Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to continue support for a moratorium on commercial deep sea mining, and their opposition to the issuance of any exploration licences; and, if so, what steps they plan to take to support these goals.

The UK recognises the impacts of deep sea mining are not fully understood and will continue to support a moratorium on the granting of mining licences by the ISA until sufficient scientific evidence is available to assess the potential impact of deep-sea mining activities on marine ecosystems, and strong, enforceable environmental regulations, standards and guidelines are adopted by the ISA. The UK does not oppose the granting of exploration licences by the ISA and the UK government is the sponsor of two existing licences for exploration in the Eastern Pacific.