Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 30 January 2008
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Flood Control: Planning Permission
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to amend the Environment Agency's powers to influence planning decisions relating to sites at risk of flooding. [181107]
Mr. Iain Wright: I have been asked to reply.
There are no proposals to amend the Environment Agency's powers to influence planning decisions on sites at risk of flooding. On 1 October 2006 we made the agency a statutory consultee for development proposals in flood risk areas(1). On 1 January 2007 we introduced a planning direction(2), which prohibits a local authority from granting permission for major development in a flood risk area, to which the agency maintains an objection, without first sending details to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, to consider whether it should be called-in for decision. We believe that these two measures provide the agency with sufficient powers to influence planning decisions on sites at risk of flooding. We will keep under review how these arrangements are working.
(1) The Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) (Amendment) (No.2) (England) Order 2006.
(2) The Town and Country Planning (Flooding) (England) Direction 2007.
Sustainable Development
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the Government’s waste minimisation efforts in light of the recent evidence given by his Department’s Director of Sustainable Consumption to the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee. [176547]
Joan Ruddock: Waste prevention and reuse are key parts of DEFRA’s Waste Strategy for England 2007. The Government are committed to achieving the target in the Strategy of reducing household waste not re-used, recycled or composted from over 22.2 million tonnes in 2000 by 29 per cent. to 15.8 million tonnes in 2010 with an aspiration to reduce it to 12.2 million tonnes in 2020—a reduction of 45 per cent. This is a challenging target, but we are confident that it can be met through measures planned and already in place.
In 2004-05 we had the first ever fall in the overall amount of municipal waste created. In the two years since then, we have seen only a 0.5 per cent. growth—far lower than historic trends.
Waste Disposal: Hazardous Substances
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much hazardous waste was produced in the latest period for which figures are available, broken down by primary source; and if he will make a statement. [183099]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 29 January 2008]: The table shown gives the tonnages of hazardous waste produced in the UK in 2006 (the most recent period for which figures are available), broken down by primary source.
This information is available from the Environment Agency’s website using the free online ‘hazardous waste interrogator’ web-tool.
| Source | Tonnage |
Wales
Aviation
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what (a) first-class and (b) other flights he has taken since 28 June 2007; and on each occasion (i) how many staff travelled with him and (ii) what the cost of the travel was. [182881]
Mr. Paul Murphy: No first-class flights have been taken by the Secretary of State since 28 June 2007.
In November 2007 standard return flights were taken from Cardiff to Belfast, at a total cost of £254.02. One official accompanied the Secretary of State.
Carbon Trust's Carbon Management Programme
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether his Department has adopted the Carbon Trust's Carbon Management Programme. [182940]
Mr. Paul Murphy: My Department has not adopted the Carbon Trust's Carbon Management Programme.
As a small Department we have taken full advantage of the Carbon Trust's small and medium sized Business Toolkit. This resulted in a full Carbon Trust survey and follow up action plan in 2006. All actions points raised have been implemented together
with the introduction of a robust recycling programme.
My Department offset 307.70 tonnes of emissions, through PURE, the Clean Planet Trust, in 2006-07.
The Wales Office is currently establishing a sustainable development strategy to further assist in further reducing emissions.
Departmental Information Officers
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many (a) press and (b) communications officers his Department employed in each of the last 10 years. [182504]
Mr. Paul Murphy: In each year since it’s creation in July 1999, the Wales Office has employed three press and communications officers.
Departmental Recycling
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether his Department is on course to meet the commitment in the Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate targets to increase recycling figures to 40 per cent. of waste by 2010. [182905]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The Wales Office is currently establishing a sustainable development strategy to ensure targets are met.
We already have a robust recycling programme for white paper, mixed paper, cans, glass, plastic, cardboard and shredding. This amounts to 5,913 kgs from April to September 2007.
A system is being implemented to record the weight of rubbish disposed of by the office, to enable the percentage recycled to be calculated. This will enable us to determine whether the target is being met, or whether more needs to be done to ensure that it is.
Official Engagements
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) how many days he spent in Wales on official business in each of the last 12 months; [182865]
(2) what his official engagements were in December 2007. [182866]
Mr. Paul Murphy: Ministers and civil servants meet many people as part of the process of policy development and advice. It is not normal practice to disclose details of such meetings.
Renewable Energy
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether his Department is on course to meet the commitment in the Sustainable Operations on the Government estate targets to source at least 10 per cent. of its electricity from renewables by 31st March 2008. [182904]
Mr. Paul Murphy: The Wales Office receives 100 per cent. of its electricity from renewables.
Olympics
Olympic Games 2012: Aldershot
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what the estimated cost of security is at (a) Olympic Village and (b) Army Training Camp for the GB team at Aldershot (i) prior to the 2012 Games and (ii) during the Games; and from what budget this is charged. [181092]
Tessa Jowell: The Home Secretary is responsible for a safe and secure London 2012 Games. The multi-agency Olympic Security Directorate, headed by the Security Coordinator AC Ghaffur, is coordinating national cross-agency operational safety and security planning.
Security of the Olympic Village during the construction period, including the costs, is the responsibility of the private sector developer and is being fully co-ordinated within the overall security approach. The private sector developer's security costs are a matter for them.
During the operational period of the games LOCOG, working with the Olympic Security Directorate on planning, is responsible for ensuring security of the village and meeting the core costs of delivering this out of its £2 billion privately funded budget.
Members of the Great Britain London 2012 squad, and their support staff, based at Aldershot Garrison in the run-up to the Games, will benefit from the high levels of security inherent in a military site. Additional on-site security measures will be met by the British Olympic Association. The scale of charges that the BOA will pay is a matter for them.
Olympic Games 2012: Consultants
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much has been spent on consultants in preparation for the 2012 Olympics. [180166]
Tessa Jowell: To date the total cost incurred for consultants employed by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in preparation for the 2012 Olympics is £2,400,115. The total expenditure on consultants by the former Olympic Programme Support Unit (OPSU) is £1,167,447. The functions of OPSU were transferred to the DCMS on 14 September 2007.
In my previous answer to the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid-Kent, (Hugh Robertson) dated 16 October 2007, Official Report, column 977W, I stated that £50,494,000 had been spent on consultancies providing core services by the Olympic Delivery Authority in 2006-07. In the financial year 2007-08, to date, a further £94,272,290 has been spent on similar work, central to the delivery of facilities and infrastructure for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. This reflects the increasing pace of the project.
Around £100 million of the total figure relates to contracts with three companies (EDAW, Ove Arup and Atkins) which have been integral in the start-up and development of the ODA, and in delivering the key milestones around planning and preparing the park to enable the programme to be on track and hitting milestones. They have therefore been important partners in the delivery programme.
All ODA expenditure on consultants is within the baseline budget announced in December 2007. This budget was subject to a process of rigorous review to ensure that it was fully aligned with scope, programme and risks, and is subject to monthly monitoring by the Government Olympic Executive.
Olympic Games 2012: Pay
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what the 10 highest salaries are of staff working on preparations for the 2012 Olympics whose salaries are paid from the public purse. [180307]
Tessa Jowell: The following table shows the 2007-08 salaries of the 10 highest paid staff working directly on the preparations for the 2012 Olympics in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) and paid from the public purse. It does not include staff employed by the ODA's Delivery Partner, and the ODA's contractors.
| Position/organisation | ( 1) Salary (£) |
| (1) The figures are for basic salary only, and do not include for any performance related bonuses, taxable benefits and pension contributions. These additional benefits will be calculated at the financial year-end and detailed in the annual reports and accounts of the Department and the ODA which are laid before the House. | |
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |