Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the level of risk to the security of UK citizens posed by illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the Western Indian Ocean.
Answered by Alan Duncan
Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the West Indian Ocean poses a limited security threat to British nationals, so we have not made a formal assessment.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to (a) support democracy in and (b) strengthen UK relations with countries in Africa.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The UK’s links with Africa are profound. We spend almost £5 billion a year supporting Africa’s stability and prosperity. My Rt. Hon Friend the Foreign Secretary (Mr Johnson) last week visited The Gambia which recently saw its first democratic transfer of power, and in May my Rt. Hon Friend the Prime Minister (Mrs May) will host a major conference to agree a new international partnership for Somalia, demonstrating UK leadership and commitment to democracy and stability in Africa.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for Zimbabwe's political and economic future in the event of the death of President Mugabe.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Zimbabwe faces enormous political and economic challenges. A peaceful transition to a leader willing to make reforms could move Zimbabwe towards a more democratic, prosperous future. The UK does not support parties or individuals, but rather the implementation of policies that could lead to eventual normalisation of Zimbabwe’s international relations.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support a UN implementing agreement for the establishment and management of marine protected areas in the high seas.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK supports the need for a new implementing agreement and the need to establish a mechanism to deliver Marine Protected Areas in areas beyond national jurisdiction. This is because whilst a range of different bodies with varying responsibilities address the protection of marine bio-diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, these bodies have sectorally or regionally restricted mandates.
The first session of the Preparatory Committee (Prepcom) to develop a new implementing agreement took place at the UN from 28 March to 8 April. The UK was represented by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Defra officials. We will continue to engage on this issue in preparation for the remaining three sessions of the Prepcom.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number and area of marine protected areas established beyond national jurisdiction through regional seas agreements or other instruments.
Answered by James Duddridge
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is aware of eight Marine Protected Areas that have been established beyond national jurisdiction. One has been designated by the Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and seven have been designated by the OSPAR Commission in the North-East Atlantic. The UK plays an active role in both of these organisations and is fully supportive of their work to establish networks of Marine Protected Areas in the Antarctic and the North-East Atlantic.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of areas beyond national jurisdiction is covered by (a) regional seas agreements (b) regional fisheries management organisations and (c) other relevant instruments which are legally mandated to establish marine protected areas where the most important environmental impacts are effectively addressed.
Answered by James Duddridge
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not hold details of the proportion of areas beyond national jurisdiction covered by these arrangements. The United Nations Environment Programme has oversight of the 13 Regional Seas programmes. There are also five other “partner programmes” and the UK is a leading member in two of these – the Antarctic Treaty System and the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR Convention). It is also an observer in the Arctic Council.
There are six Regional Fisheries Management Organisations which manage highly-migratory species and ten of which manage fish stocks by geographical area. Each Regional Fisheries Management Organisation has its own underpinning international legal agreement with different powers. The UK does not participate in every Regional Fisheries Management Organisation and we do not hold details of each of their powers. In general, Regional Fisheries Management Organisations cannot create Marine Protected Areas, but some do implement fisheries closures to protect Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems.
The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources does have the legal power to establish Marine Protected Areas and has designated the South Orkney Marine Protected Area.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) promote the protection of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction and (b) ensure that the agreed commitment to establish marine protected areas in 10 per cent of the world's oceans by 2020 is effectively implemented in such areas.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK is fully committed to promoting the protection of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
Without prejudice to Article IV of the Antarctic Treaty 1959, in 2009 the UK led negotiations within the Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources which resulted in the establishment of the world’s first high-seas Marine Protected Area (MPA) covering 94 000 km2. The UK supports the establishment of further MPAs within the area covered by the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, and is working closely with members to designate MPAs in the Ross Sea, East Antarctic and the Weddell Sea.
The UK is a leading member of the OSPAR Commission which has designated 7 MPAs in the high seas of the North-East Atlantic and works closely with other regional and international organisations to manage these.
We are a signatory to the Hamilton Declaration on Collaboration for the Conservation of the Sargasso Sea 2014, which established the Sargasso Sea Commission to encourage and facilitate voluntary collaboration toward the conservation of the Sargasso Sea.
We support the work of the International Seabed Authority in establishing Areas of Particular Environmental Interest in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. We also support the work of the International Maritime Organisation in identifying “Special Areas” which benefit from additional pollution protection and “Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas” which may benefit from specific measures to control certain maritime activities.