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Green Belt/greenfield Development

Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the locations of each development on (a) green belt land and (b) non-green belt greenfield land that he has given planning permission for since 1 May 1997. [158709]

Mr. Raynsford [holding answer 23 April 2001]: The locations of the 119 sites where the Secretary of State has approved development in the green belt are set out in a table which has been placed in the Libraries of the House. Sixty six per cent. of these sites involved the use of previously developed land and the conversion of existing buildings. The total area of the sites on which approval was given equates to 0.08 per cent. of the total area of green belt in England. In the same period, the Secretary of State refused development on 132 sites in the green belt.

Information on non-green belt greenfield sites is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

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Foot and Mouth (Financial Assistance)

Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how much money central Government had paid out by 26 April under the matched funding scheme for public donations to foot and mouth relief. [159939]

Mr. Meacher: Up until the 26 April, the Countryside Agency, which is implementing the Government's commitment to match donations from the public to help alleviate hardship as a result of the foot and mouth disease, had made payment of one grant worth £52,000 to the Hadfield Trust in Cumbria.

On Friday 4 May the Countryside Agency announced details of three further charities that had been awarded funding worth almost £1.5 million under the scheme. The ARC-Addington Fund will receive match funding of £1 million, the Rural Stress Information Network will receive £332,000 and the Cumbrian Community Foundation will receive £91,843.

The Countryside Agency continues to receive applications for match funding which it aims to turn around as quickly as possible.

Foot and Mouth

Mr. Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received from Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food for the relaxation of pollution control regulations in relation to (a) open burning of slaughtered livestock carcases and (b) tyres used to aid combustion; and if he will make a statement. [159854]

Mr. Meacher [holding answer 2 May 2001]: There is a continuing dialogue between various Government Departments, and with the Environment Agency, about options for the disposal of carcases.

In order to expedite the burning of animal carcases resulting from the foot and mouth crisis, we have made regulations--The Pollution Prevention and Control (Foot-and-Mouth Disease) (Air Curtain Incinerators) (England and Wales) Regulations 2001, SI 2001-1623)--which came into force on Tuesday 1 May 2001, allowing the permitting of air curtain incinerators for this purpose, which can be preferable to the use of pyres.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food would not generally sanction the use of tyres to aid combustion, and has made no representations to my Department on this matter.

Sellafield

Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what research he has commissioned on the technical modifications necessary to the Sellafield MOX plant to enable the plant to process plutonium for immobilisation. [159781]

Mr. Meacher [holding answer 8 May 2001]: My Department has not commissioned any research on this subject. We are aware of the recent report by Fred Barker and Mike Sadnicki, "The Disposition of Civil Plutonium

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in the UK", which, among other things, identifies some modifications which could enable the plant to dispose of plutonium through a process of immobilisation.

Railtrack

Ms Kelly: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the (a) allocated and (b) forecast level of public funding to Railtrack is in each of the next three years. [160297]

Mr. Hill [holding answer 8 May 2001]: Railtrack will receive network grants from the Strategic Rail Authority. While the precise amounts will depend on future movements in the retail prices index, payments are expected to be as follows:

	£ million
2001-02	505
2002-03	900
2003-04	2,005

In addition, Railtrack will receive some £2 billion each year in revenue from passenger train operators, the large majority of whom receive subsidy from the Strategic Rail Authority and passenger transport executives.

Additionally, in 2003-04 network grants to Railtrack will be increased by an adjustment for freight access income. This will consist of one third of the difference between the total amount of freight income allowed for in the second regulatory control period in the Regulator's final conclusions on passenger access charges and that to emerge from the Regulator's freight charging review.

Wild Birds

Mr. Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what action he is taking to ensure that the Government comply with Article 9.1(c) of Council Directive (79/409/EEC) on the conservation of wild birds with respect to the possession of live and dead birds; and what measures are taken to differentiate between those birds of captive origin and those which are not. [160631]

Mr. Robert Ainsworth: The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which implements Council Directive (79/409/EEC) in Great Britain, protects all wild birds. Captive-bred birds are not covered by the provisions of the Directive, although they are covered by certain provisions of the 1981 Act. It is an offence under section 1 of the Act to possess any live or dead wild bird, or derivative of such a bird. Section 1 also includes a defence if the possessor of such a bird can show that it had either been legally taken from the wild or that it was captive bred. Ultimately, only the courts can definitively interpret the legislation and decide whether this defence is met in any individual case.

Section 16 of the 1981 Act implements Article 9 of the Directive and provides for licences to be issued derogating from the protection afforded to birds for certain purposes.

Transport White Paper

Mrs. Brinton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what guidance

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he has issued on the selection of options in multi-model shares and their consistency with the Transport White Paper, "A New Deal for Transport: Better for Everyone". [160526]

Mr. Hill: I assume my hon. Friend is referring to multi-modal studies. My Department issued Guidance on the Methodology for Multi-Modal Studies (GOMMMS) in March 2000. This develops the new approach to appraisal that was introduced in the White Paper into a fully multi-modal appraisal framework.

The framework covers the identification and assessment of problems, the identification of options, and the assessment of those options against the five objectives of environment, safety, economy, accessibility and integration which were set out in the Transport White Paper, "A New Deal for Transport: Better for Everyone".

Asylum Seekers

Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the number of homeless acceptances resulting from the termination of support by NASS following a positive decision on claims for asylum; what future plans he has to monitor the number of households who are accepted as homeless in these circumstances; and if he will make a statement. [160660]

Mr. Robert Ainsworth: These figures are not recorded and we have no current plans to do so.

Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the support needs of homeless refugees and those given exceptional leave to remain in the UK once they have been given a positive decision on their asylum claims; what guidance will be given to local authorities in this area under the proposed new duty on local housing authorities to produce homelessness strategies set out in the Homes Bill; and if he will make a statement. [160662]

Mr. Robert Ainsworth: Local authorities must consider the support needs of all homeless client groups, including refugees.

Guidance on strategies will encourage local authorities to consider the support needs of all homeless client groups, including refugees.

Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what guidance is available to local authorities about the needs of refugees who are (a) victims of rape or torture and (b) suffering from post-traumatic stress; what plans he has to ensure that local housing authorities consider such needs in assessing whether a person is in priority need under the homelessness legislation; and if he will make a statement. [160661]

Mr. Robert Ainsworth: The Code of Guidance on Parts 6 and 7 of the Housing Act 1996 requires local authorities to consider whether eligible applicants for social housing are vulnerable as a result of having suffered harassment or violence. Where this is the case, the applicant will have a priority need for accommodation, regardless of his or her background.

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