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Aviation Fuel Tax
Mr. Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what advice his Department has given to UK airlines with regard to the tax on aviation fuel recently imposed by the Norwegian Government [69705]
Ms Glenda Jackson: The Department has given no formal advice to UK airlines about the aviation fuel tax introduced by Norway on 1 January 1999. However, in conversations about the tax with UK airlines operating to Norway, DETR officials confirmed that the tax appeared to breach the UK/Norway Air Services Agreement, signed in Oslo on 26 January 1979, which exempts aviation fuel for international flights from tax. Officials wrote to the Norwegian authorities on 4 January drawing attention to this apparent breach and asking them to rescind the tax. I understand that the Norwegians are currently considering the position, in the light of this and other similar representations received.
In principle, the Government are in favour of an aviation fuel tax, but believe this should be agreed at international level. Action by individual states or by
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groups of states would infringe existing international agreements, distort airline competition and could have environmental disbenefits.
Mr. Waterson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions which planning policy guidance notes are currently under review by his Department. [70197]
Mr. Raynsford:
The following revisions of planning policy guidance notes will shortly be issued for consultation: PPG3--Housing; PPG11--Regional Planning; and PPG12--Development Plans. Consideration is also being given to updating PPG13--Transport; PPG17--Sport and Recreation; and PPG23--Planning and Pollution Control. The Department has also consulted on proposals to strengthen protection for Sites of Special Scientific Interest, including possible changes to PPG9--Nature Conservation. A final revised version of PPG10--Planning and Waste Management, will be published in the Spring.
Mr. Waterson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what steps he is taking to ensure that regional development agencies take account of relevant strategic polices laid down in local authorities' development plans. [70196]
Mr. Meale:
Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) must, like any other body, work within and alongside the framework provided by Regional Planning Guidance and local authority development plans.
Guidance will be issued to RDAs under section 7 of the RDAs Act on the development of their strategies, which will clearly set out the relationship between RDAs' strategies and regional planning guidance and local authority development plans.
Mr. Alan Johnson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make the need for new retail and leisure developments a material consideration to be taken into account by local planning authorities in determining planning applications. [70744]
Mr. Caborn:
Our policy on town centres, including retail and leisure development, is set out in Planning Policy Guidance note 6: Town Centres and Retail Development (PPG6). This aims to sustain and enhance the vitality and viability of our existing town centres by focusing new investment, particularly for retail and leisure uses within city, town and district centres. This statement is intended to add to and clarify the guidance in PPG6 in the light of a number of issues raised in recent litigation which concern the interpretation of PPG6 and Government policy.
PPG6 advises local planning authorities to adopt a positive, plan-led approach to handling planning applications involving new retail and leisure developments. It advises them, in preparing planning strategies and policies, to consider the need for new retail and leisure development in the plan area over the lifetime of the plan. Having established that such need exists, local planning authorities should then adopt a sequential approach (as
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explained in PPG6) to identify suitable sites. If there is no need for further developments, there will be no requirement to identify additional sites.
Proposals for new retail and leisure development which accord with an up-to-date plan strategy or are proposed on sites within an existing centre, should not be required to demonstrate that they satisfy the test of need because this should have been taken into account in the development plan.
However, proposals which would be located at an edge-of-centre or out-of-centre location and which:
In the circumstances referred to above, the need for such proposals should be considered carefully when determining planning applications. A failure to demonstrate both the need for such proposals and that a sequential approach has been applied in selecting the application site would normally justify the refusal of planning permission unless there were weighty additional material considerations.
In applying the sequential approach, the relevant centres in which to search for sites will depend on the nature and scale of the proposed development and catchment that the development seeks to serve. The scale of such proposals should also be appropriately related to the centre--whether town, district or local--the development seeks to serve.
The policy set out in PPG6, and the guidance above should be applied equally to proposals for extending existing edge-of-centre and out-of-centre development which creates additional floor space. Local planning authorities should consider the need for further retail or leisure facilities and then apply the sequential approach to identifying where any such development should take place. Where proposals for such extensions to existing developments are put forward, the Government will expect applicants to demonstrate the need for additional facilities, and that such additional facilities could not be accommodated on sites in more central locations, in accordance with the sequential approach. Need in this context, as in PPG6 generally, should be interpreted as already explained above. Local planning authorities should therefore treat extensions to existing retail and leisure facilities in edge-of-centre and out-of-centre locations as if they were new development.
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Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many RDA board members have worked in business. [70545]
Mr. Meale:
The Chairman of each of the Regional Development Agencies has a predominantly business background. In addition to the chairmen, 48 board members currently work in business. A number of the other board members have previously worked in business.
Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many RDA board members are trades union officials. [70543]
Mr. Meale:
One member of each of the eight Regional Development Agency boards is a trade union official.
Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how much RDA board members are to be paid per annum. [70624]
Mr. Meale:
The pay for RDA members (other than the Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen) is £7,000 per year for a commitment of two days a month.
Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many RDA board members are members of the (a) Liberal Democrat, (b) Conservative and (c) Labour parties. [70544]
Mr. Meale:
Among the local councillors who are members of the boards of the Regional Development Agencies, 6 are members of the Liberal Democrat party, 4 are members of the Conservative party, 21 are members of the Labour party and one is an Independent. Other board members are not required to declare whether they are members of any political party.
Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will give the (a) remuneration paid to and (b) the number of days per week required of RDA chairmen. [70623]
Mr. Meale:
The pay for RDA Chairmen is £44,000 per year for a commitment of two days a week. For Deputy Chairmen it is £14,000 per year for a commitment of one day a week.
Mr. Hawkins:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what methods he used to ensure that there was appropriate party political balance in the membership of each RDA board. [70546]
Mr. Meale:
All appointments to the RDA Boards were based on merit. We considered party political balance only in relation to the four local councillors appointed to each board. We had in mind the number of council seats held by each political party, and the proportion of votes cast for each political party across the whole of the region; but also sought to reflect other factors such as geographical spread and other relevant background experience.
are not in accordance with an up-to-date development plan strategy; or
are in accordance with the development plan but that plan is out of date, is inconsistent with national planning policy guidance, or otherwise fails to establish adequately the need for new retail and leisure development and other development to which PPG6 applies, should be required to demonstrate both the need for additional facilities and that a sequential approach has been applied in selecting the location or the site.
In the context of PPG6 and this additional guidance, the requirement to demonstrate 'need' should not be regarded as being fulfilled simply by showing that there is capacity (in physical terms) or demand (in terms of available expenditure within the proposal's catchment area) for the proposed development. Whilst the existence of capacity or demand may form part of the demonstration of need, the significance in any particular case of the factors which may show need will be a matter for the decision-maker.
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