asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will enter into discussions with the Governments of the Soviet Union and Japan on ways of developing the cultivation of jojoba plantations in desert areas of the world, with a view to providing satisfactory substitutes for whale oil.

My right hon. Friend has no plans to do so. It has yet to be satisfactorily established whether jojoba oil can be a commercial substitute for sperm whale oil, but we will continue to be in close touch with research organisations in those countries where well-established programmes exist.