HC Deb 19 June 1978 vol 952 cc23-6
17. Mr. Gow

asked the Secretary of State for Trade what proposals he has to reduce the risk of coastal pollution from oil tankers operating off the shores of the United Kingdom.

Mr. Clinton Davis

The Government will continue to pursue practical measures to improve tanker safety and reduce oil pollution as an ongoing process. At the current conference of the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organisation (IMCO) we have proposed that there should be mandatory special training requirements for the masters, officers and crews of tankers and of ships carrying dangerous cargoes in bulk.

Mr. Gow

Bearing in mind the "Amoco Cadiz" and "Eleni V" recent disasters and the near-disaster with the "Al Faiha", another super-tanker, as reported in The Sunday Times, will the Minister confirm that the Government are taking this very seriously, and can he assure those of us who represent maritime constituencies that the Government are determined to do all in their power to set up a proper emergency force which can deal with the danger and disaster of pollution if it should occur again?

Mr. Davis

I have never hidden from the House or anyone else the fact that obviously we can learn lessons from each of these incidents—and very regrettable incidents they are. In the light of that, the Government are engaged in an interdepartmental stocktaking of the procedures which we have followed, and we are looking globally at all the measures available to us. We take these matters seriously, and it is right that we should do so.

Mr. Ronald Atkins

Is it not true that 75 per cent. of oil pollution in the sea comes not from shipwrecks but from the illegal emptying of tanks by vessels using the sea? Should not we improve our methods of detection and follow them up with hefty fines which cover the total cost to the community of the pollution?

Mr. Davis

I do not in any way dissent from what my hon. Friend has said. In fact, he has under-estimated the proportion—it is 80 per cent. As a result of the "load on top" system, which has been enforceable from 1st January 1978, there is absolutely no reason why a responsible master should wash out his tanks at sea and cause pollution. The Government have taken a number of steps to diminish the problems connected with this matter. Unfortunately, we have a three-mile limit—which we are looking into—and this restricts the possibility of taking enforcement action against some of the main polluters.

Mr. Fell

Why has the Minister not yet made a statement on the "Eleni V", and how is he getting on with his report to the Prime Minister on that incident?

Mr. Davis

I am getting on with the report extremely well. I have told the hon. Member before that there is no cause at present to make a statement on the "Eleni V". The Government are involved in a wide-ranging, interdepartmental stocktaking and when that has finished I will inform the House of the position. A Select Committee is also investigating this matter.

Mr. Madden

Is the Minister aware that, because of lower effluent charges in the Common Market, a joint Government-industry working party report, published today, has recommended that a section of the Yorkshire woollen industry should be transferred from inland Yorkshire to a coastal Yorkshire area to enable it to discharge effluent into the sea? Are not the Government adding to the problems that are the subject of this Question by supporting such proposals?

Mr. Davis

I think that my hon. Friend is enlarging on the original Question. If he wants to put down a specific Question, I am sure that he has the ability to do so.

Mr. Costain

Is the Minister aware of proposals put forward by Trinity House on the matter? What consultations has he had with the Deputy Master of Trinity House in considering the problem?

Mr. Davis

We are considering the Trinity House suggestions. Before the Anglo-French proposals were put to IMCO there was widespread consultation and Trinity House had a representative on the body that was considering these matters. Of course, we shall look very carefully at what Trinity House has to say. The important thing is to get things moving by 1st January next year, and following that we shall review the procedures as they work out in practice.

Sir W. Elliott

With regard to the illegal cleaning out of tanks, will the Minister confirm that within the three-mile limit it has been established that 80 per cent. of accidents are due to human failure rather than mechanical failure? Does the hon. Gentleman see the present international conference as an opportunity to emphasise the great distress and expense that is caused by such human failure?

Mr. Davis

I cannot accept the hon. Member's percentage figure. I am not sure whether that percentage is within or without the three-mile limit. We take this matter very seriously, and it has been raised at international level. Until a satisfactory outcome is achieved, we shall continue to raise it at international level, because outside the three-mile limit the only way of doing anything is through a co-ordinated international enforcement system.

Mr. Emery

Will not the Minister consider, while he is making this wide, sweeping report, that this is exactly the answer that Lord Greenwood gave when he was in office 10 years ago? The situation has not improved. Will he therefore make a recommendation that there should be co-ordination under one Minister for the whole of off-shore pollution and that that Minister should be in the Department of the Environment?

Mr. Davis

It is noteworthy that the hon. Member held office in the Department of Trade and he did not, either with or without his colleagues' agreement, proceed on that basis. We are looking at this matter very carefully. It would be quite wrong to make any snap judgment about the chain of command. A great deal of progress has been made both nationally and internationally—it is quite untrue to suggest otherwise—since the days of the "Torrey Canyon."

Mr. Robert Hughes

Since the control of pollution—pollution either by tanker disasters or by washing out tanks—is really the responsibility of tanker owners, what steps has my hon. Friend taken to ensure that they take some very strong action against the people who serve them?

Mr. Davis

I want to look into the way in which the oil companies charter certain ships. Obviously, not only the oil companies but the tanker owners must be consulted about this. We do not want to cast blame, but we wish to move constantly towards an improvement of the situation.

Mr. Emery

On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. In view of the unsatisfactory nature of the Minister's reply, I shall seek to raise the matter on the Adjournment at the earliest possible opportunity.