The European Parliament today voted to ban the import of illegal timber.
Sarah Shoraka, forests campaigner for Greenpeace, said: "This great new law will help to save the forests in places such as the Amazon, Congo and Indonesia, and all the wildlife that live there, like tigers, orangutans and bonobos.
"At long last illegal timber and products made from this wood will no longer end up in UK shops. And that's not just good news for the forests, it's also good news for British consumers too, because no-one wants to play a part in destroying the last remaining rainforests.
"But now we need to make sure that this law becomes more than just a piece of paper, with penalties that act as a deterrent to criminals."
The new EU legislation means that anyone bringing timber into Europe, or selling it, must be able to show that they have adequately ensured that the timber was logged legally.
Illegal logging occurs when timber is felled or processed in a way that contradicts national or regional laws. This could happen by, for example, accessing forests without permission, logging endangered species of tree or by avoiding the necessary taxes.
Since launching a campaign to eliminate illegal logging a decade ago, scores of Greenpeace activists have put their lives at risk to blockade ports, halt wood shipments and go undercover to expose illegal logging in the Amazon, Central Africa, Russia and South-East Asia. Greenpeace investigations also uncovered the use of illegal wood in the Home Office, Cabinet Office, Admiralty Arch and the Houses of Parliament.
ENDS
Greenpeace press office: 020 7865 8255
