The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Category: 1979-1983 Parliament

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Land Drainage – 17 January 1983

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Land Drainage, published on 17th January 1983.

    Mr. Major Asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the membership and terms of reference of the committee reviewing land drainage, the organisations and persons who have submitted evidence to it and the date by which the committee is expected to report.

    Mr. Peter Walker The review which I announced on 29 July 1982 covers all aspects of the administration and financing of land drainage and coast protection. It is being undertaken by a committee of officials of the Departments concerned, under the chairmanship of a deputy secretary in my department. The committee hopes to submit its report to the Ministers concerned by early February.

    No organisations or persons outside the Departments have been invited to submit evidence, but when my colleagues and I have had an opportunity to study the report, we shall issue a consultation paper to all interested organisations for comment.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Land Registers – 8 December 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Land Registers, published on 8th December 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish his latest estimate of, publicly owned vacant land identified by the land registers.

    Sir William Elliott Asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many areas currently listed on the local authority register for England are currently in the ownership of statutory undertakings; and if he will express that figure as a percentage of the total number of areas recorded.

    Mr. Giles Shaw I refer my hon. Friends to the reply I gave earlier today to my hon. Friends the Members for Ealing, North (Mr. Greenway) and Birmingham, Yardley (Mr. Bevan).

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Benefits – 6 December 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Benefits, published on 6th December 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to end the situation whereby benefit paid for the first 12 weeks of unemployment may be deducted from any sums subsequently paid from the redundancy fund whilst still counting against the maximum number of weeks’ entitlement to unemployment benefit.

    Mr. Rossi Unemployment benefit is not payable for any period for which a person receives a payment in lieu of notice, whether that payment is made by the employer or comes from the redundancy fund because the employer is insolvent. Where unemployment benefit has already been paid for the period in question, the payment from the Bell fund is reduced by the amount of the benefit. However, this procedure does not lead to reimbursement of the national insurance fund and the benefit already paid must therefore count against the person’s cumulative entitlement to benefit. I appreciate that this situation causes some confusion for claimants and we are studying the relevant regulations to look for solutions to this and other problems that have arisen in this connection.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Lorry Weights – 1 December 1982

    The text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Lorry Weights, published on 1st December 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement about his proposals relating to lorry weights.

    Mr. David Howell The House has welcomed the Government’s comprehensive package of measures to make lorries less objectionable to people, less damaging to the environment and more economic. The House has also approved regulations to make lorries safer and control their size, as well as to allow them to run with fuller loads.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on the Nature Conservancy Council – 25 November 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on the Nature Conservancy Council, published on 25th November 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if a site has yet been chosen for the relocation of the headquarters of the Nature Conservancy Council.

    Mr. Macfarlane The Nature Conservancy Council has decided, with my agreement, not to pursue the matter any further for the time being and have accordingly ceased its investigations into a new headquarters.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Wetlands – 11 November 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Wetlands, published on 11th November 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish the criteria for the identification of wetlands of international importance for listing under the Ramsar convention, which were prepared at the Cagliari conference on the conservation of wetlands of international importance, especially as waterfowl habitat.

    Mr. Macfarlane The Cagliari conference recommended that the following revised criteria be used for identification of wetlands suitable for designation:

    1. Quantitive criteria for identifying wetlands of importance to waterfowl. A wetland should be considered internationally important if it:

    (a) regularly supports either 10,000 ducks, geese and swans; or 10,000 coots; or 20,000 waders or

    (b) regularly supports 1 per cent. of the individuals in a population of one species or sub-species of waterfowl or

    (c) regularly supports 1 per cent. of the breeding pairs in a population of one species or sub-species of waterfowl.

    2. General criteria for identifying wetlands of importance to plants or animals.

    A wetland should be considered internationally important if it:

    (a) supports an appreciable number of a rare, vulnerable or endangered species or sub-species of plant or animal or

    (b) is of special value for maintaining the genetic and ecological diversity of a region because of the quality and peculiarities of its flora and fauna or

    (c) is of special value as the habitat of plants or animals at a critical stage in their biological cycles or

    (d) is of special value for its endemic plant or animal species or communities.

    3. Criteria for assessing the value of representative or unique wetlands. A wetland should be considered internationally important if it is a particularly good example of a specific type of wetland characteristic of its region.

    Mr Major Asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will name those sites which may be identified as being wetlands of international importance, using the criteria prepared at the Cagliari conference; and if he will make a statement on the steps he is taking to list these sites under the Ramsar convention.

    Mr. Macfarlane The criteria prepared at the Cagliari conference have not yet been formally adopted by the contracting parties. None the less, the Nature Conservancy Council has recently drawn up a preliminary list of additional sites in the United Kingdom from which further designations are being considered. Nineteen United Kingdom sites are currently designated.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Britoil – 10 November 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Britoil, published on 10th November 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for Energy if he is now able to make a statement about the method of sale of shares in Britoil and the timing of the sale.

    Mr. Lawson I refer my hon. Friend to the statement I made earlier this afternoon.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on Oil Prices – 9 November 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on Oil Prices, published on 9th November 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for Energy what is his latest forecast of oil prices over the period to the year 2000.

    Mr. Lawson My Department has recently presented projections of United Kingdom energy prices and consumption to the Sizewell inquiry; copies have been placed in the Library of the House. These projections, which are not forecasts, are designed to assist the assessment of investment decisions against alternative scenarios for the development of the United Kingdom economy and the structure and levels of energy prices. They examine the implications of two ranges for future energy prices; the lower range assumes no further “shocks” affecting oil and other energy prices, while the higher range would be consistent with developments including one or more major oil market disturbances in the years ahead.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on the Health Service Commissioner – 12 July 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on the Health Service Commissioner, published on 12th July 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects to receive the annual report of the Health Service Commissioner for 1981-82.

    Mr. Kenneth Clarke The Health Service Commissioner has, as in previous years, made a single annual report on the performance of his functions in England, Scotland and Wales. My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Social Services, Scotland and Wales have presented the report to the House today. It will be published tomorrow and copies will be available from the Vote Office.

  • Mr Major’s Written Question on the Small Firms Technical Inquiry Service – 12 July 1982

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s Parliamentary written question on the Small Firms Technical Inquiry Service, published on 12th July 1982.

    Mr. Major Asked the Secretary of State for Industry how many organisations are used to advise small firms through the small firms technical inquiry service.

    Mr. MacGregor Advice is available from engineers within the Production Engineering Research Association, which operates the service for the Department, and from 83 other organisations. These include 28 research associations, 20 universities and other higher educational establishments, 19 private consulting organisations, and 16 Government research laboratories.