§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list all the names of public appointments that he has made, giving the period for which the appointment was made, relevant qualifications of the appointees and what remuneration each currently receives.
§ Mr. NorrisDetails of public appointments made by my right hon. Friend since 10 April 1992 are set out in the table.
(3) what meetings he has had with emergency services' chief officers concerning EEC directives for harmonising current regulations governing the carriage of dangerous goods by road and rail;
(4) if he will make a statement on the implications of the new European agreement concerning the movement of dangerous substances;
(5) what response he has made to concerns expressed by the Fire Brigades Union regarding the replacement of the United Kingdom hazchem system with ADR;
(6) if European harmonisation of hazchem will exclude current domestic safety codes and procedures for the protection of fire brigade personnel and the general public;
(7) if ADR will be achieved without undermining the current system of labelling dangerous substances within the United Kingdom;
(8) if the introduction of ADR, as a replacement of the United Kingdom hazchem system, satifies current safety criteria for civilian evacuation;
(9) what effect ADR introduction will have on risk minimisation within the operation of emergency services.
§ Mr. Kenneth CarlisleThere are no EC directives requiring the harmonisation of road and rail regulation for the transport of dangerous goods. However, our intention is that United Kingdom regulations for the domestic 759W transport of dangerous goods by road will be harmonised with the European agreement concerning the international carriage of dangerous goods by road—ADR—from 1 January 1995. This should result in no lowering of existing safety standards. The regulations will be drafted by the Health and Safety Executive which will consult all interested parties.
As a result of representations from the Fire Brigades Union and others, the United Kingdom is currently negotiating the inclusion of United Kingdom emergency action codes in the hazard warning panel requirements of ADR for road tankers carrying dangerous goods. These codes give an immediate indication to the emergency services of how they should react at the scene of an incident and whether evacuation of people nearby is advisable.