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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 16 October 1990
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Advisory Committee on Education and Conduct
Mr. Arbuthnot : To ask the Attorney-General whether the Lord Chancellor has decided whom he proposes to appoint as chairman of the Lord Chancellor's advisory committee on education and conduct.
The Attorney-General : I am pleased to say that, subject to the Courts and Legal Services Bill receiving Parliament's approval, the right hon. the Lord Griffiths MC has accepted the Lord Chancellor's invitation to serve as chairman of the Lord Chancellor's advisory committee on legal education and conduct.
TRANSPORT
A249
Mr. Moate : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is the date for the public inquiry into the dualling of the A249.
Mr. Chope : A public inquiry into my Department's proposals for the A249 Iwade bypass--Bobbing to Kingsferry Bridge--is to start at 10 am on 20 November at Kemsley concert hall, Ridham avenue, Kemsley, near Sittingbourne. A pre-inquiry meeting is fixed for 23 October at the same venue. All those who have expressed an interest will receive personal notification.
Mr. Moate : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he intends to publish the draft orders for the dualling of the A249 from the M2 Stockbury viaduct to the A2 at Bobbing.
Mr. Chope : My Department hopes to publish formal proposals for the A249--M20 to Bobbing improvement--on 19 October 1990.
Personal Data
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department will take positive steps to discuss with the Data Protection Registrar all his Department's legislation that impacts on the use, collection, processing or holding of personal data ; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr. Chope : The Department's officials are aware of the need to consult the registrar about proposed legislation which might affect or be affected by the Data Protection Act 1984.
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British Rail
Mr. Wray : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many British Rail trains operated by fuel-burning locomotives use each day on average the railway systems of (a) the north London link line, (b) Greater Glasgow and (c) the Strathclyde region.
Mr. Freeman : This is an operational matter for British Rail.
Waterloo--Exeter Line
Sir David Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information he has about progress in re-equipping the Waterloo-Exeter line.
Mr. Freeman : I understand that British Rail is considering the use of some of the class 158 vehicles currently in production, with suitable modifications, for this line in order to replace the present rolling stock as quickly as possible. It might thus be possible to have vehicles in service in about 18 months' time.
A13 (Newham Intersection)
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport by what date he expects to publish one or more plans for public consultation for a grade intersection between Prince Regents lane and Newham way (A13) ; and from what date he expects to be able to purchase affected property by voluntary agreement.
Mr. Chope [holding answer 15 October 1990] : A public consultation on options for placing Newham way in an underpass beneath Prince Regents lane was held at Newham leisure centre on 12 and 13 October. A questionnaire was available there, and from Newham council offices and the borough library. Respondents have been asked to comment by 9 November. A preferred option will be selected in the light of these comments and it is hoped to publish draft orders by the autumn of next year.
Any requests to purchase property in cases involving hardship will be considered by the Department.
Holloway Road, London
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to introduce red routes to the A1 Holloway road ; and what has been the response to his consultation exercise on this.
Mr. Chope [holding answer 15 October 1990] : The consultation exercise brought helpful responses from many individuals, businesses, interested groups, and organisations, and they are now being considered. I hope to make an announcement shortly.
ENVIRONMENT
Chemical Industry
Mr. Ted Garrett : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if his Department has considered an application for an exhibition in the Upper Waiting Hall in the Palace of Westminster relating to "The Chemical Industry : Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow".
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Mr. Trippier : I understand that, under procedures agreed by the Services Committee, arrangements have been made with the authorities of the House for the exhibition to be held in the Upper Waiting Hall from 15 to 19 October.Sport and Recreation
Mr. Sayeed : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he will publish a draft planning policy guidance note on sport and recreation.
Mr. Atkins : My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State and the Secretary of State for Wales have today published a planning policy guidance note on sport and recreation in draft for public consultation.
The Government attach great importance to the retention of adequate recreational open space in urban areas. The planning system needs to ensure that adequate land is and continues to be allocated for organised sport and informal recreation. The draft PPG asks local planning authorities to ensure that their policies address local needs, protect valuable sites and identify suitable sites for new provision.
It is particularly important to retain sufficient recreational open space in urban areas to avoid "town cramming". The draft advises local authorities about means of safeguarding open spaces while providing for necessary development.
The PPG also addresses the issues raised by Lord Justice Taylor in his report on the Hillsborough stadium disaster. It is the Government's intention that all first and second division grounds shall be all-seated by the 1994-95 season and third and fourth division grounds by the 1999-2000 season. The draft requests local planning authorities to give sympathetic consideration to development proposals designed to meet these objectives.
Tree Preservation
Mr. Arbuthnot : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make a statement on the review of tree preservation policies and legislation.
Mr. Heathcoat-Amory : On 2 October we published a report by Mr. James Batho commissioned by us as part of that review. I have arranged for copies of the report to be placed in the Library of the House, together with my statement which accompanied its issue. The Government accept that the tree preservation order system should be maintained in broadly its present form. We plan to issue a consultation paper later this year with detailed proposals to clarify and streamline current procedures, aimed at enhancing their general effectiveness. We also welcome the report's recommendation that local authorities should have a new power to make hedgerow management orders to protect important hedgerows in their areas, with payments to owners to assist upkeep. Further details will be given in the forthcoming consultation paper.
Oxides of Nitrogen
Mr Bendall : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when the United Kingdom will ratify the Sofia protocol on emission of oxides of nitrogen.
Mr. Trippier : The Government have today ratified the NOx protocol. This commits the United Kingdom to
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return overall emissions of oxides of nitrogen to 1987 levels by 1994 from all sources. It also commits us to develop further programmes for longer-term reductions based on critical loads. This important step emphasises our determination to deal with both acid rain and ground-level ozone.Museums and Galleries (Property Transfer) Mr. Summerson : To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment why a Treasury minute was not laid before Parliament before the transfer of freehold and leasehold property to the trustees of certain museums and galleries took place.
Mr. Key : In 1986 the Office of Arts and Libraries conducted a review into the relationship between the Property Services Agency and certain museums and galleries. This concluded that these organisations should be untied from PSA for their works services. When the recommendations of this report were being implemented it was decided that the most logical way forward would be for transfers to be made to the trustees of these organisations of the freehold and leasehold properties that they were then occupying rent free. This would remove any remaining element of PSA control. Ministers agreed that these transfers should take place at nil charge as the trustees were not being presented with any assets that they did not already have the use of. The trustees' powers to dispose of property are of course subject to legislative and other constraints.
During 1988-89 and 1989-90, 16 such properties were transferred. The value of 13 of these is approximately £53 million ; the other three properties have not yet been valued. Two further properties have been transferred in the current financial year. However, under established procedures, transfers at less than market value, which technically constitute gifts, should be notified to Parliament before they are made. It is normal practice in such cases for the Department proposing to make the gift to arrange with the Treasury for a minute to be presented to the House of Commons giving the particulars of the gift and explaining the circumstances in which it is being made and for the Treasury's assent to the gift to be withheld for 14 days, excluding Saturdays and Sundays, after the issue of the minute except in cases of special urgency.
I very much regret that the correct procedures were not observed in making the transfers of these properties. A further 40 or so properties remain to be transferred to the relevant trustees. Since 1 April 1990 these transfers have become the responsibility of the Office of Arts and Libraries which will arrange for the Treasury minutes to be presented to the House before any further transfers are made.
WALES
Mid-Wales Development
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement concerning his policies for mid-Wales.
Mr. David Hunt : Government policies are directed towards the establishment of a thriving and self-sustaining economy in mid-Wales. The Development Board for Rural Wales has the principal responsibility for the
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economic regeneration of the area, and its "Strategy for the 1990s" sets out the board's future intentions for mid- Wales. Apart from the DBRW, other sources of economic and industrial assistance are available to mid-Wales through the WDA, WTB and central Government.Laura Ashley
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will meet the Development Board for Rural Wales concerning the proposed job losses at the Laura Ashley company.
Sir Wyn Roberts : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that my right hon. Friend gave him on 15 October.
Job Losses (Clwyd)
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what measures he will take in Clwyd to counteract the loss of jobs at Brymbo steelworks, Corning at Wrexham and Laura Ashley at Leeswood; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The WDA will take these job losses in Clwyd into account in planning its future activities. We are in close and regular touch with the chairman of the agency on this and other matters.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT
Tibet
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to assist environmental protection in Tibet.
Mrs. Chalker : To date the Government have received no official request for assistance with environmental protection in Tibet.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Peacetime Emergencies
Mr. Hague : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has received the report from the civil emergencies adviser, Mr David Brook, on the role of local authorities in planning for peacetime emergencies ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Waddington : I have received Mr Brook's advice and will be considering it in conjunction with the review I have initiated of the options for the future of civil defence arrangements in the light of developments in east-west relations. This will enable me to consider whether a more coherent approach to emergency planning for the protection of the public in both peace and war can be achieved. I shall--together with my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland, who has also received Mr Brook's report--announce proposals in due course.
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TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Trade Statistics
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he will publish in the Official Report a list of finished consumer goods whose exports have more than doubled since 1985, together with the percentage increase in imports and in United Kingdom output.
Mr. Sainsbury : On the basis of trade analysed in terms of the industries of which they are the principal product, consumer goods industries whose exports have more than doubled in value since 1985 are shown in the table, together with the corresponding percentage increase in imports and output.