§ Lord Juddasked Her Majesty's Government:
What priority they accord the global control of small arms as part of the strategy for global security. [HL511]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanThe global control of small arms and light weapons (SALW) is one of the highest priorities of the Government's global conflict prevention strategy. Internationally, the United Kingdom fully supports the United Nations programme of action (POA) on SALW. The UK is one of the largest and most influential donors on small arms issues. Under the Global Conflict Prevention Pool, the UK has allocated £13.25 million (2004–07) to control and reduce the supply, demand and availability of SALW. The funding supports projects that assist UN agencies, regional organisations, governments and non-governmental organisations to combat the proliferation and misuse of small arms. One of our key priorities is promoting the transfer control initiative, which aims to secure agreement on common international standards governing small arms transfers at the UN POA review conference on small arms in 2006.