§ Mr. Tony BanksTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps have been taken by Her Majesty's Government to implement the resolution agreed at the CITES conference in Ottawa in July 1987 on the trade in rhinoceros products; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MoynihanThe United Kingdom is pursuing a detailed response to this resolution with our European Community partners.
In the meantime, however, EC regulation 3626/82 which has implemented the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora within the European Community since 1 January 1984, already bans international trade in rhinoceros products for commercial purposes and their sale within the United Kingdom. Only limited exceptions may be made to this ban under the provisions of the regulations and, in deciding whether to permit an exception, the United Kingdom now takes the rhinoceros resolution into account.