§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what protection is offered to British journalists reporting the military activities in Fallujah in Iraq. [167375]
§ Mr. RammellFallujah is in the US military's area of operations. Arrangements for media reporting of US military activities are a matter for the US Government.
We encourage British journalists to read Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Travel advice before planning visits to Iraq. We advise against all but the most essential travel to Iraq. The security situation is dangerous and April has seen widespread outbreaks of violence. Our travel advice states that even the most essential travel to Iraq should be delayed, if possible. FCO travel advice makes clear that Fallujah is a particularly dangerous place at the moment. FCO travel advice is available on the FCO website: www.fco.gov.uk.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government has submitted all documentation on which its claim that Iraq tried to procure uranium from Niger was based to the Butler Inquiry. [168282]
§ Mr. MacShaneAs my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has made clear, the Government will co-operate fully with the Butler Review, which has access to all intelligence reports and assessments and to other relevant Government papers.
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§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the Government first learned that Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan had visited countries in sub-Saharan Africa between 1998 and 2002 to procure uranium. [168283]
§ Mr. MacShaneI refer my hon. Friend to the answer my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) on 1 March 2004,Official Report, column 757W. It is the practice of successive Governments not to comment on intelligence matters. The security and intelligence agencies are not within the scope of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information (Part 1, paragraph 6).
§ Lynne JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 30 January 2004,Official Report, column 581W, on Iraq, whether the intelligence referred to is the intelligence upon which the United Kingdom Government based its claim in the September 2002 dossier, Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction, that Iraq sought the supply of uranium from Africa. [168325]
§ Mr. MacShaneThe intelligence upon which the Government based their claim in the September 2002 dossier that Iraq sought to procure uranium from Africa is described in paragraphs 89–93 of the Intelligence and Security Committee's report "Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction" (Cmnd 5972).