§ 1. Mr. CouchmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has any plans to pay a ministerial visit to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association meeting to Australia.
§ The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mrs. Lynda Chalker)My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has asked me to lead the United Kingdom branch delegation to the conference.
§ Mr. CouchmanWhen my right hon. Friend meets members of the Australian Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, will she thank them for their warm hospitality to Members of this House when they visited them in Australia? During the Australian bicentennial, will she remind them of the close ties that we cherish between our two countries, and in that spirit of close affinity will she offer to our Australian friends a view of how the United Kingdom's economy has improved since 1979 so that our Australian friends see how they might lift their economy during the coming decade?
§ Mrs. ChalkerIndeed, we thank the Australian Commonwealth Parliamentary Association for its warm hospitality to all members of the CPA groups who are to visit Australia this September. As my hon. Friend said, we 1044 cherish the very close ties that have come very much more into our minds in this bicentennial year, particularly the sail training ship, which has brought so much pleasure to Australians, which was a gift from this Government.
It is notable that after Treasurer Keating took sound corrective action inflation fell from 9.3 per cent. in February 1987 to about 7.1 per cent. in December 1987. He has also delivered an economic statement that suggests that he intends to free the dynamic forces within the economy. He has also cut corporation tax from 49 to 39 per cent., following the economic example set by this country. We hope that it will bring as much success to Australia as it has brought to this country.