Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to the Written Statement of 8 December 2021, HCWS449 on Trade Policy Update, what assessment her Department made of the potential effect of those changes on levels of arms exports to (a) Saudi Arabia and (b) United Arab Emirates.

We do not expect the revised Strategic Export Licensing Criteria to have a significant impact on the level of arms exports to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Risks in relation to human rights and international humanitarian law remain key parts of our assessment.