SUSTAINABLE WILD BIRD TRADE

Early day motion 2375, tabled 15 June 2006 by Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Conservative). Signed by 84 members.

That this House recognises that bird-keeping is a hobby which is enjoyed by many people in the UK and can foster wider interests in ornithology and bird conservation; strongly supports the right of bird-keepers to practise their hobby; believes that the sourcing of birds for aviculture must be sustainable; is concerned that the wild bird trade as currently practised is not sustainable, is depleting vulnerable populations of wild birds around the world and is responsible for the deaths of very large numbers of birds in transit; questions unsubstantiated assertions that this trade brings real income to indigenous communities and conservation benefits in wild birds' countries of origin; further questions the view that restrictions on the legal trade in wild birds will lead to an increase in the illegal trade, a view not supported by the experience in the US following the 1992 Wild Bird Conservation Act; and therefore calls on the Government to support a strong bird-keeping tradition in the UK based on captive-breeding and sustainable imports, and to work with other European Union member State governments for a permanent ban on imports of wild birds into the Union unless they can be proven to meet rigorous sustainability criteria on a case by case basis.

Signatures by party: Labour 40, Conservative 22, Liberal Democrat 20, Plaid Cymru 1, UUP 1.