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Export Controls

Mr. Peter Atkinson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what action the Government have taken to follow up Sir Richard Scott's recommendation for a review of export controls. [40104]

Mr. Lang: In line with Sir Richard's recommendation at chapter K3.6 of his report, I am today publishing a consultative document on strategic export controls, Cm 3349, which will be available via HMSO, and am placing copies in the Libraries of both Houses. I have asked for responses to be made to my Department by 31 October. After this consultation, and depending on what decisions are taken, the Government may need to undertake further more detailed consultation with directly interested parties as proposals for change are worked up in detail.

Industrial Relations

Mr. Fabricant: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment he has made of the current state of industrial relations; and if he will make a statement. [37276]

Mr. John M. Taylor: Industrial relations have improved immensely since the 1960s and 1970s. Strikes in Britain remain at historically very low levels, with only 0.42 million working days lost in the 12 months to April 1996 compared with annual averages of 7.2 million in the 1980s and 12.9 million in the 1970s.

Royal Mail

Mr. Hain: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will place in the Library a copy of his letter of last week to the chairman of Royal Mail concerning a suspension of Royal Mail's monopoly on letters costing less than £1 to send. [38489]

Mr. Lang: I have placed in the Libraries of both Houses a copy of my letter dated 12 July to Sir Michael Heron, the chairman of the Post Office, which initiated consultations with the Post Office about the implications of a suspension of the statutory monopoly on the delivery of letters for under £1.

Departmental Vehicles (Traffic Violations)

Ms Glenda Jackson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the number of traffic violations involving departmental vehicles, the nature of the violations, and the total amount of fines arising from those violations, in each year since 1986. [39300]

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Mr. John M. Taylor: Any driver of a DTI vehicle is personally accountable for any traffic violations when in charge of the vehicle and for any costs incurred as a result. The Department's records are, therefore, very limited. We are aware of three tickets for speeding between 1990 and 1994 and six parking tickets between 1993 and 1996. We do not know the amount of the fines that were paid.

The vehicles currently owned by the Department are not used and are in the process of being sold. There is no intention to replace them.

Low Pay

Mr. McAllion: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will take steps to combat low pay; and if he will make a statement. [37294]

Mr. John M. Taylor: The improved performance of the British economy since 1979, particularly the huge increase in productivity and low inflation, has allowed for significant increases in real wages at all levels, including the lower paid. This is in direct contrast to the late 1970s when low productivity meant that increases in earnings fed through to higher prices and increased inflation.

South West Industrial Development Board

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will list the occasions between January 1980 and December 1984 on which members of his Department's south-west industrial office have absented themselves from board meetings because of potential conflicts of interest, indicating (a) the date, (b) the board members, (c) the company, (d) the value of the financial assistance applied for, (e) the value of the assistance subsequently offered and (f) the potential conflict of interest; [35244]

(2) if he will list the occasions between January 1985 and December 1989 on which members of his Department's south-west industrial office have absented themselves from board meetings because of potential conflicts of interest, indicating (a) the date, (b) the board members, (c) the company, (d) the value of the financial assistance applied for, (e) the value of the assistance subsequently offered and (f) the potential conflict of interest. [35245]

Mr. Lang [holding answers 1 July 1996]: Listed in the table are the occasions when members of the South West industrial development board are known to have absented themselves--because of potential conflicts of interest--from discussions between 1980 and 1989 of cases which subsequently resulted in offers of regional selective assistance.

Unfortunately, this list may be incomplete. The files containing the full minutes of the board before early 1988 were destroyed after a set period in accordance with the records management procedures then in place in the Department's south-west regional office--now absorbed in the Government office for the south-west. We have, however, been able to establish some earlier abstentions from other sources.

I should make it clear that, throughout this period, board members declared directorships and similar substantial interests in companies both on appointment and when lists of forthcoming cases were regularly

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circulated. Where such declarations had been made, the members concerned would neither have seen the papers relating to applications from those companies nor have attended relevant discussions of the board.

Date	Board member	Cases	Grant applied for	Grant offered
			£	£
13 December 1983	K. Holmes	Marine Projects (Plymouth) Ltd.	76,000	(35)110,000
29 October 1985	V. Parsons	Wandel and Goltermann Ltd.	400,000	400,000
28 October 1986	K. Holmes	Marine Projects (Plymouth) Ltd.	300,000	300,000
22 March 1988	G. Hoare	J and F Pool Ltd.	250,000	75,000
28 February 1989	K. Holmes	Marine Projects (Plymouth) Ltd.	1,000,000	800,000
25 July 1989	R. Harris	Ranco Controls Ltd.	400,000	400,000

(35) For expanded project.

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 18 June, Official Report, columns 458-59, in what circumstances the financial assistance schemes mentioned go before the industrial development board for scrutiny and approval; and what other procedures are followed. [37713]

Mr. Lang [holding answer 17 July 1996]: Offers of regional selective assistance cases involving potential grant above a set level--which in the case of the south-west was until recently £100,000 but is now £250,000--but not exceeding £2 million are considered by a regional industrial development board--or, exceptionally, by the national industrial development advisory board. Offers of grant below the set level may be approved by officials without reference to the boards but officials have discretion to seek board advice in any case where they consider it desirable to do so. Offers of regional selective assistance above £2 million are normally appraised in headquarters and considered by the industrial development advisory board. All offers of £1 million or more are subject to ministerial approval.

Offers of assistance under the other schemes referred to in my earlier answer have been considered by officials within guidelines and against criteria approved by Ministers, without reference to external advisory boards but subject to ministerial approval above certain thresholds.

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what financial assistance has been given by his Department since 1980 to Company A, the identity having been supplied to him, by (a) type of grant, (b) date offered, including month and (c) date of payment, including month. [37644]

Mr. Lang [holding answer 17 July 1996]: Company A was offered regional selective assistance of £2 million in October 1989. Payment was made in four instalments as follows:

January 1991: £400,000
December 1991: £800,000
December 1992: £400,000
December 1993: £400,000

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No other assistance has been offered under the Department's principal regional, enterprise and technology schemes; nor has any loan to the company been covered under the small firms loan guarantee scheme.

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to his answer of 18 June, Official Report, columns 461-64, under what terms the financial assistance to Magrathea (Pendennis) Ltd. was granted; what is the company's current status; what assessment he has made of the productiveness of the grant; and if he will make a statement. [37647]

Mr. Lang [holding answer 17 July 1996]: Magrathea (Pendennis) Ltd. was offered regional selective assistance of £400,000 on 31 May 1994 to enable the company to establish a facility for the manufacture of marine components at Pendennis shipyard, Falmouth. The project had created 13 full-time jobs out of a total expected of 32 when the company suffered a major fire at the yard in October 1994 and subsequently went into receivership. A liquidator was appointed in February this year, and the Government office for the south-west has sought recovery of the total grant paid--£320,000. It is possible that Magrathea 2000 Ltd., which has bought the assets of Magrathea (Pendennis) Ltd. will continue the project.

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) if Mr. D was a member of his Department's South West industrial development board at the time of (a) the application and (b) the offer of any financial assistance since 1985 to company A, the identities having been supplied to him; [37642]

(2) if, during his tenure on his Department's South West industrial development board, Mr. D was obliged to absent himself from any meetings due to a potential conflict of interest arising from his directorship and shareholding in company A, the identities having been supplied to him; [37645]

(3) what role Mr. D has played in the granting of financial assistance by his Department to company A, the identities having been supplied to him. [37646]

Mr. Lang [holding answers 17 July 1996]: Mr. D was a member of the industrial development board when regional selective assistance was applied for, and offered to, company A in 1989. Because of the size of the application, the case was--in accordance with normal procedures--appraised centrally and not considered by the regional board; nor did Mr. D play any other role in the granting of the assistance. The Department is unaware of any instance where Mr. D's interests in company A necessitated his abstention from discussion by the board of applications by other companies.

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the President of the Board if Mr. B of his Department's South West industrial development board absented himself from board meetings discussing grant applications from company A due to a potential conflict of interest as a senior partner of the firm advising this company on its grant application; and if he will make a statement. [37643]

Mr. Lang [holding answer 17 July 1996]: As explained in my answer to a previous question, the board did not discuss the regional selective assistance application from company A.

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