Select Committee on Environmental Audit Minutes of Evidence


Memorandum from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)

SUMMARY

    —    IFAW welcomes this inquiry by the sub-committee as we believe the FCO has a vital role to play in environment, conservation and animal welfare issues at an international level. Furthermore IFAW is in a good position to comment on the role of the FCO as we have had the chance to work with the FCO on a number of issues at international level in the past.

    —    IFAW strongly believes that many of the most serious environment issues require international co-operation and negotiation often through multilateral environmental agreements. This is true of the two particular examples given in our evidence: the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

    —    There are examples of successful environmental diplomacy in the past, including the FCO's role in helping achieve better protection from commercial trade for basking sharks at the 2002 CITES meeting. It is questionable whether the structure and capacity of the FCO today could play a similarly successful role.

    —    The issue of whaling is an area in desperate need of diplomatic support from the FCO. It is questionable whether Defra receives the support it needs in this area to achieve the Government's stated objective; to maintain the current global moratorium on whaling and to stop all but indigenous subsistence whaling.

    —    IFAW would like to see the sub-committee recommend that the FCO review its structure and capacity to support environmental international diplomacy, and the level of priority these issues are given; and that high level diplomatic action is needed ahead of this year's IWC meeting.

    —    Specifically regarding the work of IFAW's scientific whale research vessel in foreign waters, IFAW would like to place on record our gratitude to the FCO Maritime team and embassy staff abroad, who have been exceptionally helpful and instrumental in getting research permits for boat.

  1.  The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) works to improve the welfare of wild and domestic animals throughout the world by reducing commercial exploitation of animals, protecting wildlife habitats, and assisting animals in distress. We seek to motivate the public to prevent cruelty to animals and to promote animal welfare and conservation policies that advance the well-being of both animals and people.

  2.  As one of the largest international animal welfare organisations in the world, IFAW has offices in 15 countries and a staff of more than 200 experienced campaigners, legal and political experts, and internationally acclaimed scientists.

  3.  IFAW welcomes this inquiry by the sub-committee as we believe the FCO has a vital role to play in environment, conservation and animal welfare issues at an international level. Furthermore IFAW is in a good position to comment on the role of the FCO as we have had the chance to work with the FCO on a number of issues at international level in the past.

  4.  IFAW's comments below apply generally to our experience of the work of the FCO. We do not feel able to fully comment on all the 14 questions outlined in the inquiry press notice, so our comments are simply given in the most coherent way possible. Where points match specific questions these have been highlighted to assist the sub-committee.

  5.  Two specific areas where IFAW's work has brought us into contact with the FCO include the issue of whaling and the International Whaling Commission (IWC); and the protection of endangered species from wildlife trade through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES).

  6.  IFAW strongly believes that many of the most serious environment issues require international co-operation and negotiation often through multilateral environmental agreements. This is true of the two particular examples mentioned above; the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

  7.  Regarding international environmental diplomacy [Question 2], one example of a successful role played by the FCO in the past relates to the critical importance of the FCO in securing protection from commercial trade of the basking shark by having it listed on Appendix II of CITES (therefore regulating trade and introducing protection measures for basking sharks). It can take considerable effort to get species listed on CITES Appendices, and the listing of the basking shark was achieved through involvement of British embassies in a number of countries and an FCO team who participated at the 2002 CITES meeting where the decision was taken. At that time, there existed the Environment Policy Department within the FCO, which had experts familiar with the biological and conservation issues and who worked to provide good technical detail to embassies and ensure that it was clear that the issue was a key policy objective for the UK. Since then, the role, structure, and size of what was the Environment Policy Department has changed significantly. It is questionable whether the FCO would have the capacity or expertise to play a similar role today as was the case outlined in the example above.

  8.  IFAW campaigns against commercial whaling and so-called "scientific" whaling by the nations of Japan, Norway and Iceland. IFAW welcomes the strong anti-whaling stance of successive UK governments, which has been demonstrated by consistent Ministerial representation at the International Whaling Commission (IWC), the international body which exists to regulate whaling and to protect whales from over-exploitation and other threats.

  9.  However, regarding whaling, the only country that maintains a diplomatic engagement in the issue year-round is Japan.  Over the past 20 years, this high-level diplomatic action by the Government of Japan has led to a steady recruitment of nations to the IWC (mostly poor, developing nations from West Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands, none with any history of commercial whaling) who vote alongside Japan in its bid to overturn the current moratorium on commercial whaling. This resulted in the pro-whaling nations achieving a simple majority at the IWC for the first time in decades at last year's meeting in St Kitts and Nevis.

  10.  The Government's stated policy is to maintain the moratorium on whaling and for all forms of whaling to be stopped, except subsistence whaling by indigenous peoples. The UK has also done a lot to strengthen the role of the IWC in protecting whales and other cetaceans. However, in the face of consistent high level diplomatic efforts by Japan, the Government's objective requires the help of the FCO if it is to be successful.

  11.  For the FCO to become active again on the issue of whaling expertise is required within FCO and it needs to be clear that stopping commercial and scientific whaling is indeed a priority policy objective for the UK. Increased involvement of FCO, especially through embassies in countries supportive of pro-whaling but not actually whaling nations, would help promote Government objectives at IWC and ensure that negotiations lead to more effective global protection for whales and their environment. [Q.2]

  12.  With respect to both CITES and the IWC, Defra is rightly the lead department on these issues but it is questionable whether Defra receives the level of diplomatic support required in these areas to achieve the outcomes it is looking for (especially regarding the IWC).

  13.  Furthermore, IFAW questions whether the structure of the FCO is adequate to respond to the needs of international environmental diplomacy. Clearly, it is imperative that the FCO is able to support the work of Government as a whole as it pursue international agreement on environmental issues. Climate change is a prime example of where such international environmental diplomacy is required but other international areas and conventions as mentioned in this submission are also worthy of consideration in the way the FCO works.

  14.  IFAW suggests that the sub-committee recommends that the FCO review its structure and capacity to support environmental international diplomacy, and the level of priority these issues are given. [Q.8 and Q.3] Specifically with regard to the IWC, IFAW would like to see the sub-committee recommend that the FCO undertake high-level diplomatic action, involving all pro-whaling nations not just Japan, Norway and Iceland, ahead of this year's IWC in May to prevent further increases in whaling, and to combat Japan's efforts to overturn the moratorium and undermine the conservation mandate of the IWC.

  15.  IFAW also feels it appropriate to mention that we operate a 72ft sailing research vessel (RV Song of the Whale), registered in London, which is mainly engaged in using benign techniques to study whales, as part of IFAW's global campaign to protect marine mammals and their habitats. Since its launch in 2004, Song of the Whale has travelled over 30,000 miles, and the team has conducted projects in North Africa, the Mediterranean, North America, the Caribbean and Iceland. The Song of the Whale team has recently returned from Iceland, a country which resumed scientific whaling in 2003 and commercial whaling in 2006. The IFAW team was carrying out research on rare blue whales using non-invasive research methods. In the face of the continuing expansion of so called "scientific" whaling by Japan and Iceland, the work of IFAW is vitally important in demonstrating and promoting the fact that we do not need to kill whales to study them.

  16.  We would like to record our gratitude for the assistance and support of the FCO's Maritime Team in London and the FCO staff in various countries in obtaining research permits for the vessel. We feel that the FCO has been instrumental in obtaining these permits, sometimes in difficult countries, and providing excellent support for the boat through its embassies.

  17.  Thank you for the opportunity to respond to this inquiry. As stated in the covering letter IFAW would welcome the opportunity to give oral evidence to the sub-committee. If you require any further information, please contact:

January 2007



 
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