§ 7. Dr. GodmanTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when she last met her Norwegian counterpart to discuss the subject of whaling in the north Atlantic; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. JackI am sure that my right hon. Friend's counterpart, Mr. Olsen, is left in no doubt about the strength of feeling of the Government, the House and the public about Norway's decision to resume commercial whaling.
§ Dr. GodmanThe Minister will know that Norwegian whaling ships have slaughtered more than 220 minke whales already this year. What action will the European Community take if the Norwegians decide to resume whaling next year? Does the Minister agree that Norway's membership of the EC is incompatible with whaling, so that if Norway becomes a member of the EC it will have to give up its whaling industry?
§ Mr. JackThe hon. Member will know that the EC's present position effectively makes commercial whaling incompatible with Community regulations, and there has been no change in that. Certainly, there has been no change in the Government's position on whaling and on the International Whaling Commission.
As for Norway's accession to the EC, I would draw the hon. Gentleman's attention to the remarks made by my right hon. Friend the Minister on 10 June, when she pointed out that anybody contemplating joining a particular club should be fully aware of the implications of membership.
§ Mr. Peter AtkinsonIs my hon. Friend aware that the decision by Norway to restart commercial whaling is having a serious impact on the Scottish salmon farming industry? My hon. Friend will know that the industry is facing a serious crisis because of overproduction and the dumping of salmon by Norwegians.
Is my hon. Friend aware that, to circumvent bans by European consumers of Norwegian products because of whaling, hundreds of tonnes of unlabelled Norwegian salmon have been shipped to Europe and then relabelled as Scottish salmon, thus squeezing Scottish salmon out of the European market? We know that English apples are the best, and we also know that Scottish salmon is the best. Will my hon. Friend do his best to stop the relabelling?
§ Mr. JackNorwegian whaling is a serious issue, and the action of the Norwegian salmon industry is an issue of equal seriousness. I am aware of the considerable concerns that have been expressed by the Scottish industry and by the Irish industry over the impact of the considerable increase in production from the Norwegian farm salmon sector.
The Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, my hon. Friend the Member for Dumfries (Sir H. Monro), and I have raised the matter with Commissioner Paleokrassas, who has visited Norway to make a personal assessment of the situation. He is considering the matter and what action 967 can be taken. If my hon. Friend provides concrete evidence of relabelling, I will give him the best advice as to what he should do.
§ Mr. Tony BanksThe Government have made perfectly clear to the Norwegians their opposition to Norway's limited whaling, but what further action do the Government propose to take against the Norwegians to drive home the fact that whaling is totally unacceptable to the thinking of this country?
The arrogance of Mrs. Brundtland is breathtaking. She parades her credentials as a "green" person around the world, while her country flouts an international whaling agreement. What further action do the Government propose to take to put pressure on the Norwegians?
§ Mr. JackThe most important action that we can take is to continue our stance of supporting the International Whaling Commission. The hon. Gentleman will be aware that, on 26 April this year, he received an unambiguous letter from my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister that spelled out the Government's position on the matter. That position has not changed.
I know that individuals are taking action to demonstrate their strong feelings about Norway, while others have taken different action. The Government's position remains as was stated in my right hon. Friend's letter to the hon. Gentleman.