HC Deb 06 May 2004 vol 420 cc1660-1W
Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the contribution the Are you doing your bit campaign has made to the Government's efforts to achieve its target of a 20 per cent. reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by 2008 to 2012. [168807]

Mr. Morley

The Are you doing your bit campaign was a successful stage in the Government's effort to raise the general level of public awareness of environmental issues. Research in 1998 showed initial campaign activity had proved effective. Further research in 1999 showed that 9 out of 10 people recognised the campaign and 7 out of 10 understood that everyone should do their bit. A further 9 out of 10 people said they already carried out the simple actions promulgated by the campaign.

It did not, nor was it designed to, radically change behaviour or business practice across society and in any case it would not be possible to positively link the impact of any one information source with levels of carbon dioxide emissions for the UK as a whole.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much Government funding was available in each of the past three years to the(a) Energy Saving Trust and (b) Going for Green charity. [168811]

Mr. Morley

The information requested is in the tables.

(a) Energy Saving Trust funding made available by the department over the last three years is as follows.

£million
2001–02 24.3
2002–03 23.4
2003–04 24.6 (Budget)

Figures for 2002–03 and 2003–04 include funding for the Housing Energy Efficiency Best Practice programme.

(b) Government funding is provided to the environmental charity ENCAMS' annually. The funding supports ENCAMS' work on a range of local environmental quality issues, including the Tidy Britain Group and Going for Green.

Funding over the last three years is as follows:

£
2001–02 3,762,000
2002–03 14,597,000
2003–04 3,574,000
1Defra allocated an additional £1 million to local authorities through ENCAMS for the Local Environmental Quality Pathfinder Programme that forged partnerships between local authorities and the local community. Some of the projects developed reduced fast food litter, railway land litter and schools litter.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the decision not to renew the Government's Are you doing your bit campaign: and what funding was provided for the www.doingyourbit.org.uk website, since the campaign began. [168812]

Mr. Morley

The Secretary of State will not be making a statement on the Are you doing your bit campaign.

Detailed consideration is being given to the options for future communications activity in this area. Thinking will be informed by the current sustainable development consultation, 'Taking it on', launched 21 April 2004.

The campaign website was funded from within the overall campaign budget. No specific records were kept for the website element of the campaign.

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