Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of the South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands marine protected area is legally designated as a fully no-take area.

The South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands sustainable use MPA, established to deliver defined conservation outcomes, covers 86% of the maritime zone. No commercial fishing licences are granted across the remaining 14% of the maritime zone.

There are a number of legal provisions in place for the effective management and conservation of the South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands sustainable use MPA including: no-take zones from the coast to 12 nautical miles around Shag Rocks and South Georgia and 3 nautical miles from the South Sandwich Islands coast covering 2%; an additional pelagic no-take zone extending 12 nautical miles South Sandwich Islands coast; total ban on commercial bottom trawling; depth restrictions on fishing for the Marine Stewardship Council certified toothfish fishery protecting 92% of the sea floor habitats; and prohibitions on krill fishing during the summer breeding period (1 November to 31 March).