§ Mr. SpellerTo ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to her answer of 12 May, if she will list all the Departments which have responsibility or which exercise powers, either individually or in co-operation with other Departments, in relation to the dumping of sewage and other wastes; and if she will specify in the case of each responsibility or power the Department or Departments which exercise it.
§ The Prime MinisterThe dumping of sewage and other wastes at sea is controlled by licensing under the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985. The Departments responsible for operating the relevant provisions of the Act are the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland, the Welsh Office and the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland.
Control of the discharge of trade effluent from land to the sea is the responsibility of water authorities. The control of discharges of sewage including effluent from sewage treatment plants operated by water authorities are the responsibility of the Department of the Environment, which is also responsible, together with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, for authorising the control of radioactive discharges to water. The Department of the Environment also has the responsibility for co-ordinating Government policy on the control of pollution generally, including the marine environment. In Scotland and Wales the Scottish Office and Welsh Office have similar responsibilities to the Department of the Environment in respect of environmental protection.