Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with his French counterpart on the effects of the EU Sulphur Directive on (a) the shipping industry, (b) jobs and (c) the environment; and what the outcomes of those discussions were.
There have not been any discussions with our French counterparts on these matters. The shipping aspects of the EU Sulphur Directive do not fall within Defra's area of responsibility.
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the Minster for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wimbledon (Mr Hammond), on 9 July 2014. Official Report, column 334W.