Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy what Ministers and officials of his Department were present at the world energy conference held in Canada in September; what papers his Department contributed; and if he will make a statement on the beneficial outcome of the conference in regard to(a) the United Kingdom and (b) the European Community.
§ Mr. WakehamThree officials from my Department accompanied me to Canada last month where, inter alia, I addressed the World Energy Conference on "Sustainable energy development, possible or impossible?" The main purpose of my speech was to alert the conference to the need to adapt energy strategies to take account of environmental consequences, particularly in relation to climate change. I outlined some possible responses, in particular market-related measures and sought the world energy community's help in resolving the problems which I see as critical to increasing the well-being of all countries, particularly developing nations. My speech was distributed as a conference document. A copy has been placed in the Library of the House. The Department contributed no other papers.
The conference provided a valuable opportunity for scientists, engineers and industrialists from the western, 227W eastern and developing nations to explore new ideas for meeting global energy needs in an environmentally responsible fashion.