§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to change the responsibilities of the Joint Environmental Markets Unit. [144574]
§ Mr. MorleyDTI and Defra's Joint Environmental Markets Unit (JEMU), part of DTI's Business Group, aims to increase the UK's share of domestic and global markets for environmental goods and services. In response to the Environmental Goods and Services Innovation and Growth Team report of 2002, the Government are expanding JEMU to promote innovation in the environmental goods and services industry.
The Government have decided to transfer responsibility for JEMU's international trade promotion work to UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) to form a dedicated Environment Sector unit in UKTI. This will bring arrangements for promoting the UK environmental goods and services industry overseas, in line with those for most other industry sectors, and build on the current close working between JEMU and UKTI. The Business Group and UKT&I units will continue to work closely together and there will continue to be close involvement of Defra and DTI in the work of both units.