Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many meetings he has held with his Irish counterparts to discuss a management agreement for agriculture activities for (a) Lough Foyle and (b) Carlingford Lough in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

The Government's position on Lough Foyle and Carlingford Lough has not changed. The regulation of activities in Lough Foyle is the responsibility of the Loughs Agency, a cross-border body established under the Belfast Agreement of 1998. We remain fully committed to these arrangements and continue to work closely with the Irish Government over improvements to the management of the Loughs. British and Irish officials last met in October 2017 when a number of issues were discussed including the Loughs, and the management of aquaculture in them, and they have been in regular contact since.

Like the Irish Government, we do not anticipate these issues forming part of the negotiations over the UK's exit from the European Union. Indeed, we have both publically stated on numerous occasions that the issue of the management of the Loughs is distinct from, and will not form part of, any Brexit negotiation.