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19 Dec 2002 : Column 992—continued
Air Pollution (Water Treatment Works)
3. Linda Gilroy (Plymouth, Sutton): If she will make a statement on enforcement powers available to local authorities to deal with air pollution from water treatment works. [86765]
The Minister for Rural Affairs (Alun Michael): There are a few difficult cases that the current arrangements cannot deal with, so I am launching a consultation on proposals for the statutory control of odour and other nuisances from sewage treatment works in England. I will also consult colleagues in Wales on whether the changes should also apply there. Enforcement powers for local authorities to deal with odour nuisance from those sources will be a key proposal in the consultation.
We intend to publish the document next week, and copies will be made available in the Libraries of both Houses.
Linda Gilroy : I thank my right hon. Friend for that reply. He will understand that no one will appreciate it more than the residents of Cattedown in my constituency and Nigel West and his colleagues in Plymouth city council, who have been doing so much since January, when they discovered that they did not have the enforcement powers that they thought they had. Will he take particular note of the views that I am sure they will express during the consultation and agree to meet a small delegation to ensure that, as they have suffered so much in recent years, their voices can be heard?
Alun Michael: I am well aware of the situation in Cattedown in my hon. Friend's constituency, not least because she has ensured on a number of occasions that I am aware of the problem faced by local people. Indeed, it is her representations and those of other hon. Members that have led to the consultation. I would be very happy to meet a delegation, which would obviously allow those involved to comment on the consultation paper. I shall ensure that my hon. Friend receives a copy as soon as possible.
Dr. Vincent Cable (Twickenham): The Minister's commitment to legislate will be very warmly welcomed by thousands of my constituents who live down wind of the large Thames Water water treatment plant in south-west London. Will he call in Thames Water and the other polluters to impress upon them the need to invest now in odour control to prevent them being dragged before the courts in a few years time?
Alun Michael: I have had representations on that particular case and I look forward to hearing comments on the consultation document from the local area. The problem needs to be dealt with. In the meantime, it is important that those involved get on with trying to find a solution for the effect on local areas.
Ann Keen (Brentford and Isleworth): I also welcome the Minister's remarks on the consultation document. In Brentford and Isleworth, the Mogden sewage treatment works causes problems that I have brought to his attention on previous occasions. I was in the area on Sunday, and even on a December day the odour was unacceptable, although nothing like as strong as in the summer. The quality of life for my constituents in the area, especially because of the mosquito problem that arose throughout the summer, is unacceptable, and I would welcome anything that will improve it for them.
Alun Michael: Again, my hon. Friend has spoken to me about the particular problems at Mogden and I am happy to do all I can to encourage a resolution of the issue. There is no reason for the company involved—in this case, Thames Water—not to seek a solution. It does not need to wait for enforcement powers to be introduced. The need for the enforcement powers on which we are consulting arises from one or two issues such as those that my hon. Friend has drawn to my
attention. They seem to have been going on for a considerable time without a solution being found or reassurance being given to local people.Cattle Passport Scheme
5. Mr. Desmond Swayne (New Forest, West): If she will make a statement on the operation of the cattle passport scheme. [86767]
The Minister for Rural Affairs (Alun Michael): The cattle passport scheme has been in operation for more than six years, and the national cattle database contains details of the 9.4 million animals that make up the national herd. We are currently investing a further #12 million in upgrading the system and improving its performance.
Mr. Swayne : I am told that Royal Mail loses approximately 1 million letters a week, but surely they cannot all be the tear-off slips for the cattle passport scheme. However, that appears to be the experience of many of my constituents. How many slips have allegedly gone missing? Why does the Department continue to issue the passport documents by second-class post when the only safe method of sending them is apparently by recorded delivery?
Alun Michael: The cattle tracing scheme has pioneered the use of e-mail and the web for cattle keepers who deal with the Government. Up to half of cattle movements and approximately one third of birth registrations are now reported electronically. The hon. Gentleman should not make assumptions about the loss of information, which is registered immediately on arrival.
Mr. Hugo Swire (East Devon): The Minister will recognise the effects of restricting cattle movements on cattle markets throughout the country. Will he give a positive Christmas message to my constituent, Mr. Jim Rowe of Axminster market auctioneers, about when the 20-day standstill rule on stock movement will be lifted?
Alun Michael: We have indicated that we are considering the matter. The hon. Gentleman should acknowledge that the standstill regime exists because of the veterinary risk assessment and the advice on what is needed to protect the industry.
Bovine TB (Gloucestershire)
6. Mr. Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury): If she will make a statement on the incidence of bovine TB in Gloucestershire. [86768]
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Margaret Beckett): Provisional statistics show that of the 1,549 cattle herds registered in Gloucestershire, some 15 per cent.—that is, 233 herds—had a new TB incident between 1 January and 30 November 2002. That includes confirmed, unconfirmed and unclassified cases.
Mr. Robertson : I thank the Secretary of State for that response. However, when I spoke to the National
Farmers Union a few minutes ago, it was fearful that resources for the state veterinary service would be reduced. Is that the case? If so, the process of testing animals will slow down.What is the Government's policy towards vaccination and developing vaccines? Will the Secretary of State encourage companies to develop them?
Margaret Beckett: I am not aware of the rumours to which the hon. Gentleman referred. Indeed, 20 additional staff have been made available for TB testing in the Gloucester animal health divisional office area through the extra moneys that we gave the state veterinary service in England and Wales earlier this year.
We are doing what we can to encourage people to work on, and ascertain whether we can develop, a vaccine. However, the hon. Gentleman knows that a general review of overall science research capacity is taking place. Clearly, the serious problems of the disease will be considered in that context.
Diana Organ (Forest of Dean): In developing an effective policy against bovine TB, the Government set up the Krebs trials. Will my right hon. Friend give us some information on their progress? Are they taking place on all 30 sites? Given that they started in April 1998, when does she expect a report on them?
Margaret Beckett: My hon. Friend is right that the trial started in April 1998. However, she knows that there was a problem during the foot-and-mouth epidemic. The trial is broadly on course, but I cannot give her a date off the top of my head for when we expect to receive the full outcome of the research. We understand the difficulties and anxieties, and we believe that it is right to let the trial run its proper course. Otherwise, we will never have an answer, and groups with opposing views will continue to accuse each other of getting it wrong.
Mr. James Gray (North Wiltshire): Does the Secretary of State accept the principle, or at least the possibility, that the very existence of the Krebs trials in Gloucestershire may to some degree be responsible for the higher incidence of TB in that county and in neighbouring Wiltshire? If she accepts that possibility, does she also accept that those farmers who find themselves in a Krebs trial area have a greater claim to consequential compensation for milk loss than do farmers in non-Krebs areas? If she does not accept it, will she explain why farmers in the Whitminster area of Gloucestershire receive consequential compensation for milk loss even though that is not the case in other Krebs areas? Once again, will she reconsider whether there is an argument for consequential loss payments to farmers in Krebs areas?
Margaret Beckett: I take the hon. Gentleman's point, but I simply say to him that the Krebs trial was set up because the subject is bedevilled by suspicion, anecdotal evidence and perfectly understandable concerns for the health of animals and human beings. Of course I accept that people in the Krebs trial areas feel that they are being disadvantaged, but until we have the outcome of those trials nobody will really know what the methods
of transmission are and how they would be affected. Consequently, his further question on what might be due to people who find themselves in those circumstances clearly cannot be dealt with. The key thing is to try to get the trials finished and get some outcome. Otherwise, we will go on like this for the next 20 years.
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