§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will outline the priorities for future action of the green Minister in his Department(a) over the next year and (b) over this Parliament; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MacGregorOver the next year and beyond, I have many environmental priorities. For a start, I am devoting part of the Informal Transport Council on 16 and 17 July to a discussion on the Commission's Green Paper on Transport and the Environment. I shall continue the policy of giving strong emphasis to environmental aspects in the road programme. I shall work towards more 321W environmentally acceptable standards for road vehicles. This I intend to do in collaboration with the European Community. I also want to see more traffic—both passengers and freight—transferred from road to rail. Our policy for involving the private sector in providing railway services will encourage this. And I shall support action to deal with traffic congestion and pollution in urban areas such as parking controls and other traffic restraint measures as well as encouraging the use of buses and safer cycling.