§ Mr. SpellarTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence which Minister signed the 1986 agreement with the Malaysian Government in respect of an arms contract; who signed on behalf of the Malaysian Government; what was the original estimated value of this contract; and what has been the delivered value of goods to date.
§ Mr. AitkenI am not aware of any such agreement signed in 1986. My right hon. and noble Friend the former Prime Minister and the Malaysian Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir signed a memorandum of understanding in September 1988 under which the Malaysian Government agreed to purchase various military equipments from the United Kingdom. The terms of the MOU cannot be released from reasons of commercial confidentiality, but since the signature of the MOU the Malaysian Government and British industry have signed a number of contracts whose total value exceed £16 billion.