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Garden Waste
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the amount of garden waste produced in each of the last 10 years and; and if he will make a statement on (a) the Government's strategy for dealing with garden waste and (b) its policy towards incineration of garden waste. [90715]
Mr. Meale: No estimates are available for the total amount of garden waste arisings. 380,000 tonnes of municipal waste, including garden waste, were collected for centralised composting in England and Wales in 1997-98; 250,000 tonnes in 1996-97; and 150,000 tonnes in 1995-96. (Source: DETR Municipal Waste Survey). Estimates from local authorities suggest that a further 200,000-300,000 tonnes are composted each year at home. Data for earlier years were not collected.
(a) Our draft waste strategy "A Way with Waste" calls for substantial increases in composting and recycling. The Government will continue to work with key players to implement the recommendations of the Composting Development Group to overcome barriers to the marketing of waste-derived compost.
(b) Incineration with energy recovery should not be undertaken without consideration first being given to the possibility of composting and materials recycling. The final decision will rest with local authorities, and depend on their own circumstances and their assessment of the Best Practicable Environmental Option.
Mr. Lidington:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will place in the Library copies of the representations which he has received concerning the application to erect a telecom mast at Chisley Wood, Buckmoor End, Butlers Cross, Buckinghamshire (APP/IT0425/A/99/1024262). [91036]
Mr. Raynsford:
I can confirm that copies of the two representations about this application while it was under consideration by Wycombe District Council have been placed in the Library.
Mr. Lidington:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) which Minister will be responsible for determining planning appeal ref. APP/IT0425/A/99/1024262; and if he will make a statement; [91035]
Mr. Raynsford:
The appeal has been withdrawn and the Planning Inspectorate will be taking no further action in the matter.
Mr. Lidington:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations (i) his Department and (ii) the Planning Inspectorate have received from Government Departments or agencies about the planning application
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and appeal relating to the erection of a telecom mast at Chisley Wood, Buckmoor End, Butlers Cross, Buckinghamshire. [91034]
Mr. Syms:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if, following the consultation on leasehold reform, he intends to (a) make a statement on whether he will legislate and when and (b) publish the results of the consultation. [91187]
Mr. Raynsford:
We are currently analysing the large number of responses to our consultation paper and will publish the results in due course. We are proceeding as swiftly as possible but I cannot yet say when we will be able to announce our decisions.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on his plans for an absolute reduction in road traffic levels. [89514]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
The Government are making good progress in implementing the package of measures set out in our Integrated Transport White Paper which is needed to reduce road traffic growth, and to reduce absolute levels of traffic in those places where its environmental damage is greatest. We remain committed to publishing our first report under the Road Traffic Reduction (National Targets) Act 1998, on the issue of whether to set a national traffic reduction target, by the end of this year.
Mr. Dalyell:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to publish the findings of, and recommendations arising from, the recent visit to the British Indian Overseas Territories by Dr. Charles Sheppard; what steps he has taken to protect fisheries in the British Indian Overseas Territories in the light of the coral bleaching in the islands; from whom advice has been received; and if he will establish no-fishing zones. [87384]
Mr. Tony Lloyd
[holding answer 29 June 1999]: Dr. Sheppard's Report is now being printed and I expect it to be issued in the next few days. The Government of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) intends to give it a wide distribution. The fisheries management policy of the BIOT Government is based on the precautionary approach. Some partial Marine Protected Areas were introduced in the autumn of 1998 and the number of licences available for the inshore fishery for the 1999 season reduced by one third.
Early advice has been received from Dr. Sheppard and BIOT fisheries consultants. After issue of the Report, further consultation will be undertaken in co-ordination with the Department for International Development, who are co-sponsoring an Indian Ocean-wide programme on Coral Reef Degradation.
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The establishment of closed areas or other regulatory mechanisms for the protection of the fisheries remain permanently under consideration by the BIOT Government.
Mr. Maples:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in what respect Lord Levy represented the Prime Minister in his visits to Syria from 9 to 10 April and to Jordan and Syria from 5 to 10 June; what were Lord Levy's terms of reference; if Lord Levy was accompanied by his Department's officials throughout the visits; if he will list the names of those whom Lord Levy met on each occasion in his capacity as the Prime Minister's personal representative and what was discussed; on what Vote the travel costs fell; what were the experience and knowledge possessed by Lord Levy which led to his being chosen for the mission; for what reasons his Department's Ministers did not undertake the visits; what previous visits Lord Levy has undertaken on behalf of the Prime Minister; and what further such visits are planned. [90287]
Mr. Hoon:
Lord Levy paid for his travel costs personally. His visits included calls on King Abdullah of Jordan and President Assad of Syria when he delivered personal messages on behalf of the Prime Minister.
The FCO, through the Embassies in Amman and Damascus, liaised in advance with the respective governments on the timing of Lord Levy's visit. The Embassies in Amman and Damascus made programme arrangements, provided some accompanied transportation by road during the programme and accommodation at our Ambassador's residence. The Embassy in Amman hosted a lunch for Lord Levy to meet Jordanian politicians and officials.
Ms Oona King:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for how long a person who applied for entry clearance for settlement in (i) February, (ii) March, (iii) April, (iv) May and (v) June can be expected to have to wait for an interview in each queue at each post in the Indian subcontinent. [90755]
Mr. Hoon
[holding answer 12 July 1999]: The figures requested are as follows:
(2) what steps he has taken to avoid any conflict of interest arising in the determination of planning appeal APP/IT0425/A/99/1024262 concerning a proposal to erect a telecom mast at Chisley Wood, Buckinghamshire. [91033]
(6) Right of Abode claimants; dependent relatives over 65; special compassionate cases
(7) Spouses, children under 18
(8) Fiance(e)s, other settlement categories
(9) Re-applicants
(10) Calcutta, Colombo, Karachi and Madras do not operate separate queues
Note:
Figures for June are in the process of being compiled and are not therefore available.
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The extended queues in Islamabad and Dhaka in particular are a consequence of seasonal pressures. We have deployed additional staff to deal with increased applications for short-term visits. We will deploy further staff as necessary in early autumn to reduce the numbers waiting for settlement entry clearance and bring forward interview dates.
Mrs. Dean:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the average waiting time is for an initial interview by an entry clearance officer in Islamabad. [91084]
Mr. Hoon:
Waiting times for interviews vary according to the categories of the application. Some applicants can be issued visas without an interview. The latest figures we have for waiting times in Islamabad for those categories that require interview are for the last working day in May. They are as follows:
| Waiting time | |
|---|---|
| Tier 3 | |
| (Visit) | 21 days |
| Tier 4: | |
| Q1 (Right of Abode claimants, dependent relatives over 65, special compassionate cases) | 12 weeks |
| Q2 (Spouses, children under 18) | 41 weeks |
| Q3 (Finance(e)s, other categories) | 46 weeks |
| Q4 (Re-applicants) | 53 weeks |
The extended queues in Islamabad and Dhaka in particular are a consequence of seasonal pressures. We have deployed additional staff to deal with increased applications for short-term visits. We will deploy further staff as necessary in early autumn to reduce the numbers waiting for settlement entry clearance and bring forward interview dates.
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