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Correspondence
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date his Department sent to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs correspondence from the hon. Member for Aylesbury dated 6 September 2001 (ref. PO 17699/1). [45142]
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Angela Eagle [holding answer 21 March 2002]: Departmental records show that this correspondence was sent to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for a reply on 10 October 2001.
West Mercia Police
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many new recruits to West Mercia police transferred from other police forces in (a) 1998, (b) 1999, (c) 2000 and (d) 2001. [48292]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The information has been provided by the Chief Constable and is for each calendar year.
| Year(102) | Number of transfers from other police forces |
|---|---|
| 1998 | 2 |
| 1999 | 0 |
| 2000 | 24 |
| 2001 | 52 |
(102) Figures are for period 1 January to 31 December.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Small Business
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the sources of regulations that affect small business. [36972]
Nigel Griffiths: United Kingdom, European Union and local government legislation are the main sources of regulation that affect small business. There are also a significant number of regulations that come from outside Government, for example from professional bodies and institutions.
Motor Sport
Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what support the Government are giving to the motor sport industry in the current financial year; and if she will make a statement; [44775]
- (2) which individuals in the UK motor sport industry have had discussions with her Department about possible Government financial assistance; [44785]
(3) on what grounds the UK motor sport industry qualifies for Government assistance; and if she will make a statement; [44774]
(4) what financial assistance has been provided to the UK motor sport industry in each of the last 20 years. [44786]
Ms Hewitt: DTI has been involved in discussions with the Motorsport Industry Association, several Regional Development Agencies and industry on an industry-led performance engineering and motorsport strategy.
The group is examining plans to develop a motorsport and performance engineering cluster development programme, based on organising business networking and education and skills events and activities.
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There has been no direct funding of the motorsport industry in this financial year or in previous years. Companies in the motorsport industry (which primarily comprises a range of niche engineering SMEs) are subject to the same criteria as companies in other sectors to qualify for any form of Government support.
MOX Fuel
Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what type of processing BNFL plans to undertake on the faulty MOX fuel supplied to Japan. [45470]
Mr. Wilson [holding answer 26 March 2002]: The fuel will be placed in a storage pond at Sellafield. BNFL has yet to decide finally what to do with the fuel. Whatever it decides will be in accordance with all necessary regulatory approvals.
Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will ensure that there are no additional transports of radioactive material to Sellafield before October 2002, with particular reference to the return of the faulty MOX fuel which BNFL supplied to Japan. [45471]
Mr. Wilson [holding answer 26 March 2002]: No. It is a matter of public knowledge that there will continue to be routine transports to Sellafield of spent fuel from Europe in fulfilment of existing reprocessing contracts and also that BNFL aims to return to Sellafield the MOX fuel currently at Takahama in Japan as soon as practicable—possibly during the course of this year. The Government has made this position clear both to the Irish Government and to the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. These transports do not take place as a consequence of the commissioning and operation of the Sellafield MOX Plant.
Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the necessary domestic regulatory approvals are which British Nuclear Fuels must obtain before it can return the MOX fuel it has supplied to Japan in respect of which data had been falsified; and whether these approvals have been granted. [45469]
Mr. Wilson [holding answer 26 March 2002]: BNFL must obtain the approval of the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions for the shipment and the transport package in which the fuel will be transported; the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate must be satisfied with the safety of BNFL's arrangements for the receipt, handling and storage of the fuel on the Sellafield site. BNFL has satisfied these requirements. The Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS) must approve the arrangements for the security of the fuel in transport and its security once received at Sellafield. OCNS has approved the security arrangements for the fuel once received at the Sellafield site. The arrangements for the security of the fuel in transport are subject to ongoing consultation between BNFL and OCNS and transport will not commence until OCNS has granted formal regulatory approval for all of the detailed security plans.
Sellafield
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent report she has received
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in respect of the state of (a) concrete and (b) steel structures at the reactor at Sellafield where the fire took place in 1957. [47036]
Mr. Wilson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has not received any recent reports about the concrete or steel structures in Windscale Pile One.
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what response she has received from the Atomic Energy Authority, regarding the review which has been undertaken in respect of the reactor at Sellafield where the fire took place in 1957. [47035]
Mr. Wilson: The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority has initiated a comprehensive technical review of the second stage decommissioning of Windscale Pile One. This review is on-going, and is likely to take several years to complete. UKAEA and the regulator, the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate of the HSE, will need to be satisfied with the final proposal for decommissioning before the project progresses and will ensure the reactor remains in a safe and stable condition throughout.
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what efforts have been made towards establishing a decommissioning strategy for the reactor known as Pile 2 reactor at Sellafield. [47034]
Mr. Wilson: All the fuel was removed from the Windscale Pile Two reactor soon after it was shut down in 1957. Since then it has been maintained in a safe and passive state of care and maintenance, pending decommissioning and dismantling at a later stage.
The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is currently discussing a strategy for the future management of Pile Two with the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate of the HSE. The current plan is to decommission and dismantle the reactor in 2040–50.
Nuclear Power Stations
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will establish a liabilities management agency to manage the closing down and decommissioning of old nuclear power stations. [47045]
Mr. Wilson: As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry made clear in her statement to the House on 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 990, the establishment of the liabilities management authority (LMA) will require primary legislation. A Bill will be brought forward as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Nuclear Safety
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will ask Her Majesty's Chief Nuclear Inspector to review the adequacy of the nuclear installations inspectorate's safety assessment principles numbers 126 and 127 in respect of aircraft crashes. [46197]
Mr. Wilson: No. HSE keeps its safety assessment principles for nuclear plants under review as a matter of course. These principles provide a robust framework for regulatory decisions by the HSE's nuclear installations inspectorate (NII). NII's regulatory assessments also take into account current relevant knowledge.
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Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent funding her Department has provided to the International Atomic Energy Agency's programme to combat nuclear terrorism and protect nuclear materials; what additional resources have been made available to strengthen physical protection measures at United Kingdom nuclear facilities since 11 September 2001; and if she will make a statement on the work done by the International Physical Protection Advisory Service. [46196]
Mr. Wilson: On 18 March 2002, the UK Governor announced at the IAEA Board of Governors meeting a £250,000 voluntary contribution to the IAEA's Protection Against Nuclear Terrorism fund.
No additional resources have been made available to the UK nuclear industry to strengthen physical protection measures at civil nuclear sites since 11 September 2001. Costs for security are met by the site licensees.
The IAEA's International Physical Protection Advisory Service (IPPAS) provides member states with advice on their legal and regulatory infrastructure and the implementation of physical protection arrangements. At the request of an IAEA member state, the IAEA convenes an international team of specialists experienced in the physical protection of nuclear material to review the requesting member state's physical protection system and compare it to international guidelines and internationally recognised best practices. Based on this review, the team provides the member state, in confidence, with recommendations for improvements and recognises current good practices already instituted by that State. IPPAS missions have been conducted in eastern/central Europe, Africa, South America and SE Asia. The UK has led three of these missions and participated in a number of others.
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