New inquiry into Piracy off the coast of Somalia

In particular, the Committee will look at:

• The adequacy of international and domestic law and jurisdiction
• Co-ordination at the international level, particularly the UN
• Consular assistance, including the UK’s policy on the payment of ransoms
• FCO support for anti-piracy projects on land in Somalia
• UK naval involvement in EU, NATO and other anti-piracy operations

Call for evidence:

Interested groups or individuals are encouraged to submit written evidence to the inquiry. There is no formal deadline for written evidence but the Committee will be taking oral evidence on the following dates: 22 June; 29 June; 6 July 2011. Submissions received before those dates can be taken into account in the Committee’s questioning of witnesses.

View guidance on submitting written evidence.

Form of written evidence:

Each submission should contain the following information:

• a short summary in bullet point form;
• a brief introduction about the person submitting evidence, perhaps explaining their area of expertise;
• any factual information from which the committee might be able to draw conclusions, or which could be put to other witnesses; and
• any recommendations for action by the Government or others which the submitter would like the committee to consider for inclusion in its report to the House.

How to format submissions:

Each submission should use:

• numbered paragraphs, and
• MS Word format with as little use of colour/ logos as possible.

Submitting evidence:

Submissions should be sent as an e-mail attachment to foraffcom@parliament.uk and titled ‘The Piracy Inquiry’. Paper copies may be sent to Foreign Affairs Committee, Committee Office, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA.

Inquiry related questions:

Please contact the Committee on 020 7219 3613 or by email to oliver-wattsz@parliament.uk

Media enquiries:

Members of the press with enquiries should contact Alex Paterson, Select Committee Media Officer, on 020 7219 1589, or 07917 488488, or by email to patersona@parliament.uk