John Baron MP presses Foreign Secretary on anti-Daesh strategy

MP highlights unanswered questions

Today the Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon Philip Hammond MP, gave a statement regarding Government policy against Daesh. This is in line with the Government’s commitments during the debate over Syria on 2nd December, in which it committed to regularly updating Parliament as to progress against the terrorist organisation.

John asked,

“Recent discussions with senior government officials in the Middle East suggest key questions remain unanswered about the Government’s strategy to combat Daesh, which is probably the best-funded terrorist group in history. On the non-military side, why aren’t hard questions being asked of regional allies when it comes to donations to Daesh by institutions and individuals within those countries; and when it comes to oil, why aren’t regional allies doing more to stop the end customers from buying it in the first place – if there were no market, there would be no cashflow?”

The Foreign Secretary responded by saying the Government is confident Middle Eastern governments are not donating money to Daesh, and that increased targeting of the well-heads would be the most efficient way of stopping black market oil sales.

Afterwards, John said,

“The Government is failing to ask hard questions of a number of regional allies. More could be done to stop funding flows to Daesh, and to stop end-customers from buying black market oil. Any military campaign must be complimented by a robust strategy to disrupt finances.”

Ends
Word Count: 242
Date: 16th December 2015

Notes to Editors:
• John has been a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee since 2010.
• He tabled the amendment opposing the Government on 2nd December 2015, and voted against extending air strikes in Syria.