§ Mr. HoyleTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of the extent to which(a) the Norwegians and (b) the Japanese are exceeding their scientific quota catch. [21631]
§ Mr. MorleyOnly Japan currently issues special permits for scientific whaling. In 1997 the Japanese Government authorised the killing for research purposes of 440 minke whales in the Southern Ocean and 100 in the North Pacific; it reported to the IWC that 440 were actually killed in the Southern Ocean and 77 in the North Pacific.