§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to review the outstanding permission for mineral extraction which affect sites of special scientific interest.
§ Mr. BaldryThe Town and Country Planning (Minerals) Act 1981 placed a duty on mineral planning authorities to review mineral sites in their area, including environmentally sensitive sites such as SSSIs, and to make such orders revoking or modifying permissions as they considered necessary. The Government announced in the environment White Paper "This Common Inheritance" their intention to review the legislative framework governing the updating of minerals permissions. We have already taken action in the Planning and Compensation Act 1991 to deal with the problems caused by Interim Development Order permissions granted in the 1940s and we are consulting on options for updating mineral permissions granted in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.