§ Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list(a) all measures taken by his Department in the last 12 months to prevent nuclear proliferation, (b) the number of personnel in his Department working to prevent nuclear proliferation and (c) his Department's total expenditure on control of nuclear proliferation in each of the last three years for which figures are available.
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§ Mr. LilleyThe Export Control Organisation of DTI works together with other Government Departments to implement policy on nuclear non-proliferation. Over the past 12 months my officials have continued to participate in international fora dealing with nuclear proliferation issues, in particular the nuclear suppliers group and the European political co-operation working group on nuclear non-proliferation.
Amendment No. 7 to the Export of Goods (Control) Order introduced in July 1991 was a significant unilateral measure which brought under control the export of a wide range of goods where the exporter knows or suspects that they will be used for nuclear proliferation purposes. In 1991 my Department organised a series of eight seminars for industry entitled "The Changing Threat" aimed at alerting exporters to proliferation issues in the context of export controls.
The Export Control Organisation of DTI employs 119 staff. As the staff of the Export Control Organisation deal with all matters relating to export control, it is not possible to provide figures on the Department's expenditure specifically on the control of nuclear proliferation.