§ 51. Mr. Callaghanasked the Minister of Transport what inquiries he is making into the recent heavy oil pollution of the coastline; and what information he has about the sources of the pollution.
§ Mr. MarplesI receive regular reports from H.M. Coastguard and from other sources about oil pollution around our coasts. It is often difficult to trace the specific source of the pollution, but a good deal of the pollution in the Solent area was probably due to the collision in which a tanker was involved earlier this year.
§ 55. Mr. Awberyasked the Minister of Transport, in view of the increasing use of oil tankers and oil-burning vessels, what steps are being taken to deal with the problem of oil pollution outside the coastal waters area.
§ Mr. MarplesThe International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil contains prohibitions against the discharge of persistent oils and has now been ratified by twelve countries. At the moment, the most effective way of improving matters is to encourage more countries to accept the Convention, and this is what the Government are doing.