Cetaceans: Faroe Islands

(asked on 10th April 2026) - View Source

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications of Faroese cetacean hunting for (a) international marine conservation and (b) biodiversity agreements.


Answered by
Emma Hardy Portrait
Emma Hardy
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This question was answered on 21st April 2026

We remain committed to meeting our international obligations and continue to have concerns about the welfare and sustainability of these hunts.

In December 2025 we published the UK Cetacean Conservation Strategy with devolved governments. This includes species hunted in the Faroe Islands and aims to improve the conservation status of cetaceans in UK waters.

UK ministers and officials consistently call for an end to cetacean hunts in the Faroe Islands. As Chair of the International Whaling Commission’s Conservation Committee and Intersessional Working Group on Welfare, the UK promotes stronger protection and improved welfare for small cetaceans.

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