§ Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what role her Department has played in discussions relating to(a) the Meeting of the Parties to the Convention on Environment Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context and (b) the Kiev Ministerial Conference in 2003; and if she will make a statement. [46571]
§ Mr. MeacherResponsibility for matters relating to the UNECE Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context (The "Espoo" Convention) rests with the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions. The Department has participated in two preparatory meetings for the Kiev Environment for Europe conference where discussion has focussed on the identification of possible themes and the likely agenda. This includes the possibility of reaching agreement on several protocols under discussion by their respective Conventions, one of which is the proposed protocol on strategic environmental assessment currently being negotiated under Espoo.
§ Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what role her Department has played in developing and implementing(a) the United Nations Secretary-General's Global Compact Initiative, (b) the UNEP Global reporting Initiative and (c) the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. [46562]
§ Mr. Meacher(a) The Global Compact was a special initiative by the Secretary-General which is implemented directly with companies. However, officials from my Department remain in touch with the Compact Secretariat in New York.
(b) The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) was launched by the Coalition of Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES). It is now affiliated to the Global Compact. The GRI is a welcome initiative but is most suited to larger companies already experienced in environmental reporting. My Department has, therefore, developed and published jointly with the Department for Trade and Industry simpler guidance which is very similar to the environmental elements of the GRI. These guidelines should help any business to report on their environmental impacts, and have been endorsed by the CBI, which has sent copies to all of its members including all of the FTSE 350 leading companies.
(c) The Department played a full role in formulating the UK position during negotiations on the revised OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises which were concluded in June 2000. Since then officials from my Department have worked with the UK National Contact Point for the OECD Guidelines, based in the Department of Trade and Industry, to help ensure that the Guidelines are taken into account in relevant parts of my Department's work, for example the promotion 599W of the Guidelines to the UK water industry and in preparations for the World Summit on Sustainable Development.
§ Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department has taken in response to the UNEP Governing Council Decision 21/21; and if she will make a statement. [46566]
§ Mr. MeacherDecision 21/21 of the UNEP Governing Council in February 2001 established a Working Group to review international environmental governance. The UK funded a meeting of international experts in Cambridge in May 2001 to contribute to the debate. I represented the UK at two meetings of the working Group, and the other three were attended by DEFRA senior officials, I chaired the contact group which agreed the final report of the working group at the Global Ministerial Environment Forum in Cartagena in February.
§ Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps have been taken to strengthen UK commitments to multilateral environmental agreements; and if she will make a statement. [46557]
§ Mr. MeacherAlong with other EU Member States the UK is committed to early ratification of international instruments on climate change, biosafety, persistent organic pollutants and prior informed consent. The UK is fully committed to meeting its global environmental responsibilities.