§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will name all the working groups of the European Union Council of Ministers that deal with questions of security, defence and arms control; what is the specific remit of each group and how often they meet; and if he will list the work in progress in those groups, in which the British Government participates. [8618]
§ Mr. David DavisA number of working groups deal with security, defence and arms control issues. They comprise: non-proliferation, covering nuclear, chemical and biological fields; conventional arms exports; armaments policy; global disarmament and arms control. They meet regularly to discuss topical issues and areas for co-operation including, for example, the recent joint action on anti-personnel land mines. The common foreign and security policy group and Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe group also consider European security issues.