§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many times the powers introduced by the Town and Country Planning (Minerals) Act 1981 have been utilised in Wales in each year since 1981.
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesInformation on the use of the powers by mineral planning authorities is not collected centrally; but one order, to prohibit resumption of mineral working, has so far been submitted to the Secretary of State for confirmation and is currently under consideration.
§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will introduce legislation to reduce the life of mineral permissions from 60 years to 10 years;
(2) if he will make it his policy to place a statutory obligation on all new mineral permission applications to include conditions specifying the timing and content of subsequent reviews of such permission;
(3) if he will make it his policy to issue guidelines granting mineral planning authorities in Wales the right to revoke or substantially amend mining permissions without compensation where workings would (a) damage nationally-designated sites, (b) cause an unacceptable level of environmental change to important non-designated sites or (c) damage important water resources.
581W
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesResponses to the consultation paper on old mineral permissions issued by the Government in March, in which various possibilities for dealing with problems were discussed, are under consideration. Further consultation is likely before detailed proposals are implemented.
§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to impose a statutory duty on mineral planning authorities in Wales to review all existing minerals permissions during the next four years; and if he will allow mineral planning authorities to request environmental assessments as part of such a review.
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesResponses to the Government's consultation paper on old mineral permissions issued in March, in which the possibility of a four-year review was discussed, are under consideration. Further consultation is likely before detailed proposals are implemented.
The Town and Country Planning (Assessment of Environmental Effects) Regulations 1988 do not apply to existing permissions.
§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make it his policy to issue guidelines to mineral planning authorities on compensation levels and the use of enforcement powers.
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesGuidance on these issues can be found in mineral planning guidance note—MPG2—"Applications Permissions and Conditions", MPG4, "The Review of Mineral Working Sites", and planning policy guidance note 18, "Enforcing Planning Control".
Initial consultation has taken place on the operation of the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (Minerals) Act 1981 and the compensation arrangements under it.