§ Baroness Hamweeasked Her Majesty's Government:
What advice is given to United Kingdom industry engaged, or investing, in overseas capital development projects on the desirability of assessing the environmental impact of such projects.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Baroness Denton of Wakefield)The advice to business in general is to comply with local legislative requirements. When overseas capital projects, involving United Kingdom companies are the subject of an application for financial support, the appropriate government department will assess the environmental impact of each project. For this purpose officials in my department follow the guidance given in the Overseas78WA Development Administration's Manual of Environmental Appraisal. The manual is freely available.