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Underground Trains

Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what standards he sets in respect of volume level of flange squeal on London Underground trains; and if he will make a statement. [110418]

Mr. Hill: The Secretary of State does not set standards that relate specifically to the volume of flange squeal on London Underground trains. However, the noise exposure limits set under the Noise at Work Regulations 1989, apply in respect of the noise experienced by London Underground's employees and contractors. Also, London Underground has a duty of care to ensure the safety and well-being of its customers and neighbours.

Local Deprivation Index

Mr. Coleman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) when decisions on the content of the Index of Local Deprivation will be announced; and if he will make a statement; [110539]

(2) when the underlying data used to calculate the proposed Index of Local Deprivation 1999 will be released; and if he will make a statement. [110540]

Ms Beverley Hughes: The final 1999 Index is due to be published in spring 2000 along with a summary report and a supporting document. This final index will include

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local authority district level scores and ranks. The scores and ranks at the ward level will be published at the same time and will be available for each domain separately (income, work, health and disability, education, skills and training, housing and geographical access to services). A further more detailed report will be published in summer 2000.

The summary report will contain details about where to obtain, sometimes at a charge, the underlying data, used to construct the 33 indicators.

Mr. Coleman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what (a) was the membership of and (b) were the organisations represented on the (i) advising group and (ii) virtual advising group which advised the Index 99 team on the Index of Deprivation. [110541]

Ms Beverley Hughes: The review of the 1999 Index of Local Deprivation was overseen by an inter-departmental steering committee. This included representatives from DETR, Department for Education and Employment, Department of Health, the Office for National Statistics, the Department of Social Security, the Home Office, The Department of Trade and Industry, the Treasury, the Social Exclusion Unit, The Northumbria Police, the Countryside Agency, The Local Government Association, the Improvement and Development Agency, The Welsh Executive, the Scottish Executive, the Northern Ireland Office, the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, the University of Cambridge and all Regional Development Agencies (East of England Development Agency, East Midlands Development Agency, North East Development Agency, North West Development Agency, South East of England Development Agency, South West Regional Development Agency, Advantage West Midlands and Yorkshire and Humberside Development Agency).

In addition, the review team benefited from the advice of a large advisory panel with a range of different skills and areas of expertise. This included academics from a number of Universities including Bath, Bristol, Birmingham, Cambridge, Lincolnshire, the London School of Economics, Warwick and York and members of other organisations including the Policy Studies Institute, the Local Government Association, the Improvement and Development Agency and the Central and Local Government Information Partnership sub group on deprivation statistics.

Roughland Paths

Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the objection of (a) the RSPB and (b) other environmental groups to police advice to local authorities to cut back undergrowth alongside paths crossing roughland for public safety reasons. [110647]

Mr. Mullin: I am not aware that my Department has received any such objections but we would always seek to balance environmental considerations with those of public safety.

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Local Government Reform

Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will estimate the cost of training for (a) councillors and (b) officers if new cabinet structures in local government are implemented. [110645]

Ms Armstrong: The extent to which councils will need to direct their training programmes for councillors and officers to cover the new cabinet structures will depend upon local circumstances, including the details of any cabinet structure that they are proposing to adopt.

Greater London Enterprise

Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what guidelines govern donations by Greater London Enterprise to political parties. [110439]

Mr. Hill: The GLE is a limited company, and is therefore covered by Schedule 7 of the Companies Act 1985 which requires disclosure of monetary donations to a political party.

Train Services (Waterloo-Crewkerne)

Mr. Ashdown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to ensure that punctuality on South-West Trains services from Waterloo to Crewkerne is improved; and if he will make a statement. [110803]

Mr. Hill: The performance of South West Trains services has been adversely affected over the past few months by a combination of unofficial strike action by staff and the annual leaf fall. Most services have now returned to normal. The Franchising Director is pursuing with South West Trains changes to their staffing policy and levels which should lead to improvements over time in both punctuality and the reliability of all of the company's services.

Chard Junction

Mr. Ashdown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to re-open Chard Junction railway station; and if he will make a statement. [110802]

Mr. Hill: There are currently no plans to re-open Chard Junction railway station. Interested local stakeholders may, however, wish to consider making a bid for funds to re-open this station from the Rail Passenger Partnership scheme (details in the House Library) administered by the Franchising Director.

London Underground

Mr. Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if the public-private partnership for London Underground will include the funding for the installation of a moving block signalling system on each London Underground line. [110895]

Mr. Hill: In the London Underground public-private partnership, the private sector is being invited to bid to implement a programme of maintenance and enhancement projects specified largely in output terms. It will therefore

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largely be for the bidders to identify the right technological solutions that would enable London Underground to run the improved service London needs. The level of funding needed can be considered sensibly only once the bids are in.

Air Pollution (Rural Areas)

Mr. Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what recent assessment he has made of the levels of air pollution in rural areas; and what plans he has for programmes to reduce such pollution levels. [110775]

Mr. Hill: The Air Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, published on 19 January, provides a comprehensive assessment of current and future air quality throughout the UK. It sets objectives for reducing levels of the eight main air pollutants, to be achieved between 2003 and 2008. These objectives will be met through a combination of international, national and local measures.

Under local air quality management (LAQM), local authorities are obliged to review and assess air quality in their areas against these objectives and, where the objectives are unlikely to be met by the relevant date, establish action plans to improve air quality. Ozone is the pollutant of particular concern in rural areas. Because of its transboundary nature, it is most effectively tackled at international level and so is excluded from LAQM. In December 1999, we and other countries signed the UNECE Protocol to abate acidification, eutrophication and ground level ozone. This will lead to significant reductions in emissions of pollutants which cause the formation of ozone. We are currently negotiating within the EU proposals from the European Commission for a National Emissions Ceilings Directive and an Ozone Directive which are expected to lead to further reductions in levels of ozone.

Farmers' Markets

Mr. Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will amend planning regulations to provide for the establishment of a national network of farmers' markets. [110835]

Ms Beverley Hughes: Existing planning controls apply equally to all open air markets. Farmers' markets have been established successfully throughout the country in recent years. However, the "Rural Economies" report by the Performance and Innovation Unit (published last December) stated that there would be merit in reviewing the ancient local market charter arrangements and accompanying regulations. The common law right of charter markets to prevent other markets being established within a distance of six and two-third miles is one possible inhibiting factor.

The "Rural Economies" report is an important contribution to the preparation of the forthcoming Rural White Paper and we shall consider carefully its conclusions and proposals.

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