London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 09, 2025

Britain ‘broke own rules’ by failing to inspect factories making bombs for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen

Britain ‘broke own rules’ by failing to inspect factories making bombs for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen

The UK government has breached its own guidelines requiring it to conduct regular inspections of controversial weapons factories making bombs used by Saudi Arabia in its aerial campaign in Yemen, a new report says.
The purpose of regular inspections is to check whether weapons producers fulfill the conditions of their export licenses. However, inspectors last visited US arms giant Raytheon’s missile factories in Glenrothes, east-central Scotland, in November 2016, and in Harlow, Essex, in November 2015.

This means Britain has breached its own guidelines requiring the inspections to be conducted “every three years” at a minimum, investigative websites Declassified UK and The Ferret reported.

The plant in Glenrothes makes parts for Paveway IV laser-guided bombs, supplied to Saudi Arabia, which has been conducting a devastating bombing campaign in Yemen for more than five years. Human Rights Watch has repeatedly warned that British-produced munitions, including Paveway bombs, are being used by Riyadh to strike civilian targets.

It is unclear exactly how many inspections have been missed, but trade minister Ranil Jayawardena told members of parliament earlier this month that a detailed report on the issue would come “at a disproportionate cost,” because the government would have to manually review all of its records. Jayawardena also previously argued that revealing the results of such inspections is “commercially sensitive.”

When asked about eight of Britain’s weapons factories, all linked to the Saudi bombing of Yemen, the minister admitted that half of them had not been inspected for more than three years. This is despite the government’s past claims that it has “the most robust” export control process in the world.

Last month, another Declassified UK report showed that the authorities missed the deadline to check a plant run by British arms company BAE Systems in Warton, Lancashire, which makes Typhoon jet fighters, also sold to Riyadh and used in Yemen air raids.

The revelations sparked criticism in Scotland. Scottish National Party MP Douglas Chapman said the situation highlights “the reckless, irresponsible attitude” of the government towards the conflict in Yemen. Scottish Green Party foreign affairs spokesperson Ross Greer blasted London for creating “a smokescreen for protecting the profits of multibillion-pound international arms firms.”

Human rights groups have long demanded that London stop selling weapons to Saudi Arabia, as UN experts and other watchdogs say Saudi airstrikes cause massive civilian casualties on the ground. Last year, Britain suspended new arms deals with Riyadh after a court in London ruled that the government had failed to guarantee that UK-made weapons are not being used against civilians in Yemen.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Brand-New $1 Million Yacht Sinks Just Fifteen Minutes After Maiden Launch in Turkey
Here’s What the FBI Seized in John Bolton Raid — and the Legal Risks He Faces
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
×