Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will ensure that no decision will be taken on Marine Aggregate Dredging Application MLA/2016/00227, South Goodwin Sands, Area 521 by the Marine Management Organisation until the Secretary of State for Defence has come to a decision to designate the area under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 and the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) made a determination on whether to designate the Goodwin Sands as a controlled site under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 (PMRA 1986) on 2 June 2017. The MoD determined that due to the size and dimensions of a controlled site it would prevent any whole scale designation of the area of the Goodwin Sands.