Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to help ensure that Tristan da Cunha’s fishing industry is adequately protected from increased restrictions over fishing areas.

Under the Blue Belt programme, United Kingdom funding has been provided to support the Overseas Territories protect and manage their marine environments. The programme is currently on course to protect 4 million square kilometres of ocean around the British Overseas Territories. In delivering the Blue Belt initiative, the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and the Marine Management Organisation(MMO) are working with the Government of Tristan da Cunha to ensure that the large scale Marine Protected Areas which have been designated, or are being developed, around the UKOTs are effectively managed, monitored and enforced. Traditional surveillance techniques, including sea and aerial patrols, are also being supplemented with trials of new techniques including satellite surveillance (radar and optical imagery); autonomous underwater vehicles; and unmanned aerial systems, to detect any illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. Further funding was announced in August for FY 2020/21 to continue this important programme.