Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many staff in her Department have been assigned to work on the Convention of Biological Diversity; and how many Ministers in her Department plan to attend the conference from 25 April to 8 May 2022.

The 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity represents an historic opportunity to secure agreement to ambitious global action over the next decade - an opportunity humanity cannot afford to miss. The UK is committed to playing a leading role in developing an ambitious post-2020 global biodiversity framework to be adopted at COP15. The COP is due to take place in Kunming, China, later this year, though due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, we expect a delay to the planned dates of 25 April to 8 May. Minister Goldsmith will head the UK delegation to COP15 to lead the call for a highly ambitious outcome.

Defra is the lead department for the Convention on Biological Diversity, working closely with the FCDO and Cabinet Office. A core team is in place in Defra to deliver hugely ambitious outcomes, drawing on expertise within Defra, its specialist arms-length bodies, and working with other Government departments, civil society organisations, and society at large. This includes working with the FCDO and our Posts across the diplomatic network, through which we are engaging host governments to support delivery of our objectives. Nature is one of the key priorities in the UK's COP26 Presidency, and the Cabinet Office COP26 Unit is also supporting preparations for COP15 to ensure a successful delivery of UK objectives.