HC Deb 05 November 2002 vol 392 c248W
Sir Michael Spicer

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects the remains of British citizens killed in the Bali bombing to be returned to relatives in the United Kingdom. [79524]

Mr. Mike O'Brien

The remains of 14 victims of the Bali bombing have been repatriated.

We are still awaiting the positive identification of three British victims. This is expected to be completed within the next few weeks.

Four British Citizens are still missing.

Sir Michael Spicer

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support the British Government are giving to the Indonesian and Australian authorities who are engaged in the identification process of those murdered in the Bali bombing. [79525]

Mr. Mike O'Brien

We immediately sent a team of police officers led by the anti-terrorism branch to Bali including investigators, family liaison officers and officers skilled in identification processes. A UK coroner and pathologist travelled to Bali to ensure the Indonesian/Australian identification and repatriation processes were in line with ours. Police and consular staff are present throughout the day in the local mortuary. British police also arranged for relatives' DNA samples both in the UK and overseas to be taken and transferred to Australia for profiling.

Forward to