UK arms components export 'puts lives at risk': report

Weaker government controls over arms export licences is "putting lives at risk" in some of the world's most repressive regimes, according to a joint report by three leading charities, published today.

The report 'Lock, Stock and Barrel - How British Arms Components Add up to Deadly Weapons', from Oxfam, Amnesty International and IANSA, has claimed that the government's approach has effectively seen British arms components arrive in countries such as Zimbabwe, Israel, Indonesia, Colombia, Nepal and the Philippines.

According to the report, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw formally changed arms export guidance in 2002 by introducing new criteria for licensing decisions on components.

"Rather than solely basing decisions to export arms components on human rights, conflict and poverty considerations, new criteria were introduced to assess potential deals against their importance for the arms industry. Since Jack Straw's decision, the number of arms components licensed for export has doubled," the charities have said.

By applying weaker controls to the export of components, compared to the export of full weapons systems, there has been an 11-fold increase in the number of arms components licensed for export since 1998, the report claimed.

Oxfam has said that weapons components are not simply "nut and bolts" – this type of export includes the trades of firing mechanisms, bomb-making equipment, guidance systems and gun barrels.

Justin Forsyth, Oxfam Director of Policy, added: "The government has put lives at risk by setting up false and dangerous double standards. Whether a machine-gun comes in pieces or ready made- the suffering it can cause in the wrong hands is just the same."

Rebecca Peters, Director of IANSA, said that, due to the existence of this loophole, "it seems the government is attending to the needs of the British defence industry, above the human rights of people living in countries where the weapons will be used”.

Not only are these loopholes weakening UK arms licensing controls, the charities claim, they are also undermining international arms embargoes.

"The EU-embargo covering the Democratic Republic of Congo - a country in which war has killed three million people since 1998 – is interpreted by the British government to allow the ongoing sale of components," the charities said.

Oxfam, Amnesty International and IANSA have called on the British government to tighten up its arms export policy and treat components in the same way as complete systems.

However, the government has rejected the allegations as unfounded, saying that the report provides "no evidence" for its claims.

Foreign Office Minister Baroness Symons said: "The government has recognised for some time that the globalisation of the defence industry means that components, rather than whole systems, are increasingly exported from the UK. Our export licensing system takes full account of this fact.

"All licences for components are assessed against the government's usual criteria. When making our assessment we take full account of what the components might be used for, as well as the end-use stated on the application. We simply would not issue a licence where there was an unacceptable risk of it being misused or diverted."

Baroness Symons said that the government "was not complacent", and will study the report's recommendations closely.

(gmcg)