Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of P&O Ferries' mass dismissal of UK resident seafarers employed on cross-channel routes on 17 March 2022 on the operation of the UK-France Maritime Security Treaty.

The UK-France Maritime Security Treaty sets out the UK and France’s shared preparedness for and joint response to a high threat security incident on a vessel in the Channel.

We do not expect recent decisions by P&O ferries to affect the operation of the Treaty, and we will continue to work closely with the Department for Transport, industry, and France to ensure the Treaty is implemented smoothly and effectively.