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Proceeding contribution from Mike O'Brien (Labour) in the House of Commons on Wednesday, 7 February 2007. It occurred during Opposition day on Al-Yamamah Arms Agreement.


Al-Yamamah Arms Agreement

Well, the OECD convention makes it clear that it is illegal to bring in economic issues. The Liberal Democrats claim that an improper decision was made, but the director of the SFO has made it clear that he did not bring in economic issues; he made the judgment based on national and international security grounds. The Law Officers have also made it clear that we excluded economic arguments from our consideration. Are the Liberal Democrats saying that although there was a national security risk the SFO investigation should have continued regardless? Are they seriously arguing that they would have put at risk the lives of our citizens? The more I look at the position of the Liberal Democrats, the more I conclude that it is untenable. Asking questions is one thing, but it is wrong to make implications of improper motives or decisions without sufficient evidence.


Secondary information

Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
456 c874 
Session
2006-07
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
Subjects
Contracts Air traffic control Corruption Arms trade Ministry of Defence Terrorism Serious Fraud Office USA Saudi Arabia Committee of Public Accounts al Qaeda Tanzania BAE Systems
Link
View this Proceeding contribution on www.publications.parliament.uk