Baroness Jolly
Main Page: Baroness Jolly (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)Register of Arms Brokers Bill [HL]
Baroness Jolly Excerpts
Baroness Jolly (LD)
My Lords, responsible and robust arms controls are one of the most crucial ways that we can ensure that the rule of law and the protection of civilians from violence and repression continue to remain a cornerstone of the key principles that hold the international community together. We are committed to the new international Arms Trade Treaty, and we believe it is imperative to tighten our own controls over the arms trade. To that end this Private Member’s Bill seeks to amend the Export Control Act 2002 and mandate the Secretary of State to create a register of arms brokers. It would make the registration last three years, insist on a fit-and-proper test for the individual, and take into consideration issues such as a criminal record, past export control violations, company ownership details and tax status.
Who can be a broker? The answer is quite simple: it could be you or it could be me. It could be anyone. I should make it clear that I am sure many brokers and arms companies do an honest job and do it well. They do not abuse the current system. Although this Bill would include them, they were not who we had in mind when it was drafted. Those playing by the rules should not see this as additional red tape. They also have systems that are routinely audited by BIS. They already keep the necessary records and always register with the appropriate authorities, so a register of arms brokers such as that proposed is no more burdensome on them.
From the outset I have to confess that the world of arms brokering was to me a closed book. My understanding came largely from John le Carré’s character, Richard Roper, in The Night Manager, although those who know about these things tell me that the Nicolas Cage film, “Lord of War” is far nearer the mark. But for a more accessible film, you have only to go to YouTube and look at a Channel 4 “Dispatches” film broadcast over five years ago, entitled “After School Arms Club”. To prove the point that indeed anyone could broker arms, a group of schoolchildren set themselves up as arms brokers for the TV programme. They discovered that someone from the UK could broker AK47s from China to Chad. The guns did not touch British soil and all that was needed was a licence granted by the Export Control Organisation based in BIS—no name and no background check.
The Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria determine what should be considered in granting a licence, and by and large focus on conditions in the country of final destination and in the UK. Consideration is given to the respect that the country of final destination has for human rights and international humanitarian law, local and regional tensions and conflicts, peace and stability, and its behaviour within the international community. The deal should also respect the UK’s international obligations, commitments and any sanctions of the UN Security Council or EU. In short, is the transaction proposed appropriate for the country of final destination and its region, and does it meet UK commitments and satisfy our interests?
As an aside, looking at some of the deals, noble Lords might be excused for wondering whether the criteria were satisfied completely in all cases. However, there is no requirement to look at the brokers, the pattern of their deals or whether they were using offshore mechanisms in countries such as Gibraltar or the British Virgin Islands. In fact, some of the companies concerned are clients of Mossack Fonseca. Evidence clearly shows that UK brokers have routinely used such offshore vehicles to hide their most damning activities from scrutiny and detection. Nor is there a check on whether a broker has a prior conviction or has previously violated arms trade rules. In fact, there is no need to know anything about the broker whatsoever.
The Commons Committees on Arms Export Controls has repeatedly called on the Government to introduce a register of arms brokers in addition to the existing licensing system. The previous chair, Sir John Stanley, said that the regulatory system for brokers needs to be tightened up. He said that more should be done to create a “proper exchange of information” between all those involved in the regulation of UK-based traders selling weapons domestically and abroad. In 2009, Sir John was part of a delegation to Kiev advising the Ukrainians about their surplus Soviet weapons. To the delegates’ surprise, the Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister had some key information regarding the UK. He had a list of UK arms brokers active in Ukraine dealing with the Ukrainian surplus weaponry. This list was handed to Sir John and included end destinations of serious concern such as Libya, Rwanda, Uganda and Sri Lanka. When he passed it to BIS, it appeared to have had no knowledge or sight of the list. The then Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, ordered an investigation which found that eight of the brokers were known to the British authorities and were approved by the Export Control Organisation within BIS. So, who else believes we should have a register?
The UN Arms Trade Treaty recommends a broker register. Furthermore, the Arms Trade Treaty toolkit recommends that prospective brokers could be asked to provide details of: their country of nationality and residence; their ownership of any entity or involvement in any relevant business used to facilitate brokering activities; and the range of conventional weapons that the broker may wish to be involved in brokering. Article 4 of the EU common position on the control of arms brokers recommends a vetting and registration system. Article 5 requires that member states share information on registered brokers, record of brokers and denials of brokers. Article 10 of the UN Arms Trade Treaty requires states to regulate brokering and recommends a system of registration. Article 12 of the EU firearms directive, after its forthcoming review, will require states to verify the professional integrity and abilities of firearms dealers and to ensure that provisions also apply to arms brokers. The UK has chosen to ignore all these requirements for arms brokers.
I have deliberately tried to avoid recent conflicts and recent allegations, concentrating on policy and process, and looking at the criteria for a licence to broker a deal and inaction on the part of successive Governments. I seriously wonder why we resist. I understand the need to reduce red tape but we have set our face against this in an illogical way and, without fail, everyone I speak to is astounded at our inaction in this regard. It would not be ground-breaking; we are doing nothing new. We are not in the vanguard. The US, Australia, Canada and most of the EU states are already there. They operate in a transparent manner, confident in their brokers’ records, characters and financial deals. They are able to share intelligence and can feel some confidence that deals will not allow arms to fall into the hands of regimes, organisations or states and cause death and distress, let alone repression or abuse of human rights.
Registration would bring controls on arms brokers from the UK into line with those for a series of related processes, such as the Section 5 firearms registration process—for UK-based gun deals—and national security vetting for contractors working under UK MoD projects. These systems all require a series of background checks, including on past criminal activity and an assessment of the claimant’s suitability. It is, therefore, illogical that the individuals wishing to broker thousands of small arms overseas are themselves subject to virtually no eligibility testing.
This is a modest measure. As the noble Lord, Lord Empey, said earlier about his Bill it is not perfect and we acknowledge that. But it would not prove expensive—indeed, it should be self-financing. As a nation, we expect registration of our doctors, our lawyers and even our care workers. Surely the time has now come to add arms brokers to the list. I beg to move.
Baroness Jolly
I thank the Minister for her reply, which I shall come to in a moment, and other noble Lords for their contributions to this excellent and important debate. I should not finish without thanking the Library for producing its briefing and Amnesty International and Saferworld for theirs, as well as expressing my gratitude for the support—in a sense—of the Minister and her officials, who found time in a busy schedule to meet me, and to all those who have given me encouragement.
The right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Derby, whom I thank for his support, talked about the Modern Slavery Act and the parallels there, which was really quite interesting. He talked about supply chain transparency, which is very much what the Bill is calling for. With modern slavery and arms-broking, when things are done illegally, you have the opportunity for crime, but also for people to make very big money. That is one of the issues here. He also mentioned good practice. One thing that we would call for is for training for arms brokers in various instances, so good practice can be exemplified.
My noble friend Lady Smith of Newnham talked about a fit and proper person. We should not really baulk at fit and proper people. FTSE boards are now called upon to have fit and proper people sit on them, and you cannot be a charity trustee without being deemed fit and proper. Arms brokers should not be excluded from that.
The noble Viscount, Lord Waverley, made some interesting points about his colleagues and friends being given a tough time. I hope that it was not too tough, but these are serious things that are being considered. Questioning needs to be done and, if they were given a tough time in getting their licence, I would not apologise for that—I would say that was absolutely appropriate. Not all British brokers are whiter than white.
There was the government consultation, to which both the noble Viscount and the noble Lord, Lord Stevenson of Balmacara, referred. It was published, or put up on the website, with no announcement that it was there—it just suddenly appeared; then, all of a sudden, the whole thing was dropped. So the consultation was started under the coalition, and the new Government caused the whole thing to disappear. Perhaps the noble Lord and I are not too far apart and, if this Bill is to proceed, we might share some thoughts over a cup of coffee.
My noble friend Lord Stoneham of Droxford gave the Minister four pointers. She might reflect and have a look at Hansard with her officials afterwards to see whether they might be applied.
I give many thanks, too, to the noble Lord, Lord Judd, who has given me a lot of support. I really value having on my side a renowned and doughty campaigner—but, not only that, an experienced and expert parliamentarian. He flagged up the relationship between foreign policy and the arms trade. That is really critical; the arms trade and brokering arrangements have to reflect the Government. The eight criteria go some way towards that but, when one looks at some of the deals that have been made, one questions how those criteria have been met. It looks as if they might have been shoe-horned. He talked also of transparency, and we do need that in this trade; we do not need muddy waters.
The noble Lord, Lord Stevenson of Balmacara, talked about a conversation that he and I had in advance—and I must be careful next time when I talk to him before going into a debate on a Bill. I do not recollect talking about cattle, but there we go. I might have used the expression, “a stick”. He talked about death and destruction, and at the end of the day that is what these deals can produce—not fluffy toys. I am not a pacifist; there are times when arms are absolutely appropriate, but they have to be absolutely appropriate, and we must not forget that people have human rights. Very often, arms—not just weaponry but other things that come under the list—seriously infringe people’s human rights, and abuse them. We need trade, but we need legal trade deals, and it is important that that is the case. We need to be absolutely clear that the people undertaking these deals are the sort of people who we feel should be doing it.
Human rights should be good for business. On Monday afternoon, I am meeting ADS, which fully understands the need for human rights—it is up for this and understands this. But there are a few unscrupulous brokers, for whom the concentration is not on the human rights but on the money; we are not talking about hundreds but about tens of people, and maybe fewer.
I have been used to calling the Minister my noble friend, and we are still friends—and I come to her response. The noble Viscount, Lord Waverley, made the point about drafting Bills; it is for experts, and we are not experts in drafting. That is not our area of expertise but, with the assistance of officials, I am sure that we can come up with fit and proper amendments in Committee.
We need to talk about evidence of harm, which I deliberately talked about only from a policy perspective. I have seen a catalogue of harm, which I could have brought before the House if I had chosen to. I chose not to, partly because of time and partly because I did not want to get muddled or muddied, but I can give noble Lords chapter and verse. I am sure that the Minister will have seen some of it as well.
The Minister outlined the eight criteria, but I question some of the decisions that must have been made. I would like an opportunity to talk to people who make decisions based on those criteria, and how they fit in. The committee recommendations to which she referred went back to 2007. The Commons arms committee has more recently been much more vociferous on this matter.
It is sometimes up to a Government to make a decision. The Minister made the point that there was no huge enthusiasm for this particular measure or move in the consultation, but it is up to a Government to make decisions that people will sometimes not be happy with. We make decisions because it is the right thing to do. I think that this is the occasion. In talking about small numbers, the Minister in a sense made my argument; there is no need for huge numbers—it is the right thing to do, so please do it. I would be grateful if she could meet me afterwards, perhaps with the Minister, Anna Soubry.