§ Mr. David StewartTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on the development of liquefied petroleum gas-powered vehicles in rural areas. [113932]
§ Mr. HillWe are committed to developing a sustainable market for alternatively fuelled vehicles, which can offer benefits in terms of emissions of local air pollutants and greenhouse gases. Liquefied petroleum gas powered vehicles offer most benefits when they are used in urban areas, particularly when used by commercial operators instead of diesel. Of course the climate change benefits that LPG vehicles can bring are as welcome in the countryside as they are in our towns and cities. However, our priority for LPG vehicles is to encourage their use in urban areas, for instance, through the use of fiscal measures and the Energy Saving Trust's Powershift programme. We also want to see the development of a publicly accessible LPG refuelling infrastructure in these areas.
We do recognise that a properly strategic refuelling infrastructure that operators can rely on will require LPG refuelling stations in some rural areas, particularly near major trunk roads, so the infrastructure has national coverage. This will enable the climate change benefits gas-powered vehicles can bring to be further realised.