Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on progress made in setting up the European Communities European Environment Agency; and what communications he has received from the chairman of the European Parliament's Environment Committee on the scope of the agency.
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§ Mr. Heathcoat-AmoryAmendments put forward by the European Parliament to the draft regulation on setting up the European Environment Agency were to a large extent agreed at the Environment Council on 22 March 1990, including a proposal to review the future scope of the agency in two years. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment met the chairman of the European Parliament's Environment Committee on 20 February and the scope of the agency was fully discussed. It is hoped that the regulation will be formally adopted at the next Environment Council this June.
Most member states have offered to host the agency's headquarters. The United Kingdom has nominated Cambridge as an ideal site but a decision on location has yet to be made.