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Granny Annexes (Council Tax)
Mr. David Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement about the assessment of granny annexes for council tax purposes. [9857]
Mr. Gummer: Under current legislation, if a building or part of a building, such as a granny annex, is a self-contained unit of living accommodation, then it is assessed for council tax purposes as a separate dwelling.
In some circumstances, this means that families whose dependent relatives live with them may face two council tax bills, one for each part of their property.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales and I now propose to amend these rules, so that in future a self-contained unit within a single property will not be treated as a separate dwelling if it is occupied by an elderly or disabled member of the family living in the rest of the property. This will relieve the burden which presently falls on some families who have chosen to provide support for close family members under the same roof with a measure of independence.
Mr. Congdon:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what proposals he has to change his Department's cash limits for 1996-97. [9947]
Mr. Curry:
The DOE/LACAP (local authority capital) non-voted cash limit will be increased by £3,529,000 from £1,741,558,000 to £1,745,087,000. The increase is due to the take-up of end-year flexibility for supplementary credit approvals to local authorities to enable funding of
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additional cash incentive scheme grants. The EYF entitlement of £4,105,000 announced by the Chief Secretary on 12 July 1996--Official Report, columns 327-28--was subsequently recalculated following revised forecast outturn data. The increase will be charged to the reserve and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.
Mr. Elletson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on his response to the recommendations from the Local Government Commission following its recent reviews of Blackburn, Blackpool, Halton, Medway Towns, Peterborough, The Wrekin, Thurrock and Warrington. [9948]
Mr. Curry:
The Local Government Commission has made recommendations for changes to the district warding arrangements in all eight areas that it has reviewed. It has also made some recommendations for changes to parish boundaries and parish electoral arrangements.
I have decided to accept all of the Commission's recommendations. It is important that the process for making local authority electoral arrangements should be seen to be fully independent. For this reason, it is the Government's intention not to modify the substance of electoral recommendations from the Local Government Commission.
My Department will be consulting on draft orders so that these recommendations can be implemented in time for the elections to the future unitary councils on 1 May 1997.
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Mr. Whittingdale:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a strategy for meeting the United Kingdom's commitments under the second sulphur protocol of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe; and if he will make a statement. [10278]
Mr. Gummer:
I am pleased to announce that the United Kingdom has today ratified the UNECE second sulphur protocol. We are among the first handful of countries to do so. Achievement of the emission reduction targets in the protocol will mean even better protection for our sensitive ecosystems, forests, lakes and buildings, as well as benefits for our continental European neighbours. It will also lead to substantial improvements in the quality of the air we breathe which will be good for asthma sufferers and for everyone who has breathing problems.
The protocol needs ratification by 16 countries to become fully effective. So far 28 countries have signed it but only five, including now the United Kingdom, have ratified. It is clearly important that all those who have signed the protocol should now ratify it. Only by concerted action across the whole of Europe shall we deal effectively with the problem of acid rain.
Our commitment is to reducing emission of sulphur dioxide by 80 per cent. by 2010 compared with 1980 levels. I am publishing today a national strategy setting out how this will be achieved.
The figures for 1995 reveal that emissions from the major sources--power stations, refineries and large industrial boilers and furnaces--have been reduced by 55 per cent. since 1980. This shows that we have already made enormous strides in tackling acid rain.
We have buried the old myth that Britain is the dirty man of Europe. It never was true. Our policies on this, and on the whole range of environmental matters, show how serious is this country's commitment to the environment. We have a record of which we can be rightly proud.
I am pleased to announce also that changes have been made to the national plan which gives effect in the United Kingdom to the requirements of the European Community large combustion plant directive. The aim of these changes, which were widely welcomed by those who commented on the consultation proposals issued in the summer, is to ensure that future allocations of emissions quota for both sulphur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen under the national plan are more closely in line with regulatory consents under integrated pollution control.
Mrs. Roche:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many items of legislation relating to his Department have been repealed since January 1994; how many statutory instruments were introduced during the same period; and how many of the latter were (a) deregulatory and (b) fee orders. [9366]
17 Dec 1996 : Column: 554
Mr. Ancram:
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her by my hon. Friend the Member for Langbaurgh (Mr. Bates) earlier today.
Mr. Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will estimate how many people (a) have been prescribed and (b) took the steroid prednisolone in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [9604]
Mr. Moss:
It is not possible to identify the number of patients who were prescribed or took prednisolone. Data collected cover only the number of prescriptions dispensed in Northern Ireland, and not how many patients were prescribed any medicinal product.
Mr. Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will estimate (a) how many and (b) the percentage of people who have been admitted to hospital as a direct result of complications after (i) surgery and (ii) medicinal treatment in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [9605]
Mr. Moss:
The information is not available centrally.
Mr. Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will estimate (a) how many and (b) the percentage of diagnosed mentally ill who are currently receiving care in the community; and if he will make a statement. [9611]
Mr. Moss:
It is estimated that over 100,000 people seen by GPs each year are diagnosed as having some form of mental illness. Over 99 per cent. receive treatment in the community. Mental health is a key area in the "Government's Regional Strategy for Health and Social Wellbeing 1997-2002".
Dr. Hendron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what are the building cost location factors for general medical practitioners in Northern Ireland; [9684]
(3) when the last review was undertaken of building cost location factors for general medical practitioners in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) the United Kingdom; [9686]
(4) what plans he has to bring the building cost location factor for general medical practitioners in Northern Ireland into line with that for England and Wales. [9687]
Mr. Moss:
Responsibility for the subjects in this question has been delegated to the Health Estates under its chief executive, Mr. R. H. Browne. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
(2) for what reasons the building cost location factor for general medical practitioners in Northern Ireland is lower than the factors for England and Wales; [9685]
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