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Sustainable Energy Projects

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the progress made by Government assisted projects to develop area based (a) sustainable energy projects and (b) domestic energy savings and health initiatives. [96955]

Mr. Morley: We are making good progress with these projects. The majority of them operate on a national basis, providing assistance to households and communities across the country.

To encourage sustainable energy projects:

We are spending £50 million over two years on the UK wide Community Energy programme which promotes community heating. So far £8.5m of grants have been approved. Two of these grants have been for innovative energy from waste schemes.

The Energy Crops Scheme has allocated £650,000 of grants to promote the establishment of energy crops in England.

We fund the Countryside Agency's Community Renewables Initiative, which promotes the establishment of local renewable energy schemes in England.

The DTI fund both the UK wide Bio Energy Capital Grants Scheme and the UK wide £10 million Clear Skies initiative. Both are relatively new initiatives. The Bio Energy Capital Grants scheme aims to ensure the development of 100MW biomass heating provision at all scales, whilst Clear Skies provides advice and support for the installation of household and renewable community renewable schemes.

To encourage domestic energy savings and health initiatives:

We fund the Warm Front grant scheme which assisted over 400,000 households living in Fuel Poverty by installing energy efficiency measures. This indicates that the Government is making good progress toward meeting its target of assisting 600,000 homes by 2004.

The Government has established the Energy Efficiency Commitment. The Commitment requires electricity and gas suppliers to achieve targets for the promotion of improvements in energy efficiency, with an emphasis on helping lower income customers. The overall target on all suppliers is a combined saving of 62 fuel-standardised terawatt hours.

Defra and DTI are funding a pilot Warm Zones initiative in five areas in England. The zones attempt to identify all fuel poor households in an area, and ensure

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that existing schemes are used to improve the energy efficiency of those homes. The pilot is being evaluated at present and an interim report is expected shortly.

Waste Inspections

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many inspections were carried out at industrial and waste sites by each individual Environment Agency office in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001; and if she will make a statement. [93707]

Mr. Meacher: Until recently, the Agency has required its regions to report only the annual inspection total for the region as a whole. The regional inspection figures for 1997 and 2001 are as follows:

	Industrial		Waste
Region	1997–98	2001–02	1997–98	2001–02
Anglian	978	616	17,432	13,919
Midlands	850	571	24,895	17,237
North East	1,211	1,150	23,278	17,784
North West	806	646	20,530	13,503
Southern	418	298	11,487	5,515
South West	394	238	15,410	10,206
Thames	343	308	18,950	11,967
Wales	583	413	8,228	6,826

These figures reflect the Agency's move towards a more risk based approach to inspection, with fewer, more in-depth visits targeted on those sites with the greatest potential to harm the environment.

Water Management

Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of significant consents to discharge trade effluent to watercourses were reviewed by the Environment Agency in (a) 2001 and (b) 2002. [98700]

Mr. Morley: The Environment Agency reviewed 10 per cent. of significant trade effluent consents for discharges to watercourses in 2001 and 8 per cent. in 2002.

Water Pollution

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many recorded incidents of pollution caused by leaking sewerage pipes there have been, broken down by statutory undertaker in each year since 1992. [99272]

Mr. Morley: Defra does not hold figures on sewage pollution incidents, and while the Environment Agency's database contains figures for pollution incidents for the last two years, it is not possible to identify separately those attributable to leaking sewers.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has been made of the environmental impact of (a) fat, (b) oils, (c) fuel and (d) other pollutants being poured into drainage and sewerage systems. [99273]

Mr. Morley: The environmental impact will depend on the quantity of substance entering the drainage or sewerage system, and in the case of sewerage systems the

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extent to which the treatment plant can accommodate the load. Depending on the individual circumstance the impact can range from nil to significant, depending on what degree of intervention, prevention or mitigation is possible or achieved.

The Environment Agency records and reports on incidents of pollution. It also collects and publishes data on annual releases via authorised discharges of some 150 individual pollutants to the environment and to sewerage systems.

The Agency has worked with the Water Industry to identify and quantify sources of releases into sewerage systems. The environmental impact arising from these releases is not currently systematically assessed. However, work is underway that could enable the potential impact of emissions on environmental systems to be recorded. The research is expected to be completed in early 2004.

The Environment Agency has published a report on Oil in the Environment (Oil and Gas in the Environment. 1998). This gives an assessment of the significance of oil as an environmental pollutant.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Medical Students (Debt)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the average debt level that a medical student would incur during his or her training as a result of the Government's proposals for higher education. [98842]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The level of loan taken out by medical students will depend on their individual circumstances and choices, including the extent to which they work while in higher education.

A-Levels

Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average A level points score was for (a) school sixth forms, (b) sixth form colleges and (c) general further education colleges in each of the last three years. [98860]

Mr. Miliband: The average GCE/VCE A/AS and AGNVQ point scores achieved by 17 year old students in 1999–2001 (the most recent three years for which data are available):

	2001(11)	2000	1999
All schools	19.9	18.7	18
Sixth form colleges	19.3	17.4	17.4
Other FE Sector colleges	14.2	11.2	11.3
All FE Sector colleges (sixth forms and other FE)	16.9	14.3	14.4
Schools and FE Sector colleges	18.9	17.2	17.2

⁽¹¹⁾ Figures for 2001 are not directly comparable to 1999 and 2000 as they include changes introduced as part of the Qualifying for Success reforms in September 2000. Under these reforms, students are encouraged to take a wide range of subjects in their first year of post-16 study, with students taking between one and five Advanced Subsidiaries and progressing three of these on to full A levels in their second year. These changes have resulted in an increase of students' average point scores in 2001.

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Adult Education Courses

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what extra contribution will be sought from fees for adult education courses with the new learning and skills funding formula for further education colleges. [99562]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The operation of the Learning and Skills Council's funding system is the responsibility of the Council. John Harwood, the Council's Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member providing the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Higher Education (Top-up Fees)

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment his Department made of the deterrent effects to students of imposing top-up fees on shortage subjects in drawing up the proposals in the policy document, "The Future of Higher Education"; and if he will make a statement. [98130]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The Government are not imposing fees on any higher education institution, course or subject—rather, we are giving universities the freedom to set their own fees, between £0 and £3,000.

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