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Questions for Written Answer: Afghanistan

Volume 687: debated on Wednesday 22 November 2006

My honourable friend the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Kim Howells) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

In his reply on 14 May 2002 to a Question from my honourable friend the Member for Conwy (Betty Williams), my honourable friend the then Minister for Europe (Denis MacShane) stated that details of the eradication programme, maps and a video relating to the 2002 Afghan opium poppy eradication programme would be placed in the House of Commons Library.

As my honourable friend the Member for Newport West (Paul Flynn) has pointed out, this information was not placed in the Library at the time. Having now concluded our search for all information relevant to the 2002 programme, I can confirm that we no longer hold the specific material originally referred to by Dr MacShane. I apologise that we are therefore unable to provide this to the House of Commons Library. We have, however, placed excerpts from official correspondence relating to the 2002 programme in the House of Commons Library. This information has been the subject of a separate freedom of information request.