HC Deb 08 July 1992 vol 211 cc248-9W
Mrs. Ann Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what plans he has to use the United Kingdom presidency of the EC to press for an end to the import of wild-caught and captive-bred primates throughout the EC for research purposes.

Mr. Maclean

The import of primates into the EC is already controlled under existing regulations governing the wildlife trade. These are conservation measures, intended primarily to ensure that wild populations are not seriously depleted. They are not concerned with the purposes of import, except for endangered species. During our presidency, we shall be giving priority to the negotiation of a new European Community regulation to tighten these controls significantly, but we have no plans to see a general ban on the import of animals for use in research, which is primarily a matter for my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary.

Mrs. Ann Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment when he next intends to meet representatives of the Governments of the Philippines and Indonesia to urge them to end their trade in primates for research.

Mr. Maclean

I have no plans to do so. The Government of Indonesia are already well aware of concern in the European Community about the effects of wildlife exports. This has led to a suspension of imports of Indonesian specimens of many species, including primates, into the EC. We are prepared to take similar action on conservation grounds whenever trade is judged likely to pose a threat to species. The use of primates in research is, however, primarily a matter for my right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary.

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