DIPLOMATIC ACTION AND COMMERCIAL WHALING

That this House condemns the departure of the Japanese whaling fleet for Antarctica; notes with dismay that Japan will seek to kill almost a thousand whales in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in defiance of global opposition and several international laws; believes that there is no science in Japan's scientific whaling programme but that it is simply commercial whaling by another name; understands that non-lethal research is providing all the data needed to learn about whales; believes that whaling is cruel and unnecessary and that there is no humane way to kill a whale; welcomes the record of successive UK governments in opposing whaling at the International Whaling Commission (IWC); notes with concern the continuing allegations of corruption and vote-buying at the IWC; urges the Government to seek to address issues of transparency and governance in the IWC ahead of the 2011 meeting of the IWC in Jersey; and further urges the Government to take diplomatic action at the highest level to urge Japan to end its whaling programme.