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 the Export Controls and Human Rights Initiative Code of Conduct, what recent discussions she has had with (a) the private sector, (b) academics and (c) civil society representatives on human rights and the implementation of export control measures.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The Export Control Joint Unit has a regular and ongoing dialogue with the private sector, academics and civil society representatives about all aspects of export control policy and implementation, including human rights.
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 2.4 of the UK strategic export controls annual report 2022, published on 19 July 2023, HC1681, what the (a) destination country and (b) type of goods to be exported were for each Standard Individual Export Licence and Standard Individual Trade Control Licence revoked under Criterion 2.
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, how many export licence applications were escalated to the dispute resolution mechanism or complex cases mechanism in each year since 2010; and what the destination country was in each such case.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
Export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against announced policies and the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria (SELC). Decisions are routinely taken by the Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU), on behalf of the Secretary of State for Business and Trade. These decisions are taken in consultation with officials from other government departments, principally the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and the Ministry of Defence but occasionally other Departments are also consulted depending on the nature of the case.
There is no single ‘dispute resolution mechanism’ which is regularly or consistently enacted. There have been various occasions since 2010 where different procedures have been set up to enable wider consultation and scrutiny of export licensing cases with Ministers across Government. These were in reaction to specific concerns or strategic priorities at the time. They can involve different attendees and terms of reference depending on the situation. We do not maintain data on how often this sort of procedure has been used over multiple years.
There is no specific ‘complex case mechanism’. ECJU receives a high volume of ‘complex cases’ and the vast majority are decided upon by consensus. However, if ECJU officials are unable to come to a consensus about a case they could refer it to MOD and FCDO Ministers, and ultimately to the Secretary of State for Business and Trade who has the responsibility for making the final decision. This happens extremely rarely in practice and therefore we do not maintain data on its occurrence over multiple years.
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 recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of export controls on cyber-surveillance tools.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The UK already controls the export of a range of cyber-surveillance tools. Export licence applications for such items are rigorously assessed against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria taking full account of risks to national security and human rights. The UK Government continues to work through the international export control regimes to ensure these controls remain up-to-date.
In assessing licences involving sensitive communications technology, the Export Control Joint Unit also takes advice from HM Government’s National Cyber Security Centre.
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 role the National Cyber Security Centre plays in facilitating export controls to prevent the proliferation of sensitive technology in the areas of (a) artificial intelligence, (b) quantum computing, (c) biometric tools and data and (d) intangible technology transfers.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
The National Cyber Security Centre is HM Government’s national technical authority for information security and advises the Export Control Joint Unit, in the Department for Business and Trade, on export licence applications for goods involving sensitive communications or computer technology.
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 extant strategic export licences were referred to Ministers in (a) her Department, (b) the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and (c) the Ministry of Defence in each year since 2010; and what the destination countries were in each such case.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
Export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against announced policies and the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria (SELC). Given the high volume of decisions taken every week, the vast majority of licensing applications are decided upon by officials within the Export Control Joint Unit acting on behalf of the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, using the framework provided by the SELC. These decisions are taken in consultation with officials from other government departments including the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and the Ministry of Defence.
In practice a very small proportion of export licensing decisions are escalated to Ministers. For example, this happens when a decision is finely balanced or when Ministers have asked for certain types of cases to be referred to them for decision. As with any part of Government, ECJU officials would consult Ministers from the three Departments in the normal course of their work, including on some export control applications, as and when necessary. We do not maintain a central record of how many times this has happened in the last 14 years.
Ministers are always consulted on any decisions related to revoking or suspending licences. We report on the volume of revoked and suspended licences in our Quarterly Statistics and Annual Report. These can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/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, how many strategic export licence applications were escalated to Ministers in (a) her Department, (b) the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and (c) the Ministry of Defence in each year since 2010; and what the destination countries were in each such case.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
Export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against announced policies and the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria (SELC). Given the high volume of decisions taken every week, the vast majority of licensing applications are decided upon by officials within the Export Control Joint Unit acting on behalf of the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, using the framework provided by the SELC. These decisions are taken in consultation with officials from other government departments including the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and the Ministry of Defence.
In practice a very small proportion of export licensing decisions are escalated to Ministers. For example, this happens when a decision is finely balanced or when Ministers have asked for certain types of cases to be referred to them for decision. As with any part of Government, ECJU officials would consult Ministers from the three Departments in the normal course of their work, including on some export control applications, as and when necessary. We do not maintain a central record of how many times this has happened in the last 14 years.
Ministers are always consulted on any decisions related to revoking or suspending licences. We report on the volume of revoked and suspended licences in our Quarterly Statistics and Annual Report. These can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/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 2.4 of the UK strategic export controls annual report 2022, published on 19 July 2023, HC1681, for what reasons the number of (a) Standard Individual Export Licences and (b) Standard Individual Trade Control Licences revoked under Criterion 1 increased in 2022.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine the Government expanded the scope and scale of its sanctions measures against Russia. This resulted in an increase in export licences needing to be revoked because they were not consistent with new sanctions. Consequently, these licences were revoked under Criterion 1.
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 2.4 of the UK strategic export controls annual report 2022, published on 19 July 2023, HC1681, what the (a) destination country and (b) type of goods to be exported were for each Standard Individual Export Licence and Standard Individual Trade Control Licence revoked under Criterion 1.
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 Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what outcomes were agreed at the third Summit for Democracy held in Seoul on 18 to 20 March.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Participants at the Third Summit for Democracy agreed the importance of harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) and emerging digital technologies to uphold democratic values and institutions, noting their potential to open new channels for participation and enhance transparency, openness and accountability. Participants also agreed the importance of strengthening laws and institutions to mitigate risks associated with emerging technologies that could undermine democratic values, including threats such as infringements on privacy and the spread of misinformation and disinformation. Hosts the Republic of Korea, along with key partner governments, confirmed their intention to continue supporting the Platform for Engagement of Civil Society and their work on the Summit process.