§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will place in the Library copies of the(a) United Kingdom submissions and (b) submissions by other nations relevant to United 20W Kingdom policies on sustainable development, made to the preparatory meeting in New York for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. [49269]
§ Mr. MeacherAt the Third Preparatory Committee for the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the UK Government worked with European Union partners in order to submit a joint EU position to the Chair. The submission addressed the Chair's document which was tabled at the end of the Second Preparatory Committee on 12 February. A copy of the document will he placed in the Library.
§ Malcolm BruceTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government plan to take(a) nationally, (b) Europe-wide and (c) internationally towards launching a mechanism to promote and develop international objectives for sustainable development in Johannesburg. [44414]
§ Mr. MeacherThe Government are working with their partners nationally, in Europe and internationally towards the development of proposals for the Johannesburg Summit that focus on the practical implementation of international sustainable development objectives. In particular we want to see a specific action programme agreed on resource efficiency, freshwater and sanitation, oceans, energy supply, sustainable development in Africa and to improve international governance. The UK has five initiatives in hand on energy, freshwater, forestry, finance, and tourism. We are urgently discussing with partners, especially within the EU, whether any of these could form an input into large scale global projects.