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registered interest false more like this
date less than 2023-11-22more like thismore than 2023-11-22
answering body
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs more like this
answering dept id 13 more like this
answering dept short name Environment, Food and Rural Affairs more like this
answering dept sort name Environment, Food and Rural Affairs more like this
hansard heading Fishing Catches: Cetaceans more like this
house id 2 more like this
legislature
25277
pref label House of Lords more like this
question text To ask His Majesty's Government how many cetaceans were caught in UK waters in 2022; and how that number compares to estimates of cetacean bycatch. more like this
tabling member printed
Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle remove filter
uin HL504 more like this
answer
answer
is ministerial correction false more like this
date of answer less than 2023-11-29more like thismore than 2023-11-29
answer text <p>All cetaceans are fully protected in UK waters under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations. In the UK, it is an offence to deliberately disturb, harm, capture or kill wild cetaceans. We are not aware of any cetaceans being caught illegally in UK waters in 2022.</p><p> </p><p>The UK introduced new rules in 2021 making it mandatory under fishing vessel licence conditions for fishers to report any marine mammal bycatch to the Marine Management Organisation (MMO). On the introduction of this requirement, communications were sent out by Defra, the Devolved Administrations and the MMO to ensure that industry understood the new obligations.</p><p> </p><p>This reporting is complemented by a range of other monitoring programmes.</p><p> </p><p>The Government funds the UK Bycatch Monitoring Programme which uses onboard observers to estimate bycatch rates and high-risk gear types. The 2022 annual programme report will be completed and published, once fishing effort figures for 2022 are finalised and can be integrated into bycatch estimates.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, both the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) and the Scottish Marine Animal Strandings Scheme investigate the causes of death of stranded cetaceans around the UK coast to improve our understanding of, and ability to tackle, key threats like bycatch. CSIP strandings data are published in annual reports. Due to unprecedented events, including the coronavirus pandemic and the UK’s largest ever outbreak of avian influenza, the delivery of project reports has been delayed. The 2022 annual report will be finalised shortly and released in due course, following publication assurance processes.</p><p> </p><p>Since 2020, Defra has also funded Clean Catch UK, a research programme which is developing and trialling a range of bycatch monitoring and mitigation measures. This programme has developed a bycatch self-reporting mobile application and an online ‘Bycatch Mitigation Hub’ with information on different approaches to reduce bycatch.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise that accidental bycatch in fisheries is one of the greatest threats faced by cetaceans, and we remain fully committed to tackling this and addressing monitoring gaps. In 2022, the UK Government and Devolved Administrations published the UK Bycatch Mitigation Initiative (BMI). This outlines how the UK will achieve its ambitions to minimise and, where possible, eliminate the bycatch of sensitive marine species. As a core objective of the BMI, the Government will continue to build on existing monitoring work to improve our understanding of bycatch and entanglement of sensitive marine species.</p>
answering member printed Lord Benyon more like this
question first answered
less than 2023-11-29T14:44:54.407Zmore like thismore than 2023-11-29T14:44:54.407Z
answering member
1547
label Biography information for Lord Benyon more like this
tabling member
4719
label Biography information for Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle more like this