§ Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he is satisfied that the disbursements under the aid trade provision do not subsidise inefficiency by British firms.
§ Mr. RaisonYes. The aid trade provision is usually made available for development projects in which British firms are competing for contracts against foreign firms 479W whose bids are backed by comparable concessional financial terms. Where the discipline of competitive bidding is absent the bid of the British firm is scrutinised to ensure value for money.
§ Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he is satisfied that the aid trade provision is consistent with the Government's industrial policy of improving the competitiveness of British firms abroad.
§ Mr. RaisonYes. The Government remain in favour of international measures to reduce the extent of competition among exporting countries through the use of subsidised financial terms. It regards the aid trade provision in this context as principally a device to enable British firms to compete on terms comparable to their counterparts in other industrialised countries.