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Sustainable Development
Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how often the UK Round Table on Sustainable Development met in 1999. [96556]
Ms Beverley Hughes: My understanding is that the UK Round Table on Sustainable Development will have met six times in plenary session during 1999.
Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he proposes to publish new indicators on sustainable development. [96558]
Ms Beverley Hughes: We plan to publish within the next couple of months a report giving details and analysis of around 150 indicators of sustainable development, which underpin the Strategy "A better quality of life", published in May 1999.
Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how often the British Government Panel on Sustainable Development met in 1999. [96557]
Ms Beverley Hughes: My understanding is that the British Government Panel on Sustainable Development will have met six times during 1999.
Brown-field Sites
Miss Kirkbride: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what guidance he has issued to local authorities relating to the use of brown-field sites for housebuilding in areas where there is a lack of such sites; and if his target of two thirds use of brown-field sites for new housebuilding is measured by county. [96043]
Ms Beverley Hughes [holding answer 28 October 1999]: Our draft revision of Planning Policy Guidance note 3: Housing provides guidance on how to accommodate housing needs in all types of areas. It is for authorities to develop their strategies in the light of that guidance. The final version of PPG3 should be published very shortly.
The Government's national target is that 60 per cent. of new housing, including conversions, should be developed on previously-developed land. Local planning authorities are required to set their own recycling targets, consistent with national and regional targets.
Travellers
Mr. Hilary Benn:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if powers are currently available to local authorities to enable them to
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prevent repeated incursions on a particular piece of land by the same group of travellers without having to go back to the courts on each occasion; and if he will make a statement. [96711]
Mr. Mullin:
Section 77(3) of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 makes it a criminal offence for a person who has been directed by a local authority to leave land where he is camped without permission, and to return to the same land with a vehicle within three months of the date of the direction. Persons committing an offence under section 77 are liable to a maximum fine of £1,000.
In proceedings for an offence under this section, it is a defence for the accused to show that his re-entry to the land with a vehicle was due to illness, mechanical breakdown, or other emergency.
We have no plans to remove the requirement in the 1994 Act for local authorities to obtain a court order before eviction can take place.
Mr. Don Foster:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list all performance targets set for his Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies since May 1997, other than those listed in Public Service Agreements 1999-2002 [Cm 4181], stating in each case (a) the target to be reached and (b) the date by which it was to be reached. [94984]
Ms Beverley Hughes:
The Department has set out the key performance targets on which it will be judged in its PSA, and the measures of success it will use in the Output and Performance Analysis (OPA) published in March this year. A full list of the targets and target dates for Agencies and Executive NDPBs can be found annually in the Next Steps and Executive Non-Departmental Public Bodies report.
| Target | Target date |
|---|---|
| Reducing emissions of sulphur dioxide by 80 per cent. against 1980 baselines | 2010 |
| Reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by 30 per cent. against 1988 baselines | 1999 |
| Achieving air quality objectives in the UK National Air Quality Strategy | 2005 |
| Reduce road traffic casualties by a third of the average for 1981-85 | 2000 |
| Improve energy efficiency on the Government estate by 20 per cent. | 31 March 2000 |
These high-level targets are supported at operational level by numerous targets to ensure delivery by individual units.
Rural Rail Services
Mr. Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to increase the provision of rural rail services; and if he will make a statement. [96601]
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Mr. Hill:
Where services are heavily dependent on subsidy, as in rural areas, Passenger Service Requirements reflect closely the level of services operated by British Rail at the time of franchising. We have made available an additional £100 million over the next three years for a new Rail Passenger Partnership scheme aimed specifically at providing support for locally sponsored services that are not commercially viable. This is being administered by the Franchising Director.
Mr. Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what grants are available to disabled people to enable them to fit aids in their homes; what is the maximum total value to an individual of those grants; if they vary in value depending on the type of house; and if he will make a statement. [96695]
Mr. Mullin:
Disabled facilities grants, which are administered by local housing authorities, are available to disabled people to help them carry out essential adaptations to their homes. Mandatory grants, which are subject to a test of resources, are available up to a maximum of £20,000 per application, but authorities have powers to give additional grant above that level. The value of each grant depends on the cost of the works required and on the resources that the applicant is assessed to have, and is not affected by the type of house occupied by the applicant. Local housing authorities also have powers to give home repair assistance, which is not means-tested, for minor works up to a maximum of £2,000.
Mr. Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to introduce legislation relating to wildlife; and if he will make a statement. [96698]
Mr. Mullin:
The Government are committed to introducing legislation to improve the protection and management of Sites of Special Scientific Interest, and to strengthen the enforcement provisions of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. We will take action as soon as Parliamentary time allows.
Angela Smith:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he will publish the comprehensive list of current planning guidance issued by his Department announced in the Modernising Planning Progress report. [96929]
Mr. Raynsford:
I have today published a list of current planning policy guidance on the Department's website at http://www.databases.detr.gov.uk/planning/npp/. This list, which is the first of its kind, will be a useful tool for local authorities, planners, developers, academics and the general public.
Besides listing the guidance contained in Departmental Circulars, Planning Policy Guidance Notes, Minerals Policy Guidance Notes and Regional Planning Guidance Notes, the list will also include key statements to Parliament, a list of research reports and best practice
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advice published by the Department. We shall update the list as and when new guidance is issued or existing guidance is modified. In the meantime, we are working to make as many of the documents as possible directly accessible by hypertext link from the list.
This initiative is a practical demonstration of the government's policy to increase substantially the volume of business transacted by electronic means.
Mr. Stringer:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions on what date he will publish Design in the Planning System. [96598]
Ms Beverley Hughes:
The Good Practice Guide on Design in the Planning System will be an important contribution to our commitment to achieving urban renaissance. It must therefore be right. We therefore intend to publish it once we are satisfied that it is capable of meeting our requirements.
Mr. Woodward:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the impact on West Oxfordshire District Council's revenue and capital spending of his changes to the negative housing subsidy regime. [96599]
Mr. Mullin:
My Department will be consulting later this Autumn on the detail of the proposals for changes in the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) subsidy regime. Consideration of the outcome of that exercise will be required before any decisions are taken. It is too early to say what the impact of any changes will be. The implications for any authority will depend upon both the results of the consultation exercise and conditions pertaining nearer the time that any changes are made.
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