§ Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he is now in a position make a statement about his discussions on establishing a fishing limit in the Falkland Islands.
§ Mr. WhitneyI refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave him on 23 January at column 392 and on 5 March at column413 and to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye (Mr. Warren) on 16 December 1983 at column 609.
437W
§ Sir John Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the recent visit to London of the Civil Commissioner of the Falkland Islands.
§ Mr. WhitneySir Rex Hunt's visit to London from 2–8 June, which had been planned for some time, was one of a series of routine visits to discuss a wide range of internal Falklands matters as well as international aspects. We had some very useful talks with him.
§ Sir John Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what fishing fleets have been engaged in the area of the Falkland Islands and dependencies in 1983 and in 1984 to date.
§ Mr. WhitneyStatistics are compiled only for vessels within the 150-nautical mile Falkland Islands protection zone. During 1983 and 1984 to date, fisheries vessels registered in the following countries entered the zone: Soviet Union, Poland, Japan, Taiwan, German Democratic Republic, Federal Republic of Germany, Spain, Italy, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Liberia, Norway, Philippines, Panama.
§ Sir John Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports have been received from the British Antarctic survey and other sources about over-fishing within 200 miles of South Georgia; and what preventive action has been taken.
§ Mr. WhitneyReports from the British Antarctic Survey and other sources, including FAO, suggest that South Georgia fin-fish stocks should be subject to conservation measures. The United Kingdom representative on the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources will pursue this objective at the next meeting of the commission in September.
§ Sir John Biggs-Davisonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if Her Majesty's Government have now decided either to declare an exclusive fishing zone for the Falkland Islands and dependencies or to take other measures to prevent over fishing in the area.
§ Mr. WhitneyThese matters are under active consideration.