Bonn, 27 June 2012 - Endangered sharks will be given greater protection following the signing of the CMS Memorandum of Understanding on Migratory Sharks by the United Kingdom on 18 June.

The agreement, the first of its kind to address the global conservation of sharks, was signed by Fisheries Minister Richard Benyon on behalf of the UK and a number of its Overseas Territories.

Adopted under the Convention of Migratory Species the Memorandum will help develop management measures to protect threatened species such as basking, longfin mako and whale sharks. Many of these sharks are not only found in UK waters, but in those of UK Overseas Territories, the involvement of which is therefore crucial in ensuring these animals get the protection they need.

As is the case with most EU Member States, the UK is pushing the EU to tighten controls on shark finning. Shark finning - the practice of slicing off a shark’s fins and discarding the body at sea - is associated with unacceptable waste and unsustainable mortality rate of sharks. The CMS agreement aims to ensure the long-term survival of sharks.

Under the Memorandum, work will focus on improving fisheries data for threatened shark species to help inform conservation and management actions. It will see better co-ordination of shark management and conservation measures at regional and international levels, including proposals to limit the catch or trade in endangered species of shark.

Other species of shark covered under the agreement are shortfin and white sharks, the porbeagle and northern hemisphere populations of the spiny dogfish. The signature of the UK brings the total number of Signatories to 25, as of 1 July 2012.