| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
9 Oct 2008 : Column 753W—continued
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the Answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 30 April 2008, Official Report, column 467W, on waste management: domestic wastes, what the JPP number in the table represents. [222772]
Hilary Benn:
The numbering system was devised to enable easy matching of datasets. As local authority
names are recorded in different ways, e.g. London borough of Camden and Camden, London borough, it was proving difficult to match datasets based on local authority names alone, a process which was facilitated considerably by the numbering system. The letters “JPP” are the initials of the person who devised the system.
Water Charges: Religious Buildings
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will amend guidance to Ofwat on charges for water services for churches and other places of worship so as to reinstate the exemption from such charges that pertained prior to the abolition of rateable value; and if he will make a statement. [213601]
Hilary Benn: Places of public religious worship were traditionally zero rated, and therefore by default were not charged for surface water drainage under the rateable value system of charging.
In 2000 the then Secretary of State issued guidance on matters to be taken into account by Ofwat in agreeing companies’ charging schemes, including charging non-household users that are not businesses, including places of worship, community facilities, charities and voluntary bodies. The guidance stated that those making similar demands on a service should be charged on the same basis. It also made clear that where premises impose customer-related costs in line with or lower than those of typical households, they should be able to benefit from tariffs which reflect their small demand on the water system. It also stated that the phasing in of any large, sudden changes in charges should be considered.
Ministers are currently reviewing the impact of these changes.
Weedkillers
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2008, Official Report, column 435W, on manure, what steps his Department has taken to inform suppliers, farmers, allotment holders and gardeners of the risks associated with the use of aminopyralid. [222377]
Hilary Benn: The Pesticides Safety Directorate has issued information to a wide range of interested parties, including those holding pesticide approvals and those representing growers, suppliers and consumer and environmental interests. The directorate has also liaised closely on this matter with the National Society for Allotment and Leisure Gardeners and the Royal Horticultural Society. Information about aminopyralid is available on the directorate's website.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2008, Official Report, column 435W, on manure, what assessment he has made of the risk of further contamination of crops during the next growing season. [222378]
Hilary Benn:
The Pesticides Safety Directorate suspended authorisations for the sale, supply and use of aminopyralid products from 23 July 2008, while it carries out further
investigations into this problem. The suspension will not be lifted unless I am confident that the risks from contaminated manure can be effectively managed.
As regards unused manure, advice has been issued to ensure that it rots down fully and is fit for use in the next few years; or it can be disposed of as waste. Advice has also been issued on handling affected plots to speed up the decomposition of the grass in the manure. For example rotavating or digging over affected plots a number of times and ensuring the manure is turned readily. Providing this advice is followed, the risk to next year's crops should be low.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2008, Official Report, column 435W, on manure, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the precautions taken by (a) the suppliers and (b) the end-users of aminopyralid to ensure that it did not contaminate manure. [222379]
Hilary Benn: It is recognised that manure may become contaminated by aminopyralid following the approved use of products which contain this substance. The labels of such products therefore include conditions regarding the use of manure, to avoid damage to other crops. That other crops appear to have been damaged by manure contaminated with aminopyralid indicates that these conditions may not have been observed in all cases. The Pesticides Safety Directorate suspended authorisations for the sale, supply and use of aminopyralid products from 23 July 2008, while it carries out further investigations into this problem.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2008, Official Report, column 435W, on manure, which herbicides have (a) been granted provisional authorisation, (b) been refused provisional authorisation, (c) been granted full authorisation, (d) had provisional authorisation rescinded and (e) had full authorisation rescinded. [222380]
Hilary Benn: The following products containing aminopyralid have been given provisional authorisation:
| Approval Holder | Product Name | MAPP Number |
In each case, the authorisation was amended with effect from 23 July 2008 to suspend approval for sale, supply and use. Approval for storage remains extant.
No products have been refused provisional authorisation, or been granted full authorisation, or had provisional or full authorisation rescinded.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2008, Official Report, column 435W, on manure, in what circumstances his Department would rescind a provisional authorisation for a herbicide. [222381]
Hilary Benn: Provisional authorisation would be rescinded if the requirements for obtaining that authorisation were not, or were no longer satisfied; or if it was granted on the basis of false or misleading information; or at the request of the authorisation holder.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2008, Official Report, column 435W, on manure, what further stages of approval aminopyralid will be subject to before it may be fully approved. [222383]
Hilary Benn: Aminopyralid must be approved for use in the European Community and included in Annex I to Council Directive 91/414/EEC, following which products which contain it must be re-registered in accordance with the conditions of that approval. If aminopyralid is not approved for use within the Community, all extant provisional authorisations will be withdrawn.
Wildlife: Conservation
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps the Government have taken to enforce legislation protecting wildlife. [221829]
Hilary Benn: The Government remain committed to tackling wildlife crime. Earlier this year they committed funding for the UK National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) to secure its future for the next three years. This will enable the unit to further professionalise the enforcement of wildlife legislation, through: gathering information and evidence to compile an annual assessment of wildlife crime in the UK; gathering and analysing intelligence in support of the UK's wildlife crime priorities; and providing direct assistance to individual police and customs officers through its investigative support officers.
All incidents of wildlife crime in England and Wales are required to be recorded by the police service under the National Standard for Incident Recording, which should enable enforcers to have a better understanding of the level of wildlife crime taking place.
The Government also strengthened police powers to investigate offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the Destructive Imported Animals Act 1932, the Conservation of Seals Act 1970, the Deer Act 1991 and the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, through the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.
In April this year, the Government updated their response to the Environmental Audit Committee's 2004 report of its inquiry into wildlife crime. The update gives full information about the Government's activities in this area and is available on request from the House of Commons Library.
Wildlife: National Parks
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps the Government have taken to maintain wildlife stocks in the national parks. [221827]
Hilary Benn: National parks play an important role in wildlife conservation and have already made a significant contribution for priority species and habitats under the UK Biodiversity Action Plan. National park authorities have been collaborating with Natural England for some years to tackle issues such as overgrazing and burning on upland sites of special scientific interest. They will continue to work together to ensure the National parks' contribution to biodiversity conservation is delivered in an exemplary way.
Wood: Waste Disposal
Mr. Olner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the merits of the recommendations for incinerating waste wood put forward in his Department's research and development project on carbon balances and energy impacts of the management of UK wastes. [222495]
Hilary Benn: The findings of the study helped to inform the conclusion, set out in our waste strategy in May 2007, that wood has relatively low embodied energy (energy consumed in extraction) but high calorific value. While for some kinds of wood waste re-use or recycling are better options, its use as a fuel generally conveys a greater greenhouse gas benefit than recovering the material as a resource (and avoiding primary production).
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he plans to consult recyclers of waste wood on the recommendations for incinerating waste wood put forward in his Department's project on carbon balances and energy impacts of the management of UK wastes. [222852]
Hilary Benn: DEFRA has a project to take forward the policy on waste wood set out in the Waste Strategy 2007. As an initial step, DEFRA published an information report ‘Waste Wood as a Biomass Fuel’ in April 2008, prepared in consultation with waste wood recyclers and other stakeholders.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Afghanistan: Entry Clearances
Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he plans to extend the scheme of entry clearance operating for locally employed staff in Iraq to similar staff in Afghanistan. [225526]
Bill Rammell:
The Iraq scheme was introduced in the context of a particular set of difficult circumstances including significant violence and intimidation of our
Iraqi locally-engaged staff. There are no current requirements, and therefore no plans to extend the scheme to staff in Afghanistan at present, although this is kept under review. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is doing everything it can to discharge its duty of care to all staff serving in Afghanistan, within the constraints of the environment in which it operates.
Bell Pottinger
Mr. Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what occasions representatives of Bell Pottinger or Chime Communications have requested advice from his Department in relation to whether they should provide public affairs or public relations services to foreign Governments. [202352]
David Miliband: Many UK companies make contact with Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff in the UK and in our embassies overseas for advice on their operations overseas. We do not keep central records of all these contacts.
Georgia: Overseas Residence
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government have taken to ensure the safety of Britons in Georgia. [225399]
Caroline Flint: As for all countries, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office offers guidance for British nationals in Georgia and those thinking of travelling to Georgia through our travel advice. Our embassy in Tbilisi, like all of our overseas missions, has emergency plans to ensure that British nationals are offered an appropriate level of assistance. In most cases this assistance will be offered through our travel advice and responding to inquiries. If necessary, we would consider reinforcing our embassy to assist the embassy in offering the necessary assistance to British nationals.
Health
Lung Cancer: Screening
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of proposals received for a feasibility study and trial development for a United Kingdom-based screening programme for lung cancer; and what further steps he plans to take. [224579]
Dawn Primarolo: Following a call for proposals made earlier this year, the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment Programme has now commissioned a feasibility study and trial protocol development for a United Kingdom based screening programme for lung cancer utilising low dose computerised tomography. The six-month study will start once the necessary contracts have been signed.
Hepatitis
Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people newly-diagnosed with the hepatitis C virus in each of the last 10 years. [225271]
Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is shown in the following table.
| Laboratory reports of hepatitis C received by the Health Protection Agency—England: 1997 to 2007 | |
| Number of laboratory reports( 1) | |
| (1) Corrected annual totals at August 2008. All annual totals have been revised to take into account an updated routine to remove reports, which relate to the same patient. Laboratory reports of hepatitis C are newly diagnosed cases of both current and past infections. This is because present serological tests are not able to differentiate between current acute and chronic hepatitis C infections, or between current and past hepatitis C infections. (2) Provisional total. Source: Health Protection Agency (HPA) | |
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |