HC Deb 10 June 2003 vol 406 c805W
Mr. Roger Williams

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on what remit relating to sustainable development is(a) required and (b) undertaken by his Department's (i) executive agencies, (ii) advisory non-departmental bodies, (iii) executive non-departmental bodies, (iv) tribunals, (v) public corporations and (vi) other bodies. [116641]

Mr. Rammell

None of the bodies referred to in the question has a specific remit for sustainable development. However, the FCO expects these organisations to reflect the strategic objectives of the Department.

These include a long-standing commitment to promoting international sustainable development based on the outcome of the Earth Summit held in Rio in 1992 and more recently the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002. Promoting sustainable development is one of the top seven strategic policy priorities for the FCO over the next ten years.

The FCO has two Public Service Agreements that relate to sustainable development (Business Plan 2003–06):

Public Service Agreement 7:

Make globalisation work for sustainable development in the UK and internationally (especially in Africa) by promoting democracy and the rule of law, good economic and environmental governance, and security of long-term energy supply, measured by specific underlying targets.

Public Service Agreement 11:

Improvement in the governance, environment and security of the Overseas Territories, and more diversified economic development, as measured by implementation of the commitments in the 1999 White Paper "Partnership for Progress and Prosperity—Britain and the Overseas Territories"