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Free Trade

Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the impact on biodiversity in developing countries of allowing free trade in agricultural products. [217346]

Mr. Morley: In 2004 my Department commissioned a review of the literature on the implications of trade liberalisation for sustainable development, which included an initial assessment of the impact on biodiversity in developing countries of freer trade in agricultural products. The report, The Implications of
 
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Trade and Investment Liberalisation for Sustainable Development: Review of Literature", is available on the Defra website.

The Department subsequently has commissioned new research which will include further assessment of the impact on biodiversity of trade liberalisation in agricultural products. The report is expected to be published this July.

In addition, the European Commission has released recently its draft sustainability impact assessment on agriculture which includes a more comprehensive assessment of the impact on biodiversity of freer trade in agricultural products. The draft report is available on the website of the Institute for Development Policy and Management at Manchester University.

The assessments carried out to date show that the impacts on biodiversity of liberalising trade in agricultural products depend upon a range of factors, including the location and type of agricultural activity being undertaken. However, the assessments suggest that there could be negative impacts on biodiversity in some areas and hence a need to develop policies to mitigate any such impacts.

Game Birds

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will seek to legislate to ensure that game birds are reared in humane conditions. [216497]

Mr. Bradshaw: Under the Protection of Animals Act 1911 it is already an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to a domestic or captive animal in the keeping of man, this includes game birds that are being kept for rearing.

The proposed Animal Welfare Bill would allow certain animal related activities to be regulated by use of secondary legislation. It is proposed that game bird rearing should be subject to a Government code of practice to help secure the welfare of the birds.

The Animal Welfare Bill will also introduce an offence of failing to promote the welfare of an animal kept by man. The duty to promote welfare will apply to those responsible for captive game birds.

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will consult interested groups which are critical of current game bird rearing practices; and if she will make a statement. [216501]

Mr. Bradshaw: The proposed Animal Welfare Bill would allow certain animal related activities to be regulated. It is proposed that game bird rearing should be subject to Government codes of practice made under the Bill. Any proposals will be subject to wide consultation.

GM Crops

Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to announce the formal consultation on co-existence measures and the GM planting regime. [217355]

 
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Mr. Morley: In collaboration with the devolved Administrations we held a series of stakeholder workshops last Autumn as the first phase of consultation on co-existence measures for GM and non-GM crops. As the second phase of consultation we are now developing a package of specific proposals and options. This is not expected to be published before the summer. Once published everyone will get a chance to contribute to, and comment upon, our proposals.

It remains the Government's clear intention to introduce co-existence measures before any commercial cultivation of GM crops takes place in the UK. No commercial cultivation is expected here before 2008 at the earliest, so we have time for a thorough consideration of this issue.

Greenhouse Gases

Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department is taking to ensure that implementation of the EU Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Directive takes into account the national climate change target of achieving a 20 per cent. cut in emissions of carbon dioxide between 1990 and 2010. [218291]

Mr. Morley: The UK is on course to exceed its Kyoto Protocol target of a 12.5 per cent. reduction in CO ₂ emissions on 1990 levels during 2008–12. The Climate Change Programme expects emissions of carbon dioxide to be about 14 per cent. below 1990 levels in 2010. The impact of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme will contribute to further savings.

The total number of allowances to be allocated in the UK National Allocation Plan for Phase I (2005–07) are significantly below (c.5 per cent.) the finalised emissions projections for this period (subject to Commission approval). This takes the UK ahead of other member states, in terms of effort against business as usual.

The Government have stated that the overall number of allowances to be allocated for Phase II (2008–12) should be consistent with the trading sector's contribution to the achievement of our goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010. The Climate Change Programme review will consider what that contribution will be.

Meat (Illegal Imports)

Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many successful prosecutions of those illegally importing meat into the UK there have been in each of the last eight years. [217536]

Mr. Bradshaw: Details of prosecutions taken by local authorities specifically for offences relating to illegal import of meat into the UK are held by individual local authorities and are not held centrally.

HM Customs and Excise have had responsibility for anti smuggling controls on products of animal origin since 11 April 2003. In the year April 2003-March 2004, no prosecutions were taken by HM Customs and Excise for Products of Animal Origin (POAO) illegal import
 
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offences. In the year April 2004-March 2005, they have prosecuted six people for imports contrary to the POAO regulations.

Protected Birds

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the current review of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 with regard to the advice offered by the Joint Nature Conservation Council on Schedule 4 to the Act on the list of birds given protection by the registration scheme. [217220]

Mr. Bradshaw: In 2002 Defra carried out a full public consultation on the bird registration scheme with the key results that the scheme be retained with some minor changes to the administration process and that a study be commissioned by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), firstly to agree scientific criteria for including species on Schedule 4 and then to apply those criteria to candidate species.

The study has now been completed and the recommendations in their report are likely to form the basis for a full public consultation where interested parties will be invited to comment on the proposals and to submit further evidence for consideration.

Timber

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will take steps to include social criteria in the UK's timber procurement policy. [216574]

Mr. Morley: A key objective of the UK Government's timber procurement policy is to encourage the protection of forest dependent peoples' rights and enhance their well-being. By requiring its contractors to supply only timber that has been legally harvested and by preferring timber grown in sustainably managed forests, the Government are helping to achieve this outcome in many producing countries.

The EU public procurement directives ensure that public bodies conduct their procurement in a fair and transparent manner, do not discriminate or create barriers to trade and obtain value for money for taxpayers. In line with the above requirements, the criteria for selecting bidders must be limited to their capacity and ability to supply the product or service, and the criteria for specifying requirements must be limited to relevant technical, quality and performance characteristics that can be objectively measured and priced. The criteria can include relevant manufacturing processes and that enables forest management standards that affect the product to be specified. Protecting and conserving a product's raw material is relevant, measurable and a reasonable demand to make of a contractor. Protecting and conserving the rights and socio-economic well-being of forest dependent people is not something a contractor based in another country could be reasonably expected to undertake. Such social and ethical issues are beyond the capacity of suppliers to control, measure and price. Furthermore, the introduction of non product related issues into contracts would enable contracting authorities to choose their suppliers on the basis of subjective
 
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judgements that would jeopardize the fairness and openness that have served the public procurement process so well for many decades.

A public authority can refuse to invite tenders from suppliers who have been convicted of an offence or grave professional misconduct in relation to the conduct of their business and that could include offences relating to the treatment of forest dependent people. Any such refusal would have to be proportionate to the offence.

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