asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Written Answer by Lord Bassam of Brighton on 6 February (WA 193), when they expect the litter to be cleared from the A13 between the M25 and the A1089; and whether they will make representations to Thurrock Council and Essex County Council about the litter on the A13 between the A1089 and the A130. [HL2201]

Thurrock Borough Council is the litter authority, under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, for the A13 within its borough. It has two crews dedicated to clearance of litter on the A13 verges within Thurrock on a daily basis. Litter clearance on the central reserve requires traffic management for safety reasons so this work is combined with highway works to minimise traffic delays. The next central reserve works are planned for 17 March.

The agency has also contacted Essex County Council, which is the highway authority for the A13 between the A176 and the A130. Essex County Council has advised that the next inspection will be on the 12 March and the next thorough litter picking is scheduled for Spring 2008 by Basildon District Council, the litter authority. Litter at lay-bys continues to be collected weekly with verges and slip roads cleared monthly.

The Highways Agency continues to monitor the trunk road section of the A13 for litter as part of its route stewardship. The agency makes representations to the relevant litter authority for clearance where needed and supports them by programming works to enable safe clearance of litter under traffic management.