§ Mr. Foulkesasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will place in the Library a copy of the agreement under which the Isle of Man receives a proportion of the United Kingdom's oil revenues;
(2) what formula is used to determine the payments to the Isle of Man; how much has been paid in each year since the agreement was signed; and whether the Government are satisfied with the terms of the agreement;
(3) what representations have been received since 1979 concerning the agreement authorising payments to the Isle of Man (a) from the Isle of Man, (b) from within the United Kingdom and (c) from other areas or Governments.
§ Mr. Giles ShawThe texts of the letters exchanged between Her Majesty's Government and the Government of the Isle of Man, which together represent the Continental Shelf Agreement 1966, have been placed in the Library. These letters recognise the island's contribution, by virtue of its geographical position, to the extent of the United Kingdom's continental shelf.
Under this agreement, the Isle of Man Government receive a proportion of the licence proceeds—whether by way of application fees, periodic payments or royalties —made to the Secretary of State for Energy in respect of licences issued under the Petroleum (Production) Act 1934, as extended offshore by the Continental Shelf Act 1964, less administrative expenses. The proportion in question is based on the resident population of the Isle of Man expressed as a percentage of that of the United Kingdom—0.11578 per cent.
The sums received by the Isle of Man Government under this agreement are as follows: 542W Broadcasting Act 1980; of those how many have been adjudicated upon; and if he is satisfied that all cases being referred to the commission are being dealt with promptly.
§ Mr. Giles ShawThe information on the work of the Broadcasting Complaints Commission since its establish-ment on 1 June 1981 is as follows. I have no reason to believe that the commission does not deal with all cases as expeditiously as circumstances permit.
Financial year £ 1968–69 309 1969–70 1,211 1970–71 1,425 1971–72 4,654 1972–73 45,419 1973–74 15,184 1974–75 14,590 1975–76 18,349.94 1976–77 23,385.33 1977–78 75,717.17 1978–79 236,298.92 1979–80 328,233.97 1980–81 493,001.86 1981–82 2,993,373.93 1982–83 1,683,991.00 1983–84 2,484,904.00 The Isle of Man Government have made a number of representations which have largely been directed towards including in the terms of the agreement a sharing of other revenues from aspects of mineral exploitation on the United Kingdom continental shelf. Her Majesty's Government have been unable to agree that such changes would be justified, though they have accepted in principle that the effects of the Petroleum Royalties (Relief) Act 1983 are likely in the longer term to merit some adjustment to the agreement to maintain the spirit of what was originally agreed. This matter is currently under consideration by both Governments.
I am not aware that any other representations have been made about the agreement from within the United Kingdom or from any other area or Government. Her Majesty's Government remain satisfied with the terms of the agreement, subject to a satisfactory outcome being reached on the question of the effects of the Petroleum Royalties (Relief) Act.