§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he will announce a decision about Safeway's application for grant funding from the Powershift programme for assistance towards the acquisition of 40 gas powered trucks; and if he will make a statement. [128374]
§ Mr. MeacherSafeway's application for grant funding exceeds the £250,000 discretionary cap that may generally be offered by the Powershift programme to a single company. This cap was introduced to ensure that many organisations could benefit from Powershift grants rather than all of the programme's budget being used to support a large order for vehicles from a single company. The cap is discretionary, however, and there will be cases where larger grants can be justified because they will make a significant impact on the market for alternative fuels.
Powershift's advisory panel, comprising officials from my Department, DTI and the Energy Saving Trust, is meeting today to agree the level of grant funding to be offered to Safeway's. The Trust will announce the decision of the panel immediately following this meeting.