§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what co-ordination took place with the United Kingdom senior representative on the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq concerning the closure of all roads out of Iraq. [167371]
§ Mr. RammellNot all roads out of Iraq have been closed. Any road closures are on the basis of operational decisions taken by Coalition commanders in Iraq. The UK Special Representative to Iraq routinely engages in discussions with the Coalition Provisional Authority about security and other policy issues.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the ownership of the Iraq Central Bank. [167372]
§ Mr. RammellThe Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) issued in March 2004 a new law governing the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI). A copy of this law, and the Order to which it is attached, has been placed in the Library of the House. The new law provides for an independent central bank whose objectives are to achieve and maintain domestic price stability, foster and maintain a market-based financial system and promote sustainable growth, employment and prosperity. The CBI is required to maintain its independence from the Government of Iraq and, except for the provisions set out in the law, will not take instructions from any other persons or entity, including government entities.
The Governor, Deputy Governors, and other members of the board of the CBI are nominated by the Appointing Authority (which until the transfer of sovereignty on 30 June is the CPA in consultation with the Iraqi Governing Council) and their appointments confirmed in the legislature. The CBI is required to report to the Appointing Authority, the Ministry of Finance and the legislature on its operations.
The new CBI law has been reviewed by the Iraqi Governing Council, acting on the recommendation of its Economic and Finance Committee. The law has also been reviewed by the International Monetary Fund and was promulgated pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1483, which calls upon the CPA to promote economic reconstruction and the conditions for sustainable development in Iraq.
§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the implementation of a unified legal system in Iraq. [166928]
§ Mr. RammellThe Kurdistan Regional Government Administered Areas (KRG Administered Areas) currently have a separate court system from the rest of Iraq. However, the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), produced by the Iraqi Governing Council, establishes a Federal Supreme Court. The Court will consist of nine members, chosen from individuals nominated by the Higher Judicial Council which under the TAL will supervise the judiciary outside the KRG Administered Areas, in consultation with the regional Judicial Councils in the KRG Administered Areas. The Federal Supreme Court will have original and exclusive964W jurisdiction in legal proceedings between the Iraqi Transitional Government and the regional governments and governorate and municipal administrations. It will also have jurisdiction to review and declare as inconsistent with the TAL any law, regulation or directive issued by the federal or regional governments, the governorate or municipal administrations, or local administrations. This is of course an Iraqi led process although the UK is providing assistance for the training of judges, prosecutors and lawyers and will continue to consider requests for assistance in building the capacity of the Iraqi justice sector.
§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the(a) fate and (b) whereabouts of everyone held in custody in Iraq. [166930]
§ Mr. RammellThe Coalition is holding around 9,000 detainees. (Precise figures vary as people are released and arrested daily). They include prisoners of war, security detainees and criminal detainees (held under Iraqi court order). Detainees are held at a number of locations throughout Iraq. The main US administered facility is at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad. The Coalition Provision,11 Authority is working to ensure a better flow of information to the relatives of detainees through recently established information centres. The Detainee Review and Appeal Board reviewed the cases of more than 3,000 detainees in February and March and released more than 2,000. This process is continuing. POWs and security detainees are visited regularly by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.
As of 1 April the UK was responsible for 85 detainees at an internment facility near Basra. UK forces inform the families of inter led persons within 24 hours of an arrest. The case of each security detainee is reviewed after 10, 28 and thereafter every 90 days to determine whether they continue to pose an imperative threat to security. The UK internment facility near Basra is subject to regular inspection by the ICRC who are given full and unrestricted access to the detainees.
§ Paul FlynnTo ask he Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to whom the Coalition will hand over powers in Iraq o 130 June 2004; and how members of the successor authority will be chosen. [167211]
§ Mr. RammellAs envisaged in the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) arid the Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) will be replaced on 30 June with an Iraqi Interim Government. The structures and powers of the Interim Government are currently the focus of consultations by Lakhdar Brahimi UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Iraq) with Iraqis. Mr. Brahimi has outlined his initial proposals to appoint, after thorough consultations with Iraqis and the CPA, a tripartite Presidency, a technocratic Cabinet of Ministers headed by a Prime Minister and after 30 June to hold a national conference to elect an advisory council. He is due to return to Iraq in coming weeks to continue his consultations and to develop his proposals. We welcome these proposals and look forward to working with the 965W UN and the IGC to forge a consensus on the structures and powers of the Interim Government, which can then be enshrined in an annexe to the TAL.
§ Paul FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what powers will be handed over by the Coalition in Iraq on 30 June 2004; and what powers will be retained. [167216]
§ Mr. RammellThe Iraqi Interim Government established on 30 June will be an internationally recognised sovereign government, which will replace the Coalition Provisional Authority and the Iraqi Governing Council. Its powers will be circumscribed by the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) agreed by the Iraqi Governing Council on 8 March and by an annexe to the TAL, specifying the structures and powers of the institutions of the Interim Government, which is currently being discussed by Iraqis in consultation with Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Iraq.
We anticipate a continued need for a Multinational Force (MNF) after 30 June to work with the Iraqi Security Forces to ensure stability in Iraq. Most Iraqis continue to recognise the necessity of this. Discussions are underway between Iraqis and the coalition on the arrangements under which the MNF will operate after 30 June.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether it is intended that the political administration that takes over the governance of Iraq on 1 July 2004 will be empowered to ensure the removal of foreign troops on Iraqi territory. [167368]
§ Mr. RammellDiscussions are continuing on arrangements for the Multinational Force after the transfer of power on 30 June.