JAPANESE WHALING IN THE SOUTHERN OCEAN SANCTUARY

Early day motion 1507, tabled 30 January 2006 by Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative). Signed by 154 members.

That this House condemns the government of Japan for its scientific whaling within the Southern Ocean Sanctuary; deplores the cruelty of Japanese whaling operations as shown in recent film footage of harpooned minke whales suffering long and painful deaths; regrets deeply that more than 6,800 minke whales have been killed in the name of science in Antarctic waters since the moratorium on commercial whaling was introduced in 1986; fears that Japan is close to commanding a majority bloc in the International Whaling Commission; welcomes the 17-nation demarche in January, which included the UK, calling on the government of Japan to cease immediately its lethal scientific research and curtail its plans to catch 935 minke whales and 10 endangered fin whales; notes the huge public interest in, and sympathy for, the northern bottlenose whale recently found in the Thames; and strongly urges the UK Government to recognise the public interest in whales and put further pressure on the government of Japan at the highest diplomatic levels to cease its whaling programme.

Signatures by party: Labour 84, Liberal Democrat 35, Conservative 22, DUP 5, Scottish National Party 3, Plaid Cymru 2, Social Democratic and Labour Party 2, Respect 1.