To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the EC flight ban on members of Al Qaeda, amended Council Regulation (EC) 467/2001; and how many UK citizens have been identified and prevented from travelling under this regulation. (107210)

Council Regulation (EC) 467/2001 strengthened the EC ban on flights to and from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, in fulfilment of UN Security Council Resolution 1333. The ban related to airlines rather than individuals, so it is impossible to quantify the number of individuals who might have been affected. Council Regulation (EC) 467/2001 was repealed in 2003, in fulfilment of UN Security Council Resolution 1390, which terminated the flight ban.