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Biofuels

I was about to offer an assurance on the publication of the report. It is not available, but I understand that some interim findings have been shared with some organisations. As my hon. Friend the Member for Stockton, South (Ms Taylor) said, peer review of such reports is of fundamental importance, and that is what is happening at the moment. I will give my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North details on publication, which will be at the end of this month—we will not place anything in which we do not have total confidence in the public domain. We are not in such a position at the moment. I shall give a definitive response to the questions she put in her contribution later. Biofuels stakeholders have been fully involved in seminars and workshops in the UK. Professor Gallagher's report has been drafted and is going through a process of peer review by Government chief scientists. The final report is due to be presented to the Secretaries of State for Transport and for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs at the end of the month. My hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North made that point in her contribution, as we discussed. As I said, I expect the interim report to be with Ministers soon, and the final report with recommendations on how to move forward, especially in Europe, by the end of June. The report will be independently peer-reviewed before publication. To answer her question, I expect that the European Energy Council will debate the issue but I do not expect the independently peer-reviewed report to be made available before the end of June. It will therefore not flavour those discussions. The emerging evidence indicates that the issues surrounding biofuels are very complex and that there are still many uncertainties about measuring the benefits. That confirms that we have been right to be cautious in setting biofuels targets. The policy of caution will continue—many hon. Members, including some of my hon. Friends, made that point. The Gallagher review is not the end of the process. The review of biofuels will go on as we continue to collect evidence and develop a clearer understanding of their impact. If the evidence indicates that a target cannot be met solely through sustainably produced biofuels, it would need to be modified. The hon. Member for South Suffolk made the point that 10 to 40 per cent. of UK arable land would be needed to meet the 5 per cent. UK target. I must tell him that we expect the target to be met through a mixture of imported and home-grown feed stocks. However, in theory—studies including one from the National Farmers Union suggested this—a 5 per cent. target could comfortably be delivered by UK-grown biofuels without any significant change to UK farming practices. We export large quantities of wheat that could be used to produce bioethanol and contribute significantly towards the 5 per cent. target. The Gallagher review is considering the pressures and availability of land in relation to the production of biofuels. My hon. Friend the Member for Stockton, South made a powerful speech and reinforced the importance of peer review of reports and the complexity of the issue. Her concerns arise from the information with which she has been provided from various sources. I welcome her support for biofuels that are produced on a sustainable footing and I understand their importance to industries in her constituency and surrounding areas, and the jobs that they support for people in the north-east. The hon. Member for East Dunbartonshire (Jo Swinson) called on the Government to keep moving on the issue. I hope that I have demonstrated, if not completely to her satisfaction, that we are doing so. Three years ago, the Government were attacked for not moving fast enough on biofuels, and now we are being criticised for not calling a halt—my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) made that point eloquently, relating it to his experiences. I hope that my contribution has covered the points made by the hon. Member for Cheadle (Mark Hunter). In the end, his position is not a million miles from the Government's. The hon. Member for Scarborough and Whitby always speaks with great authority from personal experience—he did so today, even if he chose to quote from The Guardian. That was a bit suspect, but he retrieved his position by quoting from the Prime Minister, who is a much more reliable source. I shall pass on the hon. Gentleman's regards. Biofuels should not be considered in isolation—everyone who spoke in the debate made the point that they do not constitute a silver bullet. Their significance is mainly their contribution to greenhouse gas savings, and we aim to encourage them accordingly. If because of sustainability or other problems that contribution turns out to be lower than current targets imply, equivalent reductions might need to be found elsewhere. Biofuels are not an end in themselves, but with the right sustainability standards in place, they have a role as one of many measures with which we are combating climate change. I congratulate the hon. Member for South Suffolk and the Committee on the report. It will play a role in the development of our policies in future but, as is obvious from my remarks and the Government response, we are not supportive of its final conclusion.