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Written Answers to Questions
Monday 3 March 1997
HOME DEPARTMENT
Water Cannon
Mr. Livingstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times water cannons have been used by police forces in Britain since 1967; for what reasons they were used; on what dates they were used; in what places they were used; and if police forces are currently authorised to use water cannons. [17949]
Mr. Maclean: Water cannons have never been used by police forces in England, Wales or Scotland. It is for chief police officers to decide what public order equipment to deploy and how to authorise its deployment.
Sexual Orientation (Police Database)
Mr. Michael Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what circumstances an individual's sexual orientation is recorded on the police national computer. [18222]
Mr. Maclean: An individual's sexual orientation should not be recorded on the police national computer.
Charities (Criminal Records Checks)
Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from (a) Barnardos and (b) the Scouts Association about the proposed charges for criminal records checks on charities; and if he will make a statement. [17968]
Mr. Maclean: We have received many representations on this matter from a range of voluntary groups, including Barnardos and the Scouts Association. My right hon. and learned Friend the Home Secretary announced to the House on Second Reading of the Police Bill [Lords] that we shall seek
- "to amend the Bill ... to introduce an order making power to enable free checks to be provided for specific groups, such as volunteers, if and when the money became available to cover the costs of doing so."--Official Report, 12 February 1997; Vol. 290, column 359.
Convicted Paedophiles
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what steps he is taking to track convicted child sex abusers who, on release from prison on licence, have immediately disappeared; [18355]
- (2) what steps he is taking to track convicted child sex abusers who change their names. [18343]
Mr. Maclean:
The Sex Offenders Bill places an obligation on those convicted or cautioned for paedophile and other serious sex offences to notify changes of name
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and address to the police. Failure to do so, in the circumstances laid down by the Bill, will be a criminal offence.
The police have devoted substantial efforts to managing the risks posed by paedophiles, in co-operation with other agencies, and have developed strategies to monitor the movements of paedophiles who try to escape from view. If a prisoner released on licence fails to keep contact with his probation officer in accordance with the terms of his licence, he may, depending on the circumstances, be recalled to prison.
Mr. Alex Carlile:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proposals he has to publish a Green Paper on the youth justice system; and if he will make a statement. [13199]
Mr. Maclean
[pursuant to his answer, 30 January 1997, columns 313-14]: The Government will be publishing a Green Paper tomorrow, setting out proposals for preventing children offending.
Water Companies
Mr. Spearing: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment in which years since 1979 Government assistance was given to capital or revenue expenditure of (i) publicly owned and (ii) private water companies for (a) new reservoirs and (b) prevention of leaks in mains supplies; and in each case what was the nature of the assistance. [17740]
Mr. Clappison: In 1983-84 the Government made a specific grant, repayable within five years, to Northumbrian Water towards the financing costs of major investment including the Kielder reservoir. No other financial assistance from Government since 1979 has been specifically for the provision of new reservoirs or the prevention of leaks in mains supplies, which have been matters for the former water authorities and the water companies.
Sellafield
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what report he has received from the Environment Agency in respect of Nirex's assessment of the likely destruction of geological information from the construction of a rock characterisation facility at Sellafield. [17729]
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what plans he has for public consultation on (a) the groundwater pressure data and (b) Nirex's revised interpretation of the base line hydrogeology before he makes a decision on the proposed rock characterisation facility at Sellafield; [17734]
- (2) what plans he has for consulting interested parties regarding the impact on base line hydrogeology of the proposed rock characterisation facility, at Sellafield.[17735]
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Mr. Gummer: I am considering the matter.
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what information Nirex has provided to him in respect of independent peer review of the base line groundwater pressure dataset relating to the proposed rock characterisation facility at Sellafield; [17736]
- (2) what assessment he has made of the relevance of the hydrogeological base line dataset to the safety case of a nuclear repository at Sellafield. [17733]
Mr. Gummer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave him on 23 January, Official Report, column 678.
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what advice the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee has given to his Department regarding consultation with interested parties over the base line hydrogeological effects of the proposed rock characterisation facility at Sellafield. [17737]
Mr. Gummer: None. However, in the response that the committee published in February 1993 to UK Nirex Limited's "Consultative Document on a Rock Characterisation Facility", RWMAC said that it would be important to ensure that the base hydrogeological regime in the region of the potential repository site and the extent of monitoring was agreed by independent peer review or other means with as many interested parties as possible and that a period of 18 months to two years of monitoring prior to the commencement of shaft sinking would be regarded as normal practice.
In September 1995, the committee published a report, "Review of aspects of the scientific mission and role of the Nirex Rock Characterisation Facility at Sellafield", made in response to requests by UK Nirex Limited and Cumbria county council. In this, the committee said that its recommendations over timing remained, but were now likely to be met
The committee said that the proposed peer review should be published prior to the start of RCF shaft excavation.
Mr. Meacher:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what arrangements were made for peer review by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution of the Nirex proposal to begin construction work at the proposed nuclear waste repository site during the public inquiry into the proposed RCF at Sellafield. [17981]
Mr. Gummer:
I am not aware of any such proposal.
Mr. Meacher:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what cost recovery arrangements have existed between HMIP and Nirex since the public inquiry into the proposed rock characterisation facility at Sellafield. [17980]
Mr. Gummer:
None. HMIP's previous agreement with UK Nirex Limited ended in September 1994, following notice of termination given by the company. The Environment Agency is currently consulting publicly on the terms of a new agreement that it is minded to enter into with Nirex.
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Mr. Meacher:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what research his Department has conducted into the re-suspension of Caesium-137 into the environment via biological pathways following nuclear accidents (a) within and (b) outside the United Kingdom.[18108]
Mr. Gummer:
A study of re-suspension of radioactive caesium at a number of sites within the United Kingdom and western Europe was undertaken for my Department following the Chernobyl accident. The report of this work, entitled "Environmental Radioactivity from Chernobyl", has been placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Meacher:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what changes have been made to his Department's commitments to action in 1997 in respect of biodiversity plans set out in section 6 of "This Common Inheritance" 1997, in his most recent departmental Minis report. [17725]
Mr. Gummer:
My Department is totally committed to achieving the UK biodiversity plan's actions for 1997 and beyond as set out in section 6 of the commitments table of "This Common Inheritance" 1997. The latest departmental Minis report will fully reflect this commitment.
"in view of the interpolation of the RCF planning inquiry into the overall repository programme."
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