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Environment Agency
Mr. David Shaw: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his policy on the award of costs at hearings held in connection with the functions of the Environment Agency or appeals against the agency. [21654]
Mr. Clappison: Subsection 250(5) of the Local Government Act 1972 enables the Secretary of State to make an order as to the costs of the parties at an inquiry and as to the parties by whom the costs are to be paid. Subsection 53(2) of the Environment Act 1995 applies subsection 250(5) of the 1972 Act to inquiries and other hearings held in connection with the functions of the Environment Agency or the Secretary of State's functions in relation to the agency. These include appeals over integrated pollution control authorisations and waste management licences under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, waste carrier licences under the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989, and abstraction licences and discharge consents under the Water Resources Act 1991.
The parties at these hearings are normally expected to meet their own expenses irrespective of the outcome. Costs are awarded only on grounds of "unreasonable" behaviour resulting in unnecessary expense. An award of costs does not therefore follow the event of the decision on merits.
In considering the award of costs, the Secretary of State will apply by analogy the guidance on award of costs in planning proceedings in DOE circular 8/93 (Welsh Office 23/93). The circular includes a summary of the criteria for unreasonable behaviour and advice on the general principles for awards of costs for unreasonable behaviour, general procedural requirements, and applications for costs.
Section 53 of the 1995 Act enables costs to be awarded only in cases where a hearing is held. Unlike planning proceedings, costs are not available where a hearing is cancelled due to a party's withdrawal.
Subsection 250(5) of the 1972 Act does not apply to proceedings in connection with local authority air pollution control decisions under part 1 of the Environment Protection Act 1990. Consideration will be given to seeking such provision in due course.
Mr. Simon Coombs:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make an announcement on the capping arrangements for 1997-98. [21655]
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Mr. Gummer:
All local authorities have now set their budgets for 1997-98. The next step in council tax capping is for the Secretary of State to announce capping principles for all authorities. However, in view of the announcement of the general election, I consider it more appropriate that decisions on capping should be taken by the next Administration. This is the approach which was adopted in 1992.
Mr. Simon Coombs:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he has to change the 1996-97 cash limits and external financing limits for which he is responsible. [21656]
Mr. Gummer:
The DOE/HC--Housing Corporation-- cash limit will be decreased by £5,916,000 from £1,037,868,000 to £1,031,952,000. This reflects a switch within city challenge expenditure from funding via the Housing Corporation to funding via other single regeneration budget schemes.
The external financing limit for urban development corporations will be increased by £764,000 from £209,817,000 to £210,581,000. This reflects a transfer of an underspend of £600,000 from city challenge to Tyne and Wear development corporation's grant in aid and a transfer of £600,000 from the city challenge and single regeneration budget challenge fund programmes to the Black Country development corporation's grant in aid, both transfers allowing regeneration projects to be brought forward. The transfers will be offset by a reduction in Plymouth development corporation's grant in aid of £436,000, transferred to the urban programme and the single regeneration budget challenge fund.
The external financing limit for the urban regeneration agency--English Partnerships--will be increased by £52,883,000 from £158,082,000 to £210,965,000. This reflects a transfer of provision from English Partnerships' derelict land grant of £2,000,000, and also amends the limit to take account of the increases in grant in aid at the winter supplementary estimates of £30,883,000, and at the spring supplementary estimates of £20,000,000.
The external financing limit for the housing action trusts will be increased by £457,000, from £89,210,000 to £89,667,000, consisting of a reduction of £1,550,000 at the spring supplementary estimates and a subsequent increase of £2,007,000, transferred from estate action, city challenge and the single regeneration budget challenge fund. I draw attention to the figures for the external financing limit for the housing action trusts in my answer of 4 November 1996 to my hon. Friend the Member for Cheadle (Mr. Day) Official Report, column 346. This incorrectly showed the limit rising from £878,960,000 to £879,210,000. The correct figures were £88,960,000 rising to £89,210,000.
The DOE/NT--new towns--non-voted cash limit will be reduced by £4,554,000 from minus £110,000,000 to minus £114,554,000. This reduction reflects an increase in capital receipts to the Commission for New Towns of £1,750,000 and a technical transfer of £2,804,000 to the DOE/OES--other environmental services--non-voted cash limit which is described later.
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The DOE/OES non-voted cash limit will be increased £2,804,000 from £25,289,000 to £28,093,000. This reflects a transfer from the DOE/NT--new towns--non-voted cash limit to provide for supplementary credit approvals to local authorities to cover their capital contributions to the Commission for the New Towns under road cost sharing arrangements.
The cash limit for class VI, vote 4--local government and planning, England--covering sections A to F of that vote, will be reduced by £1,250,000 from £31,127,007,000 to £31,125,757,000. The decrease is the cumulative result of reductions in the payments made to the Valuation Office Agency, and in the expenses of valuation tribunals in section A--valuation services, in the grant payable to the Local Government Commission in section B--reorganisation of local government; and in the planning and minerals research programme, section D. This amount will be transferred to the DOE/LGR--local government reorganisation--non-voted cash limit for the reasons given later.
The DOE/LGR--local government reorganisation--non-voted cash limit will be increased by £1,250,000 from £105,669,000 to £106,919,000 to meet a greater than forecast demand for commutation and transitional costs of reorganisation supplementary credit approvals. The increase will be a met by the transfer from class VI vote 4--local government and planning, England--cash limit referred to above.
Some of the increases will be offset either by savings or transfers; the remainder is allowed for in the 1996-97 control total forecast outturn shown in the "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses", Cm 3601, published on Thursday 20 March 1997.
Mr. Meacher:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those organisations which responded to the renewed invitation to make submissions on the plans by Nirex to develop a rock characterisation facility near Sellafield, indicating the documents that each submitted. [21002]
Mr. Gummer:
Letters received since the close of the inquiry, and the main reports to which they refer, are listed in the annex attached to the decision letter on the appeal, a copy of which has been sent to the hon. Member.
Mr. Ben Chapman:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many times he visited the Wirral, South constituency during (a) 1995, (b) 1996 and (c) 1997. [21217]
Mr. Gummer:
I have made one visit to Wirral, South in the last three years, which was not on departmental business.
Mr. Leigh:
To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on basic pension plus proposals. [19816]
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The Prime Minister:
The Government's proposals for basic pension plus will bring about the largest extension of personal ownership since the spread of home ownership and will provide secure pensions for the increasing number of elderly people in the next century.
Mrs. Ann Winterton:
To ask the Prime Minister what response he has made to the petition presented to him by Mrs. Jenny Bacon, together with right hon. and hon. Members, on Wednesday 12 March, on the subject of the provision of contraceptives to minors. [21284]
The Prime Minister:
My office has sent an acknowledgement. The Under-Secretary of State for Health my hon. Friend the Member for Orpington (Mr. Horam), will write to Mr. and Mrs. Bacon about their petition shortly.
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