§ 45. Mr. Flanneryasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what is the latest information on the balance of trade between the United Kingdom and South Africa; and what were the comparable figures in 1979.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkUnited Kingdom trade with the Republic of South Africa for the nine months ending September 1986 showed a crude balance of trade deficit of £27.1 million. For the same period in 1979 there was a crude balance of trade surplus of £36.5 million.
§ 51. Mr. Simon Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make it his policy to publish an annual list of wage levels in South Africa relevant to the European code of conduct for companies with interests in South Africa.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkI am placing in the Library of the House the table published by the University of South Africa of supplemented living level (SLL) requirements for August 1985 and Februry 1986. These are the figures relevant to the latest completed reporting period for which companies are now submitting their returns under the code. It is, of course, stated clearly in the code that pay based on the SLL for an average sized family must be considered the absolute minimum and further explanatory guidance to British companies is contained in Cmnd. 9860.
§ 58. Mr. Beithasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he is satisfied with progress by companies reporting under the European Community code of conduct for companies with interests in South Africa in eliminating segregation at the work place; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Alan ClarkIn the 1984–85 reporting period, for the fourth successive year, companies continued to make encouraging progress in this respect. But desegregation at the workplace was not yet universal and there is accordingly still some scope for improvement by a small minority of the companies concerned.