Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assistance the Government has provided to Sri Lanka following the (a) fire on and (b) sinking of the X-Press Pearl.

The UK Government remains concerned about the environmental impact caused by the fire on the X-Press Pearl ship. We have engaged regularly with the Sri Lankan authorities and international experts on the ground to determine how the UK can best support the response.

The UK Government is providing marine pollution expertise to Sri Lanka to help respond to the potentially devastating impact on the marine life and coastal habitats of Sri Lanka. The UK will also provide expertise and analytical capacity to support plastic pollution monitoring, as well as environmental and socioeconomic impact assessments. The UK's Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science will partner with Sri Lankan Government Departments, academics and responsible authorities to support effective emergency response and implementation of a post spill integrated monitoring plan.