Current campaigns
We receive many letters and campaign postcards on a wide range of issues that concern both organisations and individuals. These are some of the recent campaigns.
Marine Conservation Society’s Marine Reserves Now! campaign.
The Marine Conservation Society renewed its Marine Reserves Now! campaign towards the end of last year to persuade the Government to set clear targets in the Marine and Coastal Access Bill for the introduction of protected marine reserves. The campaign has generated over a thousand letters to Defra in its first months.
The Marine and Coastal Access Bill
The UK is a world leader in many aspects of marine management and protection and as our seas are some of the busiest in the world, demands on their resources are increasing. Because of this, there is a real need for a wide ranging and structured approach to marine management that covers activities in our seas and around our coastline.
The Marine and Coastal Access Bill is the first of its kind in the world and will greatly improve the way the UK uses its vast marine resources and maximises the benefits it gets from them.
Marine Conservation Zones
The Bill includes marine conservation proposals which provide for the designation of a new type of marine protected area – Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) – which will help the UK meet our commitment to establish an ecologically coherent and well managed network of marine protected areas by 2012. MCZs will conserve rare and threatened habitats and species, as well as those which are representative of the biodiversity found in our seas.
- Timetable for the creation of MCZs
Ministers will designate MCZs, in consultation with stakeholders, to form a network of sites. This will strengthen the provisions in the Bill and provide greater clarity and certainty for stakeholders as to the Government’s intentions. The Government does not intend to define in the Bill what an ecologically coherent network is. This is still an evolving concept and we think that to set a definition in law now may prove too restrictive in the future. What we intend to do instead is publish guidance that will accompany the Bill, and it is here that we will set out our understanding of what an ecologically coherent network in the UK seas should look like.
- Ensuring that MCZs work properly
The Bill requires the Secretary of State to report to Parliament on progress made in carrying out the duty to designate an ecologically coherent network in 2012 and at least every six years after that.
Finding out more
You can read more about the Marine and Coastal Access Bill on the Defra website at: www.defra.gov.uk/marine/legislation/
Campaign for an EU ban on all seal products
We' ve received over 4000 emails from people asking for an EU ban on the trade of seal products.
The Government's opposition to the annual Canadian seal hunt is well known and remains unchanged. We have lobbied to promote EU-wide action and we are pleased that on 23 July 2008, the European Commission proposed an EU-wide ban on the import, export and sale of seal products from a range of species where it cannot be proved that the seals were killed humanely. The Government welcomes this proposal which was discussed by the Council of Ministers for the first time on 20 October. We intend to work with the European Commission to introduce effective legislation as quickly as possible. Our aim is for a complete ban on the commercial trade in all pinniped (i.e. seals, sea lions and walrus) products.
Many people have expressed concerns about the sustainability of the Canadian seal hunt. Our scientific advisers, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, have reviewed the 2008 seal quotas and consider them to be sustainable. We will however keep the situation under close review.
Progressio's campaign on illegal logging
Progessio is running a campaign to persuade the Government to take urgent action against illegal logging.
The UK Government is working nationally and internationally to address illegal logging and promote sustainable forest management, and we recognise the causes of illegal logging are complex - linked to poverty, corruption and failures of governance and markets. There is no single solution to the problem and we are therefore implementing a range of actions.
We agree that effective legislation is urgently needed, which is why we have been active in supporting the European Commission through the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) initiative. This regulation allows the EU to set up Voluntary Partnership Agreements with developing countries and provide them with help to tackle illegal logging. We have been persistent in encouraging the Commission to consider extra legislation to support FLEGT. Thanks to ongoing pressure from the UK government, NGOs and progressive industry, a legislative proposal is expected in October as part of a package of EU measures to tackle illegal timber trade, deforestation and associated climate change.
It is important that we continue to encourage EU-wide legislation, which will be much more effective than a single country acting alone. We will therefore wait to see what the Commission recommends before committing to domestic action. We have been influential in informing the debate – by conducting analysis, consulting with stakeholders and sharing our thinking with the European Commission and other Member States.
Consumers can ensure that they are not unwittingly purchasing illegally logged wood by buying certified timber. Certification schemes recognised by the Government ensure that legality and sustainability criteria are met and that communities depending on forests for their livelihoods are respected. There is currently a review of certification schemes taking place and results will be available on the Central Point of Expertise on Timber website (www.proforest.net/cpet) in the autumn. You can read more about illegal logging at:
www.defra.gov.uk/environment/internat/forests/
Page last modified: 12 March 2009
Page published: 23 June 2008