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EU: Environment Council

My right honourable friend the Secretary of State has today made the following Statement. My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (Chris Huhne) and I will represent the UK at the Environment Council in Brussels in 14 March. At this council, the Hungarian presidency is expected to seek political agreement on the proposal for a recast of the directive on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The presidency will also seek the adoption of Council conclusions on the follow-up to the 16th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Cancun and on the review of the community strategy concerning mercury. There will be an exchange of views on the latest analysis of the proposal for a regulation regarding the possibility for member states to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs in their territory. A further exchange of views will be held on the common agricultural policy towards 2020 and on the Environment Council’s contribution to the EU Semester. The following topics will be covered under any other business: presentation by the Commission on the low-carbon economy road map 2050; information from the Danish delegation on endocrine disrupters; information from the Commission on a communication on regional policy contributing to sustainable growth in Europe 2020; information from the Commission on the state of the ETS registry; and information from the Austrian delegation on measures concerning the use of plastic carrier bags.