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9 Dec 2003 : Column 428W—continued

Timber

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport by what means the policy for purchasing timber and timber products of (a) the Department and (b) the Royal Parks Agency ensures that they are obtained from legal and sustainable sources. [141344]

Mr. Caborn: DCMS and the Royal Parks Agency have sustainability as a major consideration in all procurement. Contracts for the supply of timber or timber products specify the need for Forest Stewardship Council or equivalent certification. Recent purchases of timber desks at DCMS had full Forest Stewardship Council certification and World Wildlife Fund accreditation.

Trafalgar Square

Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who owns Trafalgar Square. [142864]

Mr. Caborn: Trafalgar Square is land owned by The Queen in Right of the Crown. It is managed by the Greater London Authority under section 383 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999. Westminster City Council owns the roads around Trafalgar Square including the pedestrianised area of the North Terrace.

TRANSPORT

London Congestion Charge

Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the total direct cost to UK businesses of the London congestion charge since its introduction. [142142]

Mr. McNulty: We are following the scheme's progress with interest. However, it is the responsibility of the Mayor and Transport for London (TfL) to monitor the scheme's effects, including its impact on business and the economy. TfL's spring 2004 congestion charging annual report will report the full impacts of the scheme and we shall study this carefully.

A419

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what accidents have taken place in the last 10 years on the A419 between (a) Cirencester and Swindon and (b) Cirencester and Nettleton Bottom due to cross-over accidents; and what plans he has to review the types of central reservation. [142011]

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Mr. Jamieson: I have asked the chief executive of the Highways Agency, Mr. Archie Robertson, to write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Archie Robertson to Mr. Geoffrey Clifton-Brown dated 9 December 2003:

I have been asked by David Jamieson to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about cross-over accidents on the A419 between Cirencester and Swindon and Cirencester and Nettleton Bottom.

On the A419 between Cirencester and Swindon, three cross-over accidents occurred between April 1996 and September 2003. There were no such accidents on the Cirencester to Nettleton Bottom section of the road during the same period.

One of these accidents was on a section of road which, due to design constraints, is without central reserve safety fencing. An improvement to the route at this location is included in the Government's Targeted Programme of Improvements. A second accident occurred on the section of the road through Cricklade where, at the time of the accident, there was no safety fencing in place. However, the Agency has recently completed an improvement scheme which included the provision of safety fencing at this location. The third, and most recent accident occurred at a location with safety fencing. We are investigating and reviewing the causes.

Airports

Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what public consultations are planned within the next two years on further airport construction and expansion in the UK. [142636]

Dr. Howells: Following our consultation on the Future Development of Air Transport in the UK, we will shortly be publishing a White Paper setting out our conclusions and our proposals.

Mr. Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the Government's policy is on ring-fencing landing slots at major London airports for the exclusive use for (a) Liverpool John Lennon Airport services and (b) other regional services; and what plans he has to review this policy. [142179]

Mr. McNulty: The issue of access to London airports for regional services will be addressed in the air transport White Paper.

Blue Badges

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what plans he has to change the system for issuing blue badges for disabled drivers; [143043]

(2) whether he has any plans to reform the powers of inspection over disabled blue badges to police. [143044]

Mr. McNulty: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 1 December 2003, Official Report, column 4W, on the plans to change the Blue Badge Scheme.

With regard to powers of inspection, we are committed to introducing a specific power for the police, traffic wardens and local authority parking enforcement officers to inspect badges. We are also looking at the feasibility of establishing a national database of badge holders; the introduction of smartcard technology; increasing penalties for abuse and misuse of the Scheme.

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The power to inspect, and a number of other measures, will need to be introduced through primary legislation and we are looking for a suitable legislative opportunity to do so. Meanwhile, we are already working on the changes that require secondary legislation, taking forward a number of research projects and drafting new guidance for local authorities to accompany the changes. We aim to implement the changes at the earliest opportunity.

Civil Servants (Disabled Staff)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many senior civil servants in his Department are disabled staff expressed (a) in actual terms and (b) as a percentage of whole-time equivalent. [143045]

Mr. McNulty: There are no senior civil servants in the Department for Transport who have declared a disability to the Department.

Consultation

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of regulations introduced by the Department have been subject to a consultation period of less than 12 weeks since the introduction of the Code of Practice on Consultations. [142484]

Mr. McNulty: There is not always a direct correlation between government consultations and individual regulations. For example, there would not be a consultation prior to certain statutory instruments introducing temporary local speed limits.

The Cabinet Office Code of Practice on Written Consultation came into effect on 1 January 2001. The Department for Transport was established on 29 May 2002.

In the period from 29 May 2002 to 31 December 2002 the Department published 28 consultations under the Code, of which one was less than 12 weeks.

These figures do not include consultations that were carried out by the Department's Executive Agencies.

A full list of consultations on transport issues that have taken place from May 2002 (as DfT) and from before (as DTLR) can be found on the Department's website www.dft.gov.uk.

Crash Barriers

Mr. Mackay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times (a) steel barrier systems and (b) concrete barrier systems on trunk roads and motorways were breached in the latest year for which he has figures. [142757]

Dr. Howells: Information on the number of times (a) steel barrier systems and (b) concrete barrier systems on trunk road and motorways in England have been breached is not available.

The standard recording procedure for injury accidents does not record detail of the type of barrier hit. No data is available for non-injury accidents.

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The Highways Agency is not aware of any breaches of concrete barrier on trunk roads or motorways in England. However, this may be influenced by the relatively small proportion of this type of barrier on the network.

Mr. Mackay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what account is taken of whole-life maintenance costs in the procurement process for barrier systems used on motorways and trunk roads. [142758]

Dr. Howells: The Highways Agency requires its Agents to take account of whole-life costs as part of the scheme and programme development process for motorway and trunk roads in England. However, the procurement process for barrier systems on motorways and trunk roads in England does not currently take explicit account of whole-life maintenance costs.

The Highways Agency is looking to address this through a current research project considering the performance characteristics of different barrier types, as well as the whole life construction, maintenance, repair and replacement costs, including traffic delay costs and safety risks to operatives carrying out the work. This research is expected to be completed in early 2004 and will help in the understanding of the key factors to be taken into account in the procurement process.

Mr. Mackay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what account is taken of (a) congestion costs and (b) the potential danger to the workforce during repairs to barrier systems when bids for barrier contracts are at tender stage. [142759]

Dr. Howells: The Highways Agency's tender assessment process for barrier systems does not currently take formal account of congestion costs or the potential danger to the workforce during repairs to barrier systems when evaluating bids for barrier contracts at tender stage.

The Highways Agency is looking to address this through a current research project considering the performance characteristics of different barrier types, as well as the whole life construction, maintenance, repair and replacement costs, including traffic delay costs and safety risks to operatives carrying out the work. This research is expected to be completed in early 2004 and will help in the understanding of the key factors to be taken into account in the bid evaluation process.

Mr. Mackay: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to review the type of barrier systems in use on (a) motorways and (b) trunk roads in England and Wales. [142761]

Dr. Howells: Since the 1960s, the former Department of Transport, and more recently the Highways Agency, have spent significant amounts developing barrier

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systems for use on the UK motorway and trunk road network. Products include tensioned and untensioned steel barrier, wire rope barrier and concrete barrier. Over the years, these systems have been placed on the network in varying amounts. There are now sufficient lengths of these different barrier types on the network to obtain data on their respective in-service performance levels. This data is currently being collected and used to support research into the whole-life cost and safety-effectiveness of different types of barrier on motorways and trunk roads.

The research is considering the performance characteristics of different barrier types, as well as the whole life construction, maintenance, repair and replacement costs, including traffic delay costs and safety risks to operatives carrying out the work. This research is expected to be completed in early 2004 and will help in the understanding of the optimum systems for use in different situations on the motorway and trunk road network.

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research has been undertaken on the use of barriers to prevent lorries leaving the road in the event of an accident such as that which occurred recently on the A3 through Guildford. [143012]

Mr. Jamieson: The Highways Agency has undertaken detailed research into the use of barriers and accidents involving single vehicles leaving the nearside of English roads. This has demonstrated that there are no significant shortcomings in the current standard for safety barriers and that the barrier provision strikes the right balance between the risks or errant vehicles leaving the road and the risks of impact with safety barriers themselves.

Complementary research is currently being undertaken to examine the performance standard requirements for central reserve barriers. It is expected that the results from this research will give a better understanding of the factors and criteria influencing the choice of safety barrier.

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