Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent progress he has made on securing international support for marine protection in the Antarctic.

The UK is a global leader on Antarctic marine protection issues, including within the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). At its next meeting in October, CCAMLR will consider the UK co-sponsored proposals for establishing Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the East Antarctic and Weddell Sea. International consultations are underway at official and technical levels. The final proposal will be submitted to CCAMLR this week, we will then work with other EU Members to consider the most appropriate level of lobbying.