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10 Jan 2006 : Column 495W—continued
Road Improvements
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to introduce hard shoulder running on major routes. [40664]
Dr. Ladyman: Controlled use of the hard shoulder during periods of traffic congestion is due to be introduced on the M42 by March 2007, as part of the Highways Agency's Active Traffic Management (ATM) pilot project.
In order to measure the impact of hard shoulder running, a period of 12 months of operation is required during which comprehensive monitoring will be undertaken. Initial conclusions about the effectiveness of this measure and the possibility of its further use on the network are therefore not expected until 2008. Due to the relatively low number of accidents that occur on motorways, three years of accident data will be needed before overall conclusions can be reached on the impact of hard shoulder running on safety.
Speeding Fines
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how much of the total revenue raised by speeding fines has been paid to the Treasury in each year since 1997; [38454]
(2) what the total value of unpaid speeding fines was in each year since 1997. [38455]
Paul Goggins: I have been asked to reply.
Information on the total revenue from speeding fines is not collected centrally.
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The information collected by the Home Office identifies the number of fixed penalties ordered to be paid and the number and amounts of court-imposed fines issued for such offences. Not all fines and fixed penalties will have been paid.
The Department for Constitutional Affairs currently estimate an overall payment rate for fines in general of 80 per cent. It is not possible to establish accurately the total value of unpaid speeding fines.
Toll Charges (Buses)
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what multiple of the car toll is charged for public service buses on each publicly operated toll charging (a) bridge and (b) tunnel. [40350]
Dr. Ladyman: The following information relates to publicly-operated bridges and tunnels in England.
Humber Bridge—for a bus designed to carry fewer than 17 passengers the toll charge is 1.8 times the toll charge for a car. For a bus designed to carry 17 or more passengers, the toll charge is four times the car toll charge.
Mersey Tunnels—for a bus with two axles the toll charge is the same as for a car. For a bus with three axles the toll charge is treble the car toll charge.
Tamar Bridge—there is no toll charge for public service buses that take part in the bridge's tag system and are registered with the bridge operator and the local authority.
Tyne Tunnel—for a bus designed to carry fewer than 16 passengers the toll charge is the same as for a car. For a bus designed to carry 16 or more passengers, the toll charge is 1.2 times the car toll charge.
Train Protection Systems
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) miles of track and (b) junctions in (i) Scotland, (ii) Wales, (iii) each of the English regions and (iv) Northern Ireland are not covered by (A) electric and (B) electronic train protection. [39587]
Derek Twigg: Operation of the rail network in Great Britain is the responsibility of Network Rail (NR) and I have asked NR to write direct to the hon. Member. Railways in Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Office.
Transport (Gravesham)
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his projections are for traffic growth ontrunk roads in Gravesham for each of the next 10 years. [40622]
Dr. Ladyman: The current traffic growth forecast for the section of A2 trunk road, which runs through Gravesham district and south of Gravesend town, is an average of 1.6 per cent. per annum between 2006 and 2016. This compares to the national forecast growth rate of 1.5 per cent. per annum over the same period.
Urban Bus Challenge Fund
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much the Government have spent on the Urban Bus Challenge since its inception. [40840]
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Ms Buck: There have been three annual competitions held for Urban Bus Challenge awards, the first in 2001 and the last in 2003. The Department awarded £53 million to 106 schemes in the competitions. Schemes were typically funded over three years. Grant payments made so far are expected to total £44 million at the end of the current financial year. The remainder of the £53 million will be paid to authorities in subsequent financial years.
DEFENCE
Arctic Emblem
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2005, Official Report, column 1678W, on the Arctic Emblem, if he will ensure that, once the design has been agreed, the Arctic Emblem can be worn on both the Atlantic Star and the 1939–45 Star; and if he will make a statement. [38204]
Mr. Touhig: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 December 2005, Official Report, column 2350W.
Armed Forces (South African Personnel)
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his South African counterpart about the extent to which South Africans serving in the UK armed forces have received the required approval to do so under the relevant South African legislation. [28326]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 14 November 2005]: Approval is not currently required from the South African Government for South African personnel to serve in the UK armed forces. There is, however, draft South African legislation on mercenaries and private military and security services which has recently been issued, and is due to be presented to their Parliament in the near future. If enacted, this would require permission to be sought for South African personnel to serve in the UK armed forces.
Catering/Entertainment Contracts
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total value is of (a) catering and (b) entertainment contracts let by his Department; and what value of such contracts has been let in each nation and region of the UK, including London. [37489]
Mr. Touhig:
Present arrangements for catering and entertainment are being replaced by 'Super Multi-Activity Contracts' (S MACs) to provide, among other services, catering, retail and leisure facilities to military personnel and civilian staff throughout the United Kingdom. Seven contracts were let in financial year 2005–06. The total value of the catering, retail and leisure elements of these contracts is anticipated to be in the region of £145 million over seven years. A breakdown of this figure by Government office region is shown in the following table. This figure does not necessarily represent all expenditure in the fields of catering and entertainment as there are a number of other existing contracts that provide these kinds of
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services. Cost information on these contracts cannot, however, be broken down to identify these elements separately without incurring disproportionate cost.
| Region | Value(£ million) over 7 years |
|---|---|
| Scotland | 11.6 |
| The North East/North West of England(12) | 14.4 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber(13) | 31.0 |
| South East | 55.9 |
| East-Midlands | 16.4 |
| London | 16.3 |
(12) One S MAC contract covering two Government office regions.
(13) Catterick Garrison only
South Africa/Mozambique Visits
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 19 December 2005, Official Report, column 2347W, on visits to South Africa, what the names were of employees of his Department who took part in the visits to South Africa and Mozambique. [39908]
Mr. Ingram: Dr. John Thompson, named in a UN Security Council Report on the investigation of alleged use of CW in Mozambique in January 1992, was one of the staff. However, in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act, I am unable to release the remaining names as to do so would contravene the data protection principles.
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 19 December 2005, Official Report, column 2347W, on visits to South Africa, whether the combined UK and UN team found that chemical weapons had been used in Mozambique; and if he will make a statement. [39912]
Mr. Ingram: The findings and conclusions of the United Nations investigation can be found in a UN Security Council Report, S/24065 dated 12 June 1992, available on the United Nations website at http://www.un.org.
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