§ Lord NEWALLMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government why this country was not represented at the International Trade Fair in Tripoli, Libya, this month; and what plans they have for participation in the Damascus International Fair beginning on 25th July.
§ Lord WINTERBOTTOMMy Lords, support for United Kingdom firms is given by the British Overseas Trade 1176 Board at those trade fairs overseas which attract sufficient interest from British firms and where the commercial opportunities of these events would justify expenditure from public funds. The 1975 Tripoli International Trade Fair did not satisfy these criteria. Her Majesty's Government will be participating in the 22nd Damascus International Fair with an exhibition entitled "The Challenge of Change "sponsored by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The Department of Trade will have an official commercial information stand at the Fair sponsored by the British Overseas Trade Board.
§ Lord NEWALLMy Lords, I thank the noble Lord for that reply. Would he not agree that while the Middle Eastern nations are keen to spend some of their newly-found money, and while they have enormous respect for buying British, it is difficult for them to do so if they cannot find the goods available? Would he not also agree that we should participate in every one of these fairs and that perhaps the situation could be looked at again?
§ Lord WINTERBOTTOMMy Lords, this is a situation where, if you had all the money in the world, you would then be able to do so. Unfortunately, the type of fairs mentioned in the noble Lord's Question— namely, the International Trade Fair at Tripoli and at Damascus— are of a general nature. They are really, in a sense, rather more of a shop window for the States concerned than for British industry. For this reason it is a matter of commercial judgment whether or not British public funds should be deployed to these general fairs, rather than to fairs for the sale of specific types of goods. Whereas, now that Syria has raised the embargo on British imports, it is highly desirable that we should exhibit in Damascus, until such time as Libya has decided to raise the embargo in the same way it is not commercially desirable to exhibit there. We would be ready to consider representations from Her Majesty's Ambassador in Libya to provide a trade information stand at the 1976 International Fair, provided that commercial judgment indicated that this was right.
§ Lord HARMAR-NICHOLLSMy Lords, is the noble Lord aware that while those who have to take the decisions 1177 do their best, there are too many occasions when it seems that real commonsense has not been followed through. Two years ago at the Toronto Trade Fair, to which millions of people went, not one stand of any size came from Britain. Most of our competitor countries were there, some of them with extensive stands. With an example like that in mind, and the one mentioned by my noble friend, perhaps the decision-making body ought to be looked at.
§ Lord WINTERBOTTOMMy Lords, there is a distinction between what British industry does and what the Government do. Funds are limited. British industry must judge, on its own commercial judgment, where it goes and the British Government must make a similar commercial judgment. The fairs mentioned by the noble Lord opposite are of a general and not a specific nature. One lasts for three weeks, and the other for four weeks. No British firm alone would spend that time and money on being represented there. In the case of Damascus, Her Majesty's Government are being represented in a general display. We are willing to consider a similar display in Tripoli in 1976.
§ Lord BELSTEADMy Lords, has the noble Lord any figures which would show whether our exports to the Middle East are increasing or decreasing as a proportion of our total exports? In the light of what the noble Lord has said, can we really afford not to attend any trade fairs, which presumably attract just those countries with whom we really must improve our export record?
§ Lord WINTERBOTTOMMy Lords, I can give the noble Lord some figures, and I am glad that he has asked the question. If we compare the situation in Damascus with that in Tripoli, the figures are extremely interesting. In 1973, United Kingdom imports from Syria— that concerns the Damascus Trade Fair which we are supporting—were £1.2 million, and our exports were £11.6 million. In 1974, after the embargo had been lifted, our imports from Syria were £ 20 million and our exports were also £20 million; in fact, there was a very substantial increase in trade in both directions. The Libyans still have an embargo of a sort, and trade between us is stag- 1178 nant. To give similar figures, in 1973 we exported some £61 million to Libya and imported £62 million—it was roughly static. In 1974, we exported to Libya £ 164 million and imported £393 million —a most unfavourable state of affairs— because of an embargo on British imports. For this reason, it is considered that whereas participation in trade fairs in Syria is desirable, in Libya at the moment it is not.
§ Lord BLYTONMy Lords, is my noble friend aware that the balance of trade figures announced in relation to Syria, et cetera, received more illumination than the £2,600 million a year loss from the Common Market?
§ Lord WINTERBOTTOMMy Lords, that is another question.