§ Baroness Nicolasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the status of the basking shark in British waters and on what data that assessment is based;
Whether they have adequate information on the status of the basking shark in British waters upon which to base their conservation policy towards this species; and
24WAWhat field work the old Nature Conservancy Council undertook on the status of the basking shark during the last five years.
§ Baroness BlatchThe Nature Conservancy Council (NCC) recommended protection for the basking shark under Section 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 as part of its first quinquennial review of Schedules 5 and 8 of that Act. The basking shark was the subject of a survey programme by the Marine Conservation Society commissioned by the NCC. However, the Scottish Office Agriculture and Fisheries Department challenged the scientific evidence that existing fishing is having a detrimental effect on the basking shark population. NCC's successor, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee is therefore looking further into the threats to the basking shark.