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TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Correspondence
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he will reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for South-West Surrey of 28 February concerning Mr. M. Grove. [127347]
Mr. Byers: As the right hon. Lady has been informed, the issue she has raised is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and I have therefore passed the correspondence to him.
Mrs. Roe: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when the hon. Member for Broxbourne will receive a reply to her letters of (a) 3 April, (b) 5 May, (c) 1 June and (d) 29 June relating to her constituent Mr. S. Kitchiner. [128916]
Mr. Alan Johnson [holding answer 4 July 2000]: I replied to the hon. Member on 4 July 2000.
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Start-up Assistance
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many businesses have benefited from start-up assistance from Government schemes; what types of business have benefited; and what initiatives have been taken in the years 1997 to 2000 (a) nationally, (b) in Teesside and (c) in the constituency of Middlesbrough, South and Cleveland, East; and if he will make a statement. [128512]
Ms Hewitt: Numbers of businesses which have used Business Link services, which includes advice to people wanting to start their own business, since 1997 is as follows:
| Year | Number |
|---|---|
| 1997-98 | 446,040 |
| 1998-99 | 393,580 |
| 1999-2000 | 419,294 |
Note:
Businesses using BL more than once in a quarter count only once. Business using BL more than once in different quarters are counted in each quarter.
Nationally, the following major initiatives have been taken since 1997: the Government made their commitment in the Competitiveness White Paper published in December 1998 to provide a new high-quality advice service to 10,000 businesses in England per annum by the end of 2001, focusing on those with high growth potential; the Small Business Service, launched in April this year, will provide information, advice and access to experts on all aspects of running a business. The SBS is ensuring that the Business Link Network tailors its services to the different needs of the whole range of smaller businesses, including the self-employed and those considering starting-up in business; my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced on 23 June this year a new package of help worth up to £500, and £2000 in areas of high unemployment, for anyone in Britain wanting to start up in business; the DTI is spending some £3 million on the Business Volunteer Mentoring Scheme, which is currently being piloted. The scheme is based on a core of volunteers--both retired and otherwise--drawn from all sections of the business community and who will provide mentoring for pre-start-ups, start-ups and those businesses yet to reach the stage of stability.
In Teesside, Start Right in Business, a Tees Valley TEC-led partnership, aims to provide support and funding to help create and maintain 900 new businesses during 1999-2001. The partnership brings together unemployed people, local authorities, Business Link Tees Valley, local enterprise agencies, banks and private sector sponsors to give training, advice and support to people wanting to set up their own business.
No separate information is available for the constituency of Middlesbrough, South and Cleveland, East.
Former Officials (Employment)
Mr. Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many officials, on ceasing employment in his Department, have sought permission to take up
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employment, since May 1997, with (a) companies and (b) partnerships under the business appointment rules; and to what companies and partnerships they went. [128453]
Dr. Howells: Between May 1997 and June 2000, a total of 195 applications have been made to take up external appointments. As applicants are not required to detail the status of the organisation they are proposing to join, it is not possible to break down applications by type of organisation.
Only senior Crown servants are required to notify that they have taken up appointment after their applications are approved. The following information details relevant appointments that have been taken up:
| Appointment | Approved | Date post taken |
|---|---|---|
| Oxford Inst. of Energy Research | July 1997 | August 1997 |
| Cambridge Energy Research | April 1997 | May 1997 |
| British Airways | May 1997 | May 1997 |
| Eagle Star | October 1997 | October 1997 |
| BAT Industries | June 1998 | September 1998 |
| Covington & Burling | June 1998 | November 1998 |
| Industrial Bank of Japan | September 1998 | November 1998 |
| DNA Research Instruments | May 1999 | May 1999 |
| Wragge & Co. | January 2000 | January 2000 |
| Wastepack UK Ltd. | February 2000 | February 2000 |
| Expocentric.com | May 2000 | May 2000 |
| Tolman-Cunard | May 2000 | May 2000 |
Further information on appointments approved prior to May 1999 is published in the First and Second Reports of The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments that are available in the Library of the House. Details of appointments approved since May 1999 will be covered in the Third Report of the Advisory Committee.
Malaysia
Mr. Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the export licences granted for the export of (a) CS gas, (b) CS irritant cartridges and (c) CS canisters to Malaysia (1) in each year since 1992 broken down by category code; [128552]
- (2) since 1992 where end use destination was for other countries. [128553]
Dr. Howells: The entry in the legislation under which the export of goods is controlled is known as their rating. The export of CS gas, CS irritant cartridges and CS canisters are controlled under entries in Part III of Schedule I of the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994 as amended (commonly known as the Military List): CS and other irritants under entry ML7; cartridges (as ammunition) containing CS irritants under entries ML3 or PL5021 and canisters containing CS irritants under ML4 or PL5030. However, a variety of other devices may contain tear gas and these are also controlled under the latter four entries above as well as several other entries: for instance, portable anti-riot devices for administering an incapacitating substance under PL5001; grenades under ML4 or PL5030; ammunition (including artillery and mortar) under ML3 or PL5021; gas projectors or generators under ML2 or PL5018; gas projecting equipment for controlled ground vehicles, combatant vessels or aircraft, that are specially designed or modified for military use under entries ML6, ML9, or ML10 respectively; and portable devices designed for self-protection by the administration of an incapacitating
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substance under entry 1A905 of the Dual-Use and Related Goods (Export Control) Regulation 1996, as amended. It should be noted that other goods may also be controlled under each of these entries.
The Export Control Organisation's computer databases have been interrogated. Between 1 January 1992 and 1 May 1997, 548 Standard Individual Export Licences (SIELs) were issued covering the export to consignees or end users in Malaysia of goods with the relevant ratings: in the same period six SIELs were issued covering such exports to consignees in Malaysia with end users in any other destination.
Individual licences may cover a range of goods with various ratings and OIELs may cover a range of countries. Where this is so, the licence is included in the table in the total for all the relevant ratings.
| Rating | Malaysia | Australia | Indonesia | Kuwait | Singapore |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ML2 | 68 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| ML3 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ML4 | 128 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| ML6 | 83 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ML7 | 47 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ML9 | 45 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ML10 | 157 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| PL5001 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PL5018 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PL5021 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
An Open Individual Export Licence (OIEL) is specific to an individual exporter and covers multiple shipments of specified goods to specified destinations and/or, in some cases, specified consignees; these licences do not authorise exports by the licensee other than to those destinations specified on the licence and do not prohibit transfer between those permitted destinations. The Export Control Organisation's computer databases have been interrogated. Between 1 January 1994 and 1 May 1997, 57 OIELs were issued covering the export of goods with the relevant ratings to Malaysia and any other destination.
| Rating | Number of OIELs issued covering goods with this rating |
|---|---|
| ML2 | 4 |
| ML3 | 3 |
| ML4 | 13 |
| ML6 | 5 |
| ML7 | 1 |
| ML9 | 14 |
| ML10 | 19 |
| PL5001 | 2 |
| PL5018 | 1 |
Details of SIELs and OIELs issued between 2 May and 31 December 1997 were set out in the Government's Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls, published by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office: one of the SIELs issued in this period covered the export of such goods to Malaysia with an end user in the United Arab Emirates.
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Details of SIELs and OIELs issued between 1 January and 31 December 1998 were set out in the Government's second Annual Report on Strategic Export Controls; copies of both reports are available from the Library of the House: five SIELs issued in this period covered the export of such goods to Malaysia with an end user in any other destination.
| ML4 | ML10 | |
|---|---|---|
| Brunei | 0 | 1 |
| Chile | 1 | 0 |
| Hong Kong SAR | 1 | 0 |
| Philippines | 0 | 1 |
| Singapore | 1 | 0 |
Between 1 January 1999 and 23 June 2000, 69 SIELs were issued covering the export of such goods to consignees and end users in Malaysia. In the same period, one SIEL was issued covering such exports to a consignee in Malaysia with an end user in Singapore. In the same period, 32 OIELs were issued covering the export of such goods to Malaysia and any other destination.
| Rating | Malaysia | Singapore |
|---|---|---|
| ML2 | 12 | 0 |
| ML3 | 10 | 0 |
| ML4 | 11 | 1 |
| ML6 | 4 | 0 |
| ML7 | 4 | 0 |
| ML9 | 8 | 0 |
| ML10 | 24 | 1 |
| PL5001 | 1 | 0 |
| Rating | Number of OIELs issued covering goods with this rating |
|---|---|
| ML2 | 1 |
| ML4 | 1 |
| ML6 | 5 |
| ML9 | 11 |
| ML10 | 15 |
| PL5018 | 1 |
It would entail disproportionate cost to establish which, if any of these licences covered the export of the particular types of equipment concerned, and make any subsequent inquiries necessary under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
All of the information set out should be considered in light of the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Kingswood (Mr. Berry) on 27 July 1999, Official Report, columns 307-08W.
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Finally, Malaysia is a permitted destination on certain Open General Export Licences covering the export of goods on the Military List and other goods; copies of all Open General Export Licences are routinely placed in the Library of the House.
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