Iraq (Hansard, 19 January 2004)

§ Mr. Bercow
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the Bush Administration regarding the role of the United Nations in Iraq. [148099]

§ Mr. Rammell
We are in regular contact with the US Administration on all aspects of the situation in Iraq, including the role of the United Nations. As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and President Bush have repeatedly affirmed, we support the UN's vital role in Iraq, in accordance with the mandate set out in relevant Security Council resolutions. The future role of the UN will be discussed at a meeting between the UN Secretary-General, the Iraqi Governing Council and the Coalition Provisional Authority today.

§ Mr. Challen
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which British companies have won contracts to assist in the reconstruction of Iraq, broken down by type of service or project provided. [146960]

§ Mr. Mike O'Brien
We wish to see UK companies play a substantial role in the reconstruction process in Iraq. Several UK companies have won contracts to assist in that process but have asked us not to publicise their success because of commercial confidentiality. Furthermore, UK companies are not required to report such details to the Government. Therefore, we are unable to provide the information requested. However, UK firms are active in the power, water, banking, ports, construction, telecoms, security, legal services and consultancy services.

§ Llew Smith
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British technical experts are deployed(a) with the Iraqi Survey Group and (b) for the disarmament of Libya's weapons of mass destruction; and what the cost to date has been in conducting each mission. [147026]

§ Mr. MacShane
There are currently 55 British personnel (both civilian and military) deployed with the Iraq Survey Group. The costs to the United Kingdom of their mission are not recorded separately in a readily accessible form and cannot, therefore, be differentiated from the total cost of personnel deployed to the Gulf region as a whole. We do not have figures relating to costs incurred on support for the Iraq Survey Group by other Coalition Partners.
There are no British personnel currently deployed to Libya to assist with the disarmament of Libya's weapons of mass destruction.