§ Mr. William Sheltonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether Argentina has yet accepted the decision of the court, set up by Her Majesty's Government to arbitrate between Argentina and Chile, awarding Picton, Nueva and Lennox Islands in the Beagle Channel to Chile: if not, what the present position is; and whether any steps can be taken by Her Majesty's Government to implement the court's decision.
§ Mr. RowlandsThe 1971 Agreement for Arbitration provided that the award rendered on the basis of the court's decision should be legally binding upon the parties and did not make it subject to acceptance by them. A declaration made by Argentina in January claiming to pronounce the award null and void has been stated by the court to be inadmissible. The court is now considering the position reached in relation to the implementation of the award and there is no action which Her Majesty's Government could appropriately take.