Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the alleged involvement of a British company in supplying arms to the Government of South Sudan.

The British Government has noted the report by Amnesty International, and takes very seriously the allegations on the role of a UK company in the sale of arms to South Sudan. We have not authorised the supply of arms to South Sudan.

The British Government takes its arms export control responsibilities very seriously and operates one of the most robust arms export control regimes in the world. We do not licence the supply of equipment that would be in breach of an arms embargo, which would provoke or prolong armed conflicts, or aggravate tensions or conflicts, or if there is a clear risk that the items might be used for internal repression.

The UK is strongly opposed to the sale of weapons to South Sudan and has consistently called for a UN arms embargo to be implemented with immediate effect, which would prevent any sale of arms to South Sudan globally.