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29 Mar 2004 : Column 1208W—continued

Science Strategy

Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she

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has taken to enhance science in her Department since the publication of the Government's science strategy, Investing in Innovation. [162251]

Alun Michael: Science plays an essential, and increasingly important role in underpinning and informing Defra's policies across the three areas of environment, food and rural affairs. Defra is therefore strongly committed to maintaining and enhancing its science capabilities, in line with our Science and Innovation Strategy (Delivering the Evidence) published in May 2003. Our R&D budget is ring fenced at over £150 million per annum, and are aiming to protect this in real terms across the SR2002 period and beyond. We also spend in excess of £170 million per annum on a wide range of other types of science, including scientific advice, field trials, knowledge transfer, surveillance and monitoring.

Defra is committed to developing its scientific capabilities and performance, building on the recommendations of the SR2002 Cross Cutting Review of Science and Research and the Government's Investing in Innovation strategy. Defra's Chief Scientific Adviser is the corporate sponsor for a number of on-going science initiatives designed to ensure that:

we are carrying out the right scientific activities to underpin current and future policy needs and to anticipate emerging risks and opportunities;

the scientific advice we obtain, and the science activities supporting it, is of a high quality;

we have access to the right expertise and skills to procure and interpret scientific information, and that scientific advice is used appropriately in the policy making process; and

Defra science is open and transparent, and its aims and results are effectively communicated.

Our rural affairs approach in both policy and delivery is informed by high quality research and analysis. The publication ("Social and economic change and diversity in rural England") in January was the first of a series from the Rural Research Centre led by Birkbeck College but including academics from other institutions.

Defra's next Science and Innovation Strategy (due to be published spring 2005) will, among other things, address innovation in support of policy priorities and sustainable wealth creation, including technology foresight and horizon scanning, and support for technology transfer and innovation.

Sugar Regime

Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she intends to announce the outcome of the consultation on reform of the sugar regime; and if she will make a statement. [160490]

Alun Michael: We are considering the wide range of views received and hope to produce a summary soon. In the meantime the responses themselves are available for public inspection in the Defra library.

Trophy Hunting

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will take steps to regulate specialist travel consultants who offer trophy-hunting packages to their clients. [158724]

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Mr. Morley: The Government have no plans to take steps to control the activities of those who offer legal trophy hunting packages. Powers are available to refuse the import of hunting trophies and we shall not hesitate to use them where there is evidence that hunting trophies have been taken illegally, or that such hunting is itself unsustainable.

Warm Front (Cleethorpes)

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many successful applications have been made for Warm Front grants in Cleethorpes constituency. [162581]

Mr. Morley: Between the launch of Warm Front in June 2000 and the end of December 2003, approximately 2,100 households in the Cleethorpes constituency received assistance from the scheme.

Waste Management

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funds are available to businesses wishing to explore new methods of (a) recycling and (b) disposing of waste plastics. [162228]

Mr. Morley: In addition to the general support that is available to businesses funded by the Department of Trade and Industry, the Waste and Resources Action Programme may fund research and development, capital investment or business advice and support for projects concerned with the recycling of plastics.

Further support may be available through Defra's Waste Implementation Programme which has a research budget for funding work on recycling and sustainable disposal methods across all waste streams. Defra is developing a waste research strategy which will identify key areas where research activity will need to be focused.

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the uses to which recycled waste farm plastics may be put. [162257]

Mr. Morley: We understand that recycled farm plastics can be used to make a range of products including damp proof membrane and damp proof courses, refuse sacks and bin liners, clinical waste sacks and aprons, plastic pallets and street and garden furniture.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will issue guidance to businesses to focus waste collection efforts where this delivers maximum economic and environmental benefit. [163096]

Mr. Morley: There are no plans to issue guidance to businesses to focus collection efforts. However, the Government does fund Envirowise, an organisation that offers free, independent advice to business on practical ways to minimise waste and increase profit.

In addition, Budget 2003 announced that increases in the standard rate of landfill tax would be revenue neutral to business as a whole. To achieve this Government are proposing a package of measures

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including grants, other financial support measures and extending promotional and capacity building services to support a broader range of commercial and industrial sectors. These measures, which are undergoing detailed development, with consultation, should help businesses improve their waste performance.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what budget will be available in 2004–05 to the Waste and Resources Research Advisory Group. [162443]

Mr. Morley: No budget is allocated to the Waste and Resources Research Advisory Group (WRRAG), beyond minor costs incurred in the running of the group. WRRAG's role is to make recommendations to Defra on key research priorities to be addressed in a three-year waste research strategy currently being drawn up. The strategy will be subject to consultation later in the year and will be put out to wider consultation.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether appointments to the Waste and Resources Research Advisory Group have been made in accordance with the Nolan principles. [162444]

Mr. Morley: The Waste and Resources Research Advisory Group is classified as an ad hoc advisory group and is not constituted formally as a non-departmental public body. However, appointments have been fully consistent with the ethical parameters set out by the seven Nolan principles of selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. The group is providing Defra with expert input into the development of a three-year waste research strategy, which will be subject to consultation later in this year.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the (a) title and (b) subject matter of the waste management research projects that have been commissioned by (i) her Department and (ii) bodies sponsored by her Department since 1 April 2003. [162445]

Mr. Morley: Research projects commissioned by Defra and bodies sponsored by it since 1 April 2003 are set out in the following list. The titles indicate the subject matter.

Defra

Hazardous Waste and WEEE: identifying products and components of present and historic WEEE that are hazardous

A review of exemptions from the waste management licensing regulations for hazardous waste

An action plan for the reduction and environmentally sound management of hazardous waste

Review of Environmental and Health Effects of Waste Management: Municipal Solid Waste and Similar Wastes

Environment Agency

Waste management life cycle assessment tool—model development

List I organic biodegradation/sorption within landfill liners

Establishing equilibrium and pollutant removal requirements for UK landfill

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The management of hazardous wastes under new EU legislation

Factors affecting the generation of chloroethene and associated trace gases in landfill

Waste and Resources Action Programme

To increase timber waster recycling through determining and promoting best practice in the furniture industry

Develop methods and sampling protocols for measuring contaminants in recycled wood panelboard sector

Wood residues footprint for the M62 west corridor

Rapid identification and sorting of preservative treated timber

NIRA as a tool for assessing recycled wood

Development of waste sawdust as a plant protection material for horticulture and agriculture

To further develop plastic media for water filtration units with a known service life in larger filtration units

Develop process for recycling carpet waste

Development of mass produced thermoplastic panels

Achieve certification of products containing recycled plastics

Tonnages and collection of construction site packaging

REWARD and Photochem: an assessment of the weathering of recycled plastics

Identifying and maximising affordable plastic bottle collection systems from household kerbside collections

Materials and products from UK-sourced PVC-rich waste for new and existing markets

New applications for Jazz PET

Development of Food Grade HDPE Recycling Process

Develop Options for enhancing Commercial and Industrial Film Collection

Study to Identify Methods of Enhancing Local Authority Collection of Plastics

Use of Post-Consumer Recyclate in Retail Packaging

Research to determine performance of recycled glass sand compared to sand in the sports turf industry

Determine Vortex grinder construction materials for cullet grinding

Identifying legal and commercial barriers to glass recycling in West Oxfordshire—Oxford Brookes University

Increase use of mixed colour cullet reprocessing

To identify BPEO's for use of glass cullet in construction and promote technical confidence in it's use in the construction industry

Research to replace current "fluxing" agent in sanitary ware with waste bottle glass

Improve site practices for collection and clean separation of composite materials

To develop methodology for recycling lamp glass, overcoming technical and practical barriers to recycling

Researching the use of ground glass in brick manufacture

Produce advanced filtration medium using processed glass material

Closing the fibre waste recycling loop

Materials recovery from waste cathode ray tubes

ConGlassCrete II

Increasing collection and recycling of post consumer domestic window waste Feasibility study for the removal of colour from the glass furnace

Pilot Studies for glass collection from urban licensed premises

Pilot Studies for Glass Collection from Urban Licensed Premises

To develop test methods and inorganic contamination limits for recovered container glass

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R and D Promoting Recycled Paper (Cellulose) Insulants in Metallic Modular Construction

Toolbox approach to improved recycled fibre use in the UK corrugated case industry

Research into using recycled waste paper residues in construction products

Support development of standards for compost by investigating pathogens of concern for high-quality end-uses (follows Compost standards open R and D competition)

Market development—peat substitution

Determining the market share of recycled materials in the UK economy: development of methodology

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding (a) her Department and (b) bodies sponsored by it have made available since March 2003 for research projects relating to waste management. [162446]

Mr. Morley: The following funding has been made available for research projects relating to waste management by Defra and bodies sponsored by Defra, since March 2003:

Organisation	£000
Defra	161
Environment Agency	1,220
Waste and Resource Action Programme	2,695

No funds have yet been assigned to research from Defra's Waste Implementation Programme research budget.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the additional resources that will be made available to (a) the Environment Agency and (b) local authorities to detect the unlicensed management of waste. [162465]

Mr. Morley: The Environment Agency is funded through GIA for its enforcement work. This year, about £12 million was spent on waste-related enforcement activity. Local authorities receive funding through the EPCS element of their block grant and will decide resource allocations according to local priorities.

Defra is currently consulting on a fly-tipping strategy which is designed to ensure greater effectiveness, achieved within existing resources.

However, Defra has given the Environment Agency additional funding this year to set up and maintain "Flycapture", a web based database that will enable local authorities and the Agency to fulfil the data requirements of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what modelling her Department has (a) undertaken and (b) commissioned into the possible impact of the implementation of higher environmental standards on illegal waste (i) management and (ii) disposal activity. [161800]

Mr. Morley: Defra launched a consultation on its proposed Fly-Tipping Strategy on 23 February 2004. This strategy proposes several changes to help deal with illegally disposed waste and contains a partial regulatory impact assessment (RIA).

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Defra is also commissioning a comprehensive research project looking at the causes and incentives of illegal waste disposal that will result in a good practice guide for practitioners focusing on pro-active, preventative policies.

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