§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many non-human primates are imported to the United Kingdom annually; from which nation sources; which species are involved; and what information is held about distribution throughout the country.
§ Sir Paul BeresfordAll species of primate are listed in the appendices to the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora, and are therefore subject to the import/export licensing controls contained in the convention, which is implemented throughout the European Union under regulations 3626/82 and 3418/83. In 1994, 1,999 live primates were recorded as imports to the UK under the CITES regulations. The species and countries of origin involved are shown in the table. The Department does not keep comprehensive information about the distribution of imported specimens within the UK as this is not required by CITES for most of the specimens concerned.
Species Number imported Country of origin Golden lion Tamarin 2 Hong Kong (Leontopithecus rosalia) 3 Japan Chacma baboon 7 South Africa (Papio hamadryas ursinus) Olive baboon 55 Kenya (Papio hamadryus anubis) Crab-eating macaque 989 Mauritius (Macaca fascicularis) 431 Philippines 234 Israel 40 China Rhesus macaque 191 China (Macaca mulatta) 40 USA Cotton-top tamarin 4 Japan (Saguinus oedipus) Owl-faced monkey 1 Zaire (Cercopithecus hamlyni) Pileated gibbon 1 Switzerland (Hylobates pileatus) Black howler monkey 1 USA (Alouatta caraya)