§ Mr. AustinTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what arrangements he is making to allow the return of the Ibis islanders to the British Indian Ocean Territory; and if he will make a statement. [142473]
§ Mr. BattleI refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Blaenau Gwent (Mr. Smith) on 13 November 2000,Official Report, column 511W.
§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if he will discuss(a) with the Government of Mauritius and (b) with the Government of the Seychelles the environmental and ecological situation in those atolls of the Chagos Archipelago and Diego Garcia before facilitating the return of Ibis to lands of ancestral graves; [142393]
(2) if he will discuss with President Clinton the carrying out of an environmental and ecological assessment of the areas of the Chagos Archipelago and Diego Garcia, which have been uninhabited for 30 years before facilitating the return of Ilois people to lands of their ancestral graves. [142392]
§ Mr. BattleEnvironmental and ecological assessments are an integral part of the studies being undertaken into the feasibility of resettlement on the uninhabited islands of the Archipelago. We will take these factors into account most carefully before any decision is taken by the Government over resettlement by the Ilois.