Protecting the environment is not at odds with the principle of economic growth. And caring for the environment is not taboo for industry - many industrialists are making money by doing so. Nor is it expensive, because you will have to pay it sooner or later. And the longer you wait, the more expensive it becomes. We have seen ample proof of this fact in Eastern Europe, and indeed in Eastern Germany, now part of a united Germany.

　　But what does hold true is that economic growth can be made compatible with a new way of thinking according to which it is no longer the quantity of growth that counts, but the quality of growth. And anther truth is that a policy of widespread environmental information is essential. You have to inform, communicate with and educate people at every level of responsibility, from the politicians, industrialists and professors to the students, young people and children, those who a re to inherit the environment of tomorrow. Those who do currently learn from our bad habits. To do so, you must make extensive use of the medial. You must ensure that the appropriate legislative framework is drawn up and anticipate the legal requirements, finding new ways of tackling and responding to the environmental challenge.

　　Through the schools and universities and outside them, you have to develop a new form of ethics, one truly unites economics and environment. In one small step, Volkswagen, for example, has initiated a recycling concept which not only involves taking back old cars but also ensures the used materials in them are redirect ed back into the materials cycle.

　　What is also true is that you will have to base your strategy on new technologies which will help you to overcome some of the problems we face today. And it must be understood that change will be essential if we are to do business in harmony with ecological principles.

　　Against this general backdrop, I propose that:

　　-you should form working groups for transport and traffic. And we must realize t hat any solution drawn up by our Council which does not take full account of the need for economic growth is doomed to fail, because:

　　-economic growth is essential for the future of China. And there will be no growth without an established, efficient transport system.

　　While I realize the common sense that lies behind the current use of the bicycle as a means of transport, I see other developments occurring in China which make less sense, reminding me of the mistakes we made in the USA and Europe. In Shanghai for example and in other cities they are building major ring-roads around t he cities.

　　The same system has proved incapable of overcoming the major traffic problems being experienced in Western cities. And it can be expected that traffic density in China will be 2 or 4 times as high as on German or Western roads.

　　An efficient transport system is also essential to avoid migration from rural areas to the big cities, with the ensuing problems of the vast slum districts we a re familiar with form other major cities around the world.

　　Based on the above and a thorough analysis of the actual situation in China, the Council should support the development of a transport infrastructure as soon as possible and with all the influence it can bring to bear.

　　With this transport system, China must seek to solve the problem of how best to interline the various means of transport and integrate them into existing structures. At the same time, the specific requirements of the various modes of transport, air transport, the railways, urban mass transit and public transport in general, must be taken into account.

　　The question we must answer is: what form can our basic transport system take that makes use of the natural synergies to prevent the system from collapsing as European and North American systems now threaten to do?

　　Given the demand for cars on the Chinese market, a sound concept for the future is and absolute necessity - for the reasons given above, and for the future pros parity of China.