| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Planning Appeals
Mr. David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what percentage of planning appeals in 2000 were determined by (a) a written inquiry, (b) a full inquiry lasting less than two days and (c) a full inquiry lasting more than two days; and what the average cost of an inquiry was in each category. [147441]
Ms Beverley Hughes: Figures are listed for the three appeals procedures. Hearings do not normally take longer than one day.
| Year 2000 | Total number | Percentage of number decided |
|---|---|---|
| Planning appeals(1) received | 14,962 | -- |
| Planning appeals decided | 12,602 | -- |
| by written representations | 9,197 | 73 |
| by hearings | 2,573 | 20 |
| by inquiries (2 days or less) | 626 | 5 |
| by inquiries (more than 2 days) | 206 | 2 |
(1) Appeals under s.78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
The following unit costs have been calculated by the Planning Inspectorate in each category for the financial year ending 31 March 2000. (Figures for the calendar year 2000 are not readily available).
| Planning appeals determined by | Average unit cost |
|---|---|
| Written representations | 1,047 |
| Hearing | 2,135 |
| Inquiry | 5,618 |
1 Feb 2001 : Column: 260W
Water and Recreation Sport
Ms Rosie Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he intends to award a research contract about access to water for sport and recreation. [148635]
Mr. Robert Ainsworth: We are today letting a contract to a consortium led by the University of Brighton to establish the facts about participation. The research will also provide information about availability of water space, the effectiveness of current arrangements in meeting the demand for different types of water-based sport and recreation and the scale and nature of potential demand.
Lorries
Mr. Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when 44-tonne lorries will be allowed to operate generally in Great Britain. [148632]
Mr. Hill: The necessary Regulations (Statutory Instrument SI 2000 No. 3224--The Road Vehicles (Authorised Weight) (Amendment) Regulations 2000)--will come into force on 1 February. The regulations will allow certain types of lorry to operate at up to 44-tonnes maximum weight in Great Britain. The lorries in question must have six axles, a maximum axle weight of 10.5 tonnes and Euro 2 low emission engines. These vehicles will result in a considerable saving in lorry miles where heavy goods are being carried and will be no bigger, and cause less road wear, than existing 40-tonne, 5 axle lorries.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
Moluccas
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Government's response to continuing unrest in the Moluccas. [147689]
Mr. Battle: We continue to urge the Indonesian Government to exercise tolerance and restraint and remind them of their responsibility to maintain law and order and take immediate steps to bring the perpetrators of the violence to justice. I did so most recently with Foreign Minister Shihab on 12 December.
Our Ambassador to Indonesia has just returned from a visit to the province and the Indonesian Minister for Settlement is arranging a further visit to Maluku with a group of diplomats next month. We will continue to work with the Indonesian authorities and UNDP to promote reconciliation, begin wider construction work and to offer practical assistance where appropriate.
Gibraltar
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last discussed Gibraltar with the Spanish Government; and what specific issues were considered. [147840]
Mr. Vaz: The Secretary of State met the Spanish Foreign Minister, Sr Pique, in London on 24 January. They considered a wide range of EU and international
1 Feb 2001 : Column: 261W
issues, as well as a number of Gibraltar related questions, including HMS Tireless, border delays, telephone numbers, the Brussels Process, aviation and the European Parliament franchise.
Nice Treaty
Mr. Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters and postcards addressed to Her Majesty the Queen on the subject of the Nice Treaty have been passed on to him. [148005]
Mr. Vaz: About 850, as of 30 January.
Entry Clearance System
Laura Moffatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to visit India to examine the functioning of the entry clearance system. [148634]
Mr. Vaz: I plan to visit India and Bangladesh to inaugurate our new Visa Information Posts later this year.
Mr. Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to visit Africa to examine the functioning of the entry clearance system. [148714]
Mr. Vaz: I plan to visit Entry Clearance Posts in Africa later on this month.
Iraq
Mr. Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his oral answer of 23 January 2000, Official Report, column 790, what the response was of the Turkish Ambassador concerning the bombing of a cattle feed factory at Samarwa and the killing of Iraqi cowherds. [148151]
Mr. Vaz: I plan to speak to the Turkish Ambassador today. I will then be in touch with my hon. Friend to arrange a meeting to discuss these matters.
DEFENCE
HMS Tireless
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence where HMS Tireless is to be repaired. [148207]
Mr. Spellar: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Mr. Mackinlay) on 29 January 2001, Official Report, column 64W.
Services Training
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent in the last 12 months for training by the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Royal Marines, (c) Army and (d) RAF in the United Kingdom; and what proportion of these totals are spent in Scotland. [147014]
Mr. Spellar [holding answer 25 January 2001]: Our latest best estimates for the amounts spent on individual training by the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Army and RAF in the last 12 months are respectively: £233 million, £39 million, £422 million and £446 million. These figures
1 Feb 2001 : Column: 262W
are approximate and exclude the costs of front-line collective training which are difficult to separate from normal day-to-day operations.
Of the figures above, £869 million was spent by the Services' Training Agencies. It is estimated that just over 1 per cent. of this sum was spent in Scotland. The balance of £291 million, which represents the cost of training conducted outside the Services' Training Agencies, is not broken down on a regional basis, and figures could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Operation Palliser
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the conclusions and recommendations were of the investigation into specific medical problems arising from Operation Palliser announced by his Department on 15 June 2000; if he will publish the report; and if he will make a statement. [147585]
Dr. Moonie [holding answer 29 January 2001]: I will write to the hon. Member and enclose a copy of the press release which was issued by the Ministry of Defence on 25 July 2000. This gave a comprehensive report of the conclusions and recommendations of the three Service Boards of Inquiry.
A background paper summarising the findings of the Service Boards of Inquiry, which was sent to the House of Commons Defence Committee on the same day, is being placed in the Library of the House.
Saturn Electronic Protection Measure
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the new advanced electronic countermeasures Saturn System will be in service; what the service life of the system is; if it is compatible with all the NATO nations aircraft; and if he will make a statement. [148103]
Dr. Moonie: The Saturn Electronic Protection Measure (EPM) is the latest in the EPM generation and is already in service. It was introduced to meet NATO Stanag (Standardisation Agreement) requirements and will be in service for the foreseeable future. It is compatible with other NATO Saturn capable platforms.
Depleted Uranium
Mr. Alasdair Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many depleted uranium shells have been fired by United Kingdom armed forces in conflict, broken down by campaign. [148160]
Mr. Spellar: United Kingdom armed forces have used depleted uranium (DU) rounds in conflict only during Operation Granby in the Gulf in 1991. The Ministry of Defence's assessment is that UK tanks used fewer than one hundred 120 mm rounds against Iraq's military forces during hostilities (this equates to less than one metric tonne of DU).
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |