§ Mrs. Ray MichieTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what expressions of concern he has received regarding proposed funding for the Ayr road route, M77, from the European Commission.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThere have been no formal exchanges with the European Commission regarding funding for the M77 Ayr road route. However, the issue of funding of roads was discussed in the context of negotiations about the western Scotland single programming document, which was approved by the Commission on 16 December 1994. The SPD provides that support from the European regional development fund will be available for projects which construct or improve access roads to new or existing sites for industrial, business or tourism development where there is demonstrable potential for significant job-creating investments.
§ Mrs. Ray MichieTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what consultations he has had with the European Commission about the environmental impact assessment for the Ayr road route, M77.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe United Kingdom authorities have received an informal letter of inquiry 77W from the Commission on that subject and we propose to respond by the end of this month.
§ Mrs. Ray MichieTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what measures he took to ensure that a proper environmental impact assessment was carried out before he gave consent for the Ayr road route, M77.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonA full and wide-ranging public local inquiry was undertaken into the proposed road scheme in 1988. The environmental assessment of the scheme was presented by the joint promoters at the inquiry. The report of the inquiry, including a summary of the evidence and arguments, was submitted to my right hon. Friend before his decision on whether to proceed with the road proposals.
§ Mrs. Ray MichieTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what action he has taken to secure European Commission funding for the Ayr road route, M77.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonMy right hon. Friend does not intend to seek European Community funding for the trunk road sections of the proposed M77 Ayr road route for which he is responsible. It would be for Strathclyde regional council to decide whether to apply for funding for all or any part of the route for which it is responsible.
§ Mrs. Ray MichieTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list which interested groups he consulted during the planning stage of the Ayr road route, M77; and what were the results of this consultation period.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonMore than 50 organisations were consulted, including the National Trust for Scotland, the Countryside Commission for Scotland, regional, district and community councils, ScotRail and the National Farmers Union. The consultations showed general support for the proposals, but also identified some specific concerns. In those cases where the concerns could not be resolved by discussion, they were considered at the subsequent local public inquiry.