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8 Oct 2007 : Column 57W—continued
Regional Government
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her Department's definition is of (a) sub-national and (b) sub-regional governance. [153801]
John Healey: The Review of sub-national economic development and regeneration was published on 17 July 2007. For the purpose of the Review, "sub-national" was taken to include regional, sub-regional and local levels. Sub-regional governance in this context refers to any arrangement involving more than one, but fewer than every, local authority in a single region (as defined in the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998, Schedule 1—Regions).
Regional Planning and Development
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether local authorities will have the power (a) to veto and (b) to amend the new integrated regional spatial strategies of the regional development agencies. [153719]
Mr. Iain Wright: Details of how the new integrated regional spatial strategies will be developed and agreed following a consultation exercise. A consultation paper to assist this will be published later this year.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what the timetable is for the publication of the new integrated regional strategies; and how the roll-out of the existing regional spatial strategies will be affected; [153799]
(2) what the timetable is for the transfer of responsibilities on regional planning from regional assemblies to regional development agencies; [153800]
(3) whether primary or secondary legislation will be required to designate the regional development agencies as regional planning bodies. [153904]
John Healey: The Government will consult on the Single Regional Strategy later this year, as indicated in the Review of Sub-National Economic Development and Regeneration. This will require primary legislation to transfer regional planning responsibilities from the Regional Assembly to the Regional Development Agency; implementation is not expected before 2010.
The existing RSSs will not be affected by the timetable for the publication of the new Single Regional Strategies.
Rights of Way
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 23 July 2007, Official Report, column 752W, on rights of way, whether the Independent Planning Commission will be required to undertake consultation with (a) the public and (b) user groups to ascertain whether alternative rights of way are being provided or the current rights of way are not needed. [154348]
Mr. Iain Wright: Further to the answer given to the hon. Member on 23 July 2007, Official Report, column 752W, the Infrastructure Planning Commission will only take decisions about closure and/or diversion of public rights of way, where this is requested in an application for the development of a nationally significant infrastructure project. Any applications made to Infrastructure Planning Commission will be judged in a public and transparent manner as set in chapter 5, paragraphs 5.21—5.38 of “Planning for a Sustainable Future” (cm 7120). This process contains public consultation at its heart, and all interested parties will be able to submit their evidence to the examination.
South East England Regional Assembly: Information Officers
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many press officers are employed by the South East England Regional Assembly. [154157]
Mr. Iain Wright: The South East England Regional Assembly employs no dedicated press officers. Work on press releases and press inquiries is shared between three staffing its multidisciplinary communications team who manage public consultations, opinion research and community involvement in respect of the Assembly's strategic planning, housing and transport responsibilities across 74 local authority areas and a population of over eight million people. In addition, they manage the Assembly's publications and websites, IT support, internal communications and external communications including press inquiries and press releases. The work on press releases and press inquiries is equivalent to 1.3 full-time press officers.
Stakeholder Advisory Panel on Home Buying and Selling
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on what dates the Stakeholder Advisory Panel on Home Buying and Selling has met. [153815]
Yvette Cooper: The Stakeholder Advisory Panel on Home Buying and Selling met on the 25 July 2007.
Structure Plans
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what adopted structure plans are in force in each (a) region and (b) county; and what the date is (i) of their adoption and (ii) on which they cease to be part of the development plan under current legislation. [152640]
Yvette Cooper: Under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, all structure plans lapsed on the 27 September 2007, unless they were adopted in September 2004, in which case they will lapse three years from their date of adoption.
Regional planning bodies can make an application to save individual structure plan policies, to be saved after the lapse of the structure plan.
The Secretary of State decided which individual structure plan policies will be saved by the 27 September 2007
The current status of adopted structure plans by region are detailed as follows:
County Durham Structure Plan adopted 1999, Northumberland Joint Structure Plan adopted in 1995 and Tees Valley Structure Plan adopted 2004 will all expire on 27 September 2007
Humberside Structure Plan (adopted in 1987, alteration 1993). Superseded by Hull and East Riding Joint Structure Plan (as follows) for those two districts but will remain part of the statutory development plan for North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire until 27 September 2007.
North Yorkshire and York Joint Structure Plan adopted 1995—remains part of the development plan until 27 September 2007.
Hull and East Riding Joint Structure Plan adopted June 2005 and will remain part of the statutory development plan until June 2008.
Lakes District/Cumbria Structure Plan adopted April 2005 will expire April 2008.
Cheshire Structure Plan adopted December 2005 will expire December 2008.
Joint Lancashire Structure Plan adopted in May 2005 will expire May 2008.
Joint Replacement Structure Plan (Bath and North East Somerset Council, Bristol City Council, North Somerset Council, South Gloucestershire Council) Structure Plan adopted in 2002 and due to expire on 27 September 2007.
Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole Structure Plan adopted in July 2000 and due to expire on 27 September 2007.
Cornwall Structure Plan adopted on September 2004, due to expire on 27 September 2007.
Devon Structure Plan (Devon City Council, Plymouth City Council, Torbay Council and Dartmoor National Park) adopted on October 2004 and due to expire in October 2007
Gloucestershire Structure Plan adopted on November 1999 and due to expire on 27 September 2007.
Somerset and Exmoor National Park Structure Plan adopted in April 2000 and due to end on 27 September 2007.
Wiltshire Structure Plan 2001-11 adopted in 2001 and due to end on 27 September 2007.
Wiltshire and Swindon Structure Plan adopted in April 2006 and due to expire in April 2009.
East Sussex/Brighton and Hove Structure Plan adopted 1999, Buckinghamshire Structure Plan and the Hampshire Structure Plan adopted 2000 will all expire on the 27 September 2007.
Kent/Medway Structure Plan adopted in July 2006 will expire July 2009.
Surrey Structure Plan adopted in December 2004 will expire December 2007.
Oxfordshire Structure Plan adopted in October 2005 will expire October 2008.
Berkshire Structure Plan adopted July 2005 will expire July 2008.
West Sussex Structure Plan adopted October 2004 will expire October 2007.
Northamptonshire Structure Plan adopted in March 2001, Derby and Derbyshire Joint Structure Plan adopted January 2001 and the Peak District National Park Structure Plan adopted in April 1994 will all expire on the 27 September 2007.
Nottinghamshire Joint Structure Plan adopted in February 2006 will expire February 2009.
Lincolnshire Structure Plan adopted in September 2006 will expire September 2009.
Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland Structure Plan adopted March 2005 will expire March 2008.
Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Structure Plan adopted May 2001, Warwickshire Structure Plan adopted August 2001, Worcestershire Structure Plan adopted June 2001 and Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Structure Plan adopted November 2002 will all expire on the 27 September 2007.
Bedfordshire Structure Plan adopted March 1997, Cambridgeshire Structure Plan adopted December 1995, Cambridgeshire/Peterborough Structure Plan adopted October 2003, Essex/Southend Structure Plan adopted April 2001, Hertfordshire Structure Plan adopted April 1998, Norfolk Structure Plan adopted October 1999 and Suffolk Structure Plan adopted June 2001 will all expire on the 27 September 2007.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects to reach a decision on the savings of policies from those structure plans in each (a) region and (b) county which cease to have effect from September under current legislation; and if she will publish on the appropriate Government Regional Office website a list of policies to be saved in each case. [152747]
Yvette Cooper: The Secretary of State made a direction on which policies in existing adopted structure plans will be extended on 27 September 2007.
These decisions were made public.
Valuation Office
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many civil penalties have been issued for failing to provide the Valuation Office Agency with information to value properties for business rates. [155681]
John Healey:
Since 18 September 2003 when they were first introduced, 6,585 civil penalty notices have
been issued for failure to provide information requested for non-domestic rating purposes under Paragraph 5 of Schedule 9 to the Local Government Finance Act 1988 (as amended by the Local Government Act 2003).
Valuation Office: Expenditure
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the expenditure by the Valuation Office Agency was in relation to conducting a non-domestic rating assessment of the Big Brother house at Elstree Studios, Shenley Road, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire. [155682]
John Healey: Individual costs relating to the review of a specific property for non-domestic rating are not recorded, nor could they be derived at reasonable cost.
Valuebill XML Schema
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place in the Library a copy of the Valuebill XML schema. [155703]
John Healey: The latest versions (v4.0) of the Valuebill XML schemas are publicly available on
Defence
Afghanistan: Armed Forces
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his assessment is of the strength and capabilities of the (a) Afghan National Army, (b) Afghan National Police and (c) Afghan Auxiliary Police Force. [154243]
Des Browne: The Afghan National Army has approximately 40,000 trained and equipped soldiers and is capable of joint combat operations alongside the international forces deployed in Afghanistan. The Afghan National Police (ANP) is currently 76,000 strong. It is augmented by the 6,000-strong Afghan National Auxiliary Police. Overall, the level of capability is less advanced in the Afghan police services than in the Army.
Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures will be taken to ensure that forward operating bases in Afghanistan are kept supplied with necessary provisions during winter; and if he will make a statement. [154224]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth:
Throughout the winter, forward operating bases (includes patrol bases) in Afghanistan will continue to be supplied in the regular and routine manner in which they have been during other months. Additional measures will be taken to ensure British forces are prepared for the winter conditions. These measures will include issuing a winter clothing
supplement, measures to protect vehicles and equipment, infrastructure checks, and reviews of stock holdings.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the primary method of transport is for supplies into the Afghan theatre. [154227]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: There is no primary method of transporting supplies into the Afghanistan theatre of operation. The UK employs a range of routes via land and air to move supplies into the country.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many incidents of theft have been reported on British military supplies during transit from the port of debarkation in Pakistan to the final destination in Afghanistan since 2001. [154228]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Since October 2006 eight reports of theft have been confirmed. A number of other losses are being investigated, but the exact detail and circumstances of those losses have yet to be confirmed. Information on the number of reported thefts before October 2006 is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many attacks have been made on UK forces in Afghanistan in each month since October 2006. [154244]
Des Browne: The table records the number of attacks instigated by enemy forces on UK forces in Regional Command (South) in Afghanistan. Attack levels will vary according to seasonal factors, planned enemy activity and the operational tempo and movements of UK forces.
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