§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the factors underlying the delay in publishing the first annual report on arms exports. [69399]
§ Mr. Tony LloydWe regret the delay in publishing the first annual report on the UK's strategic export controls, and will publish the report as soon as possible.
Putting the report together has involved the careful checking and compilation of a vast amount of data. This process has been particularly time-consuming because the databases of the departments concerned which were in place during the period covered by the annual report were not designed to produce the necessary information. In addition, it became clear at a late stage of the process that there were significant inaccuracies in HM Customs and Excise data relating to the value of arms exports to individual countries, and this has had to be re-checked.