2 32 Australia itself fully supported the object of conservation and
development of the whaling industry as evidenced by the statement of
William Patrick Ashley, the Australian Minister for Shipping and Fuel in the
Senate:
“That convention [i e the ICRW] consolidated a number of earlier
international agreements aimed at regulating whaling activities
generallyin order to avoid the extinction of whaling as an industry.
…international action is necessary to preserve the whaling industry,
and it is desirable that Australia should co-operate with other
countries in their efforts in that direction ”