§ Mr. Maclennanasked the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received regarding the possible designation of the Minches as an area of water to be avoided by oil tankers; and what reply he has sent.
§ Mr. Michael SpicerMy right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport has received a letter on this matter from Friends of the Earth, Scotland, and a reply was sent on his behalf on 15 December.
In commenting on the Friends of the Earth's suggestion of an area to be avoided, the reply said:
In considering the problems regarding tanker traffic in the Minches Ministers have been anxious to make a positive contribution to safety, as opposed simply to shifting the casualty risk from one place to another. Your paper rightly makes the point that an oil spill to the west of the Hebrides would still be likely to cause widespread pollution of the Scottish Islands and the mainland coast, and it was precisely because of this that Ministers were reluctant to promote a measure which might deny smaller vessels the option of using the shelter of the Minches during rough weather. In submitting proposals for a deep water route to IMO, a specific recommendation has been made that it should be used, weather conditions permitting, by laden tankers over 10,000 grt. You will note that this will tend to separate northbound and southbound vessels in exactly the same way as would your proposal. There is however the additional advantage that vessels over 10,000 grt are required to carry two radars, which introduces a redundancy factor in the navigational aids of such vessels and hence reduces their risk of stranding or collision.Having carefully considered all the options the Secretary of State believes that the choice of a deep water route is the right one".