Written question asked by Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party) on Tuesday, 10 January 2012, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 12 January 2012. It was answered by Mike Penning (Conservative) on Monday, 16 January 2012 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Shipping: Oil

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will review the level of liaison between relevant devolved authorities on the environmental effects arising from the recent transfer of oil between two cargo ships off the County Down coast for the purposes of preventing a similar problem from occurring in the future.

Answer: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) will shortly commence a review of the UK's National Contingency Plan (NCP) for Marine Pollution from Shipping and Offshore Installations. This periodic review will involve full consultation with UK interested parties, and will take account of lessons learnt from previous incidents in the UK and elsewhere. I have asked the MCA to take account of lessons learned from the forthcoming operational de-brief into the Genmar Companion incident.

Secondary information