§ Lord Jenkins of Putneyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What information they have concerning the reported development in Moscow of a black market in plutonium and other nuclear materials and whether they will take action with the Russian Government to prevent such materials from being acquired by terrorists.
§ Baroness Chalker of WallaseyWe are concerned by reports that an illegal trade in nuclear materials exists in Russia. We take all such reports seriously and take action as appropriate. However, all materials recovered (in the incidents which have come to light thus far) have been of no proliferation concern and there is no evidence to suggest that an illegal trade in plutonium and weapons grade uranium exists. Nevertheless we remain vigilant, and we will continue to urge Russia to monitor strictly such material and to adopt strong export controls on sensitive technology and materials.