Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential risk of the misuse of financial investment treaties to launder money in the Crown Dependencies and the UK’s Overseas Territories.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The government assesses a range of money laundering and terrorist financing risks to the UK through the joint Treasury and Home Office National Risk Assessment (NRA). This includes considering risks in other jurisdictions that may facilitate money laundering or terrorist financing activity in the UK. The last NRA was published in October 2017 and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-risk-assessment-of-money-laundering-and-terrorist-financing-2017. The next NRA will be published by July 2020.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he he has made of the cost to the public purse of maintaining the Trident Nuclear Weapons programme for (a) 2019 and (b) the lifetime of that programme.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
No estimate has been made of the cost of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise for calendar year 2019. Information on forecast costs for financial years 2018/19 and 2019/20 can be found in figure 12 of the National Audit Office's landscape review of the Enterprise published on 22 May 2018, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/The-Defence-Nuclear-Enterprise-a-landscape-review.pdf
The Ministry of Defence does not, and has no plans to, routinely publish whole life costs for projects, nuclear or otherwise, beyond what is already published in reports such as the Defence Equipment Plan, Ministry of Defence Annual Report and Accounts, and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority's Annual Report on Major Projects.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) civilian staff in his Department based in the UK, (b) military personnel based in the UK, (c) civilian staff in his Department based in Saudi Arabia and (d) military personnel based in Saudi Arabia were employed by the (i) Saudi Arabian National Guard Communications Project and (ii) Ministry of Defence Saudi Armed Forces Project on 1 April 2019.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The number of civilian and military personnel based in the UK and Saudi Arabia who were employed by the Saudi Arabian National Guard Communications Project (SANGCOM) and the Ministry of Defence Saudi Armed Forces Projects (MODSAP) on 1 April 2019 is shown below. The Saudi Arabian Government reimburses the UK Ministry of Defence for these staff costs and there is, therefore, no cost to the UK taxpayer.
Manpower number as at 1 April 2019 | SANGCOM | MODSAP |
UK-based Civilian Staff | 4 | 69 |
UK-based Military Staff | 0 | 35 |
Saudi-based Civilian Staff | 51 | 38 |
Saudi-based Military Staff | 20 | 66 |
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) expenditure was for the financial year 2018-19 and (b) budget is for 2019-20 for (i) the Saudi Arabian National Guard Communications Project and (ii) the Ministry of Defence Saudi Armed Forces Project.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The expenditure of the Saudi Arabian National Guard Communications Project (SANGCOM) is recovered from the Saudi Arabian Government, but SANGCOM operates under a separate Memorandum of Understanding from Ministry of Defence Saudi Armed Forces Project (MODSAP), under which the details of such recoveries are confidential to the two Governments.
The expenditure by the MODSAP in financial year 2018-19 amounted to £66.43 million. The budget however for financial year 2019-20 is £69.08 million. The costs of MODSAP are met from a management fee received from the Saudi Arabian Government.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the cost to the public purse was (a) of his Department's legal team and (b) in legal fees to the appellant for his Department's defence of the 2017 High Court case on arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The cost to the public purse of (a) the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) legal team was £146,752.61, and (b) the cost to the public purse in legal fees to the appellant for this Department’s defence of the 2017 High Court case on arms sales to Saudi Arabia was £45,000. In addition, other money disbursed from the public purse for the purposes of this case was £138,292.14. This figure represents DIT legal costs to date associated with the Special Advocate representing the Appellant in closed proceedings in the Judicial Review.
The figures provided comprise net legal costs, including disbursement costs and these represent the legal cost to DIT. The legal costs provided here do not include figures spent by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence. There may also be further legal costs that have not yet been billed to the department.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps the Government has taken to work towards finding a political solution to the conflict in Libya.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The UK remains deeply concerned by the situation in Libya. We are actively engaged in international diplomatic efforts to secure an end to the fighting and a return to the UN-led political process. As penholder on Libya in the UN Security Council, we agreed a Security Council statement on 6 July condemning the abhorrent attack on the Tajoura migrant detention centre, in which so many lost their lives. The UK, US, France, Italy, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates agreed a statement on 16 July, supporting the mediation efforts of UN Envoy Ghassan Salame and calling for a halt to the fighting and return to UN-led political talks. There can be no military solution in Libya; only an inclusive political settlement will bring about the stability its citizens deserve.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the assault on the UN-backed Government of National Accord in Libya.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The UK remains deeply concerned by the situation in Libya. We are actively engaged in international diplomatic efforts to secure an end to the fighting and a return to the UN-led political process. As penholder on Libya in the UN Security Council, we agreed a Security Council statement on 6 July condemning the abhorrent attack on the Tajoura migrant detention centre, in which so many lost their lives. The UK, US, France, Italy, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates agreed a statement on 16 July, supporting the mediation efforts of UN Envoy Ghassan Salame and calling for a halt to the fighting and return to UN-led political talks. There can be no military solution in Libya; only an inclusive political settlement will bring about the stability its citizens deserve.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will support calls for a UN Investigation into the recent airstrike on a migrant detention centre in Tripoli.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The UK condemns the abhorrent attack on the detention centre in Tajoura and supports the UN Secretary-General's call for an investigation. We are clear that the full facts of this attack must be established and, ultimately, those responsible for violations of International Humanitarian Law must be held to account. This tragic incident underlines the need for all parties to de-escalate, allow humanitarian access, and return to UN political mediation.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his French counterpart on arms sales to combatants in the conflict in Libya.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
We are concerned by reports of military equipment entering Libya from a range of sources. We take all such reports seriously, given the UN arms embargo. On 16 July the UK agreed a P3+3 statement (by the UK, US, France, Italy, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates), calling on all UN member states to fully respect their obligations under the relevant UN Security Council resolutions to contribute to Libya's peace and stability and to prevent destabilising arms shipments to Libya.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the European Union’s embargo on sales of arms and military equipment to the Venezuelan Government.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK led international efforts for the introduction of a rigorous EU sanctions regime against Venezuela in November 2017 which includes an arms embargo and an embargo on equipment which could be used for repression. We are not aware of any sales of arms or military equipment by EU countries to the Venezuelan Government since that date.