§ Ms HoeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures the Government are presently taking to stop the proliferation and indiscriminate use of anti-personnel mines.
§ Mr. AitkenWe believe that our current stringent controls on the export of defence equipment, including mines, are sufficient to stop the sales of these weapons to countries which may use them in an irresponsible manner. The United Kingdom fully adheres to the principles of the 1981 United Nations weaponry convention, protocol II, which contains strict rules governing the use of mines.
§ Ms HoeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contribution the United Kingdom is making to anti-personnel mine clearance overseas.
§ Mr. HanleyBritish service men are not at present involved in mine-clearance operations, other than those necessary for the passage of aid convoys in the former Yugoslavia. Until UNTAC's mandate ended in August however, a British Army mine clearance training team participated in the United Nations operation in Cambodia.