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Statutory Instruments
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the statutory instruments which his Department has sponsored in the last 12 months.
Sir Paul Beresford: A list of the statutory instruments will be placed in the Library sponsored by my Department in the last 12 months--1 February 1994 to 31 January 1995--will be placed in the Library. In addition to those orders, a further 254 local orders were also processed.
Pollution
Sir Trevor Skeet: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action the United Kingdom is taking to phase out the production of substances damaging the ozone layer.
Mr. Atkins [pursuant to his reply, 15 February 1995 c. 674]: The production of chlorofluorocarbons has been phased out in the European Union except for some limited production for a small number of essential uses, such as gas medical inhalers, and to meet the domestic needs of certain developing countries as provided for under the Montreal protocol and European Union regulations.
Mr. Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all samples of thepresence of polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-para-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans in (a) soil and (b) air which have been taken by his Department and agencies responsible to his Department in Hampshire in the past 10 years and, in each case, the location of the sample site.
Mr. Atkins: In addition to the samples reported in Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollutions technical report, 1989, entitled "Determination of PCBs, PCDDs and PCDFs in UK Soils", the following soil and air samples have been taken on behalf of HMIP. The results of items 1 and 2 will be published by HMIP this spring. The results of items 3 to 6 are already available on HMIP's public registers.
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Item |Type |Date |Number |Location ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 |Soil |1988-89 |8 |Around Winchester municipal waste incinerator 2 |Soil |1988-89 |12 |Around Fawley chemical waste incinerator 3 |Air |1991-94 |5 |Stack emissions from Havant incinerator 4 |Air |1992-94 |6 |Stack emissions from Basingstoke incinerator 5 |Air |1991-94 |6 |Stack emissions from Marchwood incinerator 6 |Air |1992-94 |4 |Stack emissions from Winchester incinerator
Mr. Faber: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress has been made by the Irish sea science co-ordinator in reviewing Irish sea science since his appointment was announced on 11 March 1992.
Mr. Atkins: The co-ordinator has prepared "A Review of Current Activities and Future Needs" with the assistance of organisations on both sides of the Irish sea. The review which has been submitted to the UK and Irish Governments as the "Second Report of the Irish Sea Science Co- ordinator", concludes that the Irish sea is already receiving much scientific attention. The review assesses the contribution of current scientific work to understanding environmental change and human impact in the Irish sea and identifies broad priorities for further work. I am placing copies in the Library of the House today.
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The co-ordinator is now preparing a report on specific, immediate priorities for future research and monitoring. This further report will be made available to the House once it has been completed.New Forest
Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 16 February, Official Report, column 808, if the terms of reference of the New Forest committee and the New Forest consultative panel which it administers apply to the Crown lands of the New Forest; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Atkins: The terms of reference of both the committee and the panel apply equally to the Crown lands of the New Forest.
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Nuclear Waste
Mr. Robert Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer of 20 February, Official Report, column 89, which waste consignments for the Drigg disposal facility contained quantities of free liquid.
Mr. Atkins: The following waste consignments have been seized by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution since 1990 and found to contain quantities of free liquids.
Date of seizure |Consignor ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 18 May 1994 |Wylfa-Nuclear Electric 7 October 1993 |AEA-WNL 1 October 1992 |BNF-Sellafield 24 January 1992 |BNF-Sellafield 24 January 1992 |Hunterston-Scottish Nuclear 20 March 1991 |Dungeness-Nuclear Electric 31 August 1990 |BNF-Sellafield 20 July 1990 |Amersham International-Amersham 18 July 1990 |AEA-Harwell 26 June 1990 |AEA-Harwell 15 March 1990 |Wylfa-Nuclear Electric March 1990 |Hinkley Point-Nuclear Electric
Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee
Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he plans to announce the appointment of the new chair for the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee; what consultation he has carried out regarding the appointment; and what criteria were used in selecting the new chair.
Mr. Atkins: An announcement will be made in due course. The chairman of the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee is appointed by the Secretaries of State for the Environment, for Scotland and for Wales, in consultation with other ministerial colleagues as appropriate, and is chosen on the basis of his or her abilities to fill what is an important and demanding position.
Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what plans he has to change the status of (a) the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee and (b) the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations;
(2) what plans he has to merge the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee and the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations.
Mr. Atkins: There are no current plans to change the status of the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee, although the effectiveness of all such committees is kept under review. Questions concerning the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations are a matter for the Health and Safety Commission in consultation with the Department of Trade and Industry and the Scottish Office.
Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the future of the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee.
Mr. Gummer: Sir John Knill, the current chairman of Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee is due to step down as chairman of RWMAC at the end of May of this year. My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Wales and I had intended to
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invite Dr. David Harrison, chairman of the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations to be Sir John Knill's successor. However, in recent weeks differences have emerged between the RWMAC and ACSNI members of a joint study group examining the approach to site selection for disposal facilities.I have recently received their report including the minority views of the two ACSNI members, which I shall be publishing shortly. In the light of these differences, Dr. Harrison has indicated that he feels it would be in the best interests of both committees that they should not at the present time have the same chairman and he has therefore withdrawn his name from consideration for the chairmanship of RWMAC. I have reluctantly acquiesced.
A further announcement will be made in due course about Sir John Knill's successor.
European Regional Development Fund
Mr. Wareing: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations have been made by the European Commission to Her Majesty's Government in respect of local labour clauses within contracts for objective 1 projects; what the Commission's position is on such contracts; what his response has been; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry: No representations have been made by the Commission on this subject on Merseyside, though on the initiative of local partners it will be considered at a future meeting of the monitoring committee.
Mr. Wareing: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received from the European Commission calling for greater representation of local authorities and for the representation of social partners on the committees monitoring the use of objective 1 funds on Merseyside; what his response has been; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry: The Commission has made no representations to me on these issues, following the agreement of the single programming document with the Commission last year.
Ethnic Minority Funding
Ms Glenda Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to the answer of 21 February, Official Report, column 149, regarding additional section 11 funding, if she will give the amounts of ring-fenced section 11 funding within the single regeneration budget of November 1994.
Mr. Curry: Expenditure on the section 11 schemes which are now part of the single regeneration budget is expected to be £60.5 million in the current financial year, 1994 95. These schemes will continue to receive funding through the single regeneration budget for their planned lifetimes.
WALES
Child Care
Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will establish a special "under-fives initiative"
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along the lines of proposals submitted to him by Chwarae Teg.Mr. Richards: I expect to make an announcement on this shortly.
Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will extend beyond the next financial year the funding of the training and enterprise council out-of-school initiative.
Mr. Richards: The out-of-school child care grant initiative was introduced in 1993 as a three-year pump-priming initiative to stimulate the market for child care for children of school age. There are no plans to extend the pump-priming period.
Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will establish a child care task force to draw up a child care action plan for Wales as proposed by the Equal Opportunities Commission in its report "Equal Opportunities Commission Evidence to the Welsh Office on EC Childcare Recommendations."
Mr. Richards: Chwarae Teg already has a central role in stimulating and guiding actions to promote child care, working with relevant agencies in Wales. I am not convinced that a child care task force will make effective action more likely.
Mr Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proposals he has to raise awareness among employers of the EC child care recommendation adopted by the Council of Ministers in March 1992.
Mr. Richards: I look to Chwarae Teg to lead action to raise awareness among employers. The Welsh Office's core funding for Chwarae Teg recognises this.
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what action he will take on EC child care recommendations evidence from the Equal Opportunities Commission in Wales.
Mr. Richards: The Equal Opportunities Commission's evidence will be taken into account in the Welsh Office contribution to the Government's report on the EC child care recommendation 1992. I refer the hon. Member the the replies given to the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mr. Griffiths) today.
NHS Trusts
Mr. Sweeney: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement about the development of the NHS trusts in Wales.
Mr. Richards: There are currently 24 operational NHS trusts in Wales and I announced on 16 January that we were establishing a further three trusts with an operational date of 1 April 1995. Additionally, public consultation on applications received from the University hospital of Wales and Cardiff Royal Group and the West Glamorgan east unit--Neath and Port Talbot--and district service unit has now ended. In the light of representation received, and taking account of the individual merits of both applications, my right hon. Friend and I have decided to establish these units as NHS trusts to become operational from April 1995 and April 1996 respectively. The orders giving the effect on these decisions have been signed today.
My right hon. Friend and I are satisfied that the new University hospital of Wales healthcare NHS trust can
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become fully operational on 1 April 1995. However, we have always made it clear that we will only appose full trust status when management at a trust can concentrate on improving patient care, our key criterion for agreeing trust status. My right hon. Friend and I have therefore decided to approve trust status for the new Glan-y-Mor NHS trust to become fully operational on 1 April 1996.During the intervening period, when the trust will run in shadow form and undertake a limited number of functions of a fully operational trust, the new trust will be able to complete the integration of the West Glamorgan east unit and district services unit and make further progress on the development of the new Baglan hospital.
We will announce shortly details on chairmen and non-executive directors for the new NHS trusts.
Accident and Emergency Departments
Mr. Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many accident and emergency departments there are in Wales; what was the corresponding figure in each year since 1986; and how many accident and emergency departments have been relocated in each year since 1986.
Mr. Richards: The number of accident and emergency departments in each year since 1985 86 is given in the following table. Information concerning relocation of these departments is not available centrally.
|Number of accidents
|and
Year |emergency
|departments<1>
------------------------------------------------------------
1985-86 |72
1986-87 |71
1987-88 |71
1988-89 |71
1989-90 |70
1890-91 |70
1991-92 |68
1992-93 |69
1993-94 |67
<1>Includes all hospitals which reported treating patients
in the speciality of accident and emergency during the year,
including hospitals which treated only a small number of
patients in this specialty.
School Budgets
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the schools which have contributed to the total balance held by local education authority schools and the balances held by each school together with the date it was recorded.
Mr. Redwood: I refer the hon. Gentlemen to the reply my hon. Friend gave to the Member for Bridgend (Mr. Griffiths) on 23 February 1995, Official Report, column 301 ,
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer of 14 February Official Report, column 610 , if he will list the date that the balances were recorded in the audited account of each grant- maintained school; and if he will list by local education authority the balance held by locally maintained schools on the same date.
Mr. Redwood: The financial balances detailed in my answer of 14 February were taken from the annual accounts of grant-maintained schools in Wales for the year ending 31 March 1994. According to financial
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outturn statements for 1993 94 prepared by local education authorities under section 42 of the Education Reform Act 1988, locally maintained schools held the following balances.
|£
--------------------------------------
Clwyd |5,245,788
Dyfed |3,921,715
Gwent |7,730,178
Gwynedd |3,592,432
Mid Glamorgan |12,833,594
Powys |1,567,732
South Glamorgan |1,848,000
West Glamorgan |10,856,158
Wales |47,595,597
Hedgerows
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has, and what guidance he has issued, to prevent further loss of hedgerows in Wales.
Mr. Redwood: The 1990 survey conducted by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology indicated that, although removal was a cause the loss of hedgerows was mainly due to poor management. The Countryside Council for Wales, at the request of Welsh Office Ministers, introduced the hedgerow renovation scheme in 1992 to improve management. The hedgerow clauses in the Environment Bill will enable the introduction of a notification scheme allowing local authorities to prevent the removal of important hedgerows.
Tir Cymen
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to extend the Tir Cymen scheme to the whole of Wales; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: Tir Cymen is being run as an experimental scheme for five years. Decisions as to its future will be taken following a review to be undertaken before the end of the period.
Designated Areas
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list those designated areas in Wales that have been damaged in each of the last five years with the cause of the damage in each case; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: The protection and monitoring of designated habitats is the responsibility of the Countryside Council for Wales and the information is not held centrally. I have asked the chief executive to write to the hon. Member with the data requested; a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to increase the number of designated areas in Wales; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: I will continue to consider each proposal for designation as it arrives.
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what measures he is taking to protect designated areas in Wales from being damaged; and what advice he has issued to local authorities in respect of this.
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Mr. Redwood: The protection of designated habitats is the responsibility of the Countryside Council for Wales. National parks are the responsibility of their committees and areas of outstanding natural beauty are managed by the appropriate local authority or authorities.
Guidance on the protection of such areas is contained in various planning policy guidance notes, regulations, letters and circulars.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what discussions he has had with the Council of Welsh Districts and the Assembly of Welsh Counties with respect to the shift in monitoring of small sites of special scientific interest from the Countryside Council for Wales to local authorities;
(2) what assessment he has made of the scientific competence of local authorities with respect of their monitoring of small sites of scientific interest;
(3) what additional funding will be made available to Welsh local authorities to enable them to carry out effective monitoring of small sites of scientific interest.
Mr. Redwood: No decisions have yet been taken on the extent to which local authorities in Wales will be involved in the oversight and monitoring of small sites of special scientific interest. No new duties will be imposed on local authorities in Wales. Although no discussions have yet taken place, I fully intend involving local authority associations in discussions on how their members might become more involved in local nature conservation and countryside matters. I would expect these discussions to cover the questions of resources and scientific competence.
Country Parks
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what additional funding will be made available to local authorities to fund country parks following the reduction in the budget of the Countryside Council for Wales.
Mr. Redwood: The designation and maintenance of country parks is entirely a local authority matter. It is for the Countryside Council for Wales to decide upon its level of funding of education and interpretation interests in country parks.
Forestry
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what hectarage of new forest has been planted in Wales in each year since 1979.
Mr. Redwood: The information is as follows:
Year ended 31 March |New planting
|(hectares)
------------------------------------------------------------
1979 |1,163
1980 |1,353
1981 |1,244
1982 |1,330
1983 |1,347
1984 |1,339
1985 |1,079
1986 |792
1987 |846
1988 |1,102
1989 |984
1990 |648
1991 |525
1992 |411
1993 |429
1994 |626
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what amount of woodland grant scheme has been paid to landowners in Wales in each year since its interception.
Mr. Redwood: The information is as follows:
Year ended 31 March |£ thousands ------------------------------------------------------------ 1989<1> |25 1990 |405 1991 |463 1992 |622 1993 |756 1994 |1,222 <1> Part year.
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what guidance he has issued to landowners for increasing forest cover in Wales; and what plans he has to make extra funds available for this under the woodland grant scheme.
Mr. Redwood: The Forestry Commission has published a wide range of information and advice on the creation of new woodlands. In his statement of 19 July 1994, Official Report, columns 177 91, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland announced that significant extra funds would be provided for forestry throughout Great Britain.
Waste to Energy Project
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answer of 7 February, Official Report, column 152, which four projects in Wales have been awarded contracts for
waste-to-energy schemes under the third round of the non-fossil fuel obligation.
Mr. Redwood: The following waste-to-energy projects were awarded contracts under the third round of the NFFO:
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Technology band |Prosper |Site name |MW DNC |Parliamentary
|constituency
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Landfill Gas |AD Waste Ltd. |Standard |0.875 |Alyn and Deeside
Landfill Gas |Renewable Power |Tythegston |1.175 |Bridgend
| Generation Ltd.
Municipal and Industrial Waste |Associated Energy Projects|Lamby Way |1.446 |Cardiff South and Penarth
| plc
Municipal and Industrial Waste |Pyrogen (Merthyr) Ltd. |Taff Merthyr Colliery |9.000 |Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney
Out of Town Retailing
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many planning applications for our out-of-town developments have been referred to him in the last two years, what was the result of those applications; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: Between 1 February 1993 and 31 January 1995, 26 out of town centre retail applications were referred to me under the Town and Country Planning (Shopping Development) (England and Wales) (No. 2) Direction 1993, or as departures from the development plan or as a result of call-in requests. It was decided not to intervene in 23 cases; three are still under consideration. In addition, 25 such proposals came forward on appeal of which three have been dismissed, 12 were withdrawn by the applicants, four were allowed and six have yet to be determined.
Recycling Plans
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many Welsh local authorities have now produced recycling plans: and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: All 37 district authorities have produced recycling plans.
Organic Farming
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what guidance he has issued to farmers in respect of encouraging organic farming.
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Mr. Redwood: An organic aid scheme was introduced by WOAD on 1 September 1994 in order to aid farmers wishing to convert land to organic production. An information pack containing details of the scheme and listing addresses where further advice might be obtained is available from divisional office.
Showering Facilities
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what changing and showering facilities are available to Welsh Office staff who work at (a) Gwydyr house and (b) Cathays Park.
Mr. Redwood: At Gwydyr house there are showers in toilet/washroom areas. At Cathays Park there are separate changing rooms with showers.
Rights of Way
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what progress has been made on the introduction of a public rights of way network in Wales as promised in "This Common Inheritance--The Third Year Report".
Mr. Redwood: The latest available information is that 66 per cent. of the 1995 target strategic network will be open by the end of the financial year 1994 95. The 1995 target is a milestone towards the end of the century deadline, by which time the entire system of public rights of way is intended to be open and properly signposted in Wales.
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Local Development Plans
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many Welsh local authorities have produced local development plans under the terms of the Planning and Compensation Act 1991; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood: The relevant planning provision of the Planning and Compensation Act 1991 came into effect on 10 February 1992. Since that date, five districts have adopted local plans which cover the whole of their area. A further two districts have deposited plans and 11 districts and two national parks have published consultation drafts. Local plans, taking into account government guidance and local needs and priorities, have an important role in promoting and guiding development and in protecting and conserving our natural and build heritage. I want to see full local planning coverage in Wales at the earliest possible date and up to date and succinct plans giving clear guidance on acceptable land uses.
Reclaimed Land (Building)
Mr. Ron Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what guidance he has issued to local authorities in Wales to ensure that new building takes place on reclaimed land wherever practicable.
Mr. Redwood: Welsh Office circular 21/87--development of contaminated land--indicated that the Government wished to encourage full and effective use of land in urban areas and the re-use of sites which have been previously developed. Planning policy guidance note 12, Wales, published in February 1992 requires local authorities to include in development plans, land use policies for the improvement of the physical environment, for example, by reclaiming contaminated and derelict land so that it can be brought back into use more quickly and reduce pressure on green-field sites. In addition, the need for reclamation is referred to in other planning guidance. The value of using reclaimed land for new building is repeated in "The Environmental Agenda for Wales", published recently. I have stressed the priority of this work to the WDA and local authorities in the meetings I have held with it about developments.
TRANSPORT
Deregulation
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will ensure that the enforcement provisions contained in the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994 apply to all regulations for which his Department is responsible, past, present and future; and if he will make a statement.
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