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17It was clear that the importance of sustainability as anissue is growing rapidly in the EU and other parts of theworld, and that EU authorities are taking very ambitioussteps to comply with the Kyoto protocol endorsed bythe Commission in May 2002. On 10 January 2007, theEuropean Commission announced plans for a EuropeanUnion energy policy that included a unilateral 20%reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Thisplan has a very important impact on activities in the realestate development and housing sectors.The Design and Development CommitteeThe Design and Development Committee is chaired byMichael Freshney (United Kingdom). M. Freshney isassisted by two committee secretaries, John Haynes andChris Mills (both NHBC - UK).Istanbul, the Board of Directors nominated Mr Jean-Paul Florentin (France) as his successor; Mr Brice Golfier(France) stayed on as secretary of the committee.During the 2006-07 period, this committee was involvedmainly in activities related to environment policy,including the energy performance of buildings, soilpollution, clean air for Europe, and implementationof the EU Habitat Directive. Moreover, the committeedealt with issues related to the internal market, suchas the Services Directive, White Paper on services ofgeneral (economic) interest, contract law, public privatepartnerships, the Auroux ruling, and the draft for an EUhousing charter. The committee also closely monitorsany new developments in policies related to Europeanspatial development policies, land use, and town planning.The Economic CommitteeIn May 2006 in Torino, the Economic Committeeappointed a new chairman, Mr Martin Lemke (Germany),and in September 2006 the secretariat of thatcommittee was handed over to Mr Marco Tepper fromMichael FreshneyDuring the 2006-07 period, this committee dealtprincipally with technical matters such as the conformityand sustainability of construction products, housing forsenior citizens, and the implementation of the Energy Performanceof Buildings Directive. Moreover, the committeewas closely involved in EU Commission dossiers regardingflood-risk management, noise policy, implementationof the 1996 EU Habitat Regulation, competitiveness ofconstruction industry, temporary and mobile constructionsites, and seismic-risk management.The Law and Environment CommitteeMartin Lemkethe German federation.During the 2006-07 period, this committee dealtprimarily with VAT matters and the InternationalFinancial Reporting Standards. Moreover, the committeemonitored developments in the field of the Basel IIagreement (and its European counterpart, the CapitalRequirements Directive, mortgage credit, hedge funds,and real estate investment trusts. Moreover, in 2007this committee launched a survey among the membersaiming to define the economic importance of federationsorganised by UEPC.The Communication CommitteeMr Jean-Paul FlorentinThe Law and Environment Committee was chaired byJean-René Maillard (France), who served in this capacityfrom 1992 to 18 October 2007. At the meetings inAs the Communication Committee is chaired by theserving UEPC president, Jarosław Szanajca replacedGraham Pye in May 2007. The UEPC office is responsiblefor providing secretarial support to this committee.