§ Norman BakerTo ask the Prime Minister if he will list the environmental matters raised by(a) him, (b) his special envoys and (c) his officials in discussions with foreign powers since the last General Election. [80848]
§ The Prime MinisterThe Government at all levels has raised a range of environmental matters during discussions with foreign governments since 2001. These include air quality, chemicals, climate change, energy, forests, biodiversity, sustainable development, agriculture and water issues.
139WSince October 2001, I and other Ministers have attended major events and meetings which have addressed key environmental issues. These include:
9–13 November 2001:WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha, Qatar3–7 December:International Conference on Fresh water, Bonn, Germany13–15 February 2002:Global Ministerial Environment Forum (Cartagena, Colombia)15–16 March:European Council, Barcelona18–22 March 2002:Financing for Development Conference—Mexico7–19 April 2002:Sixth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity(CBD/COP6), The Hague,12–14 April:G8 Environment Ministerial Meeting, Canada27 May—7 June:4th Preparatory Committee meeting for WSSD, Indonesia21–22 June:European Council, Seville26–28 June:G8 Heads of State Summit, Kananaskis Canada26 August—4 September:World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa (High Level Segment 2—4 September)24 October—1 November:United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Eighth Conference of the Parties (UNFCC/COP8), Delhi.The environment is a key priority for the UK Government. We shall continue to work closely with foreign governments on all environmental matters.