Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the risk of conflict minerals from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (a) being traded on the London Bullion Market and (b) appearing in UK (i) supply chains and (ii) products.

We are deeply concerned by reports from the UN Group of Experts that M23 and Rwanda are illegally extracting critical minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and are clear that such activity must stop immediately.

We are committed to addressing risks around conflict minerals and protecting human rights. The UK works through several international mechanisms to deliver on this, including encouraging compliance with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD's) Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Mineral Supply Chains which enables businesses to operate responsibly from conflict-affected areas and the European Partnerships for Responsible Minerals which aims to increase the proportion of responsibly sourced minerals in supply chains.

The Government recognises the importance of high regulatory standards in financial markets. For Over-The-Counter wholesale markets for precious metals like the London Bullion Markets, the Financial Conduct Authority recognises the Global Precious Metals Code.