Iraq (Hansard, 25 May 2004)

§ Mr. Kilfoyle
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with which private security companies the UK has contracts for services in Iraq; how much was paid to each in the financial year to 31 March; and what services they provide. [175094]

§ Mr. Rammell
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) employs private security companies to protect British civilian staff working at the British Office Baghdad or seconded to the FCO to work for the Coalition Provisional Authority. ArmorGroup Services Ltd. provide static guards at an approxmate cost of £1.1 million to 31 March 2004. Control Risks Group provide armed protection teams for mobile security at an approximate cost of £13.1 million to 31 March 2004.

§ Hugh Robertson
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the financial extent of the alleged corruption in the UN oil-for-food programme in Iraq. [175593]

§ Mr. Rammell
It is not possible to assess the financial extent of the alleged corruption in the UN oil-for-food programme in Iraq, pending completion of the independent UN and Iraqi investigations.

§ Hugh Robertson
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what fee income was earned by the UN Security Council for administering the UN Oil for Food programme in Iraq. [175594]

§ Mr. Rammell
The United Nations Security Council earned no fee income from the Oil for Food programme (OFF). Administration of the OFF programme was undertaken by the UN Secretariat's Office of the Iraq Programme. UN administrative and operational charges amounted to 2.2 per cent. of the programme's costs.

§ Hugh Robertson
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the amount of money made by Saddam Hussein's regime as a result of the alleged corruption in the UN Oil for Food programme. [175595]

§ Mr. Rammell
It is not possible to assess the financial extent of the alleged corruption in the UN Oil for Food programme in Iraq, pending completion of the independent UN and Iraqi investigations.

§ Hugh Robertson
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which banks were used to administer the UN Oil for Food programme in Iraq. [175596]

§ Mr. Rammell
The UN Treasury administered the banking arrangements of the Oil for Food programme. BNP Paribas was the only bank to issue letters of credit under the programme, and collateral to back those letters of credit was held by BNP Paribas. Funds that1574W were not required to be used as collateral for letters of credit were invested with multiple banks based on competitive bidding.

§ Hugh Robertson
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the Coalition Provisional Authority's response to the Iraqi Governing Council's request for an independent investigation into the UN Oil for Food programme in Iraq. [175597]

§ Mr. Rammell
The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) has authorised the Iraqi Board of Supreme Audit (BSA) to pursue an independent investigation of the Oil for Food programme in Iraq. We welcome this investigation. Following an open tender process, Ernst & Young has won the contract to carry out the investigation on behalf of the BSA. We understand that the CPA will also co-operate fully with the UN's independent inquiry to ensure that investigators have access to the relevant information in Iraq.