HL Deb 22 October 1990 vol 522 c1233WA
Lord Jenkins of Putney

asked Her Majesty's Government:

At what date the Department of Trade and Industry ceased to advise British exporters to carry on trading with Iraq.

The Minister of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Hesketh)

Her Majesty's Government does not tell UK companies whether or not to pursue their commercial interests in different parts of the world; until existing trading conditions were overtaken by current events we did not intervene to prevent trade with Iraq other than in the area of defence equipment identified in my right honourable friend's statement in another place on 29th October 1985.