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Social Housing

Miss Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how much additional funding has been allocated by the Government to Lancaster City Council for improving the quality of social housing since 1 May 1997. [128354]

Mr. Raynsford: The capital allocations for housing investment made to Lancaster City Council since 1997-98 are given in the table. The additional resources we have made available for housing investment were mainly distributed through the Capital Receipts Initiative in the years up to 1999-2000. In 2000-01 the extra resources were included in the Housing Investment Programme (HIP) allocation following the introduction of the single housing capital pot.

£000

YearHIPCRITotal
1997-981,8142792,093
1998-992,0021,0143,016
1999-20002,2381,1013,339
2000-013,942--3,942

Climate Change

Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what progress has been made in consultation with industry to implement

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the three proposals to reduce or minimise HFC use, as set out at paragraph 67, page 79, of the draft UK climate change programme. [128450]

Mr. Meacher: The consultation on the draft climate change programme ended on 2 June and we are currently analysing the responses made. Once this exercise has been completed we will begin to develop these proposals further in consultation with industry.

Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received from industry in respect of the new policy on reduced dependence on HFC use, as set out in paragraphs 17 to 20 in the draft UK Climate Change Programme. [128449]

Mr. Meacher: The Government have received over 100 responses to the consultation on the draft climate change programme on HFCs. These responses are currently being analysed and the final climate change programme, which will be published later this year, will take account of the issues raised during the consultation.

Housing Corporation

Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will increase the Housing Corporation's approved development spending for rural areas. [128894]

Mr. Raynsford: Decisions on the future level of the Housing Corporation's approved development programme spending will depend on the outcome of this year's spending review. The Government's future policy on rural housing will be set out in the forthcoming Rural White Paper.

Raptors

Mr. William Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what his estimate is of the number of raptors of each species (a) breeding and (b) resident in England. [128825]

Mr. Meacher [holding answer 3 July 2000]: A Raptor Working Group was set up in 1995 to consider issues arising from perceived conflicts between the recovery of some bird of prey populations and their impact on game birds and moorland management and on racing pigeons. Earlier this year, the group submitted its final report, which includes estimates of raptor population sizes. The figures are taken from the report and show the best estimates of sizes of breeding population for birds of prey in England using data and information, where possible, from published sources. The total number of birds of prey will be greater than these estimates in the post-breeding season owing to the number of fledged young and other non-breeding individuals.

Copies of the report have been deposited in the House Library.

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SpeciesUnits of estimationEnglandDate of estimate
Honey BuzzardPairs(1)12-34(11)1997
Red KitePairs(1)57-61(1)1997
White-tailed EaglePairsNo breeding population(1)1997
Marsh HarrierFemales(1)127-145(1)1997
Hen HarrierTerritorial pairs(2)19(2)1998
Montagu's HarrierFemales(1)9-12(1)1997
GoshawkPairs(3)120(1)1997, (3), (4)1994, (5)1993
SparrowhawkPairs(6)22,000(6)1988-91
BuzzardPairs(6)4,000-6,000(6)1988-91, (7)1983
Golden EaglePairs(8)1(8)1992
OspreyPairsNo breeding population(1)1997
KestrelPairs(6)35,500(6)1988-91
MerlinPairs(9)401(9)1993-94, (10)1993, (11)1992-95
HobbyPairs(6)500-900(1)1997, (4)1994, (6)1988-91
PeregrinePairs(12)283(12)1991

(1) Ogilvie, MA & the Rare Breeding Birds Panel 1999b Rare breeding birds in the United Kingdom in 1997. British Birds 92: 389-428.

(2) Sim, IMW, Gibbons, DW, Bainbridge, I & Mattingley, W 1999 Status of the hen harrier Circus cyaneus in the UK and the Isle of Man in 1998. Draft report to Raptor Working Group.

(3) Petty, SJ 1996 History of the northern goshawk Accipiter gentilis in Britain. In: The introduction and naturalisation of birds, ed. by JS Holmes and JR Simons, 95-102. London, HMSO.

(4) Ogilvie, MA & the Rare Breeding Birds Panel 1996. Rare breeding birds in the United Kingdom in 1994. British Birds 89: 387-417.

(5) Shrubb, M. 1994. Welsh Bird Report No. 7 1993. Glamorgan, The Welsh Ornithological Society.

(6) Gibbons, DW, Reid, JB & Chapman, RA 1993 The new atlas of breeding birds in Britain and Ireland: 1988-1991. London, T & AD Poyser.

(7) Taylor, K, Hudson, R & Horne, G 1988. Buzzard breeding distribution and abundance in Britain and Northern Ireland in 1983. Bird Study 35: 109-118.

(8) Green, RE 1996 The status of the golden eagle in Britain in 1992. Bird Study 43: 20-27.

(9) Rebecca, G & Bainbridge, IP 1998. The breeding status of the merlin Falco columbarius in Britain in 1993-94. Bird Study 45: 172-187.

(10) Williams, IT & Parr, S 1995. Breeding merlins Falco columbarius in Wales 1993. Welsh Birds 1: 14-20.

(11) RSPB/Irish Raptor Study Group survey data.

(12) Crick, HQP & Ratcliffe, DA 1995. The peregrine Falco peregrinus breeding population of the United Kingdom in 1991. Bird Study 42: 1-19.


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South Downs National Park

Mr. Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the provisional timetable for the establishment of a South Downs National Park. [129115]

Mr. Meacher: The Countryside Agency is responsible for designating National Parks, subject to the confirmation of a designation order in each case by the Secretary of State. The agency currently estimates that a designation order for a National Park in the South Downs might be submitted to the Secretary of State in spring 2002. This timetable reflects the significant tasks to be addressed, including the identification of a boundary and making recommendations on the most effective administrative arrangements. The agency will be consulting local interests extensively on these matters.

Advantage West Midlands

Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the Chief Executive of Advantage West Midlands. [129037]

Ms Beverley Hughes: I understand that, with effect from Friday 30 June, the contract of Advantage West Midlands' Chief Executive, Tony Cassidy, was ended by mutual consent.

Advantage West Midlands will now seek to recruit a replacement. I am informed that in the meantime, the post will be filled on a temporary basis by John Edwards, regeneration director of Advantage West Midlands, and previously Chief Executive of the Rural Development Commission.

Correspondence

Mrs. Roe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when the hon. Member for Broxbourne will receive a reply to her letters

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of (a) 8 March, (b) 6 April, (c) 5 May, (d) 1 June and (e) 29 June relating to her constituent Miss Haley Cresswell. [128918]

Mr. Raynsford: My reply was sent on 29 June. I am sorry the hon. Member had to wait so long for this reply. The correspondence raised issues of wider concern.


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