European agricultural ministers will gather in Luxembourg in late June to debate controversial proposals aimed at stemming the flow of illegal timber into the EU.
A spokesperson for the European Council told TTJ that the proposals, which in their current form recommend stiff financial penalties and other sanctions for timber traders dealing illegally-felled timber products, still have a long way to go before making it onto the statute book.
The spokesperson said Sweden was likely to have a strong focus on forests when it took over the EU presidency in July, though nothing was likely to be finalised before the middle of 2010.
Draft regulation was drawn up by the European Commission last autumn and was amended significantly by the European Parliament earlier this year.
As it stands, traders could have their stock seized and be prohibited from trading if they are suspected of dealing with timber from illegal sources.
