The Government has no plans to revisit the Ports and Harbours Act 1847 with a view to amending it. The legislation enshrines the principle of the free movement of trade and the rights of importers/exporters to engage in legal trade activity without prejudice or hindrance. In common with all other EU member states, the UK is also bound by much more recently enacted EU directives which entrench this principle across the entire European Union. This was confirmed by two European Court of Justice cases as well as a number of High Court cases in the 1990s.

I have not had any discussions with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Transport. The Harbour Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847 aims to ensure that ports are available to all without discrimination. It would not be an appropriate legal instrument to use it to introduce an effective barrier to trade for the use by port authorities as they see fit. In any case, banning the export of live animals would be illegal and undermine the principle of free movement of goods enshrined in the treaty on the functioning of the European Union.

The Department does not hold information on the movement of freight containers or vehicles using multiple modes of transportation.

The Port of Sunderland is a municipal port. Further information on their facilities can be found at:

http://www.portofsunderland.org.uk/

The information is as follows:

(a) I received the report which I had requested from the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency on their internal review of procedures following the regrettable events on 12 September at Ramsgate in October 2012. At the request of Kent Trading Standards, the prosecuting authority, the report was withheld until any possibility of prejudicing their criminal investigation and any subsequent criminal proceedings had passed. I placed the report in the House of Commons Library on Monday 4 March 2013.

(b) The letter sent from DEFRA to the High Court was a formal application by DEFRA to intervene in the proceedings between Barco de Vapor representing the livestock transporters, and Thanet district council who have responsibility for Ramsgate Port. I have now placed the letter of application in the House of Commons Library.

The Department does not hold information on public or private sector investment in the Port of Sunderland.

Paragraph 18 of Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 provides for offences including wilfully failing to comply with a duty imposed by or under Schedule 7. The number of persons arrested for an offence under paragraph 18 in 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 and the outcome of terrorism arrests, including convictions, was published in Home Office Statistical Bulletin (HOSB 11/12) on 13 September 2012. Information collated by the Association of Chief Police Officers indicates that, as a result of Schedule 7 examinations, there were 31 terrorism-related arrests at ports in 2010-11 and 24 terrorism-related arrests at ports in 2011-12.

Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 has yet to be commenced. I made a statement on its implementation, including destruction of existing biometric material, on 13 December 2012 (Official Report, col. WS160). Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the 2012 Act will apply to material subject to the Terrorism Act 2000, including Schedule 7.

The most recent published data on seizures by Border Force, which was made available to the Environmental Audit Committee on Wildlife Crime, is as follows:

The figures and the transcript of the committee hearing can be found at:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmenvaud/140/140.pdf

The following table shows drug seizures from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2012 at sea ports:

There are no published data for drug seizures at sea ports. However, I refer my hon. Friend to the Border Force publication for drugs seizures within the UK and

the Home Office Statistical Bulletin—‘Seizures of Drugs in England and Wales’—which contain data regarding drug seizures. However, these do not identify seizures made at sea ports.

Border Force figures

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/drug-seizures/

Home Office Statistics

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/science-research-statistics/research-statistics/police-research/hosb1212/hosb1212?view=Binary

Border Force is committed to preventing banned substances from crossing the Border into the UK. Border Force Maritime and Aviation Operations is the single provider of maritime enforcement, surveillance and interception capability for Border Force. Its fleet of five offshore patrol vessels, known as cutters, operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, detecting prohibited and restricted goods and preventing tax fraud by searching all types of vessels.

The fleet provide an essential surveillance and enforcement capability in UK waters. Cutters regularly work closely and train with other Government Departments such as the police and military to disrupt and deter any sea-borne criminal threat. Through co-ordinated intelligence and marine assets, this specialised law enforcement capability allows the agency to make an important contribution in protecting the border.

Their role in preventing banned substances from crossing the border varies between strategic patrols, tactical response work or intelligence-led interceptions to control general maritime traffic in UK waters and around the more remote areas, visited less often by land-based teams.

Moreover Border Force use targeting techniques in order to combat potential threats from canalised maritime traffic. Targeting is a means of selecting a person or a consignment for examination at the border, based on trade and carrier data received pre-arrival or pre-departure. Targeting is used to inform deployment in order to maximise the effectiveness of limited resources by deploying to the highest risk. Targeting relies on intelligence and profiles that are up-to-date being laid over the data received from the trade in order to identify those movements worthy of further attention.

Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of these meetings are published on the Cabinet Office website on a quarterly basis.

It has taken a long time to consider and reach a decision on the Dee Estuary Harbour Revision Order due to the fact that a separate harbour

revision order has been put forward by Mostyn Port and the two harbour revision orders conflict with each other. In addition, following an accident, consideration of the two harbour revision orders was deferred while the Marine Accident Investigation Board investigated the accident. There was then further representations about the extent of the jurisdiction of the harbour authorities. Since then the consideration has had to be prioritised alongside other work and the resources are now available to progress this matter to a decision.

Ministers from the Department for Transport have met with Home Office Ministers but this specific issue has not been raised in discussion. If the hon. Gentleman would like to provide details of the difficulties encountered by the cruise industry I will certainly raise those concerns with the Home Office.

Border Force applies full checks on linear cruise ships where the voyage originates outside the common travel area. Border Force requires cruise ship operators to provide them with service and passenger information prior to the ship arriving in the UK. Border Force officers use this information to complete security checks and where appropriate clear passengers in advance of arrival.

Border Force officers also travel to the ship's final foreign port of embarkation to clear passengers at the port or board the ship and clear the passengers en route to the UK. If outstanding security checks remain, officers will clear passengers at the ship's first UK port of arrival.