Arms Trade

Lord Judd Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd March 2011 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Judd]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what conclusions they have reached on the future regulation of the arms trade in the light of recent events; and what action they are taking to ensure a successful outcome to the arms trade treaty negotiations in 2012.

[Lord Judd]

My Lords, I remind the House that I am a trustee of Saferworld, a charity working in security sector reform.

[The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Howell of Guildford)]

My Lords, the United Kingdom continues to take a leading role in negotiations for an arms trade treaty and actively participated in the recent UN arms trade treaty preparatory committee meeting. It is important for us to learn lessons from recent events. On 16 March, my right honourable friend the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary announced a review of the sale to Middle East countries of weapons that could be used for internal repression.

[Lord Judd]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for that reply and underline that the British delegation played a lead role in the discussions in New York last week. Does the noble Lord not agree that, while significant progress was made in the realm of conventional weapons, equipment and ammunition, there is still a glaring gap in the area of police equipment and internal security equipment? What arrangements are the Government making to address this key issue, which has obviously become very significant in the context of recent events?

[Lord Howell of Guildford]

My Lords, the noble Lord is absolutely right that we are making progress, but that there are still some gaps. The next preparatory meeting is in July, when we will address these issues closely. It is of course our broader aim to see smaller weapons more effectively included and embraced in the arms trade treaty, including the categories that the noble Lord mentioned. These are matters to which we are giving close attention.