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Sewage Flooding
Mr. Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions with whom the responsibility lies for the repairing of private properties damaged by sewage flooding; and if he will take steps to ensure that there is no undue delay in long-term repair works where flooding is taking place on a regular basis. [15169]
Angela Eagle: Responsibility for repairs to properties following an incident of sewage flooding rests with the property owners but they may be able to recover the cost from sewerage undertakers who can be shown to be at fault. In other cases, the cost of repairs can sometimes be recovered under normal building insurance.
In the periodic review of price limits in 1994, the Director General of Water Services allowed for sewerage undertakers to invest £590 million (at 1993-94 prices) over the following ten-year period to address sewer flooding problems. The Director General's 1996-97 report on levels of service recorded a reduction of 9 per cent. in the number of properties flooded by sewers in that year.
Planning Inspectorate
Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will ask the Planning Inspectorate to maintain records about the (i) existing and (ii) previous land use, or that previously in existence, when a planning appeal is received. [15156]
Mr. Raynsford: The land uses proposed in development projects being appealed are recorded by the Planning Inspectorate. It has not been considered necessary to record details of existing and previous land uses in planning appeals cases, but a current review will indicate whether full records, including the existing and previous land uses, would be beneficial in future.
Planning Applications
Mr. McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what procedures exist for ensuring that black and Asian planning applicants are not discriminated against on grounds of race by local authorities. [15285]
Mr. Raynsford: Under section 19A of the Race Relations Act 1976, it is unlawful for a planning authority to discriminate against a person in carrying out their planning functions. Under the 1976 Act, complainants have a right to take their case to the county court as in instances of discrimination in the fields of education, in the provision of goods and services and the disposal and management of premises.
Mr. Edward Davey:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what types of proposed development were involved in each of the applications referred between 5 August 1996 and 3 July 1997 to the Sports Council for England as a statutory consultee under the terms of the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995, as amended. [15164]
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Mr. Raynsford:
Of the 288 applications referred to the Sports Council for England between 5 August 1996 and 31 July 1997, 177 involved non-sports development as follows:
One hundred and thirty applications involved the development of sports facilities, the most common of which were:
Some applications contained proposals for more than one new facility.
Mr. Edward Davey:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the outcome has been of each of the planning applications referred to the Sports Council for England as a statutory consultee under the terms of the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) order 1995, as amended with effect from 5 August 1996. [15162]
Mr. Raynsford:
Of the 288 applications referred to the Sports Council for England between 5 August 1996 and 31 July 1997, the Council has been notified of 110 local planning authority decisions. Eighty-seven applications were approved including 20 to which they had objected; 16 were refused including nine with Sports Council for England objections; three were withdrawn; and four were called in.
Mr. Edward Davey:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what sports were concerned in respect of each of the 288 planning applications referred between 5 August 1996 and 31 July 1997 to the Sports Council for England. [15163]
Mr. Raynsford:
Under the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order, the Sports Council for England is now a statutory consultee in relation to applications for development which affect the use of playing fields. Most playing fields are used for a range of team sports. The Council does not, therefore, have a detailed breakdown of the particular sports affected by the applications referred to them.
Mr. Edward Davey:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions which bodies were consulted about the terms of the Town and Country Planning (Demolition--Description of Buildings) Direction 1995. [15158]
Mr. Raynsford:
In 1991, the Department issued a consultation paper on proposed controls over the demolition of dwellinghouses. This was circulated to a wide range of organisations including the local authority associations, individual local planning authorities, the main planning bodies, builders' organisations and conservation bodies. Two hundred and one responses were received including one from the Sports Council. This
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resulted in the Town and Country Planning (Demolition--Description of Buildings) Direction 1992 contained in Circular 16/92. Some amendments were introduced in the 1995 Direction following a 1994 consultation exercise with a similar range of bodies on the demolition of walls, fences and gates in conservation areas.
Mr. McDonnell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what procedures exist to monitor the processing of planning applications by local authorities to prevent discrimination on racial grounds. [15284]
Mr. Raynsford:
The Government recognises the value of ethnic monitoring and we encourage its use where appropriate. Local planning authorities may wish to request information relating to ethnic origin so that they can monitor the handling of applications. The ethnic origin of an applicant is not a relevant planning consideration and there is no obligation for an applicant to provide this information in order to have a planning application decided.
Mr. Brake:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will introduce interest free bridging finance for road hauliers affected by the dispute in France, pending receipt of compensation from the French Government. [15204]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
The Government was pleased to note the promise made by M. Jospin, the French Prime Minister, last week that claimants affected by the blockades in France a year ago will know within three months whether their claims will be met. The Government will be pressing the French Government to ensure that all claims arising from the recent blockades are dealt with sympathetically and promptly.
Compensation claims against the French Government must be made under French Law and by those affected; the UK Government is not directly involved. Unfortunately, many of those adversely affected by the dispute are unlikely to be eligible under French law for compensation. In the circumstances the approach suggested by the hon. Member would not be appropriate.
Mr. Luff:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he expects to reach a decision on the application by Hereford and Worcester county council for transport supplementary grant to build the Wyre Piddle bypass; and if he will make a statement. [15595]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
We expect to announce our decision on Hereford and Worcester County Council's bid for transport supplementary grant for the Wyre Piddle bypass in December as part of the Local Transport Capital Settlement for 1998-99.
Mr. Stunell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list (a) his Department's policies and initiatives designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and (b) the departmental policies and initiatives designed to reduce other
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greenhouse gases; if he will estimate for each the annual reduction in tonnage of greenhouse gas emissions achieved in the most recent year for which figures are available compared to those for 1990; and what estimate he has made of further reductions, or increases, predicted for 2000 and 2010, assuming continuation of current policies. [15544]
Angela Eagle:
I refer the hon. Member to the United Kingdom's Second Report under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change which was published in February 1997. It reports the UK's progress in implementing its programme for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and gives a projection of what the programme is expected to deliver by 2000. The report projects forward what the current programme is expected to achieve to 2020.
residential (99 applications);
educational (36);
other commercial development (31); and
other public/community facilities (11).
synthetic turf pitches (46 applications);
sports halls/centres (43);
new playing fields and pitches (25);
pavilions/club houses (19);
floodlights (18);
athletics tracks (13);
swimming pools (11).
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