HC Deb 28 March 1991 vol 188 cc509-10W
Mr. Tony Banks

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement about the contingency plans which exist to deal with a major oil spillage in(a) the English channel and (b) the North sea.

Mr. McLoughlin

Because it is impossible to predict where or when a tanker accident may occur, the Department of Transport's marine pollution control unit's (MPCU) contingency plan for at-sea clean-up consists of highly mobile resources on short-notice standby. These are positioned at various locations around the United Kingdom, from where they can be deployed quickly to the English channel, the North sea or any other part of the UK that might be threatened by a major oil spillage.

The responsibilty for onshore clean-up rests primarily with coastal local authorities. Those bordering the English channel and the North sea all have their own contingency plans for dealing with coastal pollution and can call on advice and specialist resources from the MPCU, which in a major spillage would co-ordinate the onshore response as well as directing offshore operations. This is to ensure that the at-sea and onshore clean-up response is fully integrated.

A list of all directly owned or contracted counter-pollution resources available to the MPCU is held in the Library.

Because of his overall responsibility for co-ordinating Government policy on environmental pollution, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment would be kept closely informed along with other Departments and agencies such as the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Nature Conservancy Council.

The UK is a contracting party to the multilateral (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, UK and EC) Bonn agreement for co-operation in dealing with pollution of the North sea by oil or other harmful substances and is a signatory to an Anglo-French joint maritime contingency plan (Mancheplan) for dealing with pollution in the English channel. Both of these international arrangements provide for the provision of assistance, if requested, to help combat major oil spillages.

Resources would also be contracted in from the private sector as needed.