2 The Government's Annual Report
on Strategic Exports
5. Our annual reports are based on the Government's
Annual Report on Strategic Exports and written and oral evidence.
We questioned the Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Minister,
Mr Mark Prisk and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Minister,
Mr Alistair Burt, about an apparent downgrading in the status
of the Government's Annual Report. We pointed out that the previous
Government had produced more substantial reports, which had been
duly presented to Parliament by the four Secretaries of State.
However, the first Annual Report produced by the Coalition Government
is less substantial and presented to Parliament by four junior
Ministers. We asked whether these changes were indicative of a
downgrading by the Coalition Government of the importance it attached
to arms export controls and arms control generally. Both Ministers
felt that the 2010 report was shorter than previous editions because
it was concisely written rather than being less substantial than
in previous years. Both Ministers were also unconcerned that the
reports had not been presented to Parliament by the four Secretaries
of State and suggested that it was appropriate that Ministers
of State, who were closely and actively involved in the subject,
with good support from their respective Secretaries of State,
should sign off the reports.[4]
6. Given the key importance of the arms export
control policy as demonstrated once again by recent events in
North Africa and the Middle East, we recommend that the Government
ensures that in future the Annual Reports on Strategic Exports
be formally presented to Parliament by the respective four Secretaries
of State.
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