§ Mr. Murphyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on progress towards abolishing lead in petrol.
§ Mr. WaldegravePreliminary discussions have been held with representatives of the United Kingdom oil and motor industries, who see no insurmountable obstacle to the introduction of unleaded petrol. At their meeting on 16 June, European Community Environment Ministers asked the European Commission to draw up proposals for further reducing the lead content of petrol. I made clear that we were looking for as early as possible a start on complete elimination of petrol-lead throughout the Community. Ministers from several other countries supported Britain's position. Detailed follow-up discussions on the economic, technical and environmental implications of introducing unleaded petrol will be taking place over the next few months.