John Howard Snubs Australia's Invitation To Water Conservation Conference

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JOHN Howard has turned down an invitation to attend an international exposition on water conservation and recycling, after declaring his intention to get people to change their attitudes towards use of theresource.

The federal Government rejected the invitation to attend the expo in Spain aimed at changing attitudes to water use and its impact on agriculture, industry and energy. A spokeswoman for Parliamentary Secretary on Water Malcolm Turnbull said Mr Turnbull had not been informed of the invitation.

The refusal to attend the 2008 expo in Zaragoza comes despite Australia's participation in the exhibition's precursor in Aichi, Japan, last year and the Prime Minister's decision to attend the next exhibition in Shanghai, China, in 2010.

In China in June, Mr Howard said Australia would participate in the expo to be held in Shanghai and was "well-placed to contribute to the theme of the Shanghai expo: Better City, Better Life".

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http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20040761-30417,00.html