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Cluster Munitions (Prohibitions) Bill [HL]

I thank noble Lords. I can of course reassure the noble Lord, Lord Hannay, that we intend to take a meticulous and rigorous approach to the implementation of the convention when it is ratified. The purpose of Clause 20, as the noble Lord, Lord Howell, clearly said, is to implement Articles 3(8) and 7 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which require all state parties to submit annual reports regarding national implementation measures and other details, including any cluster munitions retained for permitted purposes. That is already an obligation and we shall pursue it vigorously with other state parties. Clause 20 facilitates meeting this requirement by conferring on the Secretary of State the power to require people to maintain records and provide information needed for the purposes of the convention. Under subsection (3), the Secretary of State will have the power to specify the form of information and the time within which it should be provided in any notices served for these purposes. The existing provisions in the Bill are therefore sufficient to ensure that we can obtain the necessary information on any cluster munitions retained for permitted purposes. As I have stated previously, this information will be available for scrutiny in the public domain. It is also worth noting that our reporting requirements under the Convention on Cluster Munitions mirror faithfully those for anti-personnel mines under the Ottawa convention. The Landmines Act 1998 includes similar provisions to those in Clause 20; there is no explicit provision on obtaining information on anti-personnel mines retained for permitted purposes. However, under the authorisation mechanism for permitting retention, the MoD requires that individuals provide annually details on the quantity retained. That provision would apply under the convention. We intend that the mechanism for retained cluster munitions will be the same and that we will follow the same process. I hope that I have clarified the points raised and that the noble Lord will therefore withdraw his amendment.