Britain ignored risk of whale extinction in rush for oil and gas

Britain agreed to bankroll controversial drilling for oil and gas, despite a warning from its own officials of the “potentially devastating effects” on a critically endangered species of whale. The decision to flout their own experts’ advice is revealed in deeply embarrassing documents the Government fought for three years to keep secret.

The documents – finally released last week under the Freedom of Information Act after a High Court ruling – warn that the drilling, off Sakhalin Island in the far east of Russia, could cause the extinction of one of the world’s most vulnerable populations of the marine mammals.
Nevertheless, the Government’s powerful export credits and guarantees department (ECGD), which provides support to the exports industry, agreed to help back the $20bn (