§ Sir Trevor SkeetTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what action the United Kingdom is taking to phase out the production of substances damaging the ozone layer.
§ Mr. Atkins[pursuant to his reply, 15 February 1995 c. 674]: The production of chlorofluorocarbons has been phased out in the European Union except for some limited production for a small number of essential uses, such as gas medical inhalers, and to meet the domestic needs of certain developing countries as provided for under the Montreal protocol and European Union regulations.
§ Mr. DenhamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all samples of the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-para-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans in(a) soil and (b) air which have been taken by his Department and agencies responsible to his Department in Hampshire in the past 10 years and, in each case, the location of the sample site.
§ Mr. AtkinsIn addition to the samples reported in Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollutions technical report, 1989, entitled "Determination of PCBs, PCDDs and PCDFs in UK Soils", the following soil and air samples have been taken on behalf of HMIP. The results of items 1 and 2 will be published by HMIP this spring. The results of items 3 to 6 are already available on HMIP's public registers.
The co-ordinator is now preparing a report on specific, immediate priorities for future research and monitoring. This further report will be made available to the House once it has been completed.