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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 20 June 2000
ENVIRONMENT, TRANSPORT AND THE REGIONS
Driving Standards Agency
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the business plan of the Driving Standards Agency concerning its future policy on test centre closures; if he will list, by region, the test centres targeted for closure; and what the timetable is for such closures. [125588]
Mr. Hill: The Driving Standards Agency's Business Plan for 2000-01 announced targets for the disposal of all vacant space over a five-year period. The target for 2000-01 is a 48 per cent. reduction, which should save fee payers about £145,000 annually. Closures of individual test centres will be considered on their merits and with regard to local circumstances.
The Agency has consulted on the closure of the following driving test centres in the Wales and Western Area:
- Pembroke Dock and Haverfordwest--rationalising at Withybush.
- Portsmouth--relocating to the north of the city.
- Minehead.
For the future, proposals for test centre openings and closures will, as far as practicable, be considered across the group of centres serving a locality. When proposals for a locality have been developed, the Agency will consult interested parties. This strategy should provide a network of improved test centres delivering a better quality of customer service, while adapting to changes in the demand for driving tests and test requirements.
RMS St. Helena
Mr. Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 5 June 2000, Official Report, column 59W, on RMS St. Helena, for how long RMS St. Helena was made available for service during the Falklands conflict; and for how many days it was in the war zone. [125592]
Mr. Hill: RMS St. Helena was made available for Royal Navy charter between May and September 1982 but did not leave the UK until 13 June 1982. The ship was in the war zone for 17 days from 26 June 1982 to 12 July 1982 which was the end of the qualifying period.
Mr. Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many civilians served on RMS St. Helena during the Falklands conflict; of these how many were from (a) St. Helena, (b) the Falklands, (c) the United Kingdom and (d) elsewhere; and how many have been awarded the South Atlantic Medal. [125593]
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Mr. Hill: Approximately 32 civilians served on RMS St. Helena at the time of the Falklands War. Of these, 21 were from St Helena, none from the Falklands, 11 were from the United Kingdom and none from elsewhere. None of these people have been awarded the South Atlantic Medal.
Road Deaths (North Yorkshire)
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action he has taken to reduce the number of deaths on North Yorkshire's roads. [125872]
Mr. Hill: This Government are committed to further improvements in road safety. We launched a new road safety strategy in March this year, and we are providing substantial extra resources for Local Transport Plans.
In the Local Transport Capital Settlement for 2000-01, North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC) received £8.5m as a block allocation, an increase of 58 per cent. over 1999-2000. This increase will allow NYCC to place additional emphasis on local safety schemes during the current financial year.
We have also in the region commissioned two safety studies which will investigate trunk road safety problems, one between Bramham and Barton on the A1 and the other between Scotch Corner and Penrith on the A66. Details of these studies, together with other planned trunk road safety schemes, are outlined in the letter from the Acting Chief Executive of the Highways Agency to the hon. Member, 29 February 2000, Official Report, columns 190W-92W.
In North Yorkshire there has been a continuing reduction in the fatal and seriously injured categories, and in 1998 the County met the then national target of a one third reduction by the year 2000 compared with the 1981-85 base.
Road Accidents (A21)
Mr. Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many accidents involving one or more vehicles occurred on the stretch of the A21 between the intersections with the B2079 and B2099 in each of the last five years, setting out in each case whether personal injury occurred. [125735]
Mr. Hill: The numbers of personal injury accidents on this stretch of road is shown for the last five years for which figures are available.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| 1994 | 6 |
| 1995 | 7 |
| 1996 | 11 |
| 1997 | 7 |
| 1998 | 11 |
No information is available regarding damage-only accidents.
Campers (Unauthorised Waste)
Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his
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answer of 8 June 2000, Official Report, column 312W, what representations he has received from local authorities and others concerning the effectiveness of powers under section 59(b) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 in penalising the depositing of waste by unauthorised campers. [125772]
Mr. Mullin: I am not aware of any representations on the effectiveness of these powers.
Housing
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) what steps he is taking to evaluate new approaches to allocating social housing, as proposed in the Housing Green Paper; and if he will make a statement; [126013]
- (2) what recent guidance he has given to local authorities on dealing with categories of applicants who have not traditionally applied for local authority accommodation; and if he will make a statement. [126017]
Mr. Mullin: In April, we published a Housing Green Paper, "Quality and choice: A Decent Home For All". This included our proposals for modernising policies that affect people's opportunities to access social housing. The Housing Green Paper set out proposals to give applicants for social housing a greater say over where they live. Local authorities will be encouraged to develop lettings systems which provide applicants with much more information about available housing, allowing them to make decisions about their housing options. People who may not have traditionally applied for social housing will be able to apply for vacant properties but we will want to ensure that priority goes to people in the greatest housing need. However, in some areas, local authorities may wish to implement local lettings plans to tackle social problems on particular estates. This may involve giving priority to people who would help to create more sustainable communities or to provide housing for key public sector workers.
Responses to the Housing Green Paper have been invited by 31 July 2000. Following the consultation period, the Government will invite local authorities to pilot customer-focused schemes. This will include the need to test the impact of local lettings plans. All the pilot schemes will be carefully evaluated. The Government will also issue a revised version of the Code of Guidance on lettings and homelessness advising local authorities how they can implement choice-based lettings under the current legislative framework.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if the definition of homelessness contained in the Housing Act 1996 will be used in future housing legislation; and if he will make a statement. [126016]
Mr. Mullin: The Housing Green Paper, which was issued for consultation on 4 April, includes proposals for strengthening the protection available to homeless people. The Government intend to take forward these proposals in the light of responses to the Green Paper. There are no present plans to change the statutory definition of homelessness.
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Landing Slot Allocations
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to review the system of landing slot allocations at major UK airports. [126201]
Mr. Mullin: Slot allocation is governed by EC Regulation 95/93. At airports where demand for slots significantly exceeds supply, they are allocated by an independent slot co-ordinator, using criteria set out in the Regulation, in international guidelines, and in any local rules. There are currently four such airports in the UK: London Heathrow, London Gatwick, London Stansted and Manchester. We are awaiting proposals from the Commission for reform of EC 95/93.
Landfill
Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment his Department made, prior to the publication of the Waste Strategy 2000: England and Wales (Command Paper 4693), of the experiences in other countries of landfill mining, with particular reference to Germany; and if he will make a statement. [126633]
Mr. Mullin [holding answer 19 June 2000]: UK landfill practices differ from most other countries. The mixing of hazardous and non-hazardous waste is more common in UK landfill sites, and they contain more moisture due to wet landfill operating systems. There would be significant engineering problems in drying excavated waste, some of which would be hazardous. The Environment Agency has therefore advised that landfill mining has limited potential in the UK.
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