§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will detail the proposals put forward(a) directly by the Government and (b) through the EC during the United Kingdom's presidency concerning the reform of the international tropical timber agreement.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydWe have proposed focusing the objectives of the international tropical timber agreement on the achievement of the year 2000 target for all internationally traded tropical timber to come from sustainably managed sources. We have also proposed measures to improve the operational performance of the International Tropical Timber Organisation and its ability to help tropical timber producing countries meet this target. We act in close co-ordination with our EC partners who share these objectives.
§ Mr. DafisTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what mechanisms have been established by the Overseas Development Administration to monitor the performance of the International Tropical Timber Organisation in attaining its target of sustainable management of tropical timber.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydWe will monitor information from a range of sources including national reporting of progress towards the year 2000 target and reliable independent assessments of the sustainability of timber production as these are developed.