§ Mr. Damian GreenTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what plans the Government have to implement the 1998 Aarhus convention; and when they intend to introduce legislation to effect this; [817]
(2) what plans the Cabinet Office has to introduce (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation to strengthen environmental freedom of information. [805]
§ Mr. MeacherThe majority of the Aarhus convention's requirements (the UNECE convention of access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters) are already implemented in the UK. As with other international treaties, implementation of the convention is through a mixture of legislative measures and administrative actions.
The powers needed to amend existing legislation in order to deliver the remaining requirements of the convention have already been taken in England. For instance, section 74 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 contains a power to implement the convention's access to environmental information provisions. The Government intend to use these powers to replace the current Environmental Information Regulations (SI 1992/3240).
Implementation of the convention is a devolved matter. The Government intend to ratify the Aarhus convention as soon as all parts of the UK have implemented its requirements.
134WThe Government remain strongly committed to the Aarhus convention and its underlying principals.