§ Mr. AltonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will give the broad estimates of the amounts spent on pollution control and environmental improvement as a proportion of gross domestic product by the United Kingdom and other industrial countries.
§ Mr. TrippierInternational comparisons of expenditure on environmental protection have been made by the OECD, which will shortly be publishing a report of its findings. The estimation of such expenditure involves many problems of definition, measurement and collection of data. Figures for the United Kingdom indicate that between 1 per cent. and 2 per cent. of GNP is dedicated to environmental protection. Other OECD countries appear to spend a similar proportion, and there are no reliable indications that this has varied greatly over the past two decades.