asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the recent communications which he has had with the fishing industry on the use to which its fleet might be put as part of the United Kingdom's naval defences.

It is not our usual practice to discuss contingency arrangements; we do, however, keep the possible employment of fishing vessels during a national emergency under review. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has recently received a letter from the director general of the British Fishing Federation on this subject to which a reply will be sent shortly.