Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Bob Spink (Conservative). It was answered on Monday, 26 February 2007 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Iraq

Question: I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for that response; he is having a very busy afternoon. He knows, of course, that the Kurdish sector of Iraq—the other Iraq, as it is known—is making excellent progress economically, socially and politically. Does he agree that we need to ensure that the Kirkuk referendum, which must take place some time this year—probably in November or December—takes place without any interference or distraction from insurgents or bordering countries, and will he do all in his power to ensure that the referendum proceeds securely?

Answer: I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for reminding the House of the progress that has been made in northern Iraq. Sometimes one could be forgiven for thinking that it did not exist, but many millions of people live there. It has made quite good progress, not just since action was taken in Iraq by our forces in coalition with others, but prior to that, because of the protection that we granted people from the actions that Saddam Hussein had perpetrated in the area. The hon. Gentleman is perfectly correct to identify the importance of the referendum in Kirkuk, but it should be seen as one of a number of agreements that were made in the political context of the settlement that brought the national unity Government to power in Iraq. That is not to underestimate in any way the challenges that they face. All the elements of that deal need to be taken forward politically, with the support of other countries in the region, and it should not be allowed to be undermined by insurgency. The hon. Gentleman urges the Government, and me, to do everything that we can to support that deal, and he can rest assured that we do that daily.

Secondary information