MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falklands was awarded nine MPA contracts in five years

The question was asked by Wes Streeting, MP for Ilford North, who visited the Falkland Islands last month in a delegation of four MPs.

The UK Ministry of Defense has awarded nine direct contracts to locally-based businesses in the Falkland Islands over the last five years including marine services, waste management, logistics and education.Harriet Baldwin, UK Under-Secretary of State for the MoD gave the statistics in response to a question in the House of Commons by Wes Streeting, MP for Ilford North, who visited the Falkland Islands last month in a delegation of four MPs.

 Mr Streeting also asked the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department had made of the value of fish exports to the EU from the Falkland Islands in each of the last five years.

Minister of State George Eustice provided the following information 2011: £95.5 million; 2012: £106.3 million; 2013: £89.8 million; 2014: £90.4 million; 2015: £92.9 million.

Also in response to a question, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Sir Alan Duncan spoke of EU funding received by the Falklands over the last five years from the European Commission's voluntary scheme for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (BEST) Program and the European Development Fund (EDF)

He said according to the Falkland Islands Government, over the last five years, they had received €491,032 of BEST payments and EDF payments amounting to €2,905,0

Asked what recent assessment had been made of the quality of the surface of the runway on Ascension Island, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defense Mark Lancaster said the MoD undertook regular assessments to ensure that the quality of the runway surface at Ascension Island continued to meet their operational needs.

He added: “Where issues are identified we work in conjunction with the US Air Force who own and operate the runway.” (Penguin News).-