Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Lord Dubs (Labour). It was answered on Tuesday, 17 April 2007.

Cluster Munitions

Question: My Lords, I assure my noble friend that many of us involved in the campaign against cluster munitions are enormously grateful that the Government have banned dumb munitions. As has been said, we very much hope that this will become the subject of an international treaty before too long. The only other question remaining, which I am sure my noble friend does not want to answer now, is whether the smart bombs are smart enough.

Answer: My Lords, I received a very detailed briefing on these issues yesterday. My understanding is that the United Kingdom has its own definitions of what are called dumb bombs and what are called smart bombs. I do not think that the House would want to hear my explanation of the difference between those two things, but I assure my noble friend that we fully intend that anything we do falls within our international humanitarian obligations. It is very important that we carry our partners with us in this work.

Secondary information