To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in the introduction of anti-spray devices on heavy lorries.

There have been regulations requiring spray suppression devices to be fitted to vehicles and trailers in the United Kingdom since 1984. Largely as a result of the United Kingdom's initiative the European Community has now reached an agreement on an EC directive 91/226 EEC for spray suppression based closely on the British standard. There is a commitment written into the directive to develop more effective vehicle tests to reduce spray and research is continuing at the Transport and Road Research Laboratory, which should result in improvements in the future.