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Standard Spending Assessment
Mr. McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the standard spending assessment per head of population in the areas covered by Derbyshire Dales District Council and Amber Valley Borough Council. [103726]
Ms Beverley Hughes: The provisional 2000-01 standard spending assessment per head of population figures are:
| Amber Valley | Derbyshire Dales | |
|---|---|---|
| District | 83 | 91 |
| Derbyshire County | 674 | 674 |
| Derbyshire Police | 54 | 54 |
| Area | 811 | 819 |
Mr. McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will estimate, per pupil, the standard spending assessment for each shire county local education authority, ranked and numbered in descending order, for each of the last five years. [103724]
Ms Beverley Hughes: Tables showing these figures have been placed in the House of Commons Library.
Dennis Dart Buses
Mr. Ernie Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what reports he has received from the Vehicle Inspectorate on the safety of Dennis Dart buses; what response he has made; if he will establish a formal investigation of Dennis Dart buses; and if he will make a statement. [103751]
Mr. Hill: A report on alleged unintended acceleration in Public Service Vehicles was sent to the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions by the Vehicle Inspectorate on 23 August. The Department subsequently asked the Vehicle Inspectorate to provide additional information to widen the scope of the informal investigations. There are no plans to establish any formal investigation of Dennis Dart buses.
Revenue Support Grant
Mr. Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the revenue support grant per head of population in (a) Stoke- on-Trent, (b) Kensington and Chelsea, (c) Wandsworth, (d) Waltham Forest and (e) Redbridge. [103622]
Ms Beverley Hughes: The provisional 2000-01 revenue support grant per head of population figures are:
| Area | £ per head |
|---|---|
| (a) Stoke-on-Trent | 389 |
| (b) Kensington and Chelsea | 386 |
| (c) Wandsworth | 462 |
| (d) Waltham Forest | 592 |
| (e) Redbridge | 464 |
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Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998 will be fully implemented; and if he will make a statement. [103216]
Mr. Hill: We intend to implement the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998 as quickly as possible. We consulted earlier this year, jointly with the Public Carriage Office, on the licensing of private hire vehicle operators in London. Having carefully considered the responses, we intend to conduct a further consultation with draft regulations as early as possible next year. Further consultations, also jointly with the Public Carriage Office, will follow on proposals for regulating private hire drivers and vehicles.
Transport Direct
Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how much public spending will be allocated to the Transport Direct telephone line; and where it will be based. [103373]
Mr. Hill: The national public transport information system--the Government's White Paper commitment to an integrated system giving journey planning and timetable information over the telephone--is being funded by transport operators and local authorities. Government have provided Supplementary Credit Approvals to local authorities of £1 million in 1998-99 and £3.3 million in 1999-2000 to assist with the capital requirements of the project.
The public will be able to call a single telephone number for routes and timetables for bus, train, coach, metro, tram and ferry. The service is expected to be introduced progressively throughout Great Britain during 2000.
A possible development for the longer term is the availability of tickets by telephone for multi-modal journeys. No decisions on that option have yet been taken.
Mr. Wigley:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the advantages and disadvantages of extending the 50 per cent. reduction in business rating available to environmentally friendly sources of electricity generation to the generation of electricity by pumped storage hydro techniques; and if he will make a statement. [103739]
Ms Armstrong:
The current regulations prescribing the rateable value of wind and tidal power generators value these at less than other sources of electricity generation. There is no reduction in business rating for environmentally friendly sources of electricity generation.
The next quinquennial revaluation of non-domestic rates will take effect from 1 April 2000. As part of this, the Government is considering the values which it will prescribe for certain industries, including electricity generators. There are no pumped storage schemes in England. Rating valuation in Wales is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
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Mr. Jim Cunningham:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what measures he is taking to help to speed up the house buying process. [103239]
Mr. Mullin:
On 11 October we announced our intention to take forward a package of complementary measures aimed at speeding up and improving the home buying and selling process. The package is based on a detailed survey and consultation exercise and studies of experience in other countries. A key proposal is a requirement that before putting a home on the market, the seller or seller's agent should put together a pack of standard documents and information for prospective buyers. This should include copies of title documents, replies to standard buyers' preliminary inquiries, replies to local searches, copies of planning and other consents, copies of warranties and guarantees, a home condition report and a draft contract.
In addition, we want buyers to be better prepared and will be encouraging the wider use of "in principle" mortgage offers. We also want faster mortgage offers and local authority searches and will be asking the service providers to adopt service targets on these. Mortgage lenders are also being asked to provide title deeds within five working days of request and to examine the scope for "chain-breaking" loans. Finally, all the professions and other bodies involved in the home buying and selling process are being encouraged to make better use of advances in information technology to speed up the process.
Mr. Jim Cunningham:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to reduce the council tax burden for the lowest bands. [103240]
Ms Beverley Hughes:
Help with council tax bills for people on low incomes is already provided through the means-tested council tax benefit system.
We considered the need for changes to the council tax bands in the review which culminated in our 1998 White Paper, "Modern Local Government--In Touch with the People". We explained that the council tax was generally working well and that we did not plan to make any fundamental changes to it in the course of this Parliament.
Mr. Jim Cunningham:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what his policy is on the control of hedgerows in residential areas; and if he will make a statement. [103241]
Mr. Mullin:
We will be considering what more Government might usefully do to help solve the problems caused by nuisance hedges in the light of responses to the consultation paper "High hedges: possible solutions". The options identified there include both voluntary and statutory action.
The consultation paper suggests, however, that adding residential hedges to the list of statutory nuisances in section 79 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (as proposed in the Control of Hedgerows in Residential
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Areas Bill) appears unlikely to be more effective than the existing statutory nuisance provisions in controlling residential hedges.
Mr. Dalyell:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the reasons for delay in the consultation process on his Department's soil strategy; and when the formal consultation document will be published. [103121]
Mr. Mullin:
We expect to be able to publish the draft soil strategy for consultation by Easter next year. This is later than we had previously planned. The additional time has been needed to develop the draft, particularly so that it fits within the wider family of sustainable development strategies.
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