Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 82: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the discussions he has had with a view to extending Ireland's underwater territory under the new UN Law of the Sea Convention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25423/07]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea a coastal state is entitled to a continental shelf of 200 nautical miles, approximately 370 km in breadth, regardless of whether its continental shelf physically extends that far subject only to the similar rights of its coastal neighbours. It may also claim a broader shelf where it can show the natural prolongation of its land territory under water extends beyond this limit. A claim to extended shelf must be supported by scientific and technical data and be established to the satisfaction of the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, which was created by the convention for this purpose.

Ireland's shelf naturally extends beyond 200 nautical miles to the west and south of the country. For the purposes of our claims we divided our shelf into three sectors. The first sector is to the south west of the country on the edge of an area known as the Porcupine Abyssal Plain. This sector, which is approximately half the size of the State's land territory, is not disputed by any other state and, therefore, was the subject of Ireland's first submission in May 2005.

In April this year, the commission issued its recommendations concerning the limits of this claimed area. The Government accepted these recommendations and work is in hand to designate in domestic law the additional seabed enclosed by these limits as continental shelf belonging to the State. Ireland is then likely to become the first country in the world to establish sovereign rights to exploit mineral resources on continental shelf lying more than 200 nautical miles from its shore. No hydrocarbon prospecting or exploration can be licensed there until this is done.

The second sector of claimed extended continental shelf is in the Celtic Sea and the Bay of Biscay. This was the subject of a joint submission made with the UK, France and Spain in May 2006. It covers an area of approximately 80,000 square kilometres, which is slightly larger than the State's land territory. This submission remains under consideration by the sub-commission established to examine the evidence submitted in support of it. The four states will have further discussions with the sub-commission when it resumes its work in New York in January. The sub-commission is expected to formulate its recommendations during 2008. These recommendations must, in turn, be approved by the commission. The question of division of this area between the four states concerned will be considered after the recommendations are made.

Ireland also claims continental shelf in the part of the north-east Atlantic Ocean known as the Hatton-Rockall area which extends up to 500 nautical miles from the coast. Ireland and the UK agreed a maritime boundary on the continental shelf here in 1988 but this is not accepted by Iceland or Denmark on behalf of the Faroe Islands which also make extensive overlapping claims. The four countries have met regularly since 2002 in an effort to resolve the issues arising from overlapping claims, most recently at the end of September in Reykjavik. A further meeting will take place in Denmark next month.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Minister stated the first sector is agreed and Ireland will have jurisdiction over it. Will the Minister confirm it is an area of 270,000 square kilometres? Does the Department of Foreign Affairs or the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources lead on this issue? As this concerns a vast area, has the Minister considered the implications for the country with respect to the necessary expansion of the Naval Service or a Department? Is the Minister aware of indications of mineral resources in this area and how does he envisage the area will be policed or operated? Does the Government intend to establish a specific group to implement policy in this area? The public does not know about this issue. The Minister mentioned Rockall Island in his reply. It is an old chestnut but I would like to know what is the situation with regard to the claim on Rockall.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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With regard to responsibility, the Department of Foreign Affairs has primary responsibility for the State's international boundaries and this includes the seabed. The Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources has responsibility for supervising and licensing many activities. Ireland will be the first state in the world to make a successful claim in this regard. The commission's recommendation will allow Ireland establish an outer limit approximately 150 km beyond the current 200 nautical mile limit. The question of supervision, obviously, would arise in regard to the issue of fisheries. This has no effect on the fisheries as our territorial waters extend to the level of 200 nautical miles. This relates to outside that limit, so the reality is that this has no impact on fisheries.

It does have an impact on the issue of possible exploration. To a large extent, supervision of it would not arise because the only issue is in regard to hydrocarbon exploration. This has no effect on the position of Rockall. The situation at Rockall was agreed 27 years ago in 1980 under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which provides that rocks which cannot sustain human habitation or economic life on their own shall have no exclusive economic zone. From that point of view, the British accepted the point made by us in these negotiations. The UK withdrew its claim to a 200 nautical mile exclusive fisheries zone measured from Rockall when it acceded to the convention in 1997. As I said earlier in regard to the joint claim by Ireland and the UK, discussions are ongoing with Iceland and Denmark who are making the case on behalf of the Faroe Islands.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The time has concluded. I will take a very brief supplementary.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Can the Minister indicate when he expects the discussions on sector two and sector three to be completed?

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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No, because the discussions are ongoing for the past five years. The next meeting is due to take place next week in Denmark.