asked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will make a further statement on progress on preparations for the United Nations conference on the environment.

Arrangements of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment are progressing satisfactorily. The Preparatory Com- mittee Meeting will hold its fourth meeting in New York from 6th to 17th March. The programmes of the International Working Groups are nearing completion and the Conference Secretariat is preparing proposals for action to be taken at Stockholm. The reports of the four United Kingdom Working Parties are either all completed or very nearly so. These will be published before the conference. A booklet on developments and experience in the United Kingdom on environmental protection is in preparation.