HC Deb 24 July 1978 vol 954 cc1135-6
11. Mr. Ridley

asked the Secretary of State for Trade when he expects the credits extended to the USSR will have been completely taken up by that country.

Mr Dell

I cannot forecast when the balance of the £950 million credit made available will be taken up.

Mr. Ridley

Is it not the case that the extension of these credits has enabled the Russians to use their own resources for the building of further prisons and the import of further prison equipment—racks, bars, torture chambers and so on—in order to deal with the dissidents? Would not the interests of such heroes as Shcharansky and Ginzburg be better served if we discontinued this line of credit?

Mr. Dell

I doubt whether the hon. Gentleman's interpretation of the result of these credit arrangements is correct. If we do not provide the Soviet Union with credit on comparable terms with that provided by our major industrialised competitors, we shall get even less business from it than we do now.

Mr. MacFarquhar

When considering the question of credit to Communist countries, will my right hon. Friend look at China, which has recently announced that it is prepared to accept credits—a new departure for it? Will he, along the lines he has just been explaining, seek to increase our trade with China through that means?

Mr. Dell

I hope shortly to visit China, and no doubt that will be among the matters I shall be discussing with the Chinese. I hope that I do not have to come back early from my visit.

Mr. Blaker

Now that President Carter has shown that he is prepared to limit the export of advanced technology to the Soviet Union when it breaches its international obligations, should not the British Government be consulting the American Administration and other friendly Governments to see whether a concerted policy can be worked out on the matter?

Mr. Dell

We try to concert credit arrangements in respect of the Soviet Union and as we do more generally. I should be surprised to find from the figures of our trade with the Soviet Union, which I have not readily to hand, that American sales to the Soviet Union were not rather greater than our own.