HC Deb 16 February 2000 vol 344 cc602-3W
Mr. Reed

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps he has taken to ensure that paper and timber products purchased by his Department come from a sustainable source. [110198]

Mr. Bayley

The Government, through the Green Ministers Committee, has issued a model framework which departments have used as the basis for preparing their own environmental strategies. Among its key aims is to: conserve resources and minimise waste by reducing our reliance on virgin materials and ensuring that any products derived from wildlife—such as paper and timber—are from sustainable sources and comply with EU and international trading agreements such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

This Department's policy statement/improvement programme which closely follows the model requires that all virgin paper used in products supplied to the Department, whether in its own "right" or as a consequence of recycled material, is obtained from sustainable managed forest sources. It also provides for timber, wood and plywood to be obtained from sustainable sources. With ownership of the Department's estate having been transferred to the private sector under the Prime contract the Department ensured that these commitments are enshrined in the outsourcing arrangements. The contract states: the Prime contractor's purchasing policy will exclude the use of unsustainable timber".

The Department and its contractors monitor performance on these and other aspects of its operations and reports on progress made.

Mr. Reed

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will ensure that paper and timber products purchased by his Department are independently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council as coming from a sustainable source. [110199]

Mr. Bayley

The FSC label is accepted by buyers as demonstrating that timber and timber products have come from sustainably managed sources.

However it is not practicable to require that all paper and timber products purchased by the Department are independently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council because this might discriminate against any equally valid schemes and therefore be against public procurement rules.

Specifying just the FSC label might also result in us failing to meet all our requirements as only a tiny percentage of timber products are currently FSC certified. This is why the Department's policy statement for greening its operations contains a requirement to ensure that suppliers of paper and paper products have in place an acceptable Environmental Policy and requires satisfactory evidence of compliance with published trade or other acceptable environmental standards and guidelines. It also provides for documented proof or, if available, adequate validation under an internationally recognised certification or ecolabelling scheme to ensure that timber, wood or plywood acquired by the Department, or its contractors come from sustainable resources.

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