THE MAYOR'S ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT (Hansard, 4 May 1999)

§ Mr. Simon Hughes
I beg to move amendment No. 4, in page 141, line 30, leave out 'global warming' and insert 'climate change'.

§ Mr. Deputy Speaker (Mr. Michael J. Martin)
With this, it will be convenient to discuss the following amendments: No. 5, in page 141, line 32, after 'production' , insert , minimisation'.
No. 6, in clause 267, page 143, line 24, after 'the', insert 'minimisation,'.

§ Mr. Hughes
In Committee, I was given some cause for encouragement when I moved a similar amendment. The first proposal would simply replace in the list of environmental functions the phrase "global warming" with the phrase in the amendment, which is now more generally regarded as scientifically accurate. We moved the amendment not just because we thought that it was better to use the phrase "climate change", but because all the Government documents that we could find used the phrase. The Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions used that phrase, and it appeared to be the acceptable phrase generally. I hope that the Government, who were positive towards the proposal in Committee, will be even more positive tonight and tell me that without more ado the amendment can be made.
Amendments Nos. 5 and 6 are similarly small in terms of the space that they take up on the amendment paper, but they relate to the same part of the Bill. Part IX describes the report on the state of the environment to be produced and published by the mayor. The Bill states that it shall contain information about a list of matters. Here is another list. It comes from the Government, but it is a list that they are willing to have, so I shall not cavil at it. The seventh item in the list is that the report shall deal with: the production, recycling and disposal of waste. The other way in which waste is dealt with, which ought to be expressed explicitly rather than implied in the Bill, is to make sure that waste is minimised. We propose to include that. We hope that the Government accept our proposal. One of the big environmental challenges is to produce less waste and reduce what is produced. That is different from production, recycling and disposal.
I hope that these three little amendments will be acceptable to the Government. I have reason to believe that they might be, and, if so, we will rejoice in the prospect that Oppositions, large and not quite so large, can always be useful, even to the Government.

§ Mr. Randall
I well remember the Minister's words of—almost—acceptance of what I consider to be a sensible change. I also remember an amendment that I tabled at the same time, proposing the addition of biodiversity to the list. I believed, with what I now consider to have been misplaced optimism, that it would be incorporated in the Bill. Unfortunately, as a new and rather naive Member of Parliament, I thought that what the Minister said would actually happen. I will learn my lesson from that, and perhaps the other place will now manage to put in what is missing.

§ Mr. Raynsford
I appreciate that the hon. Member for Southwark, North and Bermondsey (Mr. Hughes) felt 835 encouraged in Committee. I hope that I can encourage him even more. The first amendment would replace "global warming" with "climate change", the second would add the word "minimisation" to the list of practices relating to waste on which the mayor must comment in the state of the environment report, and the third would add persons concerned with the minimisation of waste to the list of those whom the mayor may consult when preparing or revising the municipal waste management strategy. When we discussed the amendments in Committee, I acknowledged their purpose and good sense, and undertook to consider them further. I have now had time to give them that consideration, and I am happy to tell the hon. Gentleman that I am prepared to accept all three in their entirety.
The hon. Member for Uxbridge (Mr. Randall) should not despair because it has not been possible for us to incorporate all the amendments at this stage: there is another place in which further amendments may be made. He should not assume that we have overlooked his advocacy of biodiversity. I encourage him to live in hope; I also feel that, in the interests of minimisation of waste, we should bring the debate to an early conclusion.

§ Mr. Hughes
The Minister has accepted the amendments, and we are very grateful for that. To say that he accepts them "in their entirety" is probably overstating the case, given that they consist of two words, one word and one word respectively; but for that little acceptance we are grateful. The hon. Member for Uxbridge (Mr. Randall) had better go and find a Lord to do his work for him in what the Minister described as the other place. There is always work to be done in the other place.
I must not neglect to pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Mr. Brake), who has just gone to catch his train. He prompted me to table the amendments. He is sorry that he cannot be here now, but he wants to share in the glory of the moment. [Interruption.] Of course I thank the Minister. I repeat that willingly, even after being prompted by the Minister for Transport in London.