§ 2. Mr. Laurance Reedasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what part his Department is playing in preparations for the international Law of the Sea conference.
§ The Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Mr Anthony Stodart)My Department joins fully in the work of the United Kingdom delegation to the United Nations Sea Bed Committee, in preparation for the conference on the Law of the Sea.
§ Mr. ReedWhat account will my hon. Friend take of the vote in the United Nations yesterday which clearly demonstrated that most nations believe that the conservation of living resources above the Continental Shelf should lie in the hands of the coastal State?
§ Mr. StodartThe Government do not agree that the decision of the United Nations last night should pre-empt international law. Nor should it anticipate the international Law of the Sea conference decision. The preference of the coastal State has always been fully recognised by the Government.