§ Patrick MercerTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) who from his Department will attend the International Maritime Bureau's piracy conference in June; [174607]
(2) what (a) meetings he has had and (b) correspondence he has exchanged with his counterparts in (i) Malaysia and (ii) elsewhere on tackling piracy in Southern Asia. [174610]
§ Mr. McNultyThe Department works with other countries in Southern Asia through the IMO on a routine basis to tackle piracy. In the past the Department has raised the topic in bilateral meetings with officials and Ministers from overseas countries (for example Indonesia). The Department's Transport Security Directorate, TRANSEC has in the past participated in and, jointly with the FCO, provided UK financial support for several IMO regional missions and seminars, presenting UK Government actions and chairing working groups and syndicates. These seminars have played an important role in raising awareness of the incidence and impact of piracy and armed robbery at sea. No request for a ministerial meeting has been received, nor has any ministerial correspondence been received.
The Deputy Director of this Department's Transport Security Directorate, will be attending the International Maritime Bureau's piracy conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on June 29–30. This will be a good opportunity for the UK to discuss piracy with the host country of Malaysia as well as other key states in the fight against piracy such as Indonesia and Singapore.