To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which Ministers have represented the UK at each meeting of the (a) International Whaling Commission and (b) Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species in the last five years; and who the UK’s ministerial representatives at the next meetings of these bodies will be. (128787)

[holding answer 23 March 2007]: At the 2002 annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) the UK was represented at ministerial level by my right hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe (Mr. Morley). In 2003 no Government Minister attended. In 2004, 2005 and 2006 I attended.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe (Mr. Morley) also attended the 2002 and 2004 Conferences of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

The Minister with responsibility for biodiversity, my hon. Friend the Member for Brent, North (Barry Gardiner) will be attending both this year’s meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC59) and the 14th Conference of Parties to CITES (COP14).

The UK is one of only three members to have regular ministerial level representation at IWC meetings, the others being Australia and New Zealand. Similarly, the UK is among a minority of parties that have regularly had ministerial representation at CITES COPs.