asked Her Majesty's Government:

What progress has been made by United Kingdom scientists, working with their counterparts in France, the Republic of Ireland and Spain, to secure the Bay of Biscay extra territorial waters as part of the North Atlantic regional studies programme of scientific, geopolitical and geophysical examination. [HL3154]

In 2006, the UK, Ireland, France and Spain made a joint submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, regarding the continental shelf area beyond 200 nautical miles in the Bay of Biscay, as provided for by Article 76 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. The submission is currently under examination by the commission. The process is in its final stages and the results of the commission's deliberations are expected in the next six to 12 months. Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, together with scientists from the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, assisted by the UK Hydrographic Office, are engaged in researching and presenting this submission to the commission.

This process does not form part of any other scientific programme.