§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the progress of the treaty on straddling fish stocks; and highly migratory fish stocks; and what action has been taken to place limits on catches of(a) tuna and (b) swordfish which migrate through international waters and stocks of (i) flounder, (ii) halibut and (iii) other fish which straddle the territorial waters of different countries. [8246]
§ Mr. BaldryThe United Nations agreement for the implementation of the provisions of the United Nations convention on the law of the sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the conservation and management of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks was adopted by the conference on 4 August 1995. It opened for signature on 4 December 1995 and was signed on that date by 25 states, including the United Kingdom in respect of certain dependent territories. The EC and its member states have not yet completed the required internal procedures for signature.
Much of the content of the agreement has to do with the establishment of regional fisheries organisations and their activities. The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, which the United Kingdom joined on 14 November 1995, adopted at its 1995 meeting further measures to limit the catches of bluefin tuna in the Atlantic and to allocate percentage national shares for the catch of north Atlantic swordfish. The North-West Atlantic Fisheries Organisation has adopted for 1996 a zero catch limit for yellowtail flounder and a total allowable catch of 27,000 tonnes for Greenland halibut on the Grand banks.