HC Deb 26 July 1990 vol 177 cc480-1W
Mr. Tredinnick

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to his counterparts in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea concerning the deaths of whales and dolphins in the south Pacific due to fine-mesh drift nets used by fishing fleets from those countries.

Mr. Lennox-Boyd

The Government of Japan and the Republic of South Korea are well aware of our concern about the use of large-scale drift nets in the south Pacific. We and our EC partners supported the United Nations resolution calling for its cessation by the end of June 1991 and welcomed the endorsement of this resolution by the 42nd annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission. We also welcomed the recent decision of the Japanese Government to suspend drift net fishing in the south Pacific one year in advance of the deadline stipulated in the United Nations resolution. We do not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, and have no Government-to-Government dealings with the authorities there.