The British government's white paper, Health of the Nation, received a cautious welcome on its publication in 1992.1 Its critics believed that its approach to health was limited, that it omitted many important issues such as the effects of environment and poverty, and that it implied ditching the World Health Organisation's comprehensive Health For All strategy.2 Since then, WHO has met with the European Union in Helsinki in 1994 and approved a model environmental health action plan,3 which Britain has been asked to pilot.4 The result gives us a clear view of the British government's segmental approach to Health For All.5 It also raises issues about who should do what in promoting environmental health. Britain's environmental health action plan is a simple list of what the government is doing or planning to do about environmental health.5 It is not a new agenda and therefore contains no new policy initiatives. …