HC Deb 02 April 1990 vol 170 cc417-8W
100. Mr. Butler

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the current level of assistance given to islands in the Caribbean.

Mrs. Chalker

We provide assistance both bilaterally and through multilateral institutions. Bilateral aid in 1988 (the latest year for which figures are yet available) was:

Country programmes1 £'000s Commonwealth Development Corporation
Anguilla 1,599
Antigua 1,164
Barbados 505
British Virgin Islands 511 2,200
Cayman Islands 1,600
Cuba 2
Dominica 1,973
Dominican Republic 114
Grenada 1,225
Haiti 9
Jamaica 5,367
Montserrat 2,286
St. Kitts/Nevis 2,095
St. Lucia 808 2,040
St. Vincent 869
Trinidad 146
Turks and Caicos Islands 4,233
1 There is also a regional technical co-operation allocation of about £2 million a year from which all the developing Commonwealth countries in the Caribbean region benefit, but it is not possible to attribute specific amounts to individual recipients.

We also provide disaster relief when the need arises. In 1988, we committed £3 million to Jamaica, following Hurricane Gilbert, of which £348,000 was spent in 1988.

It is also possible to calculate the share of multilateral aid attributable to the United Kingdom. In 1987 (the latest year for which the calculation can be made) the total was £15.540 million, of which £9.9 million was through the European Community.