| Previous Section | Back to Table of Contents | Lords Hansard Home Page |
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA245
Written Answers
Thursday 13 March 2008
Armed Forces: Healthcare
Lord Astor of Hever asked Her Majesty's Government:
What processes and structures are in place for the Ministry of Defence to learn lessons from its experiences in treating injured service personnel at the National Health Service Selly Oak Hospital. [HL2024]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): This issue was raised in the House of Commons Defence Select Committee report Medical Care for the Armed Forces, published on 18 February. The Government are currently considering the committee's recommendations and will submit their formal response to the committee within the next two months. However, we continue to address lessons to be learnt in all aspects of the patient care pathway for injured service personnel, through in particular the work that was initiated by the appointment of a Standing Joint Commander (Medical), to which the committee referred in its report. Ministers are advised regularly by the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Health) and the Surgeon General on the progress of that work, and aspects of it have been reviewed as necessary by the Chiefs of Staff and the Service Personnel Board. There is also regular liaison and review with NHS staff through the Trust Clinical Governance Committee.
Lord Astor of Hever asked Her Majesty's Government:
How the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine is engaged with the Birmingham New Hospitals project; and when the dedicated military areas that form part of this project are expected to be completed. [HL2025]
Baroness Taylor of Bolton: This issue was raised in the House of Commons Defence Select Committee report Medical Care for the Armed Forces, published on 18 February. The Government are currently considering the committee's recommendations and will submit their formal response to the committee within the next two months. However, the new hospital project of the University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust will deliver a range of new facilities, including for the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, from 2010 onwards and is making excellent progress towards completion. The RCDM is in discussion with the trust about our detailed requirements and the timetable for the occupation of the proposed military areas of the new hospital.
Lord Astor of Hever asked Her Majesty's Government:
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA246
Baroness Taylor of Bolton: This issue was raised in the House of Commons Defence Select Committee report Medical Care for the Armed Forces, published on 18 February. The Government are currently considering the committee's recommendations and will submit their formal response to the committee within the next two months. However, it remains the intention of the Midland Medical Accommodation project to co-locate key elements of the Defence Medical Services at Whittington Barracks, Lichfield. The project is still in the assessment phase, but we hope to reach a decision on the next steps before the summer.
Crime: Fuel Laundering
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many people were charged with fuel laundering or related offences during 2007; and how many were convicted. [HL2291]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The number of people charged with fuel laundering or related offences during 2007 is five. This is a national figure and includes both charging at a police station and by way of information and summons. The number of persons convicted of fuel laundering or related offences during 2007 is three, only two of whom were both charged and convicted in 2007.
The number of people convicted in relation to hydrocarbon oils fraud in mainland Great Britain and Northern Ireland during 2007-08 will be published in the HMRC autumn performance report later this year.
Divorce (Religious Marriages) Act
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 3 March (WA 154), whether they will initiate discussions about the possible application of the powers conferred by Section 1 of the Divorce (Religious Marriages) Act 2002 to religions other than Judaism. [HL2305]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): I refer the noble Lord to my Answer on 3 March. It is for a religious community itself to decide to make use of the provisions of the Act and then ask the Lord Chancellor to prescribe the religious group for that purpose.
Duty-free Allowances
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether there is a de minimis threshold to the amount of customs duty collected from individual travellers entering the United Kingdom from outside the European Union with more than £145 worth of goods. [HL2197]
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA247
Lord Davies of Oldham: The monetary allowance, which currently stands at £145, applies to travellers entering the United Kingdom from non-EU countries. If the allowance is exceeded, the goods must be declared on arrival in the UK and are liable to UK VAT and any customs duty on the full value of the goods. However, EU legislation provides for a de minimis threshold of €10 (approximately £7), below which customs duty need not be collected.
EU: Subsidiarity
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answers by the Lord President on 24 January (WA 62—3) and 18 February (WA 13), what are their reasons for not envisaging circumstances in which there would be a divergence of view as between Parliament and Government as to whether to initiate proceedings before the European Court of Justice objecting to draft European Union legislation on subsidiarity grounds. [HL2032]
The Lord President of the Council (Baroness Ashton of Upholland): I refer the noble Lord to the Answers I gave to him on 18 February (Official Report, cols. WA 12-13).
The Government always endeavour to work closely with Parliament and in particular with the Select Committees of both Houses on EU affairs, and always listen carefully to Parliament's views.
The Government have made clear that they will listen to views on this subject carefully and positively. But the Lisbon treaty does not create separate standing for national Parliaments before the court, nor does it create an obligation on the Government. We will need to ensure robust processes are in place to make sure this works in practice. The Government remain open on the precise modalities and will ensure discussion and agreement on this before the Lisbon treaty comes into force.
Lord Lester of Herne Hill asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answers by the Lord President on 24 January (WA 62—3) and 18 February (WA 13), whose wishes would prevail in the event of a disagreement between Parliament and Government as to whether to initiate proceedings before the European Court of Justice objecting to draft European Union legislation on subsidiarity grounds, under the terms of Article 8 of the Protocol to the Lisbon Treaty. [HL2033]
Baroness Ashton of Upholland: I refer the noble Lord to the Answers I gave to him on 18 February (Official Report, cols. WA 12-13).
The Government always endeavour to work closely with Parliament and in particular with the Select Committees of both Houses on EU affairs, and always listen carefully to Parliament's views.
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA248
The Government have made clear that they will listen to views on this subject carefully and positively. But the Lisbon treaty does not create separate standing for national Parliaments before the court, nor does it create an obligation on the Government. We will need to ensure robust processes are in place to make sure this works in practice. The Government remain open on the precise modalities and will ensure discussion and agreement on this before the Lisbon treaty comes into force.
Families
Lord Kirkwood of Kirkhope asked Her Majesty's Government:
What further steps they propose to provide assistance for working-age families without children. [HL2310]
Lord Davies of Oldham: The Government support people without children who are on low incomes and working full-time primarily through the working tax credit (WTC). Together with the national minimum wage, tax credits have enabled the Government to guarantee minimum levels of income and tax credits entitlement for full-time workers.
The national minimum wage in 1999, which has brought to an end the long-term trend of wages at the bottom of the income distribution growing more slowly than the average. On 5 March, the Government announced that all the rates of the national minimum wage would be increasing from October 2008, including the adult rate, which will increase from £5.52 to £5.73.
This means, for instance, that from October 2008, a single person, aged 25 or over, who is in full-time work will have a combined weekly income and tax credit entitlement of at least £189.
Further decisions on the national minimum wage will take place after the Low Pay Commission next reports, in spring 2009. Further decisions on the working tax credit will take place on the usual Budget and Pre-Budget Report timetable.
Gold
Lord Marlesford asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the value at the current market price of the United Kingdom's official gold reserves; on what dates since May 1989 sales of these reserves have taken place; and how much was made from each of those sales. [HL2200]
Lord Davies of Oldham: Data on the physical stock of gold and its current value are available on the Bank of England website at http://213.225.136.206/statistics/reserves/Tempoutput.xls.
395 tonnes of gold were sold from the reserves between July 1999 and March 2002. The proceeds were in dollars, and details of the auctions can be found on page 27 of Review of the Sale of Part of the
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA249
Gypsies and Travellers
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
What representations they have received from Gypsies and Travellers on the proposal that the Mobile Homes Act 1983 should be applied to local authority Gypsy sites; and whether they will consider making it a requirement that the landlord should only agree to the sale or transfer of a mobile home to a person other than a near relation of the existing tenant where a majority of the other residents on the site have given their consent to it. [HL2399]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): The Department for Communities and Local Government has held a number of consultation events with Gypsies and Travellers and local authorities on the application of the Mobile Homes Act 1983 to local authority Gypsy and Traveller sites. The discussion at these events will inform a consultation paper on the implementation of the 1983 Act in respect of these sites, which will be published later in the spring.
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether local authorities have power to demand Section 106 contributions in advance from persons applying for planning permission to develop Gypsy sites. [HL2401]
Baroness Andrews: Planning obligations under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 can be used to secure the implementation of a planning policy in order to make acceptable a proposal for a Gypsy and Traveller site which would otherwise be unacceptable in planning terms. This could include securing a contribution towards infrastructure needed to mitigate the impacts of that development.
Planning obligations are usually negotiated in the context of planning applications and should be sought by local planning authorities only if they meet all of the Secretary of State's policy tests set out in ODPM Circular 05/2005 Planning Obligations. Developers may also enter voluntarily into unilateral undertakings at any time.
Planning obligations and unilateral undertakings are legal agreements and are usually drafted so that they come into effect at a time when planning permission is granted, and may provide that they are not enforceable until the developer implements the permission for which the planning obligation has been entered into.
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA250
Health: Hydrotherapy
Baroness Thomas of Winchester asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many hydrotherapy pools there are per person in the United Kingdom; and how this compares to other European countries. [HL2402]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): This information is not held centrally. It is for primary care trusts to commission health services locally.
Health: Macular Degeneration
Lord Morris of Manchester asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Darzi of Denham on 4 March (WA 168—9) about the decision to deny Mr Jack Tagg a course of ranibizumab (Lucentis), what account was taken of his service in the Armed Forces; and whether the handling of this case is consistent with the statement made by the Secretary of State for Health, Mr Alan Johnson, on priority treatment for such patients. [HL2355]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): As per my Written Answer of 4 March (Official Report, cols. WA 168-9, decisions to fund treatments are made by primary care trusts in consultation with the healthcare professionals who are best placed to decide on the most appropriate treatments for their patients. I understand that Torbay Care Trust has now offered to fund Mr Tagg's treatment.
The noble Lord may wish to raise any further concerns regarding Mr Tagg's case with the chief executive of Torbay Care Trust.
More generally, war veterans should receive priority access to National Health Service secondary care for conditions which are likely to be related to their past service. This does not mean that a war veteran will be offered treatments that are not also offered to others in the locality.
Housing: Flood Plains
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to representations made by the Countryside Alliance and similar campaigning groups on the number of new homes being planned for construction on flood plains. [HL2251]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): We are aware of representations made by the Countryside Alliance and others about housing and other development being built on floodplains. The Government's policy, set out in Planning Policy
13 Mar 2008 : Column WA251
However, the Government recognise that it will not always be possible to find locations for development at low flood risk. Around 10 per cent of England by land area, population and housing stock already lies within flood risk areas. There are large areas and towns and cities, for example in eastern England, where virtually all land is within high flood risk areas, with few sites for development in lower risk areas. PPS25 requires that any development that is needed in flood risk areas should be safe, should not increase flood risk and, where possible, reduce the overall risk through good design and layout of development on the site.
Lord Maginnis of Drumglass asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have received information from the 153 local authorities which have indicated that, of 2,105,449 houses planned for construction, 135,688 will be built in areas of high flood risk; and what steps they are taking to deal with potential future widespread flooding; and [HL2341]
Whether 56 out of 209 local authorities are unaware which planned developments of new homes are likely to be on flood plains or land at high risk of flooding; and, if so, how they intend to increase their awareness. [HL2342]
Baroness Andrews: The Government are aware of data provided by the Countryside Alliance on proposed housing development in areas of high flood risk. The data are set out in correspondence which is currently being considered by my department.
| Next Section | Back to Table of Contents | Lords Hansard Home Page |