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19 Sept 2002 : Column 136W—continued
Arms Trade
Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what (a) United Kingdom, (b) EU, (c) international and (d) other regulations apply to the trading of arms. [72389]
Nigel Griffiths: The export of arms from the UK is controlled under the Import, Export and Customs Powers (Defence) Act 1939. EU arms embargoes are controlled by means of regulations made under the Treaty establishing the European Communities and are directly applicable to all Member States. Licensing, enforcement and penalties for breach of the regulations are provided for in national legislation made under the European Communities Act 1972. United Nations (UN) arms embargoes are implemented in the UK under the UN Act 1946 and the Import, Export and Customs Power (Defence) Act 1939.
In addition, the Export Control Bill contains new powers allowing controls to be imposed on trading of arms between overseas countries.
F-16 Fighters
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what written assurances have been given in the course of issuing an export licence regarding the use in third countries of UK navigation and targeting equipment supplied to the US makers of F-16 fighters. [68936]
Nigel Griffiths [holding answer 11 July 2002]: Apart from the normal end user documentation, written assurances are normally only sought in relation to the use of equipment exported from the UK in connection with weapons of mass destruction.
Export Licences
Mr. Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many revocations of arms export licences to Israel there were in each month since January 2000; in what categories they were; and if she will make a statement. [71386]
Nigel Griffiths: The number of Open Individual Export Licences (OIELs) where licences were revoked or whose coverage was amended by the exclusion of Israel, for items on the Military List, in each month between January 2000 and June 2002, is set out in the table below.
Individual licences might cover a range of items with various ratings. Where this is so, the licence is included in the tables in the total of all of the relevant ratings.
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During the same period no Standard Individual Export Licences, for items on the Military List, were revoked where the end user was in Israel. In addition, Israel has been removed from the coverage of one Open General Export Licence, for items on the Military List, details of which are available from the Libraries of the House.
Since the publication of the 2001 Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls it has come to light that two OIELs for items on the Military List, which were revoked or whose coverage was amended by the exclusion of Israel, were inadvertently omitted from the Report.
Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the value is of licences granted for equipment on the military and dual-use lists to (a) Georgia, (b) Uzbekistan, (c) Kyrgyzstan, (d) Tajikistan, (e) Turkey, (f) the Philippines, (g) Kenya, (h) Ethiopia, (i) Djibouti, (j) Bahrain, (k) Oman, (l) Jordan, (m) Yemen, (n) India, (o) Pakistan and (p) Israel in each month from January 2001 to June 2002; and if she will make a statement. [65098]
Ms Hewitt [holding answer 8 July 2002]: The total value of SIEL applications for which a licence was issued, is published by destination in the Government's Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls, copies of which are placed in the Libraries of the House. The 2001 Annual Report will be published soon.
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many individual export licence
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applications have been outstanding for more than (a) three months; (b) six months and (c) one year. [66504]
Nigel Griffiths [holding answer 2 July 2002]: The Department of Trade and Industry's Export Control Organisation (ECO) was processing 1,584 applications for individual export licences as of 1 July 2002, of which 312 Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications and 84 Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) applications had been outstanding for more than three months; of those, 51 SIEL and 42 OIEL applications had been outstanding for more than 6 months; and, of those, 19 SIEL and 13 OIEL applications had been outstanding for more than one year.
As a result of its programme of continuous improvement the ECO has, in partnership with other Government Departments, substantially reduced the time taken to process all applications, and in particular the most complicated and sensitive cases. The number of SIEL applications taking more than 6 months to finalise is less than a third of the figure at the same time last year.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many arms export licences were (a) requested and (b) granted for exports to Belarus (i) from 1997 to August 2001 and (ii) since August 2001; and if she will make a statement. [73163]
Mr. Wilson: Between 2 May 1997 and 31 August 2001 no Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications and 4 Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) applications were received, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Belarus. Between 1 September 2001 and 15 July 2002 no SIEL applications and 2 OIEL applications were received, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Belarus.
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The number of SIELs and OIELs issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Belarus, between 2 May 1997 and 31 December 2001 are published in the Government's Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls. Copies of the 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001 Annual Reports are available from the Libraries of the House.
Between 1 January 2001 and 31 August 2001, no SIELs or OIELs were issued, for items on the Military List, where the end user was in Belarus. Between 1 September 2001 and 15 July 2002, no SIELs and 1 OIEL was issued, for items on the Military List, where the end user was in Belarus.
This information should be considered in light of the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Mrs. Roche) to my hon. Friend the Member for Don Valley (Caroline Flint) on 30 October 1997, Official Report, columns 870–71.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many arms export licences were (a) requested and (b) granted for exports to the Ukraine (i) from 1997 to August 2000 and (ii) since August 2000; and if she will make a statement. [73162]
Mr. Wilson: Between 2 May 1997 and 31 August 2000, 14 Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications and 8 Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) applications were received for items on the Military List, where the end users were in the Ukraine. Between 1 September 2000 and 15 July 2002, 4 SIEL applications and 5 OIEL applications were received for items on the Military List, where the end users were in the Ukraine.
The number of SIELs and OIELs issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in the Ukraine, between 2 May 1997 and 31 December 2001 are published in the Government's Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls. Copies of the 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001 Annual Reports are available from the Libraries of the House.
Between 1 January 2000 and 31 August 2000, 2 SIELs and no OIELs were issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in the Ukraine. Between 1 September 2000 and 31 December 2000, 1 SIEL and 1 OIEL were issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in the Ukraine. Between 1 January 2002 and 15 July 2002, no SIELs and 2 OIELs were issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in the Ukraine.
This information should be considered in light of the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Mrs. Roche) to my hon. Friend the Member for Don Valley (Caroline Flint) on 30 October 1997, Official Report, columns 870–71.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many arms export licences were (a) requested and (b) granted for exports to (i) Georgia and (ii) Russia in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [73164]
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Mr. Wilson: The number of Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications and Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) applications received, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Georgia and Russia, in each year since May 1997 is as follows:
| GeorgiaRussia | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Siel | Oiel | Siel | Oiel | |
| 2 May 1997 to 2031 December 1997 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3 |
| 1998 | 4 | 0 | 20 | 2 |
| 1999 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 2 |
| 2000 | 2 | 1 | 18 | 3 |
| 2001 | 0 | 2 | 18 | 4 |
| 1 January 2002 to 15 July 2002 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
The number of SIELs and OIELs issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Georgia and Russia, in each year since May 1997 are published by destination in the Government's Annual Reports in Strategic Export Controls. Copies of the 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001 Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls are available from the Libraries of the House.
Between 1 January 2002 and 15 July 2002, no SIELs and 2 OIELs were issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Georgia. During that same period 5 SIELs and 4 OIELs were issued, for items on the Military List, where the end users were in Russia.
This information should be considered in light of the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Mrs Roche) to my hon. Friend the Member for Don Valley (Caroline Flint) on 30 October 1997, Official Report, columns 870–71.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the types of equipment for which export licences were granted on 8 July in respect of exports to the USA of defence-related equipment; and if she will state the countries to which this equipment will be exported from the USA once incorporated into other defence equipment. [69112]
Nigel Griffiths [holding answer 11 July 2002]: The types of equipment for which Standard Individual Export Licences and Open Individual Export Licences were issued on Monday 8 July 2002, where the end user or consignee was in the United States of America, for items on the Military List, was as follows:
ML1
ML2
ML6
ML7
ML9
ML10
ML15
In taking decisions to issue these licences, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, acting through the Export Control Organisation, took into account the information available to her on the stated final destination of defence-related goods into which the goods licensed for export from the UK were to be incorporated, where relevant. These potential final destinations were Israel,
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Japan and the United Arab Emirates. It should however be noted that final decisions on exports of defence equipment from the United States of America are for the US exporter and Government.
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend, the Foreign Secretary to my hon. Friend the Member for Sherwood (Paddy Tipping) on 8 July 2002 Official Report, columns 650–52W.
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many open individual export licences are valid for the export of arms to India. [66502]
Nigel Griffiths [holding answer 2 July 2002]: 81.
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many individual export licence applications for the sale of armaments to India have been received by her Department since 1 May; and how many have been approved. [66503]
Nigel Griffiths [holding answer 2 July 2002]: 118 Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) applications and no Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) applications for items on the military list.
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38 SIELs and 1 OIEL for items on the military list were issued.
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