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Solar Design
Mr. Gareth R. Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action his Department is taking to improve the passive solar design of buildings; and if he will make a statement. [66621]
Mr. Meale: Under my Department's Energy Efficiency Best Practice programme we promote the application of passive solar design principles alongside energy efficiency measures as part of an integrated approach to low energy building design. Also, we encourage the consideration of passive solar design in specific buildings through Design Advice Services operated by BRECSU under the same programme.
Waste Water Treatment
Dr. Godman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will announce the date by which secondary treatment of waste water and sewage will be required under the terms of the European Union's Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive; and if he will make a statement. [66349]
Mr. Meale: Under the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive, secondary treatment must be provided by 31 December 2000 for sewage discharges above 15,000 population equivalent to inland, estuarial and coastal waters. Discharges to inland and estuarial waters of between 2,000 and 15,000 population equivalent, and discharges of between 10,000 and 15,000 population equivalent to coastal waters must receive secondary treatment by 31 December 2005.
In the case of coastal discharges which were formerly potentially subject to derogations to a lower level of treatment, we are encouraging water and sewerage companies to make as rapid a progress as possible with the installation of secondary treatment.
Millennium Compliance
Mr. Alasdair Morgan:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 14 January 1999, Official Report,
20 Jan 1999 : Column: 466
column 246, if he will place in the Library details of the current millennium compliance status of the organisations currently approved by the CAA; what percentage of these are fully millennium-compliant; and if he will make a statement. [66646]
Dr. Reid:
No. It is not possible to provide information in this detail. The Civil Aviation Authority currently authorises over 2,000 aviation related organisations. These organisations cover all aspects of the UK civil air transport system form airlines to manufacturers and air traffic service providers. All these organisations are engaged in their own individual compliance programmes which involves them in each checking with suppliers who may number from tens to hundreds. These compliance programmes are being assessed by the CAA. Once this assessment is complete, which is expected to be during the third quarter of 1999, the CAA will make a statement about the Y2k readiness of the UK civil air transport system.
As far as National Air Traffic Services (NATS) are concerned, they are in the final stages of their system compliance programme. Only 10 systems out of a total of 700 still require remedial work and NATS expects to reach full systems ready status for the new millennium on or before the end of March 1999.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what planning guidance he has issued in relation to mobile homes, with particular regard to all-year round occupancy; and if he will make a statement. [66254]
Mr. Raynsford:
Planning Policy Guidance note 21 on Tourism gives guidance on holiday and touring caravans, including the seasonal and holiday occupancy conditions.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what discussions he has had with parish councils regarding the impact of the increased audit requirements and subsequent costs on smaller parish councils; and if he will make a statement. [66261]
Ms Armstrong:
The Chairman of the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) and his colleagues discussed with me the cost of parish audits when I met them on 16 December. As I explained to them, it is essential for parish councils, as for all councils, to have an effective audit regime ensuring propriety and regularity in their affairs. We have no plans to review the current parish audit arrangements, which were introduced in April 1997, although we do keep these matters under review.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to incorporate directive 97/49/EU into UK law; and if he will make a statement. [66252]
Mr. Meale:
No changes are required to UK law as a result of Directive 97/49/EC.
20 Jan 1999 : Column: 467
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what funds he intends to make available (a) nationally, (b) to Gloucestershire County Council and (c) to Tewkesbury Borough Council to compensate for the removal of ACT credit in 1999-2000; and if he will make a statement. [66255]
Ms Armstrong:
In the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement for 1999-2000, the Government specifically took account of the best estimate of £130 million available to them and the Local Government Association to provide for the effects of the abolition of ACT on the local government pension scheme.
It is not possible to identify how much has been provided at a local level. Local authorities receive Revenue Support Grant (RSG) on the basis of their Standard Spending Assessment (SSA). SSAs are calculated using information reflecting the demographic, physical and social characteristics of each area and are intended to reflect the relative costs of providing comparable services between different authorities. RSG makes up the difference between an authority's SSA and the income it can expect to receive from both re-distributed non-domestic rates and from a standard council tax. RSG is not hypothecated to particular services or for particular purposes.
Mr. Welsh:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what representations he has received concerning the extension of fuel duty rebate to dial-a-bus services; what assistance is currently available to (a) rural and (b) urban dial-a-bus services; and if he will make a statement; [66606]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
We have no present plans to extend the eligibility of bus fuel duty rebate beyond those services which (amongst other criteria) are available to the general public and are registered with the Traffic Commissioner as a local bus service.
We have received a number of representations on this matter, which has also been recently raised in the review of voluntary transport that my Department commissioned last year. We expect to receive the report on that review shortly and will be considering its recommendations carefully.
Support for both urban and rural dial-a-bus services is primarily a matter for each local authority to decide in the light of its overall spending priorities and the resources available to it. Additional support for specific rural community transport projects, including dial-a-bus services, is available as part of the Government's new funding for rural transport, announced in the last Budget, of £50 million a year, of which Scotland's share is £4.5 million a year.
20 Jan 1999 : Column: 468
Mr. Efford:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what progress he has made with his proposed restructuring of the Board of London Transport. [67091]
Mr. Prescott:
I have today appointed Sir Malcolm Bates as non-executive Chairman of London Transport. He will take up his post on 15 February. This appointment is excellent news for London Transport. With Denis Tunnicliffe as Chief Executive and Derek Smith taking up post shortly as Managing Director of London Underground, we have now given LT the senior management structure it needs to address the challenging agenda we have set.
Mr. Sanders:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will set up a national information service on equipment for people with disabilities. [65433]
Mr. Hutton:
I have been asked to reply.
The Department is providing funding to the Disabled Living Foundation and the Royal National Institute for the Blind to help them improve their databases on disability equipment and transfer these to the Internet. The Disabled Living Foundation also operates a telephone helpline for disabled people.
Mr. Sanders:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proposals he has for a disablement services authority with a brief to set standards and monitor the standard of equipment provision for people with disabilities. [65434]
(2) what plans he has to extend the eligibility criteria for fuel duty rebate to dial-a-bus services. [66605]
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