Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the progress of bilateral wage corridor negotiations for seafarers.

The UK’s Seafarers’ Wages Act obtained Royal Assent earlier this month. I am also pleased to report progress in the French National Assembly of the French Government’s legislation on minimum wages for seafarers. When our respective legislation comes into force, the UK and France will have created a minimum wage corridor on the short strait, enhancing the livelihoods of the seafarers that work on this important route.

We continue to engage with a range of international partners, including France, to further enhance seafarer protections internationally.