HL Deb 27 April 1989 vol 506 cc1404-5WA
Lord Nugent of Guildford

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will publish their response to the House of Commons Environment Committee's 2nd Report on toxic waste.

The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (The Earl of Caithness)

The Government have today published their response (Cmnd. 679). The Government are pleased that the committee are in virtually complete agreement with their proposals to improve the present system of waste management. These proposals have been put forward in a series of consultation papers over the last three years. Much progress has been made in this important but difficult area and legislation is now being prepared for introduction at the earliest opportunity.

The Government regret that the committee have chosen to give little credit for this major reform covering the whole of the waste legislation. Instead the committee have chosen to make serious allegations about the waste management industry in this country which are not supported by the evidence presented in the body of their report. Indeed the committee record that they found little evidence of pollution from waste management processes in this country.

The committee acknowledge that the UK is one of the few countries not to have developed its waste management policy in the wake of environmental disaster. But the Government believe that potential hazards should be anticipated and that the present legal framework can be strengthened to give the best possible protection for the future. The committee have fully endorsed our proposals to extend legal responsibility to the producers of waste and to strengthen the existing law on licensing and the aftercare of landfills.

Neither are the Government confining their reforms to the present licensing system. We are also proposing to reform the waste disposal authorities themselves. In the only significant area of disagreement between the Government and the committee, the Government do not propose to follow the recommendation to create new regional waste regulation authorities or an environmental protection agency. Instead, the Government propose to build on the strengths of the present system by separating waste regulation from authorities' own operations and providing clearer and more accountable procedures for new waste regulation authorities to operate by.

The Government firmly believe that waste management practices in the UK are environmentally safe, and our record in comparison to many other countries fully supports that view. The improvements to be made in legislation and enforcement will be our continuing safeguard against pollution from wastes for many years to come.