§ Mr. WinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his estimate of the amount of money the Iraqi authorities could have spent on the purchase of medicines since sanctions started. [114122]
§ Mr. HainSanctions have never prohibited the import of medicines into Iraq. Under the UN's "oil for food" programme, which was first proposed in 1991 but rejected by the Iraqi government for five years, over $10 billion worth of revenue has been available for the purchase of humanitarian supplies. It is for the Government of Iraq to decide how it allocates that money between the various humanitarian sectors. It has chosen, for example, to allocate $10 million to purchase bank note counting876W machines under the current phase of the programme. The UN Secretary-General has refused to approve this allocation.
§ Mr. WinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans the Government have to ensure that there is adequate medicine to allow Iraqi civilians to receive the treatment needed. [114119]
§ Mr. HainThe Government have always worked closely with the UN to ensure that the humanitarian programme is as effective as possible in order to ease the suffering of the Iraqi people. SCR 1284, a UK initiative, contains a raft of measures to make the programme bigger and better, including the removal of the ceiling on the amount of oil Iraq can sell to purchase humanitarian goods. But the government of Iraq is ultimately responsible for deciding how that review is to be allocated. We urge the government of Iraq to take full advantage of the opportunities SCR 1284 offers, and to put the people's needs for food and medicines first when allocating revenue, rather than allocating millions of dollars for bank note counting machines, for example.
§ Mr. WinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports his Department has received of medicine brought into Iraq since sanctions started which has not been used for ordinary Iraqi civilians. [114123]
§ Mr. HainWe have received reports of widespread official and black-market abuse of medical goods supplied to Iraq under the "oil for food" programme. We are aware, for example that such medicines are being sold by pharmacies in countries neighbouring Iraq. We have passed this information to the UN for further investigation.
§ Mr. WinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the Government's estimate of the number of children in Iraq who are likely to lack adequate medical treatment as a result of UN sanctions. [114121]
§ Mr. HainSanctions have never prohibited the import of medicines into Iraq. While the international community has sought to maximise the relief available to the Iraqi people, the Government of Iraq has refused to put their welfare first. For example, the latest UN report notes that one quarter of all medical goods delivered to Iraq since the "oil for food" programme began have not been distributed. Under "oil for food" the Government of Iraq decides how much oil revenue will be allocated to purchase medical goods. The UN Secretary General has repeatedly observed that Iraq needs to give greater attention to the provision of basic pharmaceuticals, primary and preventive health-care services and material support for more effective distribution.