HC Deb 28 October 1998 vol 318 c189W
Mr. Paice

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what advice he has received from the Countryside Council for Wales with regard to the proposed rebuilding of the Welsh Highland Railway through Snowdonia, with particular reference to(a) the impact on the site of special scientific interest at the Aberglaslyn Pass and (b) the visual impact of signs required by the Railway Inspectorate. [56927]

Mr. Jon Owen Jones

The decision in this case will be taken by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions who has received a representation from the Countryside Council for Wales on the proposed Welsh Highland Railway Order. The CCW did not object to the project in principle but raised a number of issues for consideration by the Secretary of State, including a recommendation that no planting or seeding should be carried out on the exposures at the Aberglaslyn SSSI. They did not comment on the

Declared catches of salmon (including grilse) for the years 1975, 1980, 1985, 1993–97 in England and Wales
Rods Drifts nets Other nets1 All nets
Numbers caught Total weight caught (kg) Numbers caught Total weight caught (kg) Numbers caught Total weight caught (kg) Numbers caught Total weight caught (kg)
1975 24,300 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 88,762 340,091
1980 21,145 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 69,073 266,850
1985 19,601 81,788 n/a n/a n/a n/a 75,932 279,318
1993 14,0592* (78%)3* 51,091 43,561 157,667 13,005 44,644 56,566 202,311
1994 24,891 (75%)3 * 94,022 46,674 174,189 19,783 67,728 66,457 241,917
1995 16,006 (70%)3 * 61,009 51,435 187,597 16,224 58,139 67,659 245,736
1996 17,444 (63%)3 * 71,469 18,801 73,920 13,879 51,788 32,680 125,708
19974 13,047 (73%)3 * 41,996 21,866 75,057 9,593 32,177 31,459 107,234
1 All nets other than drift nets, including fixed engines
2 Likely to represent a minimum figure due to low rate of catch returns by anglers
3 Estimated proportion of grilse in rod catch for the years 1993–97
4 Provisional figures
n/a = not available