§ Ms SouthworthTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if there are trade sanctions against Iran. [133734]
§ Dr. HowellsThere are no United Nations trade sanctions against Iran. A UK national arms embargo was imposed on 1 March 1993. It covers all goods and technology on the Military List as well as items entered in Group 0 in Annex 1 of the European Council Decision 725W 94/942/CFSP on the export of dual-use goods, as amended. An amendment was announced on 28 January 1998 to clarify that licences would not be approved for any equipment where there was knowledge or reason to suspect that it would go to a military end-user or be used for military purposes. The exception is equipment which would not normally require an export licence but is deemed licensable under the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) end-use control and where WMD concerns are not subsequently substantiated.
All applications for export licences to Iran are considered by an interdepartmental committee of advisers and representatives from the DTI, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Ministry of Defence. This committee meets once a month and makes recommendations on each application which are subsequently submitted to Ministers in the three Departments for approval. This procedure reflects the concerns that the Government has about exports to Iran and ensures that all licensing decisions are consistent with our policy.