asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the extent of State ownership of the sea-bed surrounding this country.

Customary international law recognises that coastal state jurisdiction derives from the fact that the Continental Shelf is the natural prolongation of the land territory and Ireland claims jurisdiction over its adjoining Continental Shelf accordingly. In its review of existing international law the Law of the Sea Conference is also at present considering this question and is seeking a more precise definition of the continental margin and how the outer edge of the Continental Shelf may be delineated with more certainty. I would also refer the Deputy to the designation orders made with respect to the Continental Shelf, the most recent being that made on 1 February 1977, designating areas within which rights of exploration and exploitation of the natural resources of the sea-bed may be exercised.

When a Continental Shelf is the natural prolongation of two or more opposite or adjacent states then the question of delimitation of the shelf between them arises. We have agreed with the British to submit the question of delimitation of the Continental Shelf to an independent third party dispute settlement procedure.

What are the actual physical limits of the Continental Shelf over which we are claiming jurisdiction?

It would be difficult to answer that question, but I can refer the Deputy to the physical limits of the designation order which is contained in Statutory Instrument, No. 22, 1977. However, the whole question of the rights of states to the exploration and exploitation of the Continental Shell generally is a matter for the most serious consideration at the International Law of the Sea Conference. Ireland has made specific proposals in that regard to ensure that the jurisdiction would stretch out to the margin of the Continental Shelf, which in some instances is perhaps more than 200 miles. The question is very complex and technical.

Is the Minister satisfied that we should restrict our claim to the limit of the edge of the Continental Shelf?

It is not a question of the edge of the Continental Shelf but of a continuation of the sea-bed to the extent that one can justify this by reference to scientific data. That is one of the matters that is under detailed consideration at present. The limit is not fixed by reference to a fixed point on the shelf.