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11 Oct 2004 : Column 5W—continued

Vehicle Manoeuvres/Pollution

Mr. Geoffrey Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a comparative assessment of (a) the effect on the safety of road users and (b) the level of pollutants emitted when a road vehicle performs (i) a u-turn and (ii) a three-point turn. [189821]

Mr. Jamieson: The safety aspects of any vehicle manoeuvre will be dictated by individual circumstances. Drivers have a responsibility for ensuring that any manoeuvre that has the potential to bring their vehicle into conflict with other road users is carried out in a manner that is safe, legal and convenient to do so. Drivers must also consider if they can control their vehicles in the given circumstances and, while knowledge of the Highway Code will help, if there is any doubt in the driver's mind, neither manoeuvre should be carried out and an alternative method of turning found.

With regards to effects on pollutant emissions, no comparative assessments have been made and none are planned since, due to the infrequency of these manoeuvres, the impact on air quality would be negligible. However, in general terms, a higher level of pollutants might be expected from three-point turns due to the stop/start nature of the exercise.

Road Traffic Accidents

Mr. Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of road traffic accident deaths were non-car owners or drivers in (a) 1975, (b) 1980, (c) 1990, (d) 2000 and (e) 2003. [189937]

Mr. Jamieson: The information is not available.

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have been (a) injured and (b) killed in road traffic accidents within the Greater London area in each of the last three years. [190257]

Mr. Jamieson: The table shows numbers killed and injured on the roads within Greater London in each of the last three years.

Year	Killed	Injured
2001	300	44,322
2002	281	41,227
2003	272	38,205

Severn Crossings

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reasons it is not possible to use a credit card to pay the toll for the Severn Crossings; and what plans he has to introduce this facility. [190460]

Mr. Jamieson: There are no plans at present to allow credit card payments due to the fact that finance companies levy up to a 3 per cent. surcharge for such transactions. Neither the Concessionaire (Severn River Crossing plc) nor the Government is currently prepared to fund this surcharge. However, the Concessionaire and the Government will continue to review this position.
 
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Providing such a facility may also require amending the legislation that prescribes the manner of payment of tolls (The Severn Bridges Regulations 1996—SI 1316). This states that tolls, not already paid for in advance, must be paid in cash to an appointed person at a toll-booth or by the insertion of coins into a machine provided near a toll-booth for the purpose of collecting tolls.

The Concessionaire does operate a system for pre-payment.

Ship Inspections

Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many ships were inspected at UK ports in July and August to assess whether they met International Ship and Port Facility Security Code standards; [188430]

(2) how many ships entering UK ports failed to meet the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code in July and August; and how many of these ships were (a) denied entry, (b) expelled from port and (c) detained. [188431]

Mr. Jamieson: The UK Government take a robust line with non-compliant ships seeking entry into their ports. We have a range of control measures in place for dealing with ships that are in violation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code.

It is not our policy to comment in detail on how many ships we inspect or have been denied entry, expelled, or detained at UK ports. However, between July and August 2004 Control Measures, including issuing letters of non-conformance to the ship and Flag State were taken against 17 ships (all foreign flagged).

Vehicle Excise Duty

Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much he estimates is owed to the Government for non-payment of vehicle excise duty in respect of the last financial year for which figures are available; what action he is taking to reduce this figure; and if he will make a statement. [189220]

Mr. Jamieson: The last National Roadside Survey of vehicle excise duty (VED) evasion for which figures are available was carried out in June 2002. The survey indicated that the revenue lost from VED evasion was equivalent to 4.5 per cent. of the total revenue that should be raised. In 2002–03 this equated to £193 million which was offset by £110 million in fines, penalties and relicensing revenue through enforcement activities.

A range of measures was announced in May 2003 to modernise and tighten the vehicle registration system. These included Continuous Registration which was introduced in January 2004. All those not paying their road tax or declaring their vehicles off the road are detected from DVLA's records and sent a penalty notice. It is now no longer necessary to detect evaders using their vehicles on the road. Early indications are that this system will reduce the amount of VED evaded by around £70m in 2004–05.
 
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Vehicle Identity Check Scheme

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what assessment he has made of the cost-effectiveness of the vehicle identity check scheme; and if he will make a statement; [189993]

(2) what plans he has to set up a review of the vehicle identity check scheme. [189994]

Mr. Jamieson: Data extracted from the police National Computer has shown a 7.8 per cent. decrease in car theft—equating to a total of 11,500 cars—in the scheme's first year of operation. On this basis, the total saving to the motorist and, of course, society as a whole, could be more than £58 million.

The scheme cost £12.5 million to set up and in 2003–04 cost £3.3 million to operate. I am therefore satisfied that the vehicle identity check system is cost effective.

The scheme is being closely monitored by the Department and will be subject to a formal review in April 2005.

WALES

Civil Service (Job Losses)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales which services within his Office will be (a) affected by and (b) subject to job losses consequent on the cuts in the civil service announced in the Spending Review. [189646]

Mr. Touhig: Full details of the work force changes announced in the Spending Review are being worked through, and we are consulting all stakeholders including unions and staff.

Departments will come forward in due course with details of workforce changes once plans are finalised.

Departmental Absenteeism

Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the absenteeism rate was for staff in his Department in each year since 1997. [185206]

Mr. Hain: Since the establishment of my Department on 1 July 1999 there has been no reported absenteeism.

Departmental Recycling

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the latest available 12-month figures are for the proportion of the Department's redundant documentation, waste paper and card that is recycled; and if he will make a statement on the Department's recycling policy. [188700]

Mr. Touhig: The Wales Office uses the Department of Constitutional Affairs recycling scheme. In line with the Department of Constitutional Affairs (DCA), we are dedicated to sustainable development, and are currently working with DCA colleagues to introduce a comprehensive strategy and embed the principles into all aspects of our work.
 
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Currently, all waste paper that can be recycled is disposed of in the appropriate manner, and all offices in the Wales Office have access to recycling bins. These are emptied on a daily basis and collected for recycling once a week. This generates between 10 and 20 full recycling bags each week, compared with up to 10 bags of ordinary rubbish.

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