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Internet Arms Dealers Face Curbs - UN Security Council - Global Policy Forum Internet Arms Dealers Face Curbs
Patrick Wintour
UK Guardian
December 6, 2000
The government will try to head off the fury of the human rights lobby today by vowing that a draft exports control bill will go further than expected by regulating arms trading on the internet. British arms exporters will be required to go on a register before they can receive a licence.
The human rights lobby is angry that no space has been found in the Queens Speech for an immediate arms control bill, pointing out that John Major's government published a green paper on arms controls as long as July 1996 in the wake of the Scott inquiry into arms for Iraq. Labour published a white paper in June 1998.
The speech will centre on an assault on crime and a health bill implementing the national plan for the NHS, which will establish joint care trusts between health and social security authorities to end bed blocking.
Oxfam yesterday rounded on the trade secretary, Stephen Byers, and the foreign secretary, Robin Cook, for failing to deliver on arms trading regulation. "The government has failed to live up to its promises and, because of its inaction, small arms will continue to fall into the wrong hands and innocent people will die," it said.
Severe criticism over the delay is also expected from parliamentary select committees. However, the Department of Trade and Industry yesterday hit back, promising a bill next year. Ministers claim the proposals will go substantially further than the recommendations of the Scott inquiry.
Following some hard fought cabinet committee meetings in the past few months, Mr Byers has decided his draft bill will require all British arms exporters to put themselves on a register before they can receive a licence.
A licence will be required for traffickers and brokers, so British citizens using third countries to export arms will still be subject to British controls. Under these proposals, some of the arms exports to Sierra Leone via Bulgaria by British firms would have been unlawful.
Ministers accept there will be problems over enforcement. The bill, replacing emergency legislation dating back to the 1939, will also require a licence if an exporter is trading by email. Mr Byers also promises that the bill will give government statutory powers to ban all trading in torture equipment.
The bill will not give the parliamentary select committees powers to scrutinise all arms exports licences before ministers grant a licence, the committees' most recent demand.
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