Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-09-23-Speech-2-415"
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"en.20080923.40.2-415"2
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"Mr President, let me say at the very start of this debate that the Socialist Group congratulates Caroline Lucas on her report, truly supports it and will vote for all the amendments that she proposes in her report.
I welcome the fact that the revised International Tropical Timber Agreement places a greater emphasis on sustainable management – for example by tackling illegal logging – and on the restoration and conservation of degraded forests. As others have said, the preservation of tropical forests is vital in maintaining biodiversity and in our fight against climate change because, as we now know very well, tropical forests play a central role in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Currently the felling of these forests is responsible for 20% of global carbon emissions.
I share Caroline Lucas’s objective in trying to ensure that the revised agreement does in reality give priority to social and environmental issues rather than solely focusing on increasing trade in tropical timber.
Of course, developing countries must have the resources to protect, restore and sustainably manage the forests. The agreement makes a provision for funding based on thematic programmes, in addition to project funding. I hope that the thematic programmes can focus on issues such as governance and poverty reduction, and that Member States can contribute generously to these programmes.
I share the disappointment that both Caroline and Helmuth Markov have expressed regarding the fact that Parliament has not been granted the assent procedure on this agreement, and I share the view that we should have been given that procedure.
I hope that we can count on the Commission to submit to Parliament an annual report analysing – and ‘analysing’ is the key word – the implementation of the agreement. I understand what the Commission has told us tonight, that the International Tropical Timber Organisation publishes its own annual report, but we want to hear the Commission’s response to that document.
On the subject of bilateral agreements, earlier this month the EU signed an agreement with Ghana to prevent the import of illegal timber into EU markets. This agreement will in theory ensure that the basic rules of forest conservation, such as sound monitoring by government of timber felling, are respected – and at present, we have to note, the Ghanaian forests are being felled at an annual rate of almost 2%. If this bilateral agreement works, it can bring benefits to both parties. In Ghana, where illegal logging has reduced the rainforest by up to 25% of its original size in under 50 years, the agreement will help to secure the future of its timber industry – its fourth most profitable industry.
In the European Union, where consumers are becoming increasingly environmentally conscious, we can ensure that the timber we import from Ghana is fully certified as clean. Although this deal may take a few years yet to become fully operational, I think it is a promising start, and I support the Commission’s plans to reach similar agreements with other African countries, such as Gabon, Cameroon and Liberia.
Finally, I want to reiterate a point made by Caroline: this agreement is a modest start; it is better than nothing, but it does not go far enough, and we need further proposals from the Commission and from the international community."@en1
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