§ Mr. Cartwrightasked the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria are used to assess whether a licence for the export of military equipment should be issued; and what assurances are sought that this equipment will not be used for internal repression in the purchasing country.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonBefore an export licence is granted for military equipment a wide variety of considerations is taken into account. These considerations will vary depending on individual circumstances, but they will always include the need to safeguard the United Kingdom's political, strategic and security interests, the possible effect a sale might have on the stability of a region and the likelihood of the equipment being used to violate human rights. It is not Government policy to allow sales of equipment which could be used for internal repression to regimes which have a bad human rights record.