Arms Sales (Hansard, 22 June 1966)

§ 5. Mr. Marten
asked the Secretary of State for Defence what was the total value of arms sales overseas for the last convenient 12 months before the appointment of the new head of defence sales.

§ Mr. Healey
About £120 million during 1965.

§ Mr. Marten
In the furtherance of the job of exporting arms, will an arms manufacturer get any particular Government assistance when doing so over and above what a private exporter would get? Will the Prime Minister's statement about the break-up of the Ministry of Aviation mean that Mr. Brown, the arms salesman, will be put under the Minister of Technology?

§ Mr. Healey
On the second question, no, Sir; on the first question, yes, Sir. The Government are helping British manufacturers to sell their arms abroad through the appointment of the new head of defence sales.

§ Mr. Emrys Hughes
Is my right hon. Friend aware of the Prime Minister's statement yesterday that all war is barbarism and that, when the arms salesman heard this, he thought that the Prime Minister was letting him down and threatened to resign?

§ Mr. Healey
To the first question, yes, Sir; to the second, no, Sir.