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countries have now signed the convention and so far
5 have ratified it. You will find a copy of the
Convention text (Cmnd 5459) attached.
2.
mature
As you will appreciate, the issue of another
conservation and the protection of threatened
and endangered species is a matter of considerable
concern in the United Kingdom and we are under
very substantial public and political pressure to
procede rapidly to ratification of the Convention.
A
The existing United Kingdom legislation would be
sufficient to enable us to ratify the Convention
but the existing powers are fragmented and partly
because of pressures from conservationists, the
Government intends to introduce a Bill, which will
'
be talofred to meet the Conventions requirements
early in this session.
3. There was a clear understanding at the time
of negotiation of the Convention that to the
maximum extent possible it should be extended to For apply in all
conpay that territories which are contracting
parties
Territoriee have responsibility.
Unfortunately
)
however, the conference was not willing to include
a territorial application clause. The effect of
Know
the absence of such a clause as you will kno from
recent circulars from other Conventions is that
there are difficulties in the way of "adding" territories
once our ratifications have been deposited. Given
hole
these facts it will be much help if at all possible,
the
}
to include all Dependant Territories in, declaration
*
of territorial application embodied in our instrument
of ratification. We shall be most reluctant to
accept any but the strongest and most compelling
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/grounds
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