§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what steps the Government have taken to fulfil their obligations under the Bonn Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals; what areas are outstanding; and if he will make a statement. [28156]
§ Angela EagleThe United Kingdom's obligations to conserve migratory species in accordance with this important Convention are reflected in existing national legislation, especially the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and the programmes of my Department and the statutory conservation agencies.
The most recent summary of progress was published in March last year, entitled Report of the United Kingdom Government to the Fifth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties, Geneva 10–16 April 1997. A copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
The report details conservation activities relating to the species listed in the Appendices to the Convention and other migratory species, and gives information on research projects. It also provides information on the implementation of the Convention in the United Kingdom's Dependent Territories. The report also covers the United Kingdom's implementation of two regional agreements concluded under the Convention, the Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic and North Seas (ASCOBANS) and the Agreement on the Conservation of Bats in Europe. Both 602W Agreements have been ratified by the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has also signed, subject to ratification, the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA).