§ Tony BaldryTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what steps she is taking to ensure that Jaguar aircraft(a)supplied directly from the UK to India and (b)produced under licence in India will not be modified to make them capable of carrying a nuclear payload; [45799]
(2) whether the Jaguar combat aircraft (a)supplied directly from the UK to India and (b)produced under licence in India (i) is capable and (ii) will be modified to become capable of carrying nuclear payloads. [45800]
§ Dr. MoonieAny aircraft capable of delivering a bomb is capable of modification to enable it to deliver a nuclear weapon. For the Government's policy in respect of controls on exports to nuclear or nuclear related end-users I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by my hon. Friend the then Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mr. Lloyd) on 10 July 1998,Official Report,column 687W, to my hon. Friend the Member of South Thanet, (Dr. Ladyman) and by my hon. Friend the Minister of State for Europe (Mr. Hain) to my hon. Friend the Member for Dartford, (Dr. Stoate) on 3 July 2000, Official Report,column 3W, and by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for 19W Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mr. Bradshaw) to my hon. Friend the Member for Edmonton, (Mr. Love) on 15 March 2002, Official Report,columns 1297W–98W.
§ Tony BaldryTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what undertakings the Government have received from the Indian Government regarding the end use of Jaguar combat aircraft(a)sold directly to the Indian Government and (b)produced under licence in India. [45797]
§ Dr. MoonieInformation on end use documentation provided in support of an export licence application is confidential and I am withholding it in accordance with Exemptions 1, 13 and 14 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
§ Tony BaldryTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Jaguar combat aircraft(a)have been produced under licence in India and (b)are contracted to be produced under licence in India. [45798]
§ Dr. MoonieThis information is confidential between the company (BAE Systems) and the Government of India.
§ Tony BaldryTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Hawk trainer aircraft under negotiation for sale to India are(a)capable of being modified to perform ground attack functions and (b)are suitable for training pilots to fly Jaguar combat aircraft. [45801]
§ Dr. MoonieThe Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer has a limited ground attack capability. It is designed for operational combat training as well as to train pilots to fly fast jets, including Jaguar.