Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce levels of maritime piracy off the Somali coast.

​The UK plays a leading role in the fight against piracy in the Western Indian Ocean. We contribute to the Commander and Operational Headquarters of the EU's counter piracy mission, EU Navel Force (NAVFOR) Operation Atalanta. We also contribute to the Deputy Commander for the Combined Maritime Force, whose Task Force 151 has a specific focus on counter piracy. We are also a supporter of bilateral and multilateral maritime security capacity building programmes in the region. Between 2010 and 2016, the UK contributed over £17.2m to these programmes, which have helped to support counter-piracy efforts, increase regional maritime awareness and improve legal frameworks.

In May 2017, the UK hosted and co-chaired the London Somalia Conference, at which the international community reaffirmed its commitment to deterring and combatting piracy, and the Federal Government and the Federal Member States of Somalia reiterated their commitment to improving maritime security and building a capable coastguard.

According to EU NAVFOR Operation Atalanta, there have been six piracy attacks on commercial vessels in the region in 2017. Of those, only one – an attack against a Comoros flagged oil tanker, the Aris 13, on 13 March 2017 – was successful. By contrast, in 2011, there were 176 reported piracy attacks.