British Overseas Territories: Finance

(asked on )

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on how many (a) turtles, (b) sharks and (c) seabirds were killed as a result of activities funded by the UK Overseas Territories Blue Belt programme in (i) 2016-17 and (ii) 2017-18.


Answered by
Alan Duncan Portrait
Alan Duncan
This question was answered on 24th April 2018

All scientific surveys undertaken through the Blue Belt programme are designed in line with international best practice. There were no incidental mortalities of turtle or seabird species as a result of the scientific surveys undertaken through the Blue Belt programme in either 2016-17 or 2017-18. Where possible all sharks are released alive during surveys, but in 2017-18 seven sharks (Notorynchus cepedianus) were killed through depredation by other species during surveys in Tristan da Cunha.

Reticulating Splines