HL Deb 21 October 1991 vol 531 cc118-9WA
Lord Jenkins of Putney

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What has been the response to the Prime Minister's proposal for a register of arms sales to be kept by the United Nations.

The Earl of Caithness

The response to the Prime Minister's proposal has been encouraging. At the London Economic Summit in July, the declaration on conventional arms transfers expressed the support of the participants for the early adoption of a register. At their meeting in Paris in July the five permanent members of the Security Council, who account for 85 per cent. of the world's arms exports, agreed to support continued work on a register in the United Nations. The 12 European Community member states have agreed to table a draft resolution at the UN General Assembly requesting the secretary general to establish a register. Many countries have said that they are in favour of this proposal, and we have received several offers of co-sponsorship.