Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are their future plans for implementation of the New York Declaration on Forests.

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The UK is delivering on its commitment to support the New York Declaration on Forests through the International Climate Fund, which invests in a broad range of activities across the globe to support sustainable economic growth, build resilience to the impacts of climate change and help sustainably manage natural resources such as forests.

The UK is also fostering public-private partnership approaches to address deforestation. The UK provides support to the Tropical Forest Alliance 2020, which is focused on realising private sector commitments to eliminate deforestation from supply chains for palm oil, beef, soya and paper. The UK’s Partnerships for Forests Programme is using partnerships with private sector companies, public sector actors and communities to encourage investment in forests and sustainable land use. As a signatory of the Amsterdam declaration “Towards Eliminating Deforestation from Agricultural Commodity chains with European Countries” we are working towards collective action to take forward pledges to address deforestation.

As a signatory of the Amsterdam declaration “Towards Eliminating Deforestation from Agricultural Commodity chains with European Countries” we are working towards collective action to take forward pledges to address deforestation.

Through the Forest Governance, Markets and Climate Programme the UK supports governance-related activities in over 20 timber producing and processing countries. The programme has helped safeguard market access for timber products and has introduced legality assurance systems.

Domestically, the Government’s Timber Procurement Policy requires central Government Departments, Executive Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies to procure timber and timber products that are both legal and sustainable.

The Government Buying Standard for food and catering was amended in October 2012 to include a new requirement to procure palm oil, palm kernel oil and derivatives from sustainable sources. All food and catering products bought by central Government must meet these sustainability requirements.