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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 5 November 1997
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Cash and Running Costs Limits
Mr. Beard: To ask the Attorney-General what proposals there are to change the 1997-98 cash limit or running cost limit for the work of Her Majesty's Procurator-General and Treasury Solicitor. [14043]
The Attorney-General: Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the cash limit for class VIII, vote 6 will be increased by £433,000 from £7,003,000 to £7,436,000. The running costs limit is also increased by £712,000 from £25,742,000 to £26,454,000. The increases reflect the increased demand for services, machinery of Government changes and a transfer of an end year flexibility amount from the Crown Prosecution Service to take account of the costs of the CPS review falling on the Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers. The increase in the cash limit will be charged to the Reserve and will therefore not be an addition to the planned total of public expenditure.
ENVIRONMENT, TRANSPORT AND THE REGIONS
British Railways Board
Dr. Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he has set the British Railways Board an external finance limit for 1997-98. [14922]
Dr. Strang: I have set the British Railways Board an external finance limit of £69.7 million for 1997-98.
Transport Council
Mr. Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the Transport Council held in Luxembourg on 9 October. [14923]
Dr. Strang: The Transport Council met in Luxembourg on 9 October. I represented the United Kingdom.
The Council opened with a session of structured dialogue with Transport Ministers of the applicant central European countries--CECs. A report by the Commission on the recent Pan-European conference in Helsinki was followed by discussion of issues relating to market access. Three areas for future work were identified: the need to strengthen co-operation between the Community and the CECs; developing the mobility of citizens; and the need to take account of all modes of transport in negotiations in market access.
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The Council discussed air transport negotiations with the US. The Commission's view was that, although Community discussions with the US on regulatory issues had been useful, further progress would not be made unless market access was brought within the scope of the negotiations. The UK noted that success in its current bilateral negotiations with the US would bring benefits for passengers from the UK and the rest of the EU. The UK and other member states expressed doubts about the Commission's approach. The presidency concluded that there should be further work by the Commission, and a report back to the December Council.
The Council took note of the Commission's progress report on air transport negotiations with the CECs.
The Council debated a draft directive on airport charges. The debate focused on two aspects of the directive: the use of charges for cross-subsidy of smaller regional airports; and the variability of charges to reflect environmental considerations. The Council invited the Committee of Permanent Representatives to continue its examination of the proposal.
The Council reached unanimous political agreement on a directive on access to the occupation of road transport operator. This directive will raise the standards required of lorry, bus and coach operators in the Community.
The Council agreed conclusions urging greater emphasis on the public-private partnerships approach to Trans-European Network projects.
The Commission presented its White Paper on extension of the provisions of working time legislation to excluded sectors, including transport. It was noted that consultation with interested parties was still in progress. The UK, with some other member states, urged a case-by-case approach to the extension to transport, taking account of the needs of each form of transport.
The Commission presented the case for a Community-wide blood alcohol limit of 50 mg per 100 ml. The UK expressed its determination to further reduce alcohol-related roads deaths, and noted that it was important to consider other ways of reducing drink-drive accidents as well.
There was a discussion of weekend lorry bans in member states; the Commission undertook to produce draft legislation on this issue by the end of the year. The Commission also presented its draft regulation extending the Community's competition rules to air services to third countries.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the expenditure by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies, on (i) tax consultants and (ii) other external tax advice in (1) 1995-96, (2) 1996-97 and (3) 1997-98; and if he will make a statement. [13257]
Angela Eagle:
For the Department and for non-departmental public bodies the information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. For agencies the figures are: 1995-96 Nil, 1996-97 £16,562 and 1997-98 (spend to date) £3,525.
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Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the policy of his Department on the purchase of tax avoidance advice; and if he will make a statement. [13258]
Angela Eagle:
One agency of the Department has used tax advisers to enable it to fulfil its statutory tax obligations rather than for tax avoidance purposes.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what compensation payments are required to be made, and to whom, as a result of the decision not to proceed in July with the construction of the A27 Polegate bypass and associated works within the Weald and Downland DBFO scheme. [13776]
Ms Glenda Jackson
[holding answer 3 November 1997]: We are currently considering whether the four consortia that submitted tenders for the Weald and Downland DBFO project should be compensated for their costs.
Mr. Waterson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the total cost to the Government of compensation in respect of the postponement of the Downland DBFO Scheme. [14204]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
We are currently considering whether the four consortia who submitted tenders for the Weald and Downland DBFO project should be compensated for their costs.
Mr. Hurst:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what proposals he has to change the 1997-98 cash limit and net running cost limit for the Ordnance Survey. [14400]
Mr. Raynsford:
Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary winter supplementary estimate for Ordnance Survey, the cash limit will be increased by a token of £1,000 from £6,759,000 to £6,760,000 and the net running cost limit increased from £3,025,000 to £3,026,000.
This supplementary estimate reflects an increase in running cost expenditure of £2,001,000 from £73,970,000 offset by an increase in appropriations in aid of £2,000,000 from £78,180,000 to £80,180,000.
Ms Ryan:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to change his Department's cash limits and running cost limits for 1997-98. [14401]
Mr. Prescott:
Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimates, my Department's cash limits will change as follows:
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(i) the cash limit for class V, vote 1--Highways Agency--will be increased by £10,229,000 from £1,562,329,000 to £1,572,558,000. The increase in the cash limit reflects the take-up of £11,979,000 capital end year flexibility amount
as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report, columns 245-50, offset by an inter-vote transfer from this vote to class V, vote 2 of £1,750,000 for the ongoing motorway tolling project.
(ii) the cash limit for class V, vote 2--Department of Transport: administration and transport services--will be increased by £3,625,000 from £158,075,000 to £161,700,000. The increase results from the take-up of £2,000,000 capital end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report columns 245-50 and inter-vote transfers from class V, vote 1 of £1,750,000 and from class V, vote 5 of £85,000 for mobility unit expenditure to be re-classified as running costs, offset by inter-vote transfers from this vote to class V, vote 5 of £60,000 for priority routes in London and to class XIII, vote 2 of £150,000 for the Edinburgh City Car Club research project. Running cost provision for this vote increases by £85,000 from £86,436,000 to £86,521,000.
(iii) the cash limit for class V, vote 5--Roads and local transport--will be increased by £1,675,000 from £313,863,000 to £315,538,000. The increase reflects the take up of £2,100,000 structural funds end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report columns 245-50 and an inter-vote transfer from class V, vote 2 of £60,000, offset by an inter-vote transfer from this vote to class V, vote 2 of £85,000 and a reduction in the provision for licence fee refunds to goods vehicle and public service vehicle operators and drivers of £400,000.
(iv) the cash limit for class V, vote 7--Passenger rail services--will be reduced by £51,000,000 from £1,516,385,000 to £1,465,385,000. The reduction reflects a £50,000,000 inter-vote transfer from this vote to class V, vote 3 for Metropolitan Railway Passenger Services Grant, and a £1,000,000 reduction in respect of reduced expenditure on consultants.
(v) the DoT/LACAP (Local Authority Capital) non-voted cash limit will be increased by £7,150,000 from £349,193,000 to £356,343,000, to fund works associated with the rebuilding of Manchester city centre comprising of improvements to the Inner Relief Road, the development of a bus strategy and traffic management scheme and improved routes for pedestrians. The increase of £7,150,000 will be met by a call on the Reserve.
As a consequence of the changes in (ii) above the gross running costs limit operating on class V, votes 1, 2, 4 and 6 will be increased by £85,000 from £373,274,000 to £373,359,000.
(vi) the cash limit for class VI, vote 1--housing and construction, England--covering sections A, D to G, I, J and L of that vote, will be decreased by £3,325.000 from £599,708,000 to £596,383,000. An increase in the cash limit of £220,000 is offset by a decrease of £3,545,000. The increase is to meet residual additional administration costs the Housing Corporation is expected to incur in respect of the loan portfolio sale, funded from sale receipts. The decrease results principally from a reduction of £2,935,000 in homelessness grants current expenditure provision to fund an increase in rough sleepers initiative capital allocations through the Housing Corporation, which falls outside the cash limit. Of the remaining reductions, Estates Renewal Challenge Fund provision will be reduced by £500,000 to support registered social landlords' housing costs arising from the need to house people displaced from Montserrat as a result of volcanic activity on the island, and a reduction of £110,000 results from a reclassification of extra receipts recovered from homelessness grants, so that voted provision takes account of those receipts and is adjusted accordingly. The DETR/HC (Housing Corporation) cash limit will consequently be increased by £3,435,000 from £673,050,000 to £676,485,000.
The overall increases will be offset by transfers or charged to the reserve and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.
(vii) a new DETR/CRI (Capital Receipts Initiative) cash limit will be introduced, subject to the passage of legislation, to cover the Government's initiative to release additional resources to support local authority spending on housing and housing associated regeneration. The limit on expenditure is set initially at £174,270,000.
(viii) the cash limit for class VI, vote 2--regeneration and countryside and wildlife, England--will be increased by £36,116,000 from £1,480,168,000 to £1,516,284,000. An increase is required of £14,000,000 for the Urban Regeneration Agency (English Partnerships) to continue with works at Greenwich for the Millennium Exhibition and £7,230,000 for support for the regeneration of Manchester city centre; £8,000,000 for payments to be made for ERDF projects in advance of grant; £2,491,000 for the Teesside Development Corporation to meet a deficit as a result of judicial review; and £4,395,000 on three capital projects which had slipped from previous years. The increase will be met by a call on the Reserve of £17,991,000, the use of £10,125,000 end year flexibility amount as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 July 1997, Official Report columns 245-50, offset in part by the surrender of £4,000,000 of receipts to the Exchequer and a transfer of £8,000,000 from the DOE/ERDF non-voted cash limit.
(ix) the DETR/ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) non-voted cash limit will be reduced by £8,000,000 from £146,332,000 to £138,332,000. This reflects gross payments to be made for ERDF projects in advance of European Community receipts. As a consequence of (viii) above, there will be increases to external financing limits for the Urban Development Corporations of £1,427,000 from £199,784,000 to £201,211,00; for the Urban Regeneration Agency (English Partnerships) of £46,000,000 from £204,779,000 to £250,779,000 and for the Housing Action Trusts of £512,000 from £88,688,000 to £89,200.00.
(x) 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 £321,000 from £30,987,957,000 to £30,987,636,000. This reflects savings on payments to meet the expenses of valuation tribunals in Section A (Valuation services), on grant in aid to the Local Government Residuary Body in Section B (Reorganisation of local government) and on the European Union Spatial Planning Initiative in Section D (Planning and minerals research). The saving will be used within vote 4, to cover residual payments of council tax transitional reduction grant in Section H (Council tax transitional reduction grant) and of special grant to authorities affected by the terrorist bombings of Docklands and Manchester and emergency financial assistance under the Bellwin scheme in section 1 (Other grants), which are outside the cash limit on the vote.
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