HC Deb 23 October 2001 vol 373 cc135-6W
Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many arms export licences for arms sales to Sri Lanka have been rejected in each of the past five years. [8732]

Nigel Griffiths

I have been asked to reply.

Details of all export licensing decisions taken between 2 May 1997 and 31 December 2000 were set out in the Government's 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls, published by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; copies are in the Library of the House.

The next Annual Report covering the period to December 2001 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the calendar year.

Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list how many arms export licences have been granted in each of the past five years for arms sales to Sri Lanka; if he will list the arms exported by each deal; if he will list who has received the arms in Sri Lanka; and what their end-use is. [8736]

Nigel Griffiths

I have been asked to reply.

Details of all export licensing decisions taken between 2 May 1997 and 31 December 2000 were set out in the Government's 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls, published by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; copies are in the Library of the House.

From 1 January 2001 to 8 October 2001, 19 Standard Individual Export Licences and four Open Individual Export Licences were issued covering items on the Military List destined for Sri Lanka.

In addition, goods on the Military List may have been exported to Sri Lanka under certain Open General Export Licences; copies of all Open General Export Licences valid at any time during the period are in the Library of the House.

Under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, Exemption 13—Third Party's Commercial confidences, I cannot provide the information requested on end use as it has been provided to the Government in confidence. In addition, publication of this information could reveal details of the recipient country's defence strategy, as well as being commercially damaging to the exporter.