To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what were the responsibilities of his Department in the establishment of the National Council for Environmental Waste Policy in April; and what role his Department will play in the work of the council in future.

[holding answer 21 May 1990]: My Department has had no involvement in the establishment of such a council. However, under its environmental programme, the Department is seeking to promote greater recycling of waste and higher standards of waste management and waste minimisation within business and is always prepared to consider co-operating with other organisations pursuing similar objectives.