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1 Nov 2006 : Column 533W—continued
FV Gaul
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will examine recent evidence and decide whether the formal investigation into the loss of the FV Gaul should be re-opened. [97993]
Dr. Ladyman: The re-opened formal investigation into the loss of the FV Gaul was conducted with unprecedented thoroughness. The evidence was scrutinised by leading experts in the fields of oceanography, naval architecture and engineering.
There is no reason to doubt the outcome of the expert analysis that led to the RFI’s conclusions, and consequently there is no reason to reopen the investigation.
Railways
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what percentage of British trains were accessible by disabled people in each of the last 20 years. [93656]
Gillian Merron: The Department does not keep a breakdown by year of the number of accessible trains in service, as delivery schedules and use of older units often vary according to operational needs.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the effect on different user groups of Network Rail's decision to cease publishing the national rail timetable in a book format. [98485]
Mr. Tom Harris: It is for Network Rail to make any necessary assessment about the decision on whether to cease or continue publishing the national timetable in book format.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with representatives from Network Rail on its decision to cease publishing the national rail timetable in a book format. [98486]
Mr. Tom Harris: The Secretary of State has had no such discussions, as the decision on whether to cease or continue publishing the national timetable in book format is one for Network Rail.
Paul Rowen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received from (a) rail user groups and (b) other stakeholders on
Network Rail's decision to cease publishing the national rail timetable in a book format. [98487]
Mr. Tom Harris: No representations have been made by Passenger Focus or London Travelwatch, the statutory bodies representing passengers. No representations have been received from the train operators who run the trains. Some representations have been received from members of the public, either directly or through their Members of Parliament.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what effect on costs he expects Network Rail to achieve by ceasing to publish the national rail timetable in a book format. [98488]
Mr. Tom Harris: It is for Network Rail to consider its costs in deciding how to publish the national timetable.
Road Accidents
Mr. Skinner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have been killed in road traffic accidents in the East Midlands in the last five years. [98510]
Dr. Ladyman: The information requested was published in table 47 of ‘Road Casualties Great Britain: 2005’ on 28 September 2006. Copies of the publication have been placed in the Library of the House.
Road Freight
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what further plans the Government have to encourage the transfer of road freight to (a) rail and (b) waterways. [97852]
Dr. Ladyman: We have three schemes that will directly support the transfer of freight traffic from road to rail and water. These schemes are the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG), Rail Environmental Benefit Procurement Scheme (REPS) and Waterborne Freight Grant (WFG). From April 2007 these schemes will be managed through the Sustainable Distribution Fund. The Secretary of State made a statement to Parliament announcing an increased budget for the Sustainable Distribution Fund on the 15 June 2006.
Since that statement the Department has received state aids approval for the REPS program from the European Commission. Officials are now proceeding towards implementing the new scheme to ensure as smooth a transition as possible from the current arrangements.
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures the Government have introduced since 1997 to encourage the transfer of freight from road to (a) rail and (b) waterways. [97854]
Dr. Ladyman:
Since 1997, direct support to promote mode shift from road to rail has been provided in the form of freight facilities grants, track access grants and company neutral revenue support. In addition, the Government have provided continued support to the
rail freight industry through their policies towards the railways, specifically through the Railways Act 2005. These policies have contributed to considerable growth in rail freight moved in the period, up 46 per cent. between 1996-97 and 2005-06.
In the same period, the Government have also awarded grants of £54 million for water freight schemes. These will have saved over 1 billion road miles worth of lorry journeys on our roads. Last year we introduced a new waterborne freight grant scheme to assist both inland waterways and shipping companies with their operating costs. Since 2002, we have also implemented the recommendations of the Freight Study Group, which the Government established to consider how more freight could be carried on inland waterways. This included the setting up and funding of Sea and Water, an organisation specifically set up to represent the industry and promote water freight. We have also funded the costs of a Sea and Water database to provide all the necessary information potential water freight customers.
Toll Bridges
Mr. David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many toll bridges there are in England; and what charges are made on each. [98708]
Dr. Ladyman: There are currently 13 bridges in England where a toll may be charged under statute to fund the finance, operation and maintenance costs of the undertaking.
The following table lists the 13 statutory tolled bridges. Toll rates at each of these undertakings often vary based on the classification of vehicle using the particular bridge, therefore for simplicity the following shows only the maximum tolls chargeable (as at 27 October 2006) for motorcars and large goods vehicles.
| Toll bridge | Motor car | Large good vehicle |
There are also a number of unregulated bridges where a toll is charged for the right to cross private land. A complete list of these bridges is not available.
The table shown does not include estuarine crossings other than bridges or where the bridge is subject to a congestion charge rather than a toll.
Torremolinos Convention
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to ratify the International Marine Organisation’s Torremolinos Convention. [97992]
Dr. Ladyman: European Directive 97/70/EC implemented a harmonised safety regime based on the 1993 Torremolinos Protocol. The safety standards were subsequently enhanced by Directive 2002/35/EC. The Government consider these standards exceed the requirements of the protocol and that its ratification is therefore no longer necessary.
Tractors
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on the use of agricultural tractors for haulage on public highways; and if he will make a statement. [98450]
Dr. Ladyman: Most users of goods vehicles over 3.5 tonnes need to hold an operators licence to perform haulage work on public highways. However, The Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Regulations 1995 allow for certain classes of vehicles to be exempt from this requirement. These exemptions are deliberately narrow in scope and apply mainly to specialist vehicles not often used on the public road.
Currently, tractors are exempted when they are used on roads for specified agricultural purposes, e.g. hauling produce within 24 km of a farm. The Department for Transport is reviewing the existing operator licence exemptions, including those for agricultural vehicles, and we aim to consult formally on proposals later this year.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) motor tractors and (b) agricultural tractors in (i) England, (ii) Wales and (iii) Scotland are registered with the DVLA. [98469]
Dr. Ladyman: Figures are available only on the numbers of those vehicles that were licensed with DVLA as at June 2006:
(a) The number of licensed motor tractors in England was 72,575, in Wales was 2,711 and in Scotland was 5,348.
(b) The number of licensed agricultural tractors in England was 193,302, in Wales was 23,866 and in Scotland was 33,238.
Treasury
Boilers
Alan Duncan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what boilers are on the official Government list of recommended renewable-energy fired boilers; and what fuel is used in each appliance. [97213]
Mr. Darling [holding answer 30 October 2006]: I have been asked to reply.
There are two official Government lists of recommended renewable-energy fired boilers.
Under the DTI’s low carbon buildings programme, there is a list of approximately 100 accredited boilers that burn logs, wood chips or wood pellets, and a further 40 pellet burning stoves and room heaters. A full list of accredited products can be found at:
http://www.clear-skies.org/households/RecognisedProducts.aspx
Under HMT’s enhanced capital allowances scheme, there is a list of 266 recommended biomass boilers and room heaters. All products listed will have had to be designed so that they can be fuelled solely by wood, straw or similar vegetable matter in order to meet the scheme criteria. A full list of the products can be found at:
http://www.eca.gov.uk/etl/search.asp?pagecode=0001000200010001
Child Trust Funds
Mr. Mudie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average percentage return has been from a child trust fund allocated under the default investment arrangements; and how many child trust funds have been allocated to each default provider. [98514]
Ed Balls: We do not hold information on rate of returns from child trust fund accounts.
Up to 20 September 2006, the total number of child trust fund accounts opened by HM Revenue and Customs under the default arrangements was 441,474. These are allocated on a strictly rotational basis to those 14 providers who have volunteered to take these accounts.
Council of Economic Advisers
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the role is of his Council of Economic Advisers; and how its role differs from that of special advisers. [98221]
John Healey: As set out in Treasury PN 99/97 on 4 August 1997
“the Council of Economic Advisers is made up of individual policy experts who will bring their specialist experience to work alongside individual Treasury teams focussing on the Government’s key policy priorities.”
DEFRA Funding
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will use moneys from the Contingency Fund to increase the funds available to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. [98479]
John Healey: DEFRA is managing its current range of pressures within the departmental expenditure limit agreed at the 2004 spending review.
Departmental Publications
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many publications his Department has printed in the last 12 months; and what the total printing cost was. [97972]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Angus (Mr. Weir) on 9 October, Official Report, column 271W.
Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group (Court Judgment)
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the Exchequer arising as a consequence of the House of Lords judgment of 25 October 2006 in Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group plc. (Respondents) v. Her Majesty’s Commissioners of Inland Revenue and another (Appellants). [98791]
Dawn Primarolo: The Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group (DMG) plc. case was about the time limits for tax purposes for making claims on the basis of a mistake of law. For those classes of litigation similar to DMG and where the principal issue has been finally decided by the courts, the judgment will result in additional payments of around £300 million. For other classes of litigation there are too many contingencies to estimate the amounts that will be payable, or indeed whether the DMG judgment would apply at all.
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