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Animal Welfare
Mr. Morley: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to ensure that full consultation takes place on the draft animal transportation guidelines; and if he will make a statement. [3178]
Mrs. Browning: The consultation package on the new EU rules on animal welfare during transport was sent to some 600 interested organisations and individuals on 23 October. It was drawn up on the basis of preliminary discussions with the major interest groups; we are having further meetings and discussions as the consultation process progresses. Further public consultation will take place on the legal texts which will be drawn up after the present exercise concludes on 15 December.
Frogs' Legs
Mr. Morley: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the countries of origin of frogs' legs imported by the United Kingdom in (a) 1993 and (b) 1994; and if he will make a statement on the import by the United Kingdom of frogs' legs from Bangladesh in (a) 1993 and (b) 1994. [3204]
Mrs. Browning: I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave him on 31 October 1995, Official Report, column 225-26. There were no imports of frogs' legs direct from Bangladesh into the UK during 1993 and 1994 or into the EU countries from which the UK imported frogs' legs in 1993 and 1994.
Fishing Vessels
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many Spanish-owned but British-registered fishing vessels were prevented from fishing in United Kingdom waters under the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 now overturned by the European Court; what action was taken against those vessels; how many were subsequently (a) tied up in Britain, (b) tied up in Spain, (c) transferred to Spain to continue fishing and (d) sold to other owners; what investigation has he made into each vessel's claim for compensation; and what records each will be required to produce to substantiate that claim. [3689]
Mr. Baldry: Some 150 vessels were removed from the UK fishing vessel register in 1989. About 95 of these vessels have returned to the UK register or have had their
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licences placed on other UK-registered vessels. Detailed information is not held on the whereabouts of those vessels which have not returned to the UK register.
The issue of whether compensation is payable to vessels removed from the register is awaiting a ruling by the European Court of Justice. The Advocate General, in his opinion of 28 November, was of the view that national Governments are liable to pay damages to individuals where the legislature has passed a national law which is incompatible with Community law, provided that the obligation imposed on the state from which the individual's right is derived is clear. The Advocate General's opinion is not binding, however, and we must await the ruling of the court itself. If the court took a similar view to the Advocate General it would be for the UK courts to determine its application in individual cases.
Nitrate Levels (Lettuces)
Mr. Cash: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the research by Aberdeen university on nitrate levels in lettuces. [3490]
Mrs. Browning: This study at Aberdeen university on the metabolism of dietary nitrate in man is funded by the Ministry and started earlier this year. Preliminary results indicate that nitrate in the diet, which derives mainly from leafy green vegetables, including lettuce, may play a significant role in protecting the body from infection by pathogenic organisms. A full assessment of this work will be made on its completion.
Monkfish
Mr. David Nicholson: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proposals he has to amend the United Kingdom quota for monkfish to take account of the practicalities of fishing in the English channel. [4013]
Mr. Baldry: For 1996 I propose to support an increase in the total allowable catch and hence the UK quota for monkfish in International Council for the Exploration of the Seas area VII. This includes the English channel.
Private Finance Initiative
Mr. Betts: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list for each scheme so far agreed under the private finance initiative (a) capital and (b) revenue costs to public funds (i) under the PFI and (ii) estimated to have been incurred had the scheme been funded wholly within the public sector. [3817]
Mr. Boswell: Several projects are currently being assessed for their potential but no schemes have so far been agreed under the private finance initiative.
Mr. Betts: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how much capital expenditure is forecast to be included in the private finance initiative for the current financial year and the next five financial years. [3822]
Mr. Boswell: I refer the hon. Member to table 6.5 of the "Financial Statement and Budget Report 1996-97", which was laid before the House on 28 November 1995.
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ENVIRONMENT
Health Care Waste
Sir Mark Lennox-Boyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he will instruct his officials to hold discussions with the Sanitary Medical Disposal Services Association in respect of the definition of hazardous health care wastes; [3549]
(2) if he will instruct his officials to have discussions with officials at the Department of Transport to ensure that the definition of infectious waste applied to the transport of infectious waste is identical to the definition of infectious waste applying to the disposal of infectious waste; [3550]
(3) if he will ensure that the waste management paper No. 23 to be implemented in 1996 will specify that hazardous health care waste should be interpreted to include only notifiable disease waste. [3548]
Mr. Clappison: I know that the Sanitary Medical Disposal Services Association is concerned lest developments in the regulation fo health care wastes might damage its members' business. The association can at any time initiate new discussions with my Department. The association may also wish to comment on the Health and Safety Commission's draft revised version of the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road and Rail (Classification, Packaging and Labelling) Regulations 1994. Consultation among Departments would depend to some extent on the nature of the association's concerns. But since I wish to minimise inconvenience to business and to ensure proper arrangements for environmental protection and health and safety, my Department will in any case consult further with the Department of Transport. If alterations in the UK statute were the right course, that would be done in the normal way: waste management papers cannot alter statute or the rules of statutory interpretation.
Employment Medical Advisory Service
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many staff were employed in the employment medical advisory service of the Health and Safety Executive in (a) 1980 (b) 1985 and (c) each of the last five years. [3610]
Sir Paul Beresford: The table shows the number of staff employed by the employment medical advisory service of the Health and Safety Executive in (a) 1980 (b) 1985 and (c) each of the last five years.
Year (1 April)
1980: 145.5
1985: 106.5
1991: 93.5
1992: 100
1993: 108
1994: 98.5
1995: 78.34
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Village Halls
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimates he has made of the number of village halls in England (a) in 1979 and (b) at present. [3947]
Mr. Clappison: I understand from Action with Communities in Rural England that the number of village halls in England was (a) 8,350 in 1979 and (b) 8,600 at present.
Mr. Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to increase the resources available to fund capital projects for charitable village halls. [3946]
Sir Paul Beresford: The White Paper on Rural England published by my Department and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in October recognised the important role village halls play in small communities. My Department has recently agreed that the Rural Development Commission should increase to £1.15 million the amount it will make available to communities for the construction, renovation or improvement of village halls and community centres during 1995-96.
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