| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
21 July 2008 : Column 754W—continued
Waste Disposal: Fees and Charges
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what guidance (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme has provided to waste collection authorities on the use of fixed penalty fines against households who put their rubbish out for collection the evening before the day of collection; [217795]
(2) what advice (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme has provided to waste collection authorities on fining households who put the wrong items into their recycling boxes; and under what statutory provisions waste collection authorities issue fixed penalty notices for such activities; [217808]
(3) what guidance (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme has provided to waste collection authorities on using private companies to issue waste penalty notices. [217846]
Joan Ruddock: Under section 46 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA), local authorities can issue residents with a notice specifying requirements as to the collection of household waste receptacles. These requirements may include the specifics of how and when to present the receptacles for collection, or the articles which must be placed in the receptacles. It is an offence for somebody to fail to comply with these requirements.
Section 47ZA of the EPA allows local authorities to issue fixed penalty notices for offences under section 46. These fixed penalty notices can be issued by the following people:
(a) an employee of the authority who is authorised in writing by the authority for the purposes of giving notices;
(b) any person who, in pursuance of arrangements made with the authority, has the function of giving such notices and is authorised in writing by the authority to perform that function; and
(c) any employee of such a person who is authorised in writing by the authority for the purposes of giving such notices.
DEFRA’s guidance on fixed penalty notices explains that where local authorities authorise contractors to carry out enforcement activities, they should ensure that background checks are carried out to determine their suitability and capability. It is important that contractors receive adequate training and have a full understanding of any locally set procedures or policies before they begin to issue fixed penalties. The published guidance can be found on the DEFRA website.
The Flycapture Enforcement Course also includes a module on the issuing of fixed penalty notices for waste offences.
The Waste and Resources Action Programme has not issued any guidance in this regard.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what powers waste collection authorities have to charge (a) domestic households and (b) waste producers classified by schedule 2 of the controlled Waste Regulations 1992 for recycling collections. [217800]
Joan Ruddock: A waste collection authority is entitled to charge for the collection of waste from all schedule 2 sources. Whether or not the authority recycles the material collected is a matter for the authority.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what penalties may be imposed on householders for non-payment of charges for the delivery of waste receptacles. [217810]
Joan Ruddock: Section 46(1) allows the waste collection authority to specify the type and number of receptacles to be used for waste collection.
When making a requirement under section 46(1), section 46(3) allows the authority to either:
(a) determine that receptacles be provided by the authority free of charge;
(b) propose that receptacles be provided by the authority on payment, either singly or periodically, by the occupier, provided the occupier agrees;
(c) require the occupier to provide them if he does not enter into an agreement under paragraph (b); or
(d) require the occupier to provide them.
There are no penalties an authority can impose for non-payment of charges for the delivery of waste receptacles. However, non-payment can be pursued as a civil debt.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether householders resident in areas serviced by a waste collection authority which charges for the provision of waste receptacles are permitted to provide their own waste receptacles. [217811]
Joan Ruddock: Section 46(1) allows the waste collection authority to specify the type and number of receptacles to be used for waste collection.
When making a requirement under section 46(1), section 46(3) allows the authority to either:
(a) determine that receptacles be provided by the authority free of charge;
(b) propose that receptacles be provided by the authority on payment, either singly or periodically, by the occupier, provided the occupier agrees;
(c) require the occupier to provide them if he does not enter into an agreement under paragraph (b); or
(d) require the occupier to provide them.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many local authorities have expressed an interest in levying charges for the collection of household waste; and how many such expressions were made by (a) elected councillors and (b) council staff. [217812]
Joan Ruddock: No authorities have yet come forward to formally express an interest in participating in a pilot waste incentive scheme. I wrote to local authorities on 20 June inviting them to come forward, with a deadline for submitting final proposals to run pilots of eight weeks after Royal Assent to the Climate Change Bill. I noted in that letter that we will release the names of any authorities which come forward with formal expressions of interest at that time.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the maximum penalty is that may be levied against a household for non-payment of charges for the collection of household rubbish. [217814]
Joan Ruddock:
A waste collection authority may only charge for collection of those materials that are covered by schedule 2 of the controlled waste regulations (CWR). It is up to the authority to decide whether it recovers the
charge before, during or after it provides the service. An authority would be free to use the usual methods it employs for debt recovery in those cases where a householder had refused to pay. There is no provision in the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to penalise households that refuse to pay for waste collected under schedule 2 of the CWR.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects the pilots for the new charges for the collection of household rubbish to begin. [217816]
Joan Ruddock: As I explained to the CLG Select Committee in December during its evidence session on local government finance (waste), and subsequently, we would not anticipate pilot waste incentive schemes beginning before April 2009.
It will be for local authorities wishing to run pilots to come forward with proposals for when schemes could begin in their areas. I wrote to local authorities on 20 June inviting them to come forward, with a deadline for submitting final proposals to run pilots of eight weeks after Royal Assent to the Climate Change Bill.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the gross costs to (a) his Department and (b) participating local authorities of the pilots for the new charges for the collection of household rubbish. [217817]
Joan Ruddock: As explained in my written statement to Parliament on 15 November 2007, and subsequently, the Department has up to £1.5 million per year for the next three years to help support pilot waste incentive schemes.
The impact assessment of powers to pilot incentives, also published on DEFRA's website on 15 November 2007, estimates costs and savings for local authorities piloting a waste incentive scheme. One-off start-up costs for a 50,000 household scheme are estimated at £100,000 to £200,000, annual running costs at £200,000 to £500,000. Savings accruing to local authorities for a 50,000 household scheme (from having less waste to collect, treat and dispose of) are estimated at £290,000 to £1.4 million per annum.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how long the pilot schemes for the new charges for the collection of household rubbish are expected to last. [219022]
Joan Ruddock: It will be for local authorities wishing to run a pilot waste incentive scheme to propose how long the scheme should run for in their, area. However, pilot schemes will need to run for long enough to provide high quality, robust evidence for the report back to Parliament.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department has spent to date on (a) planning, (b) piloting, (c) consultancy, (d) publicity and (e) research into (i) variable charging for the collection of household waste and (ii) proposed charging schemes for the collection of household waste. [219077]
Joan Ruddock: My Department funded a research project carried out by Eunomia Research and Consulting, entitled “Modelling the Impact of Household Charging for Waste in England”, at a cost of £41,614.83. This report was published on DEFRA’s website in May 2007.
My Department also purchased data on the distributional impacts of waste charging in Flanders, at a cost of £2,166.40. These were used to inform the Impact Assessment of powers to pilot local authority incentives for household waste minimisation and recycling. The Impact Assessment was published on 15 November 2007 and is also available from DEFRA’s website.
My Department employs 0.5 full-time equivalent (FTE) Grade 7, 1 FTE HEO(D) and 0.75 FTE AO to work on the Government’s proposals for waste incentive pilot schemes.
Water: Fees and Charges
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the independent review of water charges and tariffs announced in the Future Water Strategy will commence; who will lead the review; what the review's terms of reference will be; and when the review is planned to report. [220165]
Mr. Woolas: We will be making an announcement about the review shortly.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to reply to question 206802, tabled by the hon. Member for Havant on 25 May 2008, on apprenticeships in his Department. [216604]
Jonathan Shaw: I replied to the hon. Member on 9 July 2008, Official Report, column 1585W.
Prime Minister
Departmental Sick Pay
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister how much sick pay to staff in his office cost in the last five years for which figures are available. [212007]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich, East, (Mr. Watson) on 8 July 2008, Official Report, column 1571W.
Intelligence Services
Mr. Baron: To ask the Prime Minister what reports he has made to the Cabinet Secretary to ensure that any intelligence material put in the public domain should be properly verified and validated; when he made the request; and if he will place a record of the request in the public domain. [220512]
The Prime Minister:
I refer the hon. Member to the conclusions within the ‘Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction’ (HC 898), the oral statement
made by my predecessor (Mr. Blair) on 14 July 2004, Official Report, column 1431, and the Government's response the ‘Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction: Implementation of its Conclusions’ (Cm 6492).
Communities and Local Government
Arm’s Length Management Organisation
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) arm’s length management organisations (ALMOs) there are; and how many houses each ALMO manages. [219870]
Mr. Iain Wright: There are 70 arm’s length management organisations (ALMOs). The following table lists the ALMOs and the dwellings they manage.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |