Written question asked by Mike Hancock (Liberal Democrat) on Thursday, 15 March 2007, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 19 March 2007. It was answered by Ian McCartney (Labour) on Wednesday, 21 March 2007 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Burma: Sequestration of Assets

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will freeze the UK assets of (a) the government and (b) state-owned enterprises of Burma; and if she will make a statement.

Answer: The assets of senior members of the Burmese Government and those who benefit from their policies, as listed in Annex I to the EU Common Position on Burma, are already frozen. The Common Position also bans investment in the named state-owned enterprises listed in Annex II.We believe that the present EU Common Position on Burma is the best achievable policy, given the range of views amongst our partners. Any additional measures would need the support of all other EU member states as the Common Position can only be amended by consensus. We do not believe that there would be consensus to strengthen the Common Position. A copy of the EU Common Position on Burma is available in the Library of the House.

Secondary information