§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy to encourage the completion, adoption and implementation of a convention on the conservation of biological diversity.
§ Mr. MacleanThe negotiations on the convention of biological diversity were completed and adopted on 22 May in Nairobi. On 12 June my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister signed the convention on behalf of the United Kingdom. The convention will come into force only after 30 countries have ratified it. We hope that that will be soon.
§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to undertake research on the effects of habitat fragmentation on biological diversity.
§ Mr. MacleanMy Department is currently funding two projects relevant to our understanding of the effects of habitat fragmentation on biological diversity.
Countryside Survey 1990 is a detailed survey of Great Britain, jointly funded by NERC—the National Environment Research Council. A more detailed assessment of key habitats has also been commissioned with the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. In addition, the joint nature conservation committee will shortly put out to tender a project on the effect of habitat fragmentation on vertebrate populations.