Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the World Wildlife Fund's proposal for a new protected area for waters off East Antarctica, following this year's breeding failure in the colony of Adelie penguins in East Antarctic.

The UK is a co-proponent of a proposal to establish a Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the East Antarctic, which has been submitted by the Australia and the European Union and its Member States to the annual meetings of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) since 2010. The UK is convinced of the need for a system of MPA to be established around Antarctica to underpin protection of the unique habitats and the resilience of the ecosystem to adapt to climate change. Following the designation of the first, UK-led, Marine Protected Area in CCAMLR waters in 2009, the UK has consistently supported the designation of an MPA in the Ross Sea region of Antarctica, which was finally agreed in CCAMLR in 2016, and is continuing to work with other CCAMLR Members to secure agreement to the East Antarctica MPA proposal as soon as possible.