Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to abide by Criterion 4 of the Consolidated EU and National Arms Licencing Consolidated Criteria ensuring that licences for Morocco are not used to assert by force its territorial claim in Western Sahara.

HMG takes its export control responsibilities seriously and continues to monitor developments in Western Sahara closely. We examine every licence application on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, including Criterion Four. We draw on a range of sources in making assessments, including from NGOs, international organisations and reports from our overseas network. All licences are kept under careful and continual review as standard.