Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have formally requested compensation for (1) the UK, and (2) individuals, from the government of Libya arising from the supply of Semtex to the IRA; and if so, when such a request was submitted.

We want to see a just solution for all of the victims of IRA terrorism. We continue to press the Libyan authorities to engage constructively with victims and their representatives in their campaign for compensation, and to make clear the UK regards this issue as unresolved and that the Libyan Government has a responsibility to deal with the country's past. In August, the Secretary of State for International Development raised this with Libyan Prime Minister Serraj. In April, the Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa discussed it with Prime Minister Serraj and the Ministers of the Interior, Justice and Foreign Affairs. He also discussed it with the Libyan Minister for Planning on 22 November. Our Ambassador to Libya frequently raises compensation at the highest levels of the Libyan Government. The violence and instability in Libya represent significant obstacles to the resolution of legacy issues.