HC Deb 31 July 1997 vol 299 cc482-3W
Mr. Howard

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the differences between the criteria set out in his answer to the hon. Member for East Ham (Mr. Timms) of 28 July,Official Report, columns 26–29 and the criteria followed by the previous Government. [11885]

Mr. Tony Lloyd

The new criteria for considering licence applications for the export of conventional arms build on the UK's commitments to guidelines on arms transfers agreed with permanent members of the UN Security Council, the European Union and the then Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe.

The new criteria are more detailed and precise than those followed by the previous Government. They represent a clear tightening of policy on arms exports, inter alia, by: moving from an assessment of whether equipment is likely to be used for internal repression of international aggression to an assessment of whether equipment might be so used; requiring officials to consider clear evidence of recent use of similar equipment exported by any country; providing detailed guidance on the meaning of internal repression; giving guidance on those goods which have a more obvious potential for use in internal repression.

Mr. Howard

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contracts permitted by the previous Government he intends to prohibit in accordance with the criteria set out in his answer to the hon. Member for East Ham of 28 July,Official Report, columns 26–29, [11886]

Mr. Lloyd

As my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary announced on 28 July,Official Report, columns 26–29, we were not responsible for the decisions on export licences made by the previous Administration. We do not, however, consider it realistic or practical to revoke licences which were valid and in force at the time of our election.

Ann Clwyd

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for East Ham of 28 July,Official Report, columns 26–29, for what reasons Her Majesty's Government do not consider it would be realistic or practical to revoke arms exports licences which were valid and in force at the time of the general election. [12211]

Mr. Lloyd

I will write to my hon. Friend shortly.