§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Industry if he proposes to introduce legislation to provide a framework for the deep sea mining of manganese nodules by British companies in the form of exploration and exploitation mining permits in advance of an international convention being negotiated upon the issues involved.
§ Mr. Les Huckfield:The Government's objective at the Law of the Sea Conference is agreement on an international system for the exploitation of the deep sea minerals, under which both the benefits and the opportunity to participate are reasonably shared among all States. The question of interim legislation is kept under review in the light of progress at the conference itself and developments in other countries.