'Stop the funding of deadly weapons'

Britain is a signatory to the UN convention on cluster munitions and a Bill prohibiting them is currently passing through the Commons and House of Lords.

The Bill passed the committee stage in the Lords last week and is set to return to Parliament. But the latest report from campaign group the Cluster Munition Coalition revealed that 15 British firms currently invest or deal with firms engaged in the production of the lethal armaments.

These firms, including Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland, Legal and General, the Prudential and Standard Life, continue to fund - directly or indirectly - the production of weapons which have killed and continue to kill or maim tens of thousands of people.

Cluster Munition Coalition spokesman Thomas Nash told the Star: "We have been calling for the government to make it absolutely clear that no UK financial institution should be involved in cluster munitions.

"It is a total double standard that the UK government has prohibited production of cluster munitions but UK companies are supporting their production.

"Clearly, we are very concerned about financial institutions being involved."

Foreign Office Minister Chris Bryant said: "Under the current provisions of the Bill, which have been modelled upon the definitions and requirements of the convention, the direct financing of cluster munitions would be prohibited.

"The provision of funds directly contributing to the manufacture of these weapons would therefore become illegal.

"The convention does not prohibit so-called indirect financing of cluster munitions. Indirect financing is therefore not within the scope of the Bill's provisions."

But he said that the government intended to work with the financial sector to introduce a voluntary code of conduct on the issue.

A Barclays spokeswoman said that, while it did deal with the defence sector, "it is our policy not to finance trade in nuclear, chemical, biological or other weapons of mass destruction."

Charity War on Want senior campaigns officer Yasmin Khan said: "People have seen the mess that the banks have made with customers' money. But few know they are using our cash to fund arms companies.

"The government must introduce regulation to stop banks making a killing from the arms trade."