§ 97. Mr. Callaghanasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation if oil is still escaping from the tanker "Stoney Point" in the English Channel; how big is the film that has formed on the surface of the sea; if there is any way of breaking it up before it reaches the coastline; and what advice he will give to seaside resorts about methods of disposal.
§ Mr. WatkinsonTo the best of my knowledge the leak has been plugged. The ship is now in or near Antwerp and I have had no reports of pollution during her passage up the English Channel. The film of oil that formed on the surface of the sea while the ship was lying off Falmouth early last week was about six miles in diameter. I regret that I know of no satisfactory way of dealing with oil in the open sea and I am afraid that I can add nothing to what is already known about methods of disposal from the shore.