§ Ms. RuddockTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will name the green Minister for his Department and list(a) the green initiatives taken by that Minister in respect of the Department's functions, (b) the representations made by the Minister in respect of the functions carried out by other Departments and (c) the 1258W input by the Minister into consultations on the Environment Bill. [18648]
§ Mr. MossI am green Minister for the Northern Ireland Office and Northern Ireland Departments, but all my ministerial colleagues share our common objective of promoting sustainable development in all areas of national life.
"Sustainable Development: the UK Strategy", CM 2426, presented to Parliament by the Prime Minister in January 1994, set out our overall approach and targets. Progress on these has been reported on more recently in "This Common Inheritance 1995", CM 2822, report which was published last month. Commitments 554 to 613 relate specifically to Northern Ireland and are listed towards the end of the report, which outlines progress and further action for 1995 and beyond.
The whole Government are committed to the objective of sustainable development, and I am in regular contact with all ministerial colleagues in the NIO, as well as other green Ministers.
While I am taking a keen interest in the Environment Bill, its provisions do not relate to Northern Ireland.