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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 19 October 1993
ENVIRONMENT
Partnerships for Change
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the initiatives launched and outcome of the Partnerships for Change conference held in Manchester on 20 to 22 September ; and if he will place in the Library a copy of his speech made to the conference.
Mr. Yeo : We are preparing a Partnerships in Practice guide to reflect the exchange of experience which took place at the Partnerships for Change conference and to draw out lessons about achieving sustainable development through partnership. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has arranged for a copy of his speech to the conference to be placed in the Library.
Energy Conservation
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representation Her Majesty's Government had at the symposium on the environmental benefits of energy conservation organised by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe in Moscow on 20 to 24 September.
Mr. Yeo : Four representatives from the United Kingdom energy efficiency industry were present at the symposium in Moscow on 20 to 24 September. There was no official from Her Majesty's Government present, but officials from the Energy Efficiency Office, who have regularly attended steering committee meetings of the UNECE, kept in touch with the United Kingdom industry representatives.
Environment Council
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what matters were discussed and what decisions taken at the Environment Council meeting in Luxembourg on 5 October ; and if he will indicate the policy proposals put forward by the United Kingdom and the votes taken on each proposal.
Mr. Yeo : I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave yesterday to my hon. Friend the Member for Windsor and Maidenhead (Mr. Trend).
Environment Management
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to meet the Engineering Employers Federation to discuss environmental management strategies.
Mr. Yeo : None, but my officials are in regular contact with the federation.
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Environmental Assessment
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what meetings he has had in 1993 with the Environmental Auditors Registration Association ; and what further meetings are planned with the EARA and the Institute of Environmental Assessment.
Mr. Yeo : None, but my officials are in regular contact with both organisations.
Leasehold Reform
Mr. Raynsford : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he expects the Advisory Service for Leaseholders seeking to enfranchise or extend their lease under the provisions of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993, to come into operation.
Sir George Young : The leasehold reform co-ordinating committee has now submitted firm proposals to me for a Leasehold Enfranchisement Advisory Service for England and Wales and I am urgently considering its request for Government financial assistance. I therefore hope to be able to make an announcement about the commencement of this service very shortly.
Transport and Security Services Division
Mr. Knapman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made towards establishing the transport and security services division of his Department as an executive agency.
Sir George Young : I am pleased to announce that the agency, which will be called Security Facilities Executive (SAFE), was established on 15 October 1993. It incorporates all the functions carried out by transport and security services division (TSSD) which comprised custody services, Government car service, interdispatch service, security furniture services and special services group. The divisional director, John King, has been appointed the chief executive following an open competition.
The aim and objectives of the agency are set our in a framework document, copies of which will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses. By setting demanding and realistic targets each year, I will be encouraging SAFE to maintain and improve its existing standards of performance. I am confident that the agency will rise to the challenge and continue to enhance the value for money that it offers whilst maintaining its enviable standards of excellence.
For 1993-94, the following have been set for the agency :
Category |Measure |Target
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Financial |Outturn on the vote |A surplus of £1.8
|million
|Outturn on net running |A deficit of £1.1
|costs |million
|Outturn on cost recovery|99 per cent.
|in accruals terms
Efficiency |Unit costs |No increase in real
|terms
Quality of Service |Regular customer surveys|Average rating of
|"good" or higher
Environment |Vehicle fuel efficiency |Annual average of
|24 miles per gallon
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Recycling
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made as to the proportion of (a) plastics, (b) paper, (c) steel and (d) glass produced each year since 1980, which has subsequently been recycled.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1993] : The following table, drawn mainly from the Department of the Environment's "Digest of Environmental Protection and Water Statistics", shows the known amounts recycled since 1980 (as a percentage of consumption) :
per cent
|Plastics |Paper and Board|Steel Cans |Glass
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1980 |<1>- |29 |- |2
1981 |<1>- |28 |- |3
1982 |<1>- |27 |- |4
1983 |<1>- |25 |- |7
1984 |<1>- |26 |- |9
1985 |<1>- |27 |- |13
1986 |<1>- |27 |- |12
1987 |<1>- |26 |- |14
1988 |<1>- |26 |8 |16
1989 |<1>- |27 |8 |17
1990 |2 |31 |9 |20
1991 |5 |32 |10 |21
1992 |6 |32 |12 |26
<1> Not available.
Packaging
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what measures are being taken by his Department to encourage the use of reduced quantities of (a) metals, (b) plastic and (c) paper in packaging ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Yeo [holding answer 18 October 1993] : Over the past two years the Government have been conducting
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intensive discussions with a range of industries, including the packaging industry, to see what measures can be taken to reduce unnecessary packaging and improve the recycling rates of different packaging materials.On 27 July we invited all sections of the packaging
industry--manufacturers and fillers of packaging and retailers--to draw up a plan for raising current levels of recovery to between 50 and 75 per cent. by the year 2000.
We are asking these businesses collectively to take their share of responsibility for what happens to packaging once it has served its original purpose, while at the same time minimising the use of packaging wherever possible and encouraging reuse wherever practicable.
We have set five objectives which any industry plan must meet : First, there needs to be an effective organisation, spanning all the relevant business sectors, which can both draw up a plan and put it into action ;
Secondly, there needs to be a commitment by business to meet the costs of new collection and processing capacity and of developing a mechanism for raising the necessary finances ;
Thirdly, against the background of a build up in capacity to increase recovery levels to between 50 and 70 per cent. by the year 2000, to expand collection and processing capacity within the next year,
Fourthly, to encourage industry to increase demand for recycled material where it meets the appropriate standards ;
Fifthly, to safeguard recycling infrastructure for plastic and paper and board, which are currently threatened by subsidised foreign imports.
We have invited leading figures in the industry to report back by the end of October on the action which they have taken to help collection and processing operations to continue, especially for waste paper, board and plastics. And we are asking them to present us with an effective plan for meeting all these objectives, before this Christmas.
Copies of two recent DOE press releases (Nos. 519 and 594) setting out our challenge to the packaging industry have been placed in the Library of the House.
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Water Services
Mr. Bellingham : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when Her Majesty's Government intend to publish a response to the water regulator Ian Byatt's paper "Paying For Quality" ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gummer : In our document "Water Charges : the Quality Framework", my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I have today responded to the Director General of Water Services' request for our perspective on the policy context of the review of water company price limits which he intends to complete next summer. Our safety and environmental standards are already high, but it is right that where necessary they should be further improved to achieve sustainable use of our water. Our privatised companies are already investing £3 billion a year to this end. Their charges are low compared with elsewhere in Europe.
Charges will have to rise to finance further improvements. But they must also be sustainable. We expect that the water companies will continue to make significant efficiency improvements, and the law requires the Director General to be rigorous in identifying the scope for reduced costs.
But we must also strike the right balance between the pace of quality improvements and costs, so that people do not face excessive increases in bills in the short term. In Europe and at home, we have to ask whether our priorities are right, whether benefits justify costs, and whether today's consumers are being asked unnecessarily to pay for long-term benefits.
For our part, we shall look hard at costs in deciding how and when we place further obligations on water companies. We propose to make it a duty for the Environment Agency to do this. Meanwhile we expect the National Rivers Authority and the drinking water inspectorate to do so when they are not legally precluded from taking costs into account.
The Government are also inviting their EC partners to re-examine priorities, for example, in the detailed implementation of the urban waste water treatment directive, so as to focus on the most immediate environmental concerns. The European Commission has already begun a much- needed review of the drinking water directive and we welcome its assurance that its proposals will be fully costed in relation to the likely benefits.
The Director General sought certainty about the obligations that water companies would have to meet in the period 1995-2005. Such certainty facilitates efficiency and cost-reduction. But it is not reasonable to expect society to place itself under a 10-year moratorium on health, safety and environmental improvements : if, for example, a serious risk to health comes to light, we could not take
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immediate action. But price limits do not need to take account of possible obligations which have not yet been decided upon. A copy of the response has been placed in the Library.DEFENCE
Gulf Battle Honours
Lady Olga Maitland : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Gravesham (Mr. Arnold) of 24 February, Official Report, columns 657-58, if he will make a statement as to which regiments and corps of the Army and squadrons of the RAF will be able to include the Gulf campaign in their battle honours.
Mr. Hanley : Her Majesty the Queen has graciously approved the award of the theatre honour "Gulf 1991" and the battle honours "Wadi al Batin" and "Western Iraq" to the Army regiments and corps listed. Her Majesty has also approved the emblazonment of the theatre honour "Gulf 1991" on the colours, standards, or guidons of those regiments and corps awarded this honour.
Her Majesty the Queen has also graciously approved the award of the battle honour "Gulf 1991" to the squadrons of the Royal Air Force listed. Squadrons which were involved in direct confrontation with the enemy and demonstrated gallantry and spirit under fire have been awarded the battle honour "Gulf 1991" with the right to emblazon the honour on their standards. Squadrons which operated in theatre and contributed to operations against the enemy have been awarded the battle honour "Gulf 1991" without the right to emblazon the honour on their standards.
Her Majesty the Queen has also graciously approved the retrospective award of the theatre honour "Falkland Islands 1982" to the Army Air Corps for its part in the Falklands campaign.
Army Regiments and Corps awarded the Theatre Honour
"Gulf 1991" with the right of Emblazonment
The Life Guards
1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys)
The Queen's Royal Irish Hussars
14th/20th King's Hussars
16th/5th The Queen's Royal Lancers
Grenadier Guards
Coldstream Guards
Scots Guards
The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment)
The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
The Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's Own
Glasgow and Ayrshire Regiment)
The King's Own Scottish Borderers
The Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's)
Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons)
Special Air Service Regiment
Army Air Corps
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Army Regiments and Corps awarded the Battle Honour "Wadi al Batin"The Life Guards
1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys)
The Queen's Royal Irish Hussars
14th/20th King's Hussars
16th/5th The Queen's Royal Lancers
Grenadier Guards
The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment)
The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
The Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's)
Army Air Corps
Army Regiment awarded the Battle Honour
"Western Iraq"
Special Air Service Regiment
|3 |Royal Air Force
|3 |Squadrons awarded
|3 |the Battle Honour
|3 |"Gulf 1991",
with the right of
Emblazonment
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number 1 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Scorpion/Spartan
Number 2 Squadron |Tornado GR1a
Number 6 Squadron |Jaguar
Number 7 Squadron |Helicopter SF
Number 9 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 12 Squadron |Buccaneer
Number 13 Squadron |Tornado GR1a
Number 14 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 15 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 16 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 17 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 18 Squadron |Helicopter SH
Number 20 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 27 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 31 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Number 33 Squadron |Helicopter SH
Number 41 Squadron |Jaguar
Number 54 Squadron |Jaguar
Number 208 Squadron |Buccaneer
Number 230 Squadron |Helicopter SH
Number 617 Squadron |Tornado GR1
Royal Air Force Squadrons awarded the Battle Honour "Gulf 1991",
without the right of Emblazonment
Number 10 Squadron |VC10 AT
Number 20 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Rapier
Number 24 Squadron |Hercules AT
Number 26 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Rapier
Number 29 Squadron |Tornado F3
Number 30 Squadron |Hercules AT
Number 32 Squadron |AT/Comms
Number 34 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Field/Ground Defence
Number 42 Squadron |Nimrod Maritime
Number 43 Squadron |Tornado F3
Number 47 Squadron |Hercules AT
Number 51 Squadron |Nimrod (R)
Number 51 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Field/Ground Defence
Number 55 Squadron |AAR
Number 58 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Field/Ground Defence
Number 66 Squadron Royal Air Force Regiment |Rapier
Number 70 Squadron |Hercules AT
Number 101 Squadron |AAR
Number 120 Squadron |Nimrod Maritime
Number 201 Squadron |Nimrod Maritime
Number 206 Squadron |Nimrod Maritime
Number 216 Squadron |AT/AAR
TRANSPORT
Manchester Airport Rail Link
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has had from the chairman of the Greater Manchester passenger transport
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authority in regard to the Manchester airport rail link-southern spur ; what reply he is sending ; what action he is taking ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Freeman : I have had a number of discussions with Councillor Clarke about the funding of this scheme. I understand that Manchester airport has now agreed to underwrite the expenditure needed for the scheme to go ahead.
M1/M62 Link Road
Mrs. Peacock : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the proposed M1/M62 link road.
Mr. MacGregor : Public consultation on proposals for an M1/M62 link road was held between February and June 1992. From the responses it became clear that earlier concern to achieve the economic benefits which were expected to derive from the introduction of a new road into the corridor was no longer a predominant local concern. At the same time I have been making it clear that the road programme should, wherever possible, be concentrated on widening and improving the existing network rather than building new motorways. Each scheme has to be judged on its merits but here there is opportunity to pursue a solution which avoids driving a new route through green fields.
I have therefore decided not to proceed with development of plans for a new road but to investigate the possibilities for increasing the capacity of the relevant lengths of the two motorways.
Docklands Light Railway
Mr. Raynsford : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when a start will be made on construction of the docklands light railway extension to Greenwich and Lewisham.
Sir George Young : I have been asked to reply.
The Department of the Environment is responsible for the docklands light railway. While the private sector has already shown a welcome interest in building and running the Lewisham extension, we must ensure that proposals are consistent with our manifesto pledge to consider the best means of privatising the DLR as a whole.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Value Added Tax
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list for each relevant tax year the revenue he has derived from VAT relating to (a) building repairs, (b) non-domestic building and (c) civil engineering projects, with any convenient breakdown into category ; and what is his estimate in each case of the consequential increase in price to the immediate client or consumer, and the approximate and total effect of such charges on (i) the retail price index and (ii) the rate of inflation.
Sir John Cope : When the tax regime for construction, buildings and land was revised on 1 April 1989 the increase in revenue was calculated to be £310 million in 1989-90 and £400 million in 1990-91. Since then no further revenue calculations have been made. The
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assumption made at the time was that changes in VAT would have been fully passed on to clients. Since the clients affected by the tax changes were businesses the direct effect on the RPI and therefore on the rate of inflation would have been negligible and in any case is not possible to calculate.SCOTLAND
Local Government Reorganisation
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will meet the regional council directors of police and fire services to discuss the implications for police and fire services arising out of the reorganisation of Scottish local government ; and if he will make a statement.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 18October 1993] : While my right hon. Friend has no immediate plans to meet officials of police and fire authorities to discuss the implications of local government reorganisation for these services, my noble and learned Friend the Minister of State has discussed the question of reorganisation with representatives of police authorities and forces at a meeting of the Police Advisory Board for Scotland. Scottish Office officials meet chief constables and firemasters regularly to discuss police and fire service matters. The existing number of police forces and fire brigades will be retained after
reorganisation.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Security Equipment
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the guidelines or regulations applying to imports and exports of electro shock equipment.
Mr. Needham : The only export regulation for which I am responsible which applies to what might be regarded as "electro shock" equipment is the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1992. Under head 5001 (d) export without a licence is prohibited in respect of portable anti-riot devices for administering an electric shock or an incapacitating substance, and specialised components therefor. Under head 5001 (f) there is a similar prohibition in respect of riot control vehicles which have been specially designed or modified to be electrified to repel boarders. So far as imports are concerned, any weapon which is designed or adapted to emit an electric shock against another person would be regarded as a prohibited weapon under section 5(1) (b) of the Firearms Acts 1968-1992. Import of such weapons is restricted to those persons legally authorised to hold them in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what guidelines or regulations are applicable to exporters in respect of (a) manufacture and export of dum dum bullets, (b) export of tear gas, (c) design and construction of prisons for overseas Governments, (d) security equipment such as vehicles for overseas Governments and (e) Frag 12 exploding ammunition ; and what particular guidance is given in respect of (i) Israel, (ii) other middle east Governments, (iii) Pakistan and (iv) Thailand.
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