It is easier to trace a suitcase or a GM tomato than a lethal weapon, according to research released today by the Control Arms campaign. The report by the campaign, backed by Amnesty International, Oxfam International and the International Action Network on Small Arms, said while weapons and ammunition often carried serial numbers, there was no worldwide system to record this information when arms were sold.

Anna MacDonald, campaigns director of Oxfam, said: "It is outrageous that you have more chance of tracking a GM tomato or a suitcase than you do an AK-47 or rocket launcher. A piece of lost luggage can be tracked from London to Liberia within hours, yet deadly weapons disappear without trace on a daily basis. The government must use its influence to push for urgent change."