Tag: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-12-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what process was used to assess the value-for-money that would be achieved from the additional Department for Transport funding provided to Norfolk County Council in relation to the Norwich Northern Distributor Road project.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

A value for money assessment was undertaken on the full revised cost of the Norwich Northern Distributor Road which showed that it remained very high value for money under the Department’s value for money assessment with an adjusted Benefit Cost Ratio of 6.07.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2016-05-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of their stated intention to require both ministerial and judicial authorisation for warrants under the Investigatory Powers Bill, why they consider it necessary to include a provision limiting judicial scrutiny to judicial review principles.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Investigatory Powers Bill creates a “double lock” for the use of the most intrusive in-vestigatory powers such that a decision to issue a warrant must be approved by a Judicial Commissioner.

As the Secretary of State for the Home Department set out last November, this system balances Parliamentary accountability with independent consideration by a judicial authority. The application of judicial review principles is a robust, yet flexible, approach that the judiciary have significant experience in applying as the framework for independent scrutiny of Executive decision making. The ‘double-lock’, including the use of judicial review principles, was considered in detail by the Joint Committee that scrutinised the draft Bill. The Committee concluded that they were satisfied with the use of judicial review principles and that they would afford the Judicial Commissioners considerable flexibility in reviewing decisions to authorise the use of investigatory powers.

In response to concerns expressed during Commons Committee Stage, the Government tabled an amendment to the test at report. That amendment makes it clear that when carrying out their review of the decision to issue the warrant, the Judicial Commissioner must do so with a sufficient degree of care so as to ensure that the Commissioner complies with their duties under clause 5 (General duties in relation to privacy). There was strong support from across the House for this amendment.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-12-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government on how many occasions since 2010 they have provided additional funding to local authority road building schemes.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Since 2010 additional funding, above that allocated at the initial approval stage, has been provided to five local authority road schemes as follows:

Norwich Northern Distributor Road – £10m

Fletton Parkway Widening (Peterborough) – £0.9m

Hartford Bridge Roundabout (Hampshire) – £0.4m

A4600 University Hospital Junction (Coventry) – £0.1m

Stafferton Way (Windsor and Maidenhead) – £0.8m

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2016-05-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the total cost of Trident renewal over the lifespan of the Successor-class submarines, including in-service costs and decommissioning.

Earl Howe

As stated in the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, our latest cost estimate for manufacturing the four submarines of the Successor submarine programme is £31 billion, plus a contingency of £10 billion. This includes an assessment of the likely inflation over the lifetime of the programme and the risks appropriate for a project at this stage.

Once the new fleet of ballistic missile submarines comes into service, we expect that the in-service costs of the UK’s nuclear deterrent, which include the costs of the Atomic Weapons Establishment, basing and disposals, will be similar to the current system, at around six per cent of the defence budget.

While we have no plans to replace the current Trident D5 missile, we are participating with our US partners in a programme to extend their lifespan to the 2060s. The estimated cost is around £250 million.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-12-02.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the scientific evidence regarding the incidence of cancer in those living near nuclear reactors and large spikes in radioactive gaseous emissions during the refuelling of those reactors.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE) are reviewing the scientific evidence of certain cancer incidences around specific nuclear sites based on the recommendations from the 4th and 11th COMARE reports. This report will review all recent evidence that has been published since the previous reports, as judged relevant by COMARE. COMARE is a Departmental expert advisory committee that provides independent advice to government on the health effects of natural and man-made radiation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Highways England plan to investigate using (1) a tunnel which avoids visual and physical damage to the Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites World Heritage Site and its setting, and (2) traffic management measures to discourage travel at peak times, for the A303 at Stonehenge.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Highways England are considering a number of options for improving the section of the A303 close to Stonehenge, which include a variety of tunnel options. The results will be available for consideration at a public consultation to be held in 2017. However, they do not have any plans for the historic site at Avebury, as the A4361 is the responsibility of Wiltshire Council.

Highways England are committed to encourage the public to plan their journeys in advance and to consider using England’s motorways and major trunk roads of peak hours.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-12-02.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 25 November (HL3610), whether UK nuclear power plants are required to report to ONS hourly or half-hourly radioactive gaseous emissions.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

The Office for National Statistics has no role in respect of gathering statistics on radioactive gaseous emissions.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking towards adopting the recommendation of the Joint World Heritage/ICOMOS Advisory Committee on Stonehenge that the asset life design of the A303 widening scheme should incorporate asset resilience and future proofing in design”.”

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Government has proactively sought the views of the Joint World Heritage/ the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) Advisory Committee and welcomes its recommendations.

Highways England are supported by Historic England to consider the asset resilience and future proofing for their proposals for this section of the A303. This will be presented at a public consultation on proposed route options in 2017.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-12-02.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 25 November (HL3609), whether they plan to require nuclear power plants to collect and publish hourly or half-hourly radioactive emissions statistics, and if not, why not.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

Current UK legislation requires nuclear power plants in England to limit their radioactive gaseous emissions to within safe levels. Similar legislation is in place in Wales and Scotland. The UK and territorial environmental agencies are responsible for implementing this legislation, which includes setting specific emissions limits and monitoring and reporting requirements for individual plants.

The regulators have powers to vary these requirements, including the scope and frequency of emissions monitoring and reporting, as they deem necessary for the purpose of verifying each plant’s compliance with its permitted emissions limits. The regulators also have powers to take robust enforcement action in respect of any breach in compliance.

The Government is satisfied that current legislation provides for effective control and monitoring of radioactive gaseous emissions and is content that the regulatory bodies should continue to mandate emissions monitoring and reporting requirements on a plant by plant basis.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to enact primary legislation ensuring that UK World Heritage Sites receive statutory protection from inappropriate planning consents.

Lord Ashton of Hyde

Where appropriate UK World Heritage sites are afforded statutory protection through designation of specific assets through existing legislation. Other aspects of World Heritage Sites are key material considerations in the determination of planning applications.