PLANNING PERMISSION (Hansard, 21 July 1987)

§ Mr. David Mitchell
I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said amendment.

Mr. Deputy Speaker
With this we may take the following Lords amendments: Nos. 144 to 148, 151, 154, 155 and 183.

§ Mr. Mitchell
These amendments are technical. They will bring together in a more logical order the provisions relating to spoil disposal.

§ Mr. David Shaw
Having been negative about some of the amendments, I am glad to say that I welcome certain aspects of amendment No. 184. There is no question but that some of the provisions relating to the control of the way in which spoil is dealt with will benefit the constituency of Dover.
Nevertheless, I feel that it is appropriate to sound a note of concern. The Government's 1973 paper on the Channel tunnel suggested that only 2 million cubic metres of spoil would have to be dealt with, and that would certainly not need to be dumped at the base of Shakespeare cliff, just out to sea from my constituency. The excess of over 2 million cubic metres is unacceptable. I am also concerned at the impact on the environment of the spoil being moved around near to the council estate of Aycliffe. There could be considerable problems from noise as well as from dust.
I am concerned, too, about the visual impact on the environment. My wife and I very much enjoy walking on Shakespeare cliff, and clearly the walk will not be as attractive as it has been in the past. Many people from Dover enjoy that walk—

§ Mr. Snape
The hon. Gentleman should not get too close to the edge.

§ Mr. Shaw
I assure the hon. Member for West Bromwich, East (Mr. Snape) that if he likes to come with me, I shall take him close to the edge.
As I feel certain that the Minister will get the proposal through the House and as this is probably the last time that I shall say anything on the Bill or the amendment—[HON. MEMBERS: "Hear, hear."] I know that Opposition Members will be pleased when I sit down; they will be less pleased when I stand up on more political matters at a later date.
No doubt the Minister will earn his due rewards after the Bill has been passed. Although I have given him many brickbats, I hope that I may also pay tribute and thanks to him for the provisions that he has inserted for the benefit of Dover. Into this thoroughly unacceptable Bill he has managed to insert at least a modicum of provisions to protect the interests of the ports and ferries.
If the workings are started and the finance is raised—which I doubt—I hope that if there are any problems relating to spoil in the years ahead the Minister will agree to receive delegations of residents perhaps represented by me to discuss them. I refer to problems of excessive noise and visual problems, or restricted walking or anything that may impair the benefits that my constituents are used to enjoying.

§ Mr. David Mitchell
I agree with my hon. Friend about the agreeable nature of the walk along the top of Shakespeare cliff. However, unless he walks very close to the edge he will have difficulty in seeing the land reclaimed with the spoil from the Channel tunnel.
The amendments ensure that the planning authority when considering requests for planning approval for the sea wall may take into account the requirement for other consents in relation to the sea wall contained in schedule 7. Conversely, when approving the sea wall for navigation purposes, they permit the Secretary of State to have regard to the requirements for planning approval. They also 292 provide for consultation on the deposit of spoil with the Government's statutory advisers on environmental matters.
Lords Amendment No. 148 also writes into the Bill the more southerly alignment of the cut-and-cover rail tunnel through Holywell Coombe agreed by Eurotunnel, the Nature Conservancy Council and other environmental bodies, strongly supported by the Select Committee in the other place. It defines a protected area south of which all the construction must take place. This will safeguard the northern of the two most important geological deposits in the Coombe area, which would have been destroyed under the original alignment proposals. I am sure that any noise or visual problems will be raised at the meetings of the joint consultation committee by the Dover representatives, and they will certainly be sympathetically heard.

§ Mr. David Mitchell
I beg to move, That this house doth agree with the Lords in the said amendment.

Mr. Deputy Speaker
With this it will be convenient to discuss Lords amendment No. 150.

§ Mr. Mitchell
These amendents ensure that provisions of the landscape scheme prepared by the concessionaires and approved by the local planning authority are enforceable by providing a more flexible from of planning condition.

§ Mr. Snape
As these are the last two amendments, and this may be the last debate on the Bill—

§ Mr. Alan Howarth (Stratford-on Avon)
No, they are not.

§ Mr. Snape
They are the last ones formally set down. I am grateful to the Whip, but the vow of silence that he has taken should be thoroughly enforced.

§ Mr. Howarth
Look over the page.

§ Mr. Snape
I am sorry that I got involved in this. The Whip is right to say that there are half a dozen more groups of amendments over the page. I apologise to him and to the House for intervening at this point.