HL Deb 26 October 1989 vol 511 c1617WA
Lord Kennet

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether it is the case, as reported in Dr. John Adam's report for Friends of the Earth and the London Wildlife Trust, that in the cost benefit analyses conducted by the Department of Transport, parks and green spaces are quantified as financially insignificant; and, if so, what steps they intend to take to prevent this approach being carried through into policy and practice, and what steps they will take to withdraw programmes which have been allowed on the strength of it.

Viscount Davidson

Decisions on road schemes are taken in the light of a comprehensive appraisal of their environmental effects, including any on open space; these appraisals go well beyond financial matters. If in the event open space or common land under the terms of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 is taken for a road scheme, the department provides equivalent land in exchange or the compulsory purchase order is subject to special parliamentary procedures. The land concerned—like all land acquired for road schemes—is valued for financial purposes on the basis of market price as assessed by the district valuer, who is independent of the department. This approach, like all the elements in the costs benefit assessment of roads, is kept under review.