Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if will he place in the Library copies of the (a) domestic licence granted by the Government and (b) exploration contract granted by the International Seabed Authority to UK Seabed Resources Ltd for (i) the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone I and (ii) the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone II.

The International Seabed Authority is considering how it can make the exploration contracts for the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone publicly available, but in doing so it will have to protect the commercially and competitively sensitive information. In the meantime the UK Government will review whether it would be possible to publish the domestic licences.