Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Wassenaar Arrangement in controlling the dual-use export of (a) artificial intelligence, (b) quantum computing, (c) biometric tools and data and (d) intangible technology transfers.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Wassenaar Arrangement is a long-established multilateral export control regime which operates by consensus. It includes the majority of states producing these advanced technologies and draws on expertise from all members to develop control lists, which are updated annually. These lists are used by participating states to implement their export controls and, as the Wassenaar Arrangement sets the global standard for good practice, non-member states also incorporate the control lists into their domestic legislation.
The UK is an active member of the Wassenaar Arrangement and other multilateral export control regimes. We submit and review proposals related to these advanced technologies, share best practice, and participate in outreach to non-member states. We are co-ordinating with G7 and other partners to strengthen export controls, including to update multilateral export control regime lists to keep pace with rapid technological developments.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he is taking diplomatic steps to reform (a) the Wassenaar Arrangement and (b) other export control and non-proliferation agreements.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Wassenaar Arrangement is a long-established multilateral export control regime which operates by consensus. It includes the majority of states producing these advanced technologies and draws on expertise from all members to develop control lists, which are updated annually. These lists are used by participating states to implement their export controls and, as the Wassenaar Arrangement sets the global standard for good practice, non-member states also incorporate the control lists into their domestic legislation.
The UK is an active member of the Wassenaar Arrangement and other multilateral export control regimes. We submit and review proposals related to these advanced technologies, share best practice, and participate in outreach to non-member states. We are co-ordinating with G7 and other partners to strengthen export controls, including to update multilateral export control regime lists to keep pace with rapid technological developments.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, on how many occasions the Change in Circumstances Review assessment process in the Export Controls Joint Unit has led to extant export licences being suspended in each year since 2010; and what the destination country was in each case.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) has in place an established process for responding at pace to changing conditions in a country where the UK has previously granted export licences, and where those licences remain extant.
The FCDO advises DBT on the situation in country and the risks this poses with respect to the UK’s export control responsibilities. The MOD advises DBT on the risks of diversion of exported goods and national security risks arising from hostile state activity. The Department of Business and Trade, with DBT Secretary of State as the decision-making authority, decides whether to amend, suspend or revoke any relevant licences.
We publish comprehensive Official Statistics every quarter about the decisions we make on licence applications, including any decisions to suspend or revoke licences. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, on how many occasions the Change in Circumstances Review assessment process in the Export Controls Joint Unit has led to extant export licences being revoked in each year since 2010; and what the destination country was in each case.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) has in place an established process for responding at pace to changing conditions in a country where the UK has previously granted export licences, and where those licences remain extant.
The FCDO advises DBT on the situation in country and the risks this poses with respect to the UK’s export control responsibilities. The MOD advises DBT on the risks of diversion of exported goods and national security risks arising from hostile state activity. The Department of Business and Trade, with DBT Secretary of State as the decision-making authority, decides whether to amend, suspend or revoke any relevant licences.
We publish comprehensive Official Statistics every quarter about the decisions we make on licence applications, including any decisions to suspend or revoke licences. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what criteria are used to decide to initiate the Change in Circumstances Review process in the Export Controls Joint Unit.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
All licences are kept under careful and continual review as standard. We are able to amend, suspend or revoke extant licences and refuse new licence applications as circumstances require.
The Government can and does respond quickly and flexibly to changing or fluid international circumstances. ECJU has in place an established process for responding at pace to changing conditions in a country where the UK has previously granted export licences, and where those licences remain extant.
The criteria for initiating this process can include, but are not limited to, protests, coup d’etats, changes to sanctions, or conflict with a neighbouring country.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many Change in Circumstances Reviews were undertaken in the Export Controls Joint Unit in each year since 2010; and which countries were subject to each such review.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) has in place an established process for responding at pace to changing conditions in a country where the UK has previously granted export licences, and where those licences remain extant.
The FCDO advises DBT on the situation in country and the risks this poses with respect to the UK’s export control responsibilities. The MOD advises DBT on the risks of diversion of exported goods and national security risks arising from hostile state activity. The Department of Business and Trade, with DBT Secretary of State as the decision-making authority, decides whether to amend, suspend or revoke any relevant licences. We publish comprehensive Official Statistics every quarter about the decisions we make on licence applications. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Given its diplomatic sensitivity, the Government is unable to disclose the specific number and destination countries of Change in Circumstances Reviews.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to Table 2.3 of the UK strategic export controls annual report 2022, published on 19 July 2023, HC1681, how many (a) Standard Individual Export Licence and (b) Standard Individual Trade Control Licence export applications were refused under Criterion 2 of the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria due to (i) a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate internal repression, (ii) established serious violations of human rights in the destination country and (iii) a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
As part of our commitment to transparency, HM Government publishes data on export licensing decisions on a quarterly basis in the Official Statistics, including data on outcome, end user destination, overall value, type (e.g. military, other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to Table 2.3 of the UK strategic export controls annual report 2022, published on 19 July 2023, HC1681, what the destination countries were for refused (a) Standard Individual Export Licence and (b) Standard Individual Trade Control Licence export applications broken down by each Criterion.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
As part of our commitment to transparency, HM Government publishes data on export licensing decisions on a quarterly basis in the Official Statistics, including data on outcome, end user destination, overall value, type (e.g. military, other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences. This data is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of UK export controls in controlling the proliferation of sensitive technology in the areas of (a) artificial intelligence, (b) quantum, (c) biometric tools and (d) intangible technology transfers.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Government has been reviewing export controls and their application to sensitive emerging technologies across a range of sectors.
We are looking shortly to publish the results of that review and launch a public consultation on the process for ensuring the controls evolve to meet the challenge of new and emerging technologies.
Asked by: Liam Byrne (Labour - Birmingham, Hodge Hill)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she is taking steps to implement the Export Controls and Human Rights Initiative Code of Conduct.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The UK is a subscribing state to the 'Code of Conduct for Enhancing Export Controls of Goods and Technology that could be Misused and Lead to Serious Violations or Abuses of Human Rights'. The UK has committed to applying export controls to ensure that relevant goods and technologies are used in compliance with international human rights law.