10 Jul 1996 : Column: 167
Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 10 July 1996
ENVIRONMENT
Business Rates Relief
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many village post offices and general stores he expects to benefit from business rates relief over the next 12 months. [35666]
Sir Paul Beresford: Some properties of these kinds already benefit from discretionary rate relief on hardship grounds, but numbers are not held centrally. We estimate that up to 30,000 properties would be likely to benefit from our proposed scheme of rate relief for village shops, post offices and some other small rural businesses. The scheme would require primary legislation.
Departmental Staff Losses
Ms Armstrong: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what expenditure his Department has incurred on redundancy payments; and what future additional pension liabilities have been incurred by early retirement within his Department since 1990. [36021]
Sir Paul Beresford: There have been no compulsory redundancies in my Department during this period. The total cost since 1990 of early retirements on voluntary terms and of severance payments to staff leaving before the age of 50 on such terms is:
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| DOE and next steps agencies | 7.9 |
| Property Services Agency | 243.3 |
These figures are net of Treasury funding--that is, 80 per cent.--of the cost of departures occurring after 1 October 1994.
Ms Armstong: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the reduction of staff in his Department since 1990; and how many staff have left as a result of (a) competitive tendering from the Department's services, (b) transfers under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 to next steps agencies, (c) premature retirement and (d) redundancy. [36022]
Sir Paul Beresford: The numbers of staff employed by my Department have been reducing since 1990. The figures are published in my Department's annual report, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.
Included in these figures are departures from DOE (central) and the Government offices since 1990 in the following categories:
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(a) competitive tendering from the Department's services: 24
(b) transfers under TUPE to next steps agencies: 0
(c) premature retirement: 436
(d) redundancy: 0
Council Tax
Mr. William O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what estimate his Department has made of the revenue required to be raised by council tax in 1996-97 to meet local government expenditure from the 1995-96 financial year. [36036]
Sir Paul Beresford: Each year, billing authorities estimate the surplus or deficit on council tax collection from previous years which they propose to take into account in setting their council tax for the current year. A deficit would represent income to be raised in 1996-97 to meet expenditure from a previous financial year. However, in setting the council tax for 1996-97, billing authorities in aggregate assumed a surplus from 1995-96 and earlier years of £106 million, rather than a deficit.
Mr. O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the Government-approved council tax increase for local government for the years 1995-96 and 1996-97 in percentage terms. [36037]
Sir Paul Beresford: The Government do not set an approved level of council tax increase.
Cheshire County Council (Budget)
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list for each of the last five years the budget awarded by his Department to Cheshire county council. [36449]
Sir Paul Beresford: The Department does not award budgets to local authorities. Each authority is responsible for setting its own budget taking into account a number of considerations, including the capping criteria announced by the Secretary of State. In each of the last five years, Cheshire county council set its budget requirements 1 close to the maximum amount permitted under the capping criteria:
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| 1992-93 | 619.800 |
| 1993-94 | (2)587.400 |
| 1994-95 | 608.008 |
| 1995-96 | (3)583.690 |
| 1996-97 | 613.042 |
(1) In 1992-93, this was known as the precept, under the community charge system.
(2) Responsibility for further education transferred from local authorities to the Further Education Funding Council on 1 April 1993.
(3) Responsibility for police services in shire areas transferred from County Councils to free standing Shire police authorities on 1 April 1995.
Energy Advice Centres
Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the number of people currently employed in each of the local energy advice centres. [36549]
Mr. Robert B. Jones: This is a matter for the local energy advice centres and the Energy Saving Trust, which is responsible for the management and funding of the centres.
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Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the total budget for local energy advice centres in each year from 1993 to date; and in each year how much of that budget was provided from (a) his Department, (b) the Energy Saving Trust and (c) other bodies. [36543]
Mr. Jones: The total expenditure, with the proportion provided by the Department of the Environment, on the local energy advice centre pilot study in each of the relevant years is as follows:
| £ million | Per cent. | |
|---|---|---|
| 1993-94 | 1.76 | 70 |
| 1994-95 | 2.62 | 64 |
| 1995-96 | 3.51 | 63 |
The balance of the expenditure came from other sources. The Energy Saving Trust did not directly provide any funds before April 1996.
Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many people have received energy saving advice from local energy advice centres in each year since 1993. [36545]
Mr. Jones: The number--rounded to the nearest thousand--of clients who received advice from local energy advice centres in each year is as follows:
1993-94: 26,000
1994-95: 57,000
1995-96: 100,000
Mr. Jones: We monitored the efficiency and effectiveness of the local energy advice centres through regular reports from the Energy Saving Trust and reports from comprehensive market research running in parallel with the pilot study. The Energy Saving Trust has now taken over responsibility for this research programme. These reports demonstrate that the impartial and free advice provided by the pilot study centres has proved very effective, and substantial efficiency gains in its delivery have been achieved.
Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what proposals his Department has for (a) the funding and (b) other support for local energy advice centres after September; and if he will make a statement; [36548]
- (2) what is his estimate of the amount of funding local energy advice centres will receive from (a) his Department, (b) the Energy Saving Trust and (c) other bodies, after September. [36544]
Mr. Jones: The Energy Saving Trust is responsible for the management and funding of the local energy advice centres. My Department has agreed the trust's proposals to use DOE funds to support the local energy advice centres up to March 1999. The trust announced its plans for the local energy advice centres at the local energy advice centres' annual conference on 8 July.
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Ms Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is (a) the financial saving on energy bills and (b) the savings in carbon dioxide emissions (i) per customer and (ii) in total, that has resulted from energy/saving advice given by local energy advice centres, to the latest available date. [36546]
Mr. Jones: Estimated savings attributable to advice from local energy advice centres are as follows:
| Year | Financial £ | Carbon Dioxide emission |
|---|---|---|
| 1993-94 | Per client: 38 | Per client: 458 kilograms |
| Total: 1 million | Total: 11,900 tonnes | |
| 1994-95 | Per client: 30 | Per client: 350 kilograms |
| Total: 1.7 million | Total: 20,000 tonnes | |
| 1995-96 | Per client: 30 | Per client: 350 kilograms |
| Total: 2.4 million | Per client: 35,000 tonnes |
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