Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the (a) UK's arms exports licensing process and (b) role of the export control joint unit in the context of arms sent to (i) Israel, (ii) Saudi Arabia and (iii) nations alleged to have breached international humanitarian law.

The Government takes its strategic export control responsibilities very seriously. Export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria - a regime that is among the most rigorous and transparent in the world and which provides a thorough risk assessment framework, including in respect of International Humanitarian Law. The Export Control Joint Unit administers our system of export controls and brings together policy and operational expertise from the Department for Business and Trade, FCDO and the Ministry of Defence. All export licences are kept under careful, continuous review and we are able to amend, suspend or revoke extant licences, or refuse new licence applications, where they are inconsistent with the UK's Strategic Export Licensing Criteria.