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Pollution (River Ribble)
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on pollution in the River Ribble. [56690]
Mr. Meacher: The most up-to-date water quality classification for the River Ribble is based on chemical monitoring of the river between 1998 and 2000. From this chemical monitoring, the upper reaches of the River Ribble from High Bridge to Settle Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW), a distance of 26.7 km, are classified as very good quality—General Quality Assessment (GQA) class A. Downstream of Settle WwTW to the freshwater limit at Samlesbury, a distance of 70.7 km, the River Ribble is classified as good quality—GQA class B.
Biological monitoring in 2000 indicated that the quality of the upper and middle reaches of the River Ribble between High Bridge and Clitheroe WwTW, a distance of 66 km, is very good (class A). Between Clitheroe WwTW and the River Calder, a distance of 4.0 km, the biological quality is good (class B). Below the confluence with the River Calder to the freshwater limit, a distance of 27.4 km, the biological quality is fairly good (class C).
Farm Income
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what income was received by farms in each of the past three years (a) before deductions of wages paid to farmers and their families and (b) net of those deductions. [57264]
Mr. Morley: Most farmers are either self-employed or partners and therefore their income is the return from the farming business rather than wages. Total Income from Farming represents the income to farmers, partners,
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directors, their spouses and most other family workers. The distribution of that income between those parties is an individual matter for each farm business.
Total Income from Farming in each of the last three years is given in the table.
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 2,252 |
| 2000 | 1,513 |
| 2001 | 1,710 |
Curry Report (Costs)
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average cost per annum per average family would be if the cost of the proposals in the Curry report were added to the average cost and subsidies and compensation paid to the farming industry in the past three years. [57260]
Mr. Morley: The Policy Commission estimated that implementing its recommendations would cost approximately £500 million over three years. However, the cost of many of the recommendations will depend upon the precise way in which they are implemented. The Government intend to produce a strategy for sustainable food and farming in England in the autumn, following a wide-ranging process of stakeholder engagement. This strategy will incorporate a definitive response to each of the Policy Commission's recommendations.
Sewage Plant (Foreness Point)
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times during the past 12 months for which details are available raw sewage has been released into the sea from the Foreness Point sewage plant; and what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the telemetry used to monitor overflows at the Foreness Point sewage plant. [58604]
Mr. Meacher [holding answer 23 May 2002]: Discharge is recorded by use of a pump run meter. This meter has shown that the storm pumps have operated once in the past 12 months for approximately eight minutes.
The discharge consent for the Foreness outfall, issued in February 1985, has no conditions requiring monitoring or telemetry to record storm overflow events. The water utility is therefore under no legal obligation to record these events. This situation will be reviewed in the proposed combined scheme for collection of waste water from Margate and Broadstairs.
Throckmorton Airfield
Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make a statement on changes in land ownership since 1992 at and adjacent to Throckmorton airfield with reference to the Crichel Down rules. [57338]
Mr. Morley: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Defence (Mr. Ingram), on 21 May 2002, Official Report, columns 172–173.
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Land Sales
Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the land that her Department is (a) offering for sale and (b) plans to offer in the next 12 months, giving its (i) location and (ii) size. [59058]
Mr. Morley: This Department is currently negotiating the sale of, or offering for sale, the following areas of land:
- 95 acres of land at Barnhall near Wickford, Essex.
10 acres of land (three plots) near the A259 Rustington By-Pass, Littlehampton, West Sussex.
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Disclosure of Interests
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what rules apply to the disclosure of interests on the part of those serving on public bodies which are responsible to her Department. [56457]
Mr. Morley: All advisory and executive non- departmental public bodies are required to adopt a board members' code, based on guidance produced by the Cabinet Office, and they should have registers of interests. The definition of interests is ultimately for individual Departments since they are best placed to decide what might be thought to influence members of their non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs).
The following table lists the NDPBs sponsored by this Department and indicates whether or not a Code of Practice currently exists and where it may be obtained.
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