§ Mr. Chapmanasked the Secretary of State for Transport what progress his Department has made in investigating the prospect of speeding up road schemes currently planned to start after 1986.
§ Mrs. ChalkerWe are looking at ways of speeding up preparation of schemes in the light of the Civil Engineering Economic Development Committee's report "A Fairer and Faster Route to Major Road Construction". The additional funds we are allocating to the new construction programme will make some acceleration possible after 1986.
§ Mr. Roy Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish the list of road schemes which the Department of Transport-Confederation of British Industry-Trades Union Congress review team examined in order to assess the economic benefits of accelerating construction, showing for each scheme (a) the first year economic benefits, (b) the discounted cost of bringing forward the scheme's completion by one year and (c) the net present value of advancing the scheme's completion by one year.
§ Mrs. ChalkerThe Department of Transport schemes examined by the review team are listed in the annex to the 243W Confederation of British Industry's report "The Fabric of the Nation", published in June 1984. I regret that the information requested for each scheme could be provided only at disproportionate cost. If the hon. Member is interested in a particular scheme, perhaps he will write to me.
§ Mr. Roy Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Transport what consideration he has given to the report of the review team of the Department of Transport-Confederation of British Industry-Trades Union Council on the consequences for employment of £500 million worth of road construction.
§ Mrs. ChalkerI have seen the review team's report, which states that it came to no agreement about the precise number of jobs which could be created as a result of an increase in road construction activity.
§ Mr. Coombsasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will show how his Department's trunk road new construction budget for 1986–87 will be allocated between (a) schemes to be started in 1986–87, (b) schemes started in 1985–86 and (c) schemes started in 1984–85 giving in each case the number of contracts involved.
§ Mrs. Chalker:I regret that it is not possible to supply the information requested. The allocation of resources between the various elements of the national road programme has yet to be finalised. Details will be published in the Supply Estimates to be presented to Parliament on Budget day.
§ Mr. Coombsasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give his Department's latest forecast of capital expenditure on roads by English local authorities in 1985–86 and the provision made for such expenditure in 1986–87, 1987–88 and 1988–89.
§ Mr. RidleyThe provisional forecast of net capital expenditure on roads by English local authorities in 1985–86 is £494 million. Provision for 1986–87 is £533 million. Final decisions on provision for 1987–88 and 1988–89 will be taken at the usual time, in the autumn preceding those years.
§ Mr. Stuart Hollandasked the Secretary of State for Transport what criteria Her Majesty's Government have for trunking roads in the Vauxhall constituency.
§ Mrs. ChalkerI have no such proposals.
§ Mr. Stuart Hollandasked the Secretary of State for Transport what plans Her Majesty's Government have for increasing road capacity in the Vauxhall constituency.
§ Mrs. ChalkerNone.
§ Mr. Stuart Hollandasked the Secretary of State for Transport what plans Her Majesty's Government have to allocate the £1.5 billion they have scheduled for trunk roads in London.
§ Mrs. ChalkerDetails of the Government's current proposals for trunk road expenditure in the London area an on the M25, totalling some £900 million, are set out in the report "National Roads England 1985", a copy of which is in the Library.