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21 Oct 2003 : Column 479W—continued
Light Rapid Transit Schemes (Hampshire)
Mr. Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on progress with light rapid transit schemes in South Hampshire. [132963]
Mr. McNulty: The South Hampshire Rapid Transit scheme was approved for funding in March 2001. Unfortunately the cost estimates now exceed the threshold figure agreed at the time and my right hon. Friend is reviewing the options for its future.
Mersey Tunnels
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the proposed increase in tolls on the Mersey Tunnels. [133670]
Dr. Howells: The application by the Merseyside Passenger Transport Authority (Merseytravel) to increase the toll charges for the use of the Mersey Tunnels and representations against that application are currently being considered.
Motor Insurers Bureau
Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the Motor Insurers Bureau receives Government funding. [133730]
Mr. McNulty: The Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) is a Company which was set up and is managed by the
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insurance industry. It is funded entirely by a levy on the insurance industry and receives no Government funding.
Motorway Resurfacing
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy to take into account minimising noise disruption to schools as part of the criteria for resurfacing motorways; and if he will make a statement. [132567]
Mr. McNulty: Government policy is that lower noise surfaces should now be used, except for practical reasons, when any trunk road is resurfaced and it is currently anticipated that over 60 per cent. of the strategic road network will have been surfaced with lower noise materials by 2011. The phasing of resurfacing is usually based on the need to keep the road in optimum condition without causing excessive delays to traffic. Noise mitigation measures on roads built after 1988 take into consideration the need to reduce their impact on noise sensitive facilities such as schools, as well as residential properties.
Railways
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much money has been granted to (a) Railtrack in Administration and (b) to Network Rail (i) by way of grant and (ii) in loan guarantees since the appointment of the Administrator. [133667]
Dr. Howells: Network grants paid to Railtrack in Administration and Network Rail are as set out in the Rail Regulator's Periodic Review Final Conclusions of October 2000, as amended by agreements between Railtrack and the Department for Transport in April 2001 and between Network Rail and the Strategic Rail Authority in June 2002.
Railtrack in Administration received network grants of £654 million. The Secretary of State guaranteed loans and other liabilities of Railtrack in Administration up to £4.5 billion. To date, Network Rail has received network grants of £1.8 billion. The SRA has made available standby credit facilities of up to £21 billion to support Network Rail's borrowing.
Recorded Crime (Railways)
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the recorded crime figures on the Great Eastern/Anglia railway for the past four years; and if he will make a statement. [133658]
Mr. McNulty: The British Transport police have provided the following information on serious offences reported to the force:
| Total notifiable offences | ||
|---|---|---|
| First Great Eastern | Anglia Railways | |
| 1999–2000 | 1,425 | 390 |
| 2000–01 | 1,584 | 324 |
| 2001–02 | 1,841 | 415 |
| 2002–03 | 1,696 | 409 |
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Road Schemes
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent representations he has received from the Royal Automobile Club about new road building projects. [133025]
Dr. Howells: The RAC Foundation have contributed to several of the Multi Modal Studies, including those involving new road building projects, on which the Secretary of State made announcements in December 2002 and July 2003. Since then my officials have had regular dialogue with the RAC Foundation.
Salisbury Transportation Package
Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will complete his review of the Salisbury Transportation Package. [132923]
Mr. McNulty: Department for Transport Officials are currently working with Wiltshire County Council and Salisbury District Council to complete a re-appraisal of the transport package following an increase in scheme costs since the initial bid in the 2000 Local Transport Plan.
It is anticipated that this work will be completed in time for an announcement on future funding to be made in the Local Transport Plan settlement, which we expect to announce in December 2003.
US Warship Disposal
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the planned route within UK waters is of the ships from the US Reserve Fleet intended for dismantling on Teesside which have set sail from the US; what control he has over this route; and if he will make a statement. [133362]
Mr. McNulty: The routing for the first four ships within the contract will be through the English Channel, observing mandatory IMO traffic separation schemes, and up the east coast of the UK. Generally, international rights of freedom of navigation apply, although upon entry into UK waters the tows could be directed by the Secretary of State's Representative to change routing or to leave UK waters if he believed it necessary for safety reasons or to prevent pollution or to conduct salvage operations.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent guidance he has issued to the Marine Coastguard Agency in respect of the proposal to bring ships from the US Reserve Fleet to Teesside for disposal; what policy the Marine Coastguard Agency has adopted on this matter; what discussions the Marine Coastguard Agency has had with the US Marine Administration; and if he will make a statement. [133363]
Mr. McNulty: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) must be satisfied that the ships can make the passage without undue risk to the marine environment or safety. The MCA has had a number of meetings with both the US Coast Guard and the US Maritime Administration. MCA marine surveyors have accompanied Coast Guard surveyors during inspections of the ships. The US authorities refused to allow the vessels to sail until the MCA confirmed it was satisfied with all arrangements. The MCA did so only when it
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had completed a detailed scrutiny of all aspects of the company's proposals in relation to towing the first four ships within the contract; the remaining ships have yet to be considered or approved.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received from the EU Environment Commissioner in respect of the proposal to bring ships from the US Reserve Fleet to Teesside for disposal; and if he will make a statement. [133366]
Vehicle Excise Duty
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his latest estimate is of the annual cost to the Exchequer of the evasion of vehicle excise duty; and if he will make a statement. [132901]
Mr. McNulty: In March 2003 the Department published the results of a roadside survey which estimated the level of revenue lost from vehicle excise duty in 2002–03 to be £193 million, equivalent to 4.5 per cent. of the total revenue that should be raised.
TREASURY
Disabled Employees
Mr. Waterson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people with registered disabilities are in full-time employment. [132642]
Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Nigel Waterson, dated October 2003:
- As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about the number of registered disabled people who are in full-time employment. (132642)
- The Labour Force Survey (LFS) asks a series of questions which determine whether respondents are subject to the provisions of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. In the three month period ending August 2003, an estimated total of 1.88 million such people of working age were in full-time employment.
- Further information on the definition of disability used in the above Act is available from: http://www.disability.gov.uk/dda/
National Minimum Wage
Mr. Battle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have benefited from the national minimum wage since its introduction (a) in Leeds, West and (b) in total; and in each case how much was given to them. [132741]
Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
21 Oct 2003 : Column 483W
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. John Battle, dated 21 October 2003:
- As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question on the number of people in the Leeds West parliamentary constituency and in the UK who have benefited from the national minimum wage (NMW) since its introduction, and how much has been given to them. (132741)
- The Office for National Statistics (ONS) calculates estimates of the number of jobs paid less than NMW rates for the United Kingdom and Government Office Regions. A guide to measuring low pay and associated articles and data can be found on the National Statistics website at:
- http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/ Product.asp?vink=5837&Pos=1&ColRank=1&Rank=272
- Estimates for Parliamentary Constituencies are not available.
- No information is available on how much money has been given to people as a result of the National Minimum Wage.
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