§ Mr. WyattTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when the Government will implement fully the EU regulation 338/97 on certain threatened species. [147758]
§ Mr. MeacherCouncil Regulation (EC) No. 338/97 sets out the requirements on member states to implement the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The United Kingdom already fully implements these Regulations, under which all commercial trade in critically endangered species is prohibited and trade in less endangered species is strictly regulated. In the United Kingdom the Regulations are enforced by means of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 and the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997 (S. I. No. 1372).