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Iran (UK Policy)

There are too many Carlton-Brownes in the FO still, and too many Sir Humphreys. I look to the Ministers who will say to those folk, ““I hear what you say. Now, this is what we are going to do. We are going to listen to our parliamentary colleagues.? I am anxious to move on to two points before I conclude. The first concerns events in the Shatt al-Arab waterway. In my view, on 16 April, the Defence Secretary did not satisfactorily—and the Opposition let him get away with it—answer one point. We were told that it was imperative in the interests of Iraq, the coalition and good enforcement of law that there should be boardings and inspections of craft in the location where our royal naval personnel were seized. That process stopped when they were seized. Today, we are told that it will be reinstated. I read the Defence Secretary’s statement carefully, and he inferred that others—presumably other coalition partners—were filling the void. I want to know to what extent that happened, on how many occasions, with what frequency and whether it was in the same location as where our royal naval personnel were seized. Has that work been going on and which country has carried it out? We were told that the Iraqis do not have a navy that has been developed to that extent, so who else has been doing that in the interim. My second point is that we have been told in the press releases today that the inspections will be reinstated today, starting at ““a low level?. What does that mean? When will we be carrying them out to the same robustness and extent and in the same location as before the royal naval personnel were seized?