HC Deb 27 April 1982 vol 22 cc244-5W
Mr. Austin Mitchell

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aid has been given for the development of fishing in the waters round the Falkland Islands and their dependencies; and what finance has been made available for commercial fishing on an experimental basis in each of the last 10 years.

Mr. Onslow

The White Fish Authority's desk study report commissioned by the Government, was completed in early 1980 and was discussed soon afterwards with representatives of the United Kingdom fishing industry. Although confirming that there were large stocks of fish in the waters around the Falklands and their dependencies, the report made clear that much of the fish was of poor quality and that there was unlikely to be much profit in marketing it in the United Kingdom. British fishing companies have to date shown little interest in fishing in Falklands waters. No other aid or finance has been made available.

Mr. Skeet

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the dispute over the Falkland Islands dependencies has been referred to the International Court of Justice; and whether the Argentine was prepared to submit to the court's jurisdiction.

Mr. Onslow

[pursuant to the reply, 8 April 1982, c. 481]: Argentina has shown no interest in referring the issue of sovereignty over the Falkland Islands to the International Court of Justice and the British Government have never proposed it. That is the position as concerns the Falkland Islands themselves.

However, in December 1947, April 1951 and February 1953, the United Kingdom invited Argentina to submit to the International Court of Justice the dispute about sovereignty over the Falkland Islands Dependencies as then constituted. Argentina declined those invitations. Similar invitations were addressed to Chile, but they also were declined. Consequently no reference of these disputes to the court was made following these initiatives.

On 4 May 1955, Her Majesty's Government submitted to the International Court of Justice an application instituting proceedings against Argentina concerning sovereignty over the islands and territories which then comprised the Falkland Islands Dependencies, namely the islands and territories which since 1962 have been constituted as the Falkland Islands Dependencies—South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands—and the British Antarctic Territory. A similar application was submitted to the court instituting proceedings against Chile concerning sovereignty over the South Shetland Islands and Graham Land, which at that time formed part of the Falkland Islands Dependencies but which now form part of the British Antarctic Territory. The Government of Argentina and the Government of Chile did not accept the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice for the purposes of Her Majesty's Government's applications and the court, by its orders of 16 March 1956, ordered the cases to be removed from the court's list.

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