Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the establishment of an international marine protected area in the Weddell Sea.

​Ocean protection issues have been a key point of discussion among Ministers at recent G7 and G20 meetings. The Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area proposal is currently being finalised by those European Union Member States who are also Members of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), and international consultations are underway at official and technical levels. The final proposal will be submitted to CCAMLR in September, when we will work with other EU members to consider the most appropriate level of lobbying.