§ 2. Mr. Foulkesasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action he is currently taking in relation to assistance to Gomba Holdings or any of its linked companies; and if he will make a statement.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (Mr. Michael Howard)I am not at present taking any action in relation to assistance.
§ Mr. FoulkesGiven the fiasco over the ownership of Wembley stadium and the strange circumstances 857 surrounding the move of Gomba-Stonefield from Cumnock to Rochester just before it was declared an enterprise zone, and, above all, given the very strange circumstances of the £21 million loan from Johnson Matthey Bankers to Gomba, should there not be a departmental investigation into Gomba's affairs? Is pressure from the chairman of the Conservative party stopping such an investigation?
§ Mr. HowardI note that the hon. Gentleman wrote to my predecessor, my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh, Central (Mr. Fletcher), about this matter as long ago as 11 March 1985. The hon. Gentleman was then asked to provide my hon. Friend with any information that he thought relevant to an inquiry, but declined to do so.
§ Mr. FoulkesThe Minister has had it.
§ Mr. HowardThe House will treat the latter part of the hon. Gentleman's question with the contempt that it deserves.
§ Mr. SkinnerDoes the Minister not realise that this matter needs to be treated a little more seriously? We are talking about a man called Shamji who, on behalf of Gomba companies, went to the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley (Mr. Foulkes) and promised to find work for hundreds of people in his area. The Government gave Shamji taxpayers' money to assist in that matter, but he then decided not to do any such thing, pocketed the money and went off to an enterprise zone. Incidentally, he was the first man in Britain to know that an enterprise zone was to be established at Strood, near Rochester. How did he discover that information? This is a scandal of such proportions that it is time the Department had a proper investigation to see what is happening to taxpayers' money.
§ Mr. HowardAny information that merits an inquiry will be taken into account, but not the sort of matter to which the hon. Gentleman has referred.
§ Mr. SkinnerDo not kid us all. Stand up Tebbit's friends!
§ Mr. SpeakerOrder. I will ask hon. Members to stand up.
§ Mr. Skinnerrose—
§ Mr. SpeakerOrder. Stand up Mr. Alan Clark.
§ Mr. SkinnerThey are not all Tebbit's friends. The hon. Member for Harrow, East (Mr. Dykes) is not one.