Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be taken, on behalf of the European Union, at the 32nd meeting of the Standing Committee of the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (Bern Convention)

The European Union is a Party to the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (the Bern Convention). The Bern Convention has been implemented at the EU level by both Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds, and Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora.

Any amendment to the articles to the Bern Convention shall be examined by the Standing Committee. With a view to the 32nd meeting of the Standing Committee that will be held in Strasbourg on 27-30 November 2012, Switzerland has submitted a proposal to amend Article 22 of the Convention to allow Parties to enter certain reservations concerning the undertaking initially made in the context of the Bern Convention, even after having signed the Convention or deposited its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. This would enable all Bern Convention signatories to make one or more reservations regarding certain species specified in Appendices I to III.

This proposal has not been justified by analysis or scientific data and may have wide negative consequences on populations of fauna and flora of European interest. Moreover, it is not consistent with Union legislation. In view of this, the Union should not support the Swiss proposal at the next meeting of the Standing Committee.

EUR-Lex: COM(2012)520: Follow the progress of this document through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2012:520:FIN

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