HC Deb 21 January 1999 vol 323 c540W
Mr. Dalyell

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his letter of 13 January to the hon. Member for Linlithgow, what was the outcome of discussions with(a) EU partners and (b) Security Council colleagues about making more effective arrangements for alleviating the suffering of the Iraqi people. [66491]

The Prime Minister

[holding answer 19 January 1999]: Discussions are still continuing with EU partners on all aspects of Iraq policy, including ways to alleviate the suffering of the Iraqi people, on which we have made a number of proposals to the Presidency. The General Affairs Council will consider these matters further on 25 January. Following discussions in the Security Council on 14 January, the President of the Council reported that members had discussed the need to improve the humanitarian programme and looked forward to a full report from the UN Secretary General on how this might be achieved.

However, it is important that these issues are put into context. Saddam Hussein has proven time and again that he is not prepared to provide adequately for his people's welfare. He has refused shipments of humanitarian aid, prevaricated over distribution plans for the "oil for food" programme, smuggled oil illegally out of Iraq for his own benefit and tried to sell wheat and barley to other countries at low prices, while complaining that his people are starving. The UN Special Rapporteur holds Baghdad responsible for the precarious food and health situation in Iraq. We are determined to do what we can to ease the suffering of the Iraqi people in the face of such neglect by their leader.