We, the Ambassadors from the Diplomatic Missions of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, joined by the European Commission Representation in Ireland and European Parliament Liaison Office in Ireland, express our continued support for the Dublin Pride festival. We are pleased to take part as a joint contingent of ‘Diplomats for Equality’ in the Virtual Dublin Pride Parade on 28 June 2020.

Seventy countries still criminalise same-sex conduct between consenting adults. There continues to be unacceptable instances of discrimination and/or persecution of LGBT+ persons across the world. This includes hate-motivated violence, arbitrary arrest and the application of the death penalty. We reaffirm our opposition to all forms of violence and discrimination, including on grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics.

Citizens of all societies, including Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and related persons (LGBT+), should be able to live freely without fear of violence or discrimination, and play an active part in society. Education, raising awareness and dialogue are key tools to achieve this, and Pride organisations across the world, including Dublin Pride, play an important role in this work.

COVID-19 has enacted a heavy toll on our communities. We express support to all those affected, and to the key workers who are helping to keep us safe here in Ireland and across the world. This includes members of the LGBT+ community, many of whom already face discrimination, violence, persecution and isolation. Tackling COVID-19 is a significant challenge and it has caused great pain. But we have also seen acts of great kindness, of communities coming together to support each other and the vulnerable, and new and innovative ways of connecting with each other.

We are therefore pleased that Dublin Pride 2020 will take place virtually, allowing us to continue to support and celebrate the LGBT+ community and the work of Dublin Pride. As the theme of this year’s festival says we are “In this Together”. Together with the United Nations and other international organisations, we break the silence on violence and discrimination. We commit to continuing our work to promote respect and non-discrimination against LGBT+ persons.

We would like to thank the organisers of Dublin Pride 2020.

Defra has today (18 June) announced that six general licences for the control of wild birds will be reissued on a temporary basis ahead of new licences coming into force on 1 January 2021.

The current licences GL26, GL28, GL31, GL34, GL35 and GL36 will be reissued from 1 August to 31 December. No action is required by licence users, beyond the ongoing requirement to act in accordance with the licence conditions.

Defra announced a longer-term review of general licensing in June 2019 which has made significant progress. The re-issue period is necessary to thoroughly analyse the evidence and to fully develop a general licensing solution for protected sites.

Defra is committed to achieving a general licensing regime for wild birds which is both robust and workable for users, ensuring that longer-term licensing arrangements are informed by the best available evidence. As part of the process, Defra will seek Natural England’s statutory advice.

Defra intends to publish new licences in November to allow user groups to become acquainted with the changes before they officially come into force on 1 January 2021.

Environment Secretary George Eustice said:

It is vital that we have a robust long-term licensing system which balances the needs of users and our wildlife. Our general licencing review has made significant progress, however more time is needed to ensure that we have carefully considered all of the relevant evidence, and to fully develop a general licensing solution for our protected sites.

Our extensive consultation and review process will be completed in the coming months, with the new licences coming into force on 1 January 2021.

The general licences allow users to kill or take certain species of wild birds for a range of purposes such as the protection of livestock and crops, conservation, or public health and safety.

Following a legal challenge by Wild Justice in April 2019, Natural England revoked three general licences and subsequently issued three licences (GL26, GL28 and GL31) to cover some of the species and purposes covered by the original licences that were revoked. Defra subsequently issued three interim licences (GL34, 35 and 36) while the longer term licencing requirements were reviewed. NE’s licences have remained in place, since they allow for specified activity on European protected sites which are not covered by Defra’s licences.

The six general licences are:

• Carrion crows: licence to kill or take them to prevent serious damage to livestock (GL26)
• Canada geese: licence to kill or take them for public health and safety (GL28)
• Woodpigeons: licence to kill or take them to prevent serious damage to crops (GL31)
• Licence to kill or take wild birds to conserve wild birds and to conserve flora and fauna (GL34)
• Licence to kill or take wild birds to preserve public health or public safety (GL35)
• Licence to kill or take wild birds to prevent serious damage to livestock, foodstuffs for livestock, crops, vegetables, fruit, growing timber, fisheries or inland waters (GL36)

Thank you Mr Chairperson. I would like to thank Ambassador Villadsen for his detailed briefing on the work of the Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine (PCU).

We are a firm supporter of the PCU. They do excellent work with the Ukrainian government, including on key areas such as civil society engagement, humanitarian demining, and implementing reform across Ukraine. It is unfortunate that alongside other international organisations, their ability to operate throughout the entire territory of Ukraine is restricted due to Russian interference. The PCU also had to adapt its activities to the Covid-19 pandemic. I commend Ambassador Villadsen and his team’s efforts to ensure staff are protected and projects continue during this difficult time.

We welcome the PCU’s introduction of a Gender Strategy, which includes measures related both to internal Mission procedures and to the planning, implementation and evaluation of projects. It is important that gender mainstreaming is integrated into all aspects of the PCU’s work in order to increase its effectiveness and beneficial impact. I am therefore pleased to note that the PCU continues to make progress on this area and has provided additional training to their staff on gender-related topics.

The PCU’s decision to focus 2019 as the Year of Mediation reinforced the importance of drawing on expertise from government and civil society stakeholders. Last year the UK was proud to support the PCU’s project on Dialogue Reform and Social Cohesion in Ukraine, which enabled the training of 9,000 Ukrainian civil servants on dialogue facilitation techniques. We welcome the continued work in this area to promote dialogue and build bridges by advancing national mediation, dialogue and school mediation in 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also resulted in increased risks to cyber security. The PCU’s focus in this area is extremely timely as the Government of Ukraine seeks to enhance its cyber security capabilities. This year, the UK will support the PCU to train Ukrainian civil servants on cyber security and better address shared cyber security threats. These issues not only affect Ukraine, but also the UK and many other participating States in this Permanent Council.

Another issue that has confronted many States during the pandemic has been the sharp increase in violence against women and girls. We welcome the PCU’s decision to strengthen their prevention work on domestic violence. Adapting prevention measures and ensuring continued accessibility of essential support and services at this time can be life-saving.

Humanitarian demining remains another crucial area of focus this year. We applaud the PCU’s work on demining to strengthen national mine action authorities and ensure mine risk education is provided to affected communities. More so than ever, environmental risks should be addressed. Increased support to Ukrainian authorities on developing comprehensive legislation to improve chemical safety and security is a positive example of the PCU’s engagement in Ukraine.

The UK remains committed to the long-term security, stability and prosperity of Ukraine. We commend the work of the PCU to promote reform across a broad range of issues, some of which have been highlighted today. We reiterate that the mandate of the PCU applies to all Ukrainian territory including in eastern Ukraine, and illegally annexed Crimea. We once again thank Ambassador Villadsen and his team for their work supporting Ukraine, and I wish them continued success.