§ Mr. WilshireTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence at what time and on what date he first saw a copy of the letter addressed to the Foreign Secretary from S. J. Berwin & Co. on behalf of Sandline International dated 24 April. [42129]
§ Sir George YoungTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when he was first informed of the existence of the Customs and Excise investigation into the involvement of Sandline International in operations in Sierra Leone; [42317]
(2) when his Private Office was first informed of the existence of the Customs and Excise investigation into the involvement of Sandline International in operations in Sierra Leone. [42319]
§ Mr. George Robertson[holding answer 18 May 1998]: The first my Private Office knew of the existence of the Customs and Excise investigation into the involvement of Sandline International in operations in Sierra Leone was the afternoon of Friday 24 April 1998, when they received a faxed copy of the letter from S. J. Berwin & Company to my right hon. Friend the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary. This letter was passed for action that day to the Private Office of the relevant Minister, my hon. Friend the Minister for the Armed Forces. His Private Office placed the letter in his weekend box, and he saw it the following day (Saturday 25 April). The letter was placed in my overnight box on Wednesday 29 April and, to my recollection, I first saw it in the early hours of the morning of Thursday 30 April.
396W
§ Sir George YoungTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when his Private Office was first informed of the involvement of Sandline International in operations in Sierra Leone; [42322]
(2) when he was first informed of the involvement of Sandline International in Sierra Leone. [42321]
§ Mr. George Robertson[holding answer 18 May 1998]: I refer the right hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Mid-Sussex (Mr. Soames), on 18 May 1998, Official Report, column 258.
§ Mr. BluntTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence between what dates HMS 'Monmouth' was deployed off the coast of Sierra Leone. [42557]
§ Mr. George Robertson[holding answer 18 May 1998]: HMS Monmouth was stationed in the vicinity of Sierra Leone from 0600Z on 14 February to 1200Z on 23 February 1998. The ship berthed alongside Conakry, Guinea from 1900Z on 17 February to 1600Z on 20 February.
§ Mr. KeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what standing orders were issued by his Department concerning assistance by British forces in Sierra Leone. [42154]
§ Mr. George Robertson[holding answer 18 May 1998]: The instructions to HMS Monmouth (and later HMS Cornwall) were to deploy to the vicinity of Sierra Leone to be prepared to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to the people of Sierra Leone, to support our diplomatic efforts there, and to assist in the return of the British High Commissioner, should the democratically elected Government be restored.
§ Mr. MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the dates in 1998 when HMS 'Cornwall' was within 50 miles of the coast of Sierra Leone. [42279]
§ Mr. George Robertson[holding answer 18 May 1998]: HMS Cornwall was within 50 nautical miles of Sierra Leone on the following dates:
- a. 23 February;
- b. 25–27 February;
- c. 28 February–20 March;
- d. 23–27 April.
§ Sir George YoungTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when he was first informed of the plan for military intervention to restore the Government of President Kabbah of Sierra Leone; [42318]
(2) when his Private Office was first informed of the plan for military intervention to restore the Government of President Kabbah of Sierra Leone. [42320]
§ Mr. George Robertson[holding answer 18 May 1998]: We were not informed by ECOMOG of its plans for military intervention to restore the government of President Kabbah of Sierra Leone. Nevertheless, potential operations and activities of forces in Sierra Leone, including ECOMOG, were referred to in a number of reports circulated within the Department, including to Ministers' Offices, dating back to May 1997.