§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether he will be seeking representations on the link between biodiversity and poverty in his capacity as chair of the cross-Government ministerial committee preparing the UK position at the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development. [48158]
The Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of StateThe eradication of poverty will he a key focus for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. As the summit approaches the Government are consulting widely on how to ensure that the goal of poverty alleviation is integrated into the emerging agenda. The 2001 DFID publication 'Biodiversity: a crucial issue for the world's poorest' elucidates the links between poverty and biodiversity and sets out the Government's approach to this subject. This is available on the DFID website at www.dfid.gov.uk.