§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will introduce into the planning system stipulations concerning the end use of minerals, aggregates and other products of the extraction industries. [48032]
§ Mr. CabornThere are no plans to introduce any such measures. The planning system exists to regulate the development and use of land, rather than the end-uses of minerals and other industrial products. Any planning controls over the use of materials away from a production site would be difficult to enforce in practice. However, my Department's minerals planning guidance encourages the adoption of other measures by planning authorities and the minerals industry, including the efficient use of materials, appropriate uses made of high-quality materials, and the recycling of wastes as sustainable objectives for minerals planning.