The Australian Government has abandoned plans to send a ship to the Antarctic to shadow Japanese whale hunters this season, despite an election promise to increase pressure in a bid to end the slaughter. The move comes amid speculation that Tokyo will cut the number of whales it kills this season because of a collapse in demand for whale meat.

Last whaling season, the Government sent an armed Customs vessel to follow and film the Japanese to gather evidence for the international legal action it promised to take against the whalers. However almost a year on, the Government has taken no legal action and has refused to release advice on whether an international court action was feasible.

Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun have published an article stating that the whalers would reduce their take of minke whales to 750 and they would hold its quota of fin whales at 50. If the reports are true, it would be the first time since 1987 that Japan’s whaling target had been reduced but a spokesman for Japan’s Institute of Cetacean Research, which overseas the country’s whaling program, said the reports are in fact wrong. Instead the Institute of Cetacean Research have confirmed that there has been absolutely no change and 850 minke whales will be the target.

Sea Shepherd will be the only group to challenge the Japanese at sea this year as Greenpeace are not sending any of their vessels either to help stop the killings.