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Mr. Baldry : The choice of materials for use in civil engineering projects is a matter for the market. The Government support an increase in the use of waste and recycled materials in construction and are considering how to achieve this as part of the review of minerals planning guidance note 6 on aggregates.
Rents
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action he proposes to take on rent levels following the publication of the Association of District Councils/Association of Metropolitan Authorities housing finance survey.
Sir George Young : The joint Association of District Councils and Association of Metropolitan Authorities housing finance survey provides a useful contribution to the information which the Department gathers during the course of the financial year, and I was pleased to have a discussion with the associations about their 1993-94 survey at the meeting of the Housing Consultative Council on 7 July. My Department will, as usual, form a view of the emerging picture on local authority housing finance, and all of this information will be taken carefully into account when we reach decisions on the housing revenue account subsidy determinations for 1994-95 towards the end of the year. The level of actual council rents will remain a matter for each housing authority to decide.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the average gross rent before rebate housing benefit for each year since 1978 to date, and with an estimate for 1993, for (a) local authority and (b) housing association dwellings in current prices, in constant prices, and on an index where 1978=100.
Mr. Gummer [holding answer 26 July 1993] : The available information is as follows :
Average weekly unrebated local authority rent at April
|At current prices |At constant (April |Current price index
|1993) prices
|£pw |£pw
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1978 |5.83 |16.89 |100
1979 |6.41 |16.87 |110
1980 |7.70 |16.65 |132
1981 |11.42 |22.03 |196
1982 |13.48 |23.77 |229
1983 |13.97 |23.69 |240
1984 |14.66 |23.64 |251
1985 |15.54 |23.43 |267
1986 |16.36 |23.94 |281
1987 |17.70 |24.85 |304
1988 |18.82 |25.42 |323
1989 |20.70 |25.88 |355
1990 |23.76 |27.14 |408
1991 |27.28 |29.29 |468
1992 |30.57 |31.47 |524
1993 |33.52 |33.52 |575
Average weekly mean registered housing assocation rent<1><2>
|At current prices |At constant (Q1 |Current price index
|1993) prices
|£pw |£pw
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1978 |10.05 |27.89 |100
1979 |10.66 |26.08 |106
1980 |12.48 |25.89 |124
1981 |14.08 |26.10 |140
1982 |15.61 |26.65 |155
1983 |17.20 |28.08 |171
1984 |18.66 |29.01 |186
1985 |19.72 |28.85 |196
1986 |21.40 |30.34 |213
1987 |22.86 |31.11 |227
1988 |24.97 |32.39 |248
1989 |26.75 |32.20 |266
1990 |29.86 |32.84 |297
1991 |32.64 |33.91 |325
1992 |36.38 |36.43 |362
1993 |37.99 |37.99 |378
<1> Includes service charges.
<2> Excludes shared ownership tenancies.
Social Housing
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what has been the total gross public expenditure on the activities of (a) urban development corporations, (b) housing action trusts and (c) registered housing associations for each year since 1979 and the projected expenditure for the years up to 1995-96 in 1991-92 prices.
Mr. Baldry : Gross public expenditure for urban development corporations, housing action trusts and registered housing associations, in 1991-92 prices, is set out in the table :
£ million (1991-92 prices)
|UDCs<1> |HATs |Housing
|Associations<2>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1979-80 |- |- |984
1980-81 |- |- |1,047
1981-82 |68 |- |999
1982-83 |103 |- |1,327
1983-84 |149 |- |1,208
1984-85 |133 |- |1,074
1985-86 |123 |- |1,206
1986-87 |124 |- |1,124
1987-88 |187 |- |1,138
1988-89 |289 |- |1,082
1989-90 |502 |- |1,253
1990-91 |591 |- |1,306
1991-92 |509 |10 |1,740
1992-93 |418 |26 |2,354
1993-94 |292 |82 |1,807
1994-95 |229 |80 |1,766
1995-96 |221 |78 |1,643
<1> Excludes the Docklands Light Railway. Figures for years up to 1992-93
include receipts from the European Regional Development Fund. Estimates for
receipts in forward years are not available.
<2> Excludes Local Authority Housing Association Grant.
Figures up to 1991-92 represent expenditure outturn. Figures for 1992-93 are for provisional outturn; figures for 1993-94 represent public expenditure provision; and figures for 1994-95 and 1995-96 represent planned expenditure as set out in the Department of the Environment's 1993 annual report, Cm 2207.
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish separate tables showing in rank order the number of (a) local authority dwellings, (b) housing association dwellings and (c) former local authority dwellings transferred to housing action trusts or otherwise or by way of large-scale voluntary transfer, for each local housing authority in England; and if he will include totals for each table.
Mr. Gummer : The available information on the transfer of local authority dwellings to housing action trusts and by way of large scale voluntary transfer is given in the tables.
Date of Transfer |Number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waltham Forest |April 6 1992 |2,416
Kingston upon Hull |January 27 1992 |2,084
| ---
|4,500
| ---
(b) Housing association dwellings
Nil
(c) Former local authority dwellings (Right to buy)
Local Authority |Date of Transfer|Number
------- |------- |-------
Waltham Forest |April 6 1992 |6
Large Scale Voluntary Transfers
(a) Local Authority dwellings transferred to Housing Associations
Local Authority |Date of Transfer|Number<1>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bromley |6 April 1992 |12,318
Rochester<2> |27 July 1990 |8,029
North Bedfordshire |13 June 1990 |7,378
Swale |28 March 1990 |7,352
Newbury |30 November 1989|7,109
Breckland |30 March 1993 |6,712
Tonbridge and Malling |15 January 1991 |6,382
Sevenoaks |29 March 1989 |6,315
Tunbridge Wells |30 January 1992 |5,519
West Dorset |27 May 1993 |5,279
Suffolk Coastal |22 May 1991 |5,272
Chiltern |15 December 1988|4,650
Mid Sussex |9 November 1990 |4,426
Hambleton |29 April 1993 |4,268
East Cambridgeshire |31 March 1993 |4,223
Broadland |4 April 1990 |3,716
Ryedale |28 February 1991|3,321
South Bucks |26 March 1991 |3,317
Surrey Heath |15 January 1993 |2,885
Medina |27 July 1990 |2,813
East Dorset |3 December 1990 |2,246
South Wight |30 July 1990 |2,056
Christchurch |28 March 1991 |1,621
|----
|107,207
<1> Excluding transfers of shared ownership properties.
<2> Local authority dwellings in Rochester were transferred to Medway
Housing Society-not a registered Housing Association.
Notes:
(b) Housing Association dwellings
Nil
(c) Former Local authority dwellings
Nil
Column 903
Protected Birds
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Croydon, North-East (Mr. Congdon) of 8 July, Official Report, columns 233-35 , what is his policy on the proposals put forward by France, Greece and Spain at the EC Environment Council meeting in Luxembourg on 29 June regarding the extension of sport shooting to a number of protected bird species ; what progress has been made by COREPER ; and when he now expects the revised annexes to the wild birds directive to be adopted.
Mr. Yeo : The United Kingdom did not oppose the proposals for amending annex II of the bird directive--79/409/EEC--considered at the EC Environment Council on 29 June 1993. No agreement was reached and it is for the presidency to determine how to take the matter forward and the timing of future discussions.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what consultations he had with United Kingdom conservation organisations prior to deciding the United Kingdom position on amendments to annex II of the EC birds directive.
Mr. Yeo : Scientific advice on the proposals was sought from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds was informed of the proposals and made representations.
Housing Rehabilitation
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the latest figures available to show the extent of the rehabilitation work currently undertaken by housing associations nationally ; and if he has any plans to increase the funding available for inner city and rural rehabilitation projects.
Sir George Young : In 1992-93, the Housing Corporation granted approvals for 6,501 rehabilitation units--13.4 per cent. of the programme as a whole. For 1993-94 12.6 per cent of unit allocations were for rehabilitation units.
My objective was to see rehabilitation projects rise to at least 18 per cent. of rented approvals this year. However, I understand that the corporation was unable to achieve this at the same time as taking account of the priorities expressed by local authorities. No target has yet been set for future years.
Waste Management
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Burnley (Mr. Pike) of 6 July, Official Report, column 80, if he will make a statement on the matters discussed and decisions taken in the meetings with the organisation with an interest in waste management licensing to which he refers.
Mr. Yeo : I held meetings with interested parties to enable them to express to me their concerns arising from the delay in implementing waste management licensing ; and to discuss the problems that need to be solved before we can implement the licensing system. No decisions were to be expected in such meetings, and none was taken. I
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repeated my assurance that as soon as I am in a position to give a revised date for waste management licensing, I shall do so.Housing Grant
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he last met the National Federation of Housing Associations to discuss the implications of the Government's policy on reducing housing association grant.
Sir George Young : I discussed this topic with the National Federation of Housing Associations on 14 July 1993.
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to introduce a Gro-grant scheme in England based on the Scottish Homes model.
Sir George Young : I am considering various options to encourage the revival of the private rented sector in England.
Institute for the Environment and Health
Mr. Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what conclusion the Government had reached, in regard to their announcement in the White Paper "The Health of the Nation", about the creation of an Institute for the Environment and Health ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Yeo : The Medical Research Council has agreed in principle to establish an institute at its interdisciplinary research centre on mechanisms of human toxicity at the university of Leicester. It will be jointly supported by my Department and by the Department of Health. The institute will act as a focal point on research into the links between environmental quality and health. We expect it will also have a role in supporting Government in international programmes in this field.
The institute will complement, but not impinge on, areas already covered by other Government Departments or other statutory agencies. These include the Health and Safety Executive, which has statutory responsibilities relating to exposures from work activities, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, whose responsibilities include agricultural chemicals and food safety.
Urban Waste Water Treatment
Mr. Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish (a) the list of candidate eutrophic sensitive areas and (b) the list of candidate high natural dispersion areas proposed to him by the National Rivers Authority in connection with the implementation of the EC urban waste water treatment directive.
Mr. Yeo : The NRA has not finalised its proposals for these areas. Data are still being collected and discussions with appropriate bodies are continuing. I have placed a copy of the NRA's current working list in the Library of the House. Some areas may not feature in the final NRA list of candidates proposed to my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Environment and for Wales and it is also possible that other candidates may be added to the list as a result of ongoing work. Grid references are
Column 905
given for the eutrophic sensitive area candidates and general locations are given for high natural dispersion area candidates, but in both cases the information is only indicative and exact boundaries have not yet been fixed.Works Contracts
Mr. Devlin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he has yet considered the replies from South Tyneside metropolitan borough council and Stockton-on-Tees borough council to the notices served on the authorities on 1 Febraruy and 8 March, respectively, under section 13 of the Local Government Act 1988 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : My right hon. Friend has given careful consideration to the responses made by the two authorities to the notices served on them for anti-competitive behaviour on 1 February and 8 March. He has today given directions to South Tyneside and Stockton-on-Tees under section 14 of the 1988 Act requiring them to retender their ground maintenance work and other cleaning work respectively. If the councils wish their direct service organisations to carry out this work after 1 August 1994 they need to satisfy my right hon. Friend, no later than 30 April 1994, that they have fulfilled the competition requirement as laid down in the legislation.
Government Car Service
Mr. Spellar : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will place the report by Coopers and Lybrand on the running of the Government car service in the Library.
Mr. Baldry : The Coopers and Lybrand report on the Government car service contains commercially sensitive information. I have therefore decided that it should not be made publicly available.
Methyl Bromide
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what controls have been introduced by his Department on the use of methyl bromide within the United Kingdom ; and what plans he has to ban methyl bromide imports into the United Kingdom.
Mr. Yeo : Use of methyl bromide as a fumigant is controlled under the Control of Pesticide Regulations 1986. The guidelines for its use as a soil fumigant are being revised. I have no plans at present to ban its import into the United Kingdom, but imports will be controlled under an EC regulation currently under discussion.
Housing Benefit
Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what measures he is introducing to reduce dependency on housing benefit among (a) housing association tenants, (b) council tenants and (c) private rented sector tenants ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : I will write to the hon. Member.
Column 906
Public Inquiries
Mr. Peter Ainsworth : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he intends to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Surrey, East dated 1 April on the subject of public inquiries regarding Heathrow terminal 5 and the M25 link roads proposal.
Mr. Baldry : My right hon. Friend will be writing to my hon. Friend shortly.
Environmental Expenditure
Mr. Thomason : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the results of research on environ-mental expenditure in the United Kingdom, commissioned by his Department, will be published.
Mr. Yeo : The report will be published in the last week of August, and I am arranging for copies to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Architects (Warne Report)
Mr. David Atkinson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his response to the Warne report on the architects' profession ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer my right hon. Friend the Minister for Housing, Inner Cities and Construction gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Eastbourne (Mr. Waterson) on 2 February 1993, Official Report , columns 89-90 .
Uniform Business Rate
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to introduce new guidelines to local authorities concerning the implementation of the hardship clause on uniform business rates payments within the Local Government Finance Act 1988.
Mr. Baldry : My right hon. Friend has no plans to alter or replace the existing guidance.
Water Disconnection
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many families had their water supply disconnected in each water authority in each of the past five years.
Mr. Yeo : Information on numbers of households disconnected in the area of each Ofwat customer service committee region is set out in the following table. Although each CSC region relates to the area covered by one of the privatised water and sewerage undertakers, each entry in the table includes figures for the water supply companies operating within that area. For 1988-89 only, the numbers are for total disconnections, that is, domestic and non-domestic.
Column 905
Region |<1>1988-89|1989-90 |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Central |2,906 |1,347 |462 |4,797 |3,100 Eastern |3,212 |1,256 |971 |1,885 |926 North West |779 |756 |889 |2,074 |495 Northumbria |1,618 |721 |662 |1,009 |754 South West |100 |245 |210 |381 |300 Southern |1,524 |919 |429 |3,064 |4,800 Thames |2,436 |687 |966 |2,084 |3,665 Wales |1,249 |1,356 |1,305 |2,951 |2,448 Wessex |314 |140 |194 |492 |315 Yorkshire |1,078 |999 |1,585 |2,545 |1,833 <1> Domestic and non-domestic.
Air Quality Monitoring
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what comprehensive and comparable monitoring of air quality is carried out by statutory authorities in Greater London ; at what precise locations any such activity is carried out, by what means individual or aggregated results are published or made available to the public ; and if he will make such reports available in the Library.
Mr. Yeo : I shall write to the hon. Member.
Poll Tax Costs
Ms Harman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total cost to central and local government in each financial year since 1989-90 of administering the poll tax, including the costs of collection and enforcement.
Mr. Baldry : The cost to local government in England of collecting and administering the community charge was £448 million in 1990-91, £467 million in 1991-92, and £449million--estimated--in 1992-93. Local authorities have budgeted for costs of £145 million in 1993-94. Central Government do not have direct responsibility for these functions.
Bathing Water Standards
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 21 July, Official Report, columns 266-67, on EC bathing waters, what information he has as to the steps the Commission is taking to increase compliance with standards in those countries with more than 100 beaches which failed the mandatory standards.
Mr. Yeo : None, but I understand that the Commission has taken infringement action on the bathing water directive against all member states.
Greenham Common
Mr. Rendel : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what discussions he has had with Berkshire county council about the exclusion of Greenham common from section 194 of the Law of Property Act 1925 ;
(2) what is his role in respect of the granting of planning consent for developments on Greenham common (a) of a gravel crusher and (b) of other structures.
Mr. Baldry : I will write to the hon. Member.
Column 908
Refugees
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what payments have been made for each of the past five years, and to which local authorities, in respect of Kurdish refugees, Bosnian refugees, Somali refugees, Vietnamese refugees, Chilean refugees and others ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Baldry : The following payments were made by my Department in 1989-90 and 1990-91 under a scheme of special financial assistance to local authorities in respect of Turkish asylum seekers :
Local Authority |1989-90 £ |1990-91 £ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- London Borough of Haringey |599,400 |- London Borough of Hackney |141,300 |- London Borough of Islington |- |49,474
The following sums were subsequently recovered from those local authorities, following receipt of audited claims showing expenditure incurred by each authority :
|£
--------------------------------------------
London Borough of Haringey |29,921
London Borough of Hackney |141,300
London Borough of Islington |5,680
During 1992-93, the following payments were made under a scheme of assistance in respect of displaced persons from the former Yugoslavia :
---------------------------------------------- Ayelsbury Vale District Council |23,332 Rochford District Council |3,060 Uttlesford District Council |44,408
Rochford district council subsequently withdrew its claim for assistance and repaid £3,060 to the Department. No other payments of grant in respect of refugees have been made by the Department. However, further amounts in respect of displaced persons from former Yugoslavia will be paid during the current financial year. Also, a new special grant in respect of unaccompanied refugee and asylum-seeking children from various parts of the world will be paid to local authorities this year.
Local Government Reform
Mr. Ian Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what are his intentions as regards the arrangements to be adopted for handling the transfers of assets and liabilities between authorities necessitated by local government restructuring ; and if he will make a statement.
Column 909
Mr. Curry : My officials are discussing with officers of the Association of District Councils and the Association of County Councils the practical implications of any transfers of assets and liabilities between local authorities which might be necessitated by local government restructuring. In the light of these discussions, we intend to consult the local authority associations and local authorities on proposals for the treatment of local authority assets and liabilities in any local government restructuring.
Local Authority Associations
Mr. Olner : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many meetings he has had with representatives of the local authority associations since April 1992.
Mr. Baldry [holding answer 26 July 1993] : Between April 1992 and 27 May 1993, my right hon. and learned Friend the then Secretary of State had 13 meetings with representatives of the local authority associations. Since his appointment on 27 May, the Secretary of State has had three meetings with representatives of the associations.
Government and Public Bodies (Transferred Functions)
Mr. Straw : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the functions transferred to central Government Departments and bodies, or to non-elected bodies, consequent upon (a) the abolition of the Greater London council, (b) the abolition of the metropolitan counties and (c) other legislation enacted since 3 May 1979.
Mr. Gummer : I will deal first with (a) and (b) of the question. The Local Government Act 1985 provided for most of the functions of the Greater London council--GLC--and the metropolitan county councils--MCCs to be devolved respectively to the London borough councils and the City of London and the metropolitan district councils. The exceptions were responsibility for :
(i) police--which was was transferred to Joint Police Authorities (except in London), many of whose members are elected local authority councillors,
(ii) fire, civil defence and passenger transport--which was transferred respectively to Joint Fire and Civil Defence Authorities and Passenger Transport Authorities all of whose members are elected councillors
(iii) waste disposal--transferred to a mixture of statutory and voluntary joint bodies covering all the areas of the former metropolitan county councils and part of London
(iv) certain arts and museums responsibilities were transferred to the Arts Council, English Heritage and the Office of Arts and Libraries (now Department of National Heritage)
(v) Land Drainage (all areas)--to Regional Water Authorities (now water companies),
(vi) Trunk Roads (London) to the Secretary of State for Transport and,
(vii) Pensions Administration--for the GLC and South Yorkshire MCC, pensions administration was transferred to two pensions fund authorities.
To turn to (c), we have been able to identify the following functions :
the Local Government Planning and Land Act 1980 created 12 urban development corporations as development control planning authorities in place of certain local authorities.
the London Regional Transport Act 1984 transferred London Regional Transport from GLC to the Secretf schools (LMS) means that from April 1994 the governing body of every primary and secondary school will manage the school's budget and be responsible for appointing its staff.
the Education Reform Act 1988 removed from local authorities responsibility for the provision of higher education, made possible the introduction of independent City Technology Colleges (CTCs) and removed the power of LEAs to set schools' admission limits. the Housing Act 1988 established Housing Action Trusts and removed a number of housing units from local authority control.
the Trade Union Reform and Employment Rights Act 1993 transfers the duty to provide a careers service to the Secretary of State. the Health and Safety (Emissions into the Atmosphere) (Amendment) Regulations 1989 added a number of processes to those subject to control by Her Majesty's Inspection of Pollution.
the Poultry Meat (Hygiene) Amendment Regulations 1992 transferred responsibility for licensing poultry meat slaughterhouses from local government to the Minister of Agriculture Fisheries and Food. the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 made colleges of further education including sixth form colleges, self-governing with their funding arrangements transferred to the Further Education Funding Councils for England and Wales.
the Education (Schools) Act 1992 provided that from 1993 for secondary schools, and 1994 for all other schools, local authorities will lose their general power of school inspection.
the Local Government Act 1992 transferred certain duties and powers in relation to parish reviews from district councils to the Local Government Commission.
the Leashold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 gives the Secretary of State power to designate an area within which the Urban Regeneration Agency would become the local planning authority and have development control powers within that area.
We have also identified the following functions which have been gained by local government since 3 May 1979 :
the Social Security and Housing Benefits Act 1982 transferred the administration of rents and rates rebates and allowances from the (then) DHSS to local authorities.
since the abolition of the GLC and the metropolitan county councils, metropolitan districts have been required to prepare unitary development plans (the Secretary of State was previously responsible for the final stages and adoptions).
the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1989 transferred certain enforcement responsibilities to local authorities.
as a result of our community care reforms, local authorities have been given lead responsibility for assessing people's needs for community care and purchasing residential and nursing home care (in place of the Department of Social Security).
the Planning and Compensation Act 1991 transferred responsibility for the final stages and adoption of structure plans in shire counties to county councils (the Secretary of State was previously responsible).
the Environmental Protection (Prescribed Processes and Substances) Regs 1991 returned certain processes to local authority control. the Road Traffic Act 1991 transferred parking regulations from Department of Transport to local authorities.
the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations 1992 transferred responsibility for enforcing animal health controls at ports on products of animal origin from third world countries from MAFF to local authorities.
Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 transferred power to determine exclusions from Right to Buy from the Environment Secretary to local government.
National Health Service Land
Mrs. Anne Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much NHS land has been sold with planning permission for commercial development in each of the past five years.
Column 911
Mr. Sackville : I have been asked to reply.
This information is not available centrally. Health authorities are required to obtain the best price that can reasonably be obtained in disposing of surplus land, and land which has the potential for development should normally be sold with the benefit of planning permission. In the past 10 years, the national health service has disposed of over 5,000 hectares realising £1.1 billion which has been reinvested in health services.
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