§ Captain Pluggeasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport whether he will consider supplying all men in the Mercantile Marine with the shark-repellent mixture developed by the United States Navy?
§ Mr. Noel-BakerThe question of affording seamen protection against sharks and other voracious fish has been considered on several occasions, but the evidence available up to the present has not demonstrated the need for such a measure. Recent investigations have indicated that these creatures are not as dangerous as is commonly believed. They rarely attack a boat and can usually be scared off by vigorous splashing or by a crack on the snout. Advice to this effect has been given to merchant seamen. I keep matters of this kind under constant review, however, and I am making inquiries about the shark-repellent mixture to which my hon. Friends refers.