Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of signing an international moratorium on deep sea mining.

The UK recognises the growing pressure to extract deep-sea resources, and is deeply worried about the potential impacts of mining activities on the fragile marine environment. The UK's policy is not to sponsor or support the issuing of any exploitation licences for deep sea mining projects unless and until there is sufficient scientific evidence about the potential impact on deep sea ecosystems, and strong enforceable environmental Regulations, Standards and Guidelines have been developed by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and are in place. The UK's approach is both precautionary and conditional.