Export Licences (Hansard, 30 October 1997)

§ Mrs. Roche

1. It has been normal practice for statistics relating to decisions on applications for standard individual export licences for strategic goods to be placed periodically in the Library. However, a number of problems have been identified with the export control licence information processing system, ECLIPS, which came into operation in March 1995, on which details of such applications are recorded.

2. It should be made clear that the problems identified relate to the accuracy of recording and subsequent retrieval of information from the databases; they have not affected the processing of, and decision-making on, individual export licence applications. They fall into three main categories:

(i) In general, over the last few years, where a single application has involved a range of goods, only the major item of goods on the application has been recorded on ECLIPS, together with the entry in the legislation under which this item is controlled (known as the "rating"). Any other goods on the application have been considered in the licensing process, but not recorded on the computer system.
(ii) Conversion and input errors have been found in data transferred to ECLIPS from earlier computer systems.
(iii) Errors and omissions have been found in the entry and updating of information on ECLIPS since it came into operation.

The House will be aware that it has been necessary in the past to correct a number of answers to questions, for example the question asked by the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell), Official Report, 13 June 1996 column 263.

3. Data integrity problems also arise with the separately recorded data on applications for open individual export licences, on which information has not been included in the statistics placed in the Library.

4. Having identified these problems, this Government have taken urgent steps to improve the situation: Checks have been made on all answers given to parliamentary questions since this Government took office; New procedures have been put in place to ensure that all goods listed on export licence applications and their ratings will be recorded for all applications in future, and this work will be backdated to cover all applications on which a decision has been taken since 2 May; 871W Data input procedures and their enforcement have been reviewed and strengthened; In order to assist industry and minimise input errors, work is in hand to allow companies to complete standard individual export licence applications electronically and it is hoped that this will be ready for testing in the new year; and In the same time scale, a new database is being developed to hold the data. All this work is being undertaken to a rigorous timetable and the result will be a significant advance on the present situation. However, some goods on an application may be listed under a range of different terms or even brand names.

While these can be searched by rating, comparison with a generic or specific description may be possible only in some cases by examining the original paper records.

5. As a result of checking answers given to parliamentary questions since this Government took office, three errors have now been identified affecting the answer to five separate questions; four asked by the hon. Member for Cynon Valley (Mrs. Clwyd) and one by the hon. Member for Westbury (Mr. Faber). Both have been informed by letter, copies of which have been placed in the Library of both Houses. Apart from this, however, as it is now clear that the databases do not provide a fully accurate record, some previous answers, using information obtained from the databases, could be proved wrong if recourse were made to the original paper records, of which there are some 280,000. In the light of this, all information given by this and previous Administrations—either in answer to parliamentary questions, or in correspondence, or elsewhere—relying on data obtained from these databases, should be read in conjunction with the following caveat: This information is based on data retrieved from computer databases that have been found not to be fully comprehensive. It should therefore be treated as indicative only. For any single application involving a range of goods, all of the entries in the legislation under which all of these goods were controlled may not have been recorded. Additionally, there may have been errors and omissions in recording some information. The information could only be verified by undertaking a complete search of all paper records, which would entail excessive cost".

6. However, while it would not be cost-effective to seek to correct all the data available in the Library, the data for the second half of 1996 is being corrected by examination of the paper records. This work will be completed as soon as possible and the aim is to place in the Library before the end of the year statistics covering this period, albeit subject to the above caveat.

For the first time, these will include statistics on open individual export licences granted; copies of all current open general export licences will also be provided.

7. The Government are committed, in spirit of openness, to reporting annually on the state of strategic export controls and their application.