§ 116. Mr. WigleyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the recent meeting at Tromso to discuss the international whaling ban.
§ Mr. CurryWe understand the meeting hosted by Norway was attended by Canada, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland and Japan and considered whale and seal research, management procedures and scientific aspects of management questions. The review of the current moratorium on commercial whaling however is to be considered by the International Whaling Commission in July. The United Kingdom will take an active role in that discussion.
§ 117. Mr. TredinnickTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what discussions he has had with his European and Japanese counterparts concerning the preservation of species whales; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. CurryJapan and Norway are in no doubt as to our view on the need for conservation of whales. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister made our position clear when she met the Japanese Prime Minister earlier this year, when I met the Norwegian Minister for trade. We consult other 211W members of the European Community with an interest in whaling in the forum of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
We shall continue to press strongly the case for the conservation of whales. At the IWC meeting in July we will insist there can be no question of lifting the present moratorium on commercial whaling until the scientific advice is clear that whale stocks can be sustained at healthy levels.