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Flood Defences
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total expenditure on sea wall defences in England and Wales was in each year from 1990 to 2001. [50983]
Mr. Morley: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many miles of sea wall were repaired in the county of Essex in each year from 1990 to 2001. [50984]
Mr. Morley: Information is only readily available for works undertaken by the Environment Agency; local authorities and other owners of defences may also have undertaken works. I understand that the agency undertook repairs on 22 kilometres of sea walls in Essex in each of the years in question and also undertook capital improvements as follows:
| Frontage improved | |
|---|---|
| 1990–91 | 0.3 |
| 1991–92 | 6.5 |
| 1992–93 | 0.8 |
| 1993–94 | 11.0 |
| 1994–95 | 11.0 |
| 1995–96 | 12.5 |
| 1996–97 | 11.5 |
| 1997–98 | 1.5 |
| 1998–99 | 2.3 |
| 1999–2000 | 3.5 |
John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what studies are being made by (a) the Environment Agency, and (b) other organisations commissioned by her, in respect of estimating the likely increases in the height of tidal crests above the continental shelf of western Europe and the seas surrounding the United Kingdom; and what consequential adjustments will be made in the time-height ratios used as a basis for improving flood defences around the United Kingdom. [52060]
Mr. Morley: The Department and the Environment Agency (EA) manage a joint programme of research and development on flood management. Recent studies have been carried out by the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory and HR Wallingford, both leading institutions in coastal and tidal research. In this context their conclusions are that the current recommendations of the Department which suggest an allowance of between 4 and 6 mm per year of relative sea level rise (depending on location) are a prudent response to current predictions of climate change.
Ongoing work is considering new climate change scenarios and preliminary indications are that this will broadly confirm the earlier conclusions.
Illegal Meat Imports
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many prosecutions for importing illegal meat have been carried out under hygiene regulations in each of the last five years. [45384]
24 Apr 2002 : Column 278W
Mr. Morley [holding answer 25 March 2002]: There have been no prosecutions for illegal meat imports under the hygiene regulations. There have so far been two bushmeat prosecutions in the UK. The first of these, in early 2001, found the defendant not guilty of CITES offences but guilty of failing to comply with the animal health controls on entry to the EU. The second prosecution in June 2001, found two defendants guilty of CITES offences and they both received four-month prison sentences.
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her Department's calculations are of the tonnage of illegal meat imported to the UK in each of the last three years. [50450]
Mr. Morley: Records for the last three years are not held centrally. We are notified of seizures of illegal imports by the Port Health Authorities, LACORS (was LACOTS) and Customs. Since April 2001, we have been notified of seizures amounting to around 51 tonnes of animal products and some plants, of which approximately 34 tonnes relates to consignments which contained more than one type of produce. A more detailed breakdown of these mixed consignments is not held centrally. The weight of meat only consignments seized in this period is about 894 kilos.
As announced in our Action Plan of 28 March, we are undertaking a risk assessment to determine the possibility of meat, infected with an exotic disease, entering the country undetected and then threatening the health of our livestock.
Foot and Mouth
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations she has received concerning the necessity of United Kingdom pig producers insuring against consequential losses caused by foot and mouth and swine fever. [51759]
Mr. Morley: The pig sector is represented on the animal disease insurance working group which my officials are leading. The group has met on 6 March and 9 April and is meeting again on 8 May.
Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answers of 16 April about slaughter on contiguous premises refs 47603 and 47604, if she will provide the tables of figures on which the graphs were based. [51755]
Mr. Morley: Pursuant to my answer of 16 April 2002, Official Report, column 887W, following is the table of figures on which the graphs showing time taken to slaughter on contiguous premises were based.
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Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answers of 17 April about slaughter on infected premises, refs 47602 and 47605, if she will provide the tables of figures on which the graphs were based. [51756]
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Mr. Morley: Pursuant to his reply, 17 April 2002, Official Report, c. 931W, set out as follows in the table of figures on which the graphs showing time taken to slaughter on infected premises were based.
24 Apr 2002 : Column 281W
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