12 Dec 1995 : Column: 555
Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 12 December 1995
TRANSPORT
Stansted Airport
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action he is taking in respect of BAA's application for an increase in the air transport movements limit at Stansted airport. [5949]
Mr. Watts: We are today beginning consultation on raising the limit on air transport movements at Stansted. This follows the application by BAA plc, the airport operator, to increase the limit to 150,000 movements each year. The Department is seeking views on this option, as well as on an alternative option of increasing the limit to 120,000 movements a year.
When planning permission was granted for the development of Stansted, an upper limit was placed on the number of air transport movements each year to ensure that the local infrastructure could cope with air traffic growth. We now need to decide whether it is time to increase that upper limit, and if so by how much, taking account of local interests and without unduly restricting the airport's ability to grow.
The Department will be seeking the views of airlines, local authorities and other interested parties. Copies of the consultation document have been placed in the Library.
Mr. Steen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the estimate saving to businesses from the Deregulation (Motor Vehicles Tests) Order 1996. [5556]
Mr. Norris:
The estimated annual potential benefit to both business and private motorists is £3 million. It is not possible to apportion that estimate between the two categories of vehicle user without disproportionate effort.
Ms Glenda Jackson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will show for all consultants and other outside organisations or individuals currently or previously employed by his Department for advice or assistance in rail privatisation (a) the name of the consultancy, organisation or individual, (b) the length of the contract offered to each consultancy, organisation or individual, (c) the total amount inclusive of VAT paid to date to each consultancy, organisation or individual and (d) the services required by his Department from each consultancy, organisation or individual; and if he will make a statement. [270]
Mr. Watts
[pursuant to his reply, 22 November 1995, c. 142-43]: Information about payments to individual contractors is commercially confidential.
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Payments made to date to consultants currently or previously employed by the Department total £35.4 million.
Consultants currently employed by the Department on rail privatisation are:
| Consultants | |
|---|---|
| Linklaters and Paines | Legal advice |
| Freshfields | Legal advice |
| Samuel Montagu | Merchant Banking |
| Hambros | Merchant Banking |
| SBC Warburg | Merchant Banking |
| Merrill Lynch | Merchant Banking |
| KPMG Peat Marwick | Accountancy and Taxation |
| Ernst and Young | Accountancy |
| Price Waterhouse | Accountancy |
| Shandwick | Marketing |
| Gresham | Marketing |
| Dewe Rogerson | Marketing |
| Ernst and Young | Information Systems |
| Richard Ellis | Property matters |
| Sedgwick | Insurance |
| Brodies | Advice on Scots law |
| Travers Morgan | Specialist advice on BRIS contract pricing |
| Ernst and Young | Corporate finance advice on BRIS contract pricing |
| Mercer Management | Freight |
| PA Consulting Group | Information Systems |
| Touche Ross | Reporting consultants |
| Solid Solutions | Retail offer advisers |
| Sherman and Sterling | US lawyers |
| Bruce Bower Assoc. | Financial adviser |
| K. Bence | Engineering adviser |
| Consultants | |
|---|---|
| WRC (via COI) | Advertising agency |
| Sampson Tyrrell | Design company |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Receiving/custodian bank |
| Mail Marketing (Bristol) Ltd | Mailing house |
| Database Group Ltd | Database manager |
| Royal Mail | Postal services |
| Lloyds Bank Registrars | Database provider |
| Bowne International | Printers |
| Touche Ross | Fraud audit |
Consultants previously employed by the Department on rail privatisation are:
| Consultants | |
|---|---|
| Arthur D. Little | Research |
| Coopers and Lybrand | Access and access charging |
| Norman Broadbent | Recruitment |
| Putnham Hayes and Bartlett | Access and access charging |
| Debenham Tewson and Chinnocks | Property matters |
| NERA | Regulatory matters |
| Deloitte Haskins and Sells | Industry structure |
Contracts for consultancy advice are normally offered on an on-going basis with provision for the Department to terminate the contract.
12 Dec 1995 : Column: 557
Mr. George Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those consultants, outside organisations and individuals employed to date by his Department to assist with the franchising of ScotRail. [5507]
Mr. Watts:
No advisers have been appointed to assist exclusively with the franchising of ScotRail, but a number of advisers have been appointed to assist on a range of issues relating to rail privatisation. I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Hampstead and Highgate (Ms Jackson) on earlier today.
Mr. Morgan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations he has had with the Director General of the Office of Rail Franchise Regulation concerning issues of competition relevant to the preferred bidder status of the Western Region management team and First Bus for the Great Western passenger rail franchise and the dominant supplier position of First Bus in bus transport on the Cardiff-Swansea express bus route; and if he will make a statement. [5418]
Mr. Watts
[holding answer 11 December 1995]: Any competition issues raised by a rail franchise bid are for the franchising director, the Rail Regulator and the Director General of Fair Trading. My Department has been involved in discussions of a general nature.
The Railways Act 1993 confers on the Rail Regulator the functions of the Director General of Fair Trading with respect to any monopoly situation or anti-competitive practice relating to the supply of railway services. Qualifying mergers are investigated by the Office of Fair Trading under the Fair Trading Act 1973.
Mr. Alex Carlile:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will list (a) in total and (b) in each region, the number of lollipop (i) men and (ii) women employed in each year since 1979, and if he will make a statement; [5364]
(2) what is the average wage for lollipop (a) men and (b) women; and if he will make a statement. [5365]
Mr. Norris:
The information is not collected centrally.
Mr. Austin Mitchell:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many foreign-owned British-registered fishing vessels are (a) demersal vessels of 10 m and (b) beamers of 10 m; and what are their engine capacities and lengths. [4969]
Mr. Norris
[holding answer 8 December 1995]: The information requested is not available.
Sir Irvine Patnick:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance his Department gives to local authorities to determine traffic regulation orders; and what procedures are available to the public to object to such orders. [5246]
Mr. Norris:
Statutory procedures for local authorities to make traffic regulation orders in England and Wales under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 are set out
12 Dec 1995 : Column: 558
in the Local Authorities' Traffic Orders (Procedure) (England and Wales) Regulations 1989 (SI 1989/1120), as amended by the Local Authorities' Traffic Orders (Procedure) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 1993 (SI 1993/1500). These include requirements to consult parties that appear likely to be affected, to advertise the proposal and provide a general opportunity for objections to be submitted, and to give such objections due consideration before an order is made.
Dr. Lynne Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy to uprate annually the "amount per kilo" calculation for lost baggage compensation on airlines under the Carriage By Air (Sterling Equivalents) Order 1986. [4822]
Mr. Norris:
My right hon. Friend expects to make a new Carriage by Air (Sterling Equivalents) Order early in the new year.
Dr. Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action he is taking to encourage other European partners to ratify the 1975 Montreal protocol relating to compensation levels for lost baggage so that provisions under the protocol can be brought into force. [4823]
Mr. Norris:
The Government acknowledge that liability limits established by the Warsaw convention 1929 and the Hague protocol 1955 are inadequate. Montreal additional protocol No. 3, which includes provision for updating liability limits for baggage, is unlikely to come into force in the immediate future. We have therefore been exploring within the European Civil Aviation Conference alternative means of increasing liability limits.
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