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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the lifting of a cannon from the wreck site of HMS Victory 1744 by Odyssey Marine Exploration formed a part of the Marine Management Organisation investigation into unauthorised work on the HMS Victory 1744 wreck site.

The investigation on the HMS Victory 1744 wreck site focused on activities at the wreck site in 2012. Based on the evidence available, it is understood that a cannon was lifted prior to the introduction of the marine licensing system in April 2011 under part 4 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009, for which the Marine Management Organisation is the licensing authority.

Part 4 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act introduced a requirement to have a licence to remove objects from the sea-bed. Prior to this, under part II of the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985 which concerned the regulation of deposits in the sea, there was no similar provision regarding removal of objects from the seabed.