000 August 1992 |489,000 |1,487,000 September 1992 |496,000 |1,503,000 October 1992 |505,000 |1,513,000 November 1992 |513,000 |1,523,000 December 1992 |521,000 |1,536,000 January 1993 |525,000 |1,550,000 February 1993 |535,000 |1,565,000 March 1993 |538,000 |1,576,000
Benefits Agency (Inquiry Number)
Mr. David Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what recent representations he has received regarding the frequency of engagement of the Benefits Agency free telephone inquiry number 0800 666 555 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Burt : The administration of the Benefits Agency inquiry line is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive. He will write to my hon. Friend and a copy will be placed in the Library. Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. David Atkinson, dated 23 April 1993 ;
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking what recent representations he has received regarding the frequency of engagement of the Benefits Agency free telephone number 0800 666 555.
The Benefits Agency Freeline was set up to offer comprehensive advice and information on the whole range of Social Security benefits. However, whilst customer surveys have found a high degree of satisfaction with the quality of the service, it is clear from our ongoing monitoring of this exercise that over the last few months a significant proportion of calls have been unsuccessful because demand for the service has increased. Representations have been received regarding the Freeline service but the numbers about particular subjects are not routinely recorded.
I am determined to bring about an improvement in the service. The telephone is increasingly the preferred means of contact for the Agency's customers and I am able to tell you that in the last week for which figures are available 18,185 calls were answered successfully by the Freeline. Last year the Agency began a thorough review of the Freeline service, and customers are being consulted on their requirements. The results of this review will inform our thinking about how the service should evolve in the future. However, to ensure that the service is improved in the short term, five Freeline centres have installed Automatic Call Distribution, which allocates calls to lines on a strictly first come first served basis. The early indications are that the Automatic Call Distribution has been effective in reducing call waiting times.
The Freeline Service is also available in Punjabi, Urdu, Cantonese, and Welsh, as well as a free telephone service giving advice and information to people with disabilities and to those caring for them.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of the reply will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.
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ENVIRONMENT
Enterprise Zones
Mr. Frank Field : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the planned expenditure in respect of all current or planned enterprise zones in (a) 1993-94, (b) 1994-95 and (c) 1995-96.
Mr. Robin Squire : The principal costs of enterprise zones are rate relief and capital allowances. Neither can be accurately calculated in advance as they are dependent upon the rate of development on the individual zones. Current forecasts are as follows :
|1993-94 |1994-95 |1995-96
|£ million|£ million|£ million
-----------------------------------------------------------
Rate relief |21.2 |8.7 |7.9
Capital allowances |30.8 |7.9 |8.0
Plans for enterprise zones for colliery closure areas are still being formulated and are not therefore included in the above figures.
Homelessness
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many applications or inquiries under part III of the Housing Act 1985 were first recorded by local authorities for England as a whole during each quarter of 1991 and 1992 ; and whether he will arrange for this category of information to be published as a national statistic in his Department's homelessness statistics.
Sir George Young : Local authorities report the number of applications or inquiries under the homelessness provisions of the Housing Act 1985 in their quarterly P1(E) return.
In the second quarter of 1991, the return was revised to collect information on the total number of applications or inquiries made ; previously information had been collected on inquiries completed. The coverage of the data now collected depends on the administrative practices of individual local authorities. These vary widely between districts and over different periods of time, making it impossible to provide reliable national and regional estimates.
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) how many decisions were issued by local housing authorities in England under section 64 of the Housing Act 1985 during each of the four quarters of 1991 and each of the first three quarters of 1992 in relation to households of specific ethnic origin who were (a) found not to be homeless or threatened with homelessness within 28 days, (b) found to be homeless or threatened with homelessness within 28 days, but not in priority need, when advice and assistance only were given, (c) found to be intentionally homeless and not accepted for permanent rehousing and (d) accepted for rehousing on a permanent basis ; and whether he will arrange for these categories of information to be published as part of his Department's homelessness statistics ;
(2) how many applications or inquiries were first recorded in England during each of the four quarters of 1991 and each of the first three quarters of 1992 concerning applications for accommodation under part III of the
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Housing Act 1985 in relation to households of specific ethnic origin ; and whether he will arrange for these categories of information to be published as part of his Department's homelessness statistics.Sir George Young : Local authorities provide information on their activities under the homelessness provisions of the Housing Act 1985 in their quarterly P1(E) return.
Since the second quarter of 1991, local authorities have been asked to report the ethnic origin of all those households who applied to them as being homeless and about whom they made a decision under section 64 of the 1985 Housing Act.
Many local authorities have yet to provide information on ethnic origin and my Department is currently assessing whether the available data are sufficiently reliable for publication.
Mr. William Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the total number of households accepted, by each local authority in Northamptonshire for each year since 1979, for securing permanent accommodation under the homeless provisions of the Housing (Homeless Provisions) Act 1977 and the Housing Act 1985.
Mr. Baldry : Local authorities report the number of households for whom they accept responsibility to secure permanent accommodation under the homelessness provisions of the Housing Acts in their quarterly P1 (E) returns.
For the information for the years 1979 to 1991 inclusive, I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Angus, East (Mr. Welsh) on 17 June 1992, Official Report, columns 569-70.
The information for 1992 is in the table :
Households accepted as homeless in
1992<1>
|Number
-------------------------------------
Corby |72
Daventry |88
East Northamptonshire |107
Kettering |78
Northampton |519
South Northamptonshire |133
Wellingborough |131
<1> Excluding intentionally homeless
households.
Construction Industry
Mr. Nicholas Winterton : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is currently taking to ensure that his Department is fully aware of the needs, problems and potential of the construction industry.
Mr. Baldry : We maintain close links with the industry through a wide range of formal and informal contacts. Last year I established fortnightly meetings at which industry representatives can discuss with me any matters of concern to them. The Department's construction policy directorate holds regular meetings with industry organisations to consider European issues, and has recently set up a similar forum to discuss domestic issues. The Department is represented on many industry bodies. We are increasing secondments between the civil service and the industry to help improve mutual understanding. The Department is currently undertaking a review, in close consultation with the industry, to examine how the
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construction policy directorate can develop its established sponsorship activities to meet the present and future needs of the industry and its constituent interests.Further and Higher Education
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidance he issues on the position of those employed in institutions of further and higher education and the remit of section 80(1)(a) of the Local Government Act 1992 as a result of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992.
Mr. Robin Squire : We have issued no such guidance. Staff employed in institutions of further and higher education are no longer covered by the disqualification from standing for election to local authorities imposed by section 80(1)(a) of the Local Government Act 1972.
Tyne and Wear Development Corporation
Mr. Nicholas Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list, by site and workplace, the new jobs that have been created by the Tyne and Wear urban development corporation.
Mr. Robin Squire : The new jobs that have been created by Tyne and Wear development corporation since its inception are as follows :
Development sites |Jobs
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Royal Quays |270
St. Peter's Riverside |55
Sunderland Enterprise Park |200
Newcastle Central Business and Technology Park |150
Newcastle Business Park |3,738
Closegate |100
Dolphin Quay |35
Viking Industrial Park |192
Walker Technology Park |482
Sunrise Enterprise Park |375
|-------
|5,597
Companies' own sites<1> |4,213
|-------
Total |9,810
<1> These are sites within the urban development area which are not part of the
corporation's main development projects but which have otherwise been supported by
the corporation (e.g. by business development grant).
More detailed information relating to "workplace" cannot be obtained without disproportionate cost.
Heating Efficiency
Dr. Spink : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to promote the improvement of the insulation of existing stock of pre-1981 dwellings and to improve the efficiency of their boilers or other heating sources ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : My Department sponsors various programmes which promote improvements in domestic heating and insulation.
Insulation grants for households on low incomes are available under the Energy Efficiency Office's home energy efficiency scheme. Under the green house demonstration programme, the Government have made special funding
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available to local authorities to show the scope for securing energy efficiency improvements in council housing. Grants for heating and insulation may be available to private householders under the renovation grant system administered by local authorities. In addition, householders are being encouraged to take energy efficiency measures through the Energy Efficiency Office's national television and press advertising campaign, "Helping the Earth Begins at Home". A free booklet, "Heating Your Home", offers advice on the replacement of old boilers nearing the end of their life with one of three types of more efficient boiler, including the condensing boiler.Farm Shops
Mr. Mackinlay : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what guidelines and advice exist for local authorities when determining planning applications for farm shops situated within the green belt ;
(2) what guidelines and advice exist for local authorities when determining planning applications to permit retailing in farm shops situated in the green belt ; and what proportion of goods sold can be the produce of neighbouring farms.
Mr. Baldry : Advice on development control matters within the green belt is given in planning policy guidance note 2. Paragraph 13 of that document states that approval should not be given, except in very special circumstances, for the construction of new buildings or for the change of use of existing buildings for purposes other than uses appropriate to a rural area.
It is normally assumed that the use of a farm shop only for the sale of goods produced on that farm is a use which is ancillary to the use as a farm not requiring planning permission, whereas use as a farm shop selling a significant amount of "imported" produce amounts to a use in its own account and is therefore subject to planning control. This advice is contained in paragraph B2 of annex B to planning policy guidance note 7.
It will be for that local planning authority to take this advice into account, together with all other material planning considerations, in making planning decisions concerning farm shops in green belts.
Opencast Mining
Mr. Stevenson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the current status of outstanding appeals against refusal to grant permission to extract coal by opencast mining in
Stoke-on-Trent.
Mr. Baldry : There is one such appeal outstanding which is by British Coal Opencast in relation to the Berryhill site. A decision on this case will be issued as soon as possible.
Radioactive Waste
Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on his Department's plans for the long-term storage of high-level radioactive waste.
Mr. Maclean : Government policy is that high-level radioactive waste is treated and stored at the surface for a period of at least 50 years, which will allow heat generated by the decay of radioactivity to reduce.
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Green Belt
Mr. Mackinlay : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what advice or guidance his Department has published to local authorities and other agencies with a view to promoting and maintaining employment in farms and related areas of agriculture, situated in the green belt.
Mr. Baldry : It is our policy to encourage the rural economy to prosper and expand. This policy is set out in full in planning policy guidance note 7. While green belts have a special status where there is a presumption against "inappropriate" development, agriculture would not come into that category--see paragraph 13 of planning policy guidance note 2.
Radiation Units Committee
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what recent meetings he has had with the British committee on radiation units and measurements ; and what plans he has to meet the committee.
Mr. Maclean : My right hon. and learned Friend has not recently met and has no plans to meet the British Committee on Radiation Units and Measurements.
National Association for Urban Studies
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what financial support he will provide to the National Association for Urban Studies in the year 1993-94 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Robin Squire : My Department has provided funding for the National Association for Urban Studies for the past four years from the special grants programme. A new three-year grant, awarded in 1990-91, was tapered to encourage the association to broaden its trading base and reduce the reliance on the Department's grant. In that time, the association failed to demonstrate adequate progress towards self-sufficiency. As a result, and because the programme is heavily oversubscribed, I have decided that the scarce resources available would be better spent on other projects.
ReChem International
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to enforce the 1982 EC Seveso directive on the company ReChem International Ltd. ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : Directive 82/501/EEC, the so-called Seveso directive, is implemented in Britain by the Control of Industrial Major Accident Hazards Regulations 1984. These currently exclude installations for the disposal of toxic and dangerous waste that are in possession of a licence under the relevant provisions of the Control of
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Pollution Act 1974. The Health and Safety Executive will shortly be going out to consultation with proposals to remove this exclusion. ReChem International operates plants falling within the current exclusions.Waste Exports
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what position he took regarding the possible amendment of the Basel convention to ban waste exports to non-OECD countries, discussed at the EC Council of Ministers on 23 and 24 March ;
(2) what investigations his Department has undertaken to ascertain what environmental damage will occur as a result of the export of toxic waste from Humberside ;
(3) what action he will take to ensure the toxic waste currently stored at the Capper Pass site in Humberside will not be exported to Mexico or Bolivia ;
(4) what investigations his Department has undertaken to ascertain the toxicity of the toxic waste due to be exported from Capper Pass, Humberside ;
(5) what steps he will take to ensure that companies exporting waste complete the required documentation for the export of non-ferrous materials under the EC directive on the transfrontier shipment of hazardous wastes.
Mr. Maclean : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Smith) on 25 March, Official Report, column 710.
Under existing regulations the United Kingdom has no powers to ban exports of non-ferrous metal waste. However, consignments must meet certain conditions ; for example, the holder must have entered into a contract with the consignee for the recovery of the non-ferrous metal content and made a declaration to this effect on the uniform document which is copied to the Waste Regulation Authority. Compliance with these conditions is a matter for the Waste Regulation Authority. We have ensured that Mexico is aware of its obligations under the Basel convention.
Ozone
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what were the degrees of deviation from the normal recorded figures of total column ozone over Lerwick and Camborne for 5, 6 and 7 March ;
(2) what were the levels of total column ozone over Lerwick and Camborne on 5, 6 and 7 March ; and what they were for the same dates in each of the last 10 years ;
(3) what was the average March level of total column ozone for 1993 ; and what degree of variation there was from the normal recorded levels for this period.
Mr. Maclean : Results of ozone column measurements made at Camborne and Lerwick on 5, 6 and 7 March for 1993 and for the same dates over the past 10 years are :
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Total ozone
(Dobson units)
Camborne Lerwick
Year |5 March|6 March|7 March|5 March|6 March|7 March
----------------------------------------------------------------
1993 |262 |240 |261 |267 |250 |291
1992 |351 |327 |345 |341 |320 |323
1991 |384 |429
1990 |358 |308 |314
1989 |333 |382 |384 |354 |499
1988 |411 |420 |352 |375 |436 |340
1987 |354 |389
1986 |301 |373 |383 |389 |400
1985 |392 |351 |320 |345
1984 |287 |301 |293 |328
1983 |359 |279
1982 |392 |362 |416 |393 |427
1981 |361 |399 |441 |444
1980 |378 |436
Blanks indicate days when measurements could not be made due to
weather conditions. Recent data are subject to final
calibration corrections. The measurements for 5, 6 and 7 March
this year include the four lowest for March in the record, the
previous lowest levels being 267 and 270 Dobson Units measured
on 1 March 1983. The average ozone measurements for March this
year are 335 Dobson Units at Camborne and 347 Dobson Units at
Lerwick. These values are respectively 12.6 per cent. and 10.4
per cent. below the average for the last 10 years.
Flats Over Shops Initiative
Mr. Streeter : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much of his Department's £5 million allocation for Living Over the Shop in 1992-93 was spent ; what was the average allocation per flat ; and how many new homes were produced.
Mr. Baldry : The outturn for the first year of the Department's flats over shops initiative will not be known until all final claims have been returned by local authorities. Provisional information from local authority fourth quarterly monitoring returns indicates that some £4,093,000 has been spent in 1992-93 producing some 292 new homes at an average grant cost per unit of £14,000.
Waste Incinerator, Ealand
Mr. Tipping : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what costs were incurred by his Department in preparing for the public inquiry scheduled for 30 March into a planning application for a waste incinerator plant by S. and J. Engineering at Ealand ; and when he was notified the appeal had been withdrawn.
Mr. Maclean : The staff and other internal costs of arranging, and preparing for, individual planning inquiries are not separately identified within the overall cost of the administration of the appeals system. The Department incurred no external costs in this case. The appeal was withdrawn on 24 March.
Devon County Structure Plan
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the reason for the lapse of time since the examination in public of selected matters arising on the third alteration to the Devon county structure plan ; why it has been necessary to delay publication of his proposed modifications ; and when he intends to publish the proposed modifications to the structure plan.
Mr. Baldry : I expect to publish proposed modifications to the Devon structure plan third alterations very shortly.
The preparation of the modifications has taken longer than I hoped, but this is an important matter which requires proper consideration.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the panel conducting the public examination of selected matters arising on the third alteration of the Devon county structure plan in March/April 1992 submitted its report and recommendations.
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Mr. Baldry : The panel submitted its report and recommendations on 26 May 1992.
Council Tax
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about landlords passing on council tax charges to their tenants.
Mr. Robin Squire : We have received 83 representations about landlords passing on council tax charges to their tenants. Thirty three of these were in direct response to a consultation letter issued on 5 January 1993 on proposals to amend the landlord and tenant legislation to cater for the situation where the landlord, rather than the tenant, is liable for the tax.
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what advice he has given to the rent officer service about determining rents in cases where landlords have been found to be passing council tax costs on to their tenants.
Mr. Robin Squire : Rent officers are independent of Government and neither Ministers nor officials are able to advise them about determining rents. In making their assessments of fair rents rent officers follow the requirements of the Rent Act 1977. These provisions have been amended to allow for the liability for council tax to be taken into account where appropriate. Rent officers also assess market rents for housing benefit subsidy purposes under the Rent Officer (Additional Functions) Order 1990. Again, these assessments will now take account of council tax where appropriate. The Department has issued procedural guidance notes to rent officers to alert them to these changes, copies of which have been placed in the Library today. In addition, the Institute of Rent Officers has issued a practice note to its members, copies of which are also available in the Library.
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is (a) the average rent level determined by the rent officer service in each region and (b) the average council tax bill in each region.
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