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Climate Change Levy
Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many meetings his officials have had with European Commission officials on the climate change levy. [115264]
Mr. Meacher [holding answer 17 March 2000]: Recognising the crucial importance of state aids guidelines for our climate change levy policy, my Department's officials have met five times since September with the European Commission to discuss the climate change levy. They will continue to have further meetings to take forward our notification of the arrangements proposed for the levy.
Westminster Station
Mr. Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will call for a report from London Underground as to why lifts are not operating, walls are unfinished and netted off, and considerable areas have been left unsightly, untidy and strewn with garbage at Westminster underground station. [115136]
Mr. Hill
[holding answer 17 March 2000]: I understand from the London Underground that three of the five lifts at Westminster station are in service. The work required, and safe methods for carrying it out, on the remaining two are under discussion with contractors and HM Railways Inspectorate. The walls of the station are finished to the approved architectural design. The netting is to catch any foreign objects, which might be thrown by passengers. The Bridge Street underpass is currently cordoned off by contractors to allow for the permanent lighting to be installed; this may look untidy until the work is completed.
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Mr. Jim Cunningham:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he will announce the results of the consultation on the Government's proposals for the control of hedges; how many letters of support he has received from individuals and organisations with regard to each of the four options outlined in his proposals; which option gained the most support; which option he will seek to implement; and what his timescale is for putting forward his proposals. [115242]
Mr. Meacher
[holding answer 20 March 2000]: The deadline for responses to the consultation paper "High hedges: possible solutions" was 31 January. We are currently analysing the thousands of replies that we have received, and so are not yet in a position to provide the information requested. We will be taking account of all comments in considering the best way forward on this issue. We will announce the results of consultation, and our conclusions, when that consideration has been completed.
Mr. Jenkin:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 14 March 2000, Official Report, column 120W, on what date the Greater London Returning Officer made (a) a provisional and (b) a firm order for the necessary paper for the Greater London mayoral elections booklet. [115510]
Mr. Hill
[holding answer 20 March 2000]: A provisional order for the printing of this booklet, including the paper, was placed on 2 March. A firm order was placed by the Department on 7 March.
Ms Buck:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what briefing from him is available for prospective mayoral candidates for the Greater London Authority election. [116033]
Mr. Hill:
Briefings for prospective Mayoral candidates on organisational and administrative matters are available on request to the Greater London Authority Transition Team.
Kali Mountford:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what provision he is making for the cost of rail services secured by English passenger transport executives in 2000-01. [116034]
Mr. Hill:
A special grant report has been laid before the House today for the payment of Metropolitan Railway Passenger Services Grant in 2000-01 to English Passenger Transport Authorities (PTAs). The main purpose of the grant is to provide support to those PTAs for the local rail services provided by franchise operators and secured by the PTAs' Passenger Transport Executives under the terms of franchise agreements with franchisees and the Director of Passenger Rail Franchising.
Mr. Hilary Benn:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he
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has to seek an amendment to the Treaty of Rome to allow the continuation of the gap funding mechanism of the Partnership Investment Programme; and if he will make a statement. [115504]
Ms Beverley Hughes:
We are working with the European Commission to try to identify a means of continuing to work in partnership with the private sector to regenerate derelict sites and buildings, within the existing Treaty rules. Ministers have recently held discussions with Commissioner Monti on the problems we face since the Commission ruled that the Partnership Investment Programme (PIP) breached the State aid rules. These discussions are continuing at official level.
Mr. Paul Marsden:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to the letter to him from the hon. Member for Shrewsbury and Atcham dated 18 February on sewerage agency agreements, if he will ensure that regulations are introduced to preserve local authority employees' pension entitlements; and if he will make a statement. [115730]
Ms Beverley Hughes:
Under the provisions of the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997, local authority employees who are members may already preserve their pension entitlements, indexed in line with inflation, on leaving. Alternatively, the regulations also allow for suitable actuarial transfers to be arranged to provide an equitable service award in any new scheme.
The extent to which employees in local authorities work on the delivery of privatised water company services through agency agreements, and the availability of alternative broadly comparable pension arrangements to those employed under them, is currently being established with the co-operation of the United Kingdom Steering Committee on local government pensions. The results of that survey will be considered carefully.
Mr. Syms:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will give an itemised breakdown of the £1,550,000 budget of the Commission for Integrated Transport in 1999-2000. [115635]
Mr. Hill:
The Commission for Integrated Transport's provisional budget for 1999-2000 had to be allocated well before its launch. A sum of £1.5 million was originally allocated from within DETR's programme budget for this purpose.
| Projected spend to end of March 2000 | |
|---|---|
| Salaries | 90,000 |
| Consultancy | 125,000 |
| Travel and Subsistence | 24,000 |
| Hospitality | 5,000 |
| Publicity | 25,000 |
| Total | 269,000 |
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Local Government Finance
Jean Corston: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on progress with the review of local government finance. [115998]
Ms Armstrong: Joint reports prepared by central and local government officials on the revenue grant distribution and capital finance reviews will be discussed at the next meeting of Central Local Partnership on 22 March. Copies of these reports will be available from the House of Commons Library and the DETR and LGA websites after the meeting.
Decisions about the merits of the various options for reform will not be taken until we have consulted widely this summer.
Railway Yards (Handheld Radios)
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make the issuing of licences for the use of handheld radios on railway yards site-specific. [114514]
Ms Hewitt: I have been asked to reply.
The issue of licences for railway operational purposes requires that hand radios are listed in the licence, according the site where they will be used.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
EU Trade Agreements
Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps the European Community takes when, in respect of existing trade agreements with other countries, there ceases to be an agreed definition and interpretation of their territorial scope of applicability. [115314]
Mr. Caborn: The Community continues to apply agreements while they remain in force.
MedicAlert
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what safeguards he will put into place to ensure that (a) charities and (b) MedicAlert will not be faced with a third change to telephone numbers and consequent expenses; and if he will make a statement. [115120]
Ms Hewitt:
Numbering is a matter for the Office of Telecommunications (Oftel). The current change to London telephone numbers is the result of Oftel's wide 1996 consultation of consumers, businesses and other organisations. The new scheme ensures that there is now a large amount of additional capacity to meet new demand (for example London will now have 80 million numbers behind the 020 code). The extra capacity created is far in excess of forecast demand and will last for the foreseeable future. However, it is impossible to predict all the new services which technological change and market developments may bring into being this century. It is therefore not possible for Oftel to be certain that it will never need to change the scheme further, or that charities, including MedicAlert, will never be faced with such a
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change again. Oftel has ensured the current change has been widely publicised in advance to allow organisations to plan for it.
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