§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the benefits which have accrued from the global environmental change programme supported by the ESRC; what successor programmes are planned; and what steps are being taken to ensure widespread knowledge of, and access to, the Gecko data base. [129971]
§ Mr. MeacherMy officials have been actively involved in the planning and management of the Programme since its inception and all its reports have been disseminated throughout the Department. The longer-term impact of the Programme will be reviewed by the Department's Chief Scientist and the Chief Executive of the ESRC in the autumn under our Concordat arrangement.
I understand from my noble Friend the Minister for Science that the Programme is being followed up by a number of activities including work at the new Joint Climate Change Centre and the Environmental Decision-Making Centre, and with a potential new Link Programme investment in Environmentally Sustainable Technologies. I also understand that the Gecko website is being maintained for 12 months while arrangements are being made for longer term curation of the database.