Written question asked by Ann Clwyd (Labour) on Monday, 18 December 2000, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 21 December 2000. It was answered by Lord Hain (Labour) on Thursday, 21 December 2000 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the system of prior scrutiny of arms sales by the United States and Swedish legislatures.

Answer: Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the system of prior scrutiny of arms sales by the United States and Swedish legislatures. [143692] Mr. Hain: The systems of prior scrutiny of arms exports by the legislature in the US and Sweden are very different, and in each case reflect the particular circumstances in those countries. In both cases, only a small minority of licence applications are subject to prior scrutiny.

Secondary information