§ Mr. McAllionTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he has any plans to change the current arrangements for encouraging the location of industry across the whole of the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. Douglas HoggWhere industry locates in the United Kingdom is a matter for commercial decision. Regional industrial policy provides incentives to encourage industry to invest in the assisted areas of the country. There are at present no plans to change this policy.
I am however considering the possibilities for realising the property assets of the English Industrial Estates Corporation. Jointly with the board of the corporation, I have commissioned a study to advise on this and also to report on the most effective mechanisms for promoting private sector investment in speculative industrial and commercial space in the assisted areas. This is consistent with our policy that English Estates' first priority is to encourage and facilitate greater private sector activity while focusing its own direct provision in areas where, for the time being, that cannot be achieved.