§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Prime Minister what arrangements exist between the Ministry of Defence and the Department of Trade and Industry for conducting trials for military and defence contracts for foreign sales.
§ The Prime MinisterIn the case of technical or operational trials of defence equipment, arrangements for trials are normally made between the customer country and the United Kingdom company involved. On occasion, the Minister of Defence can assist in such trials on a repayment basis. If the conduct of a trial requires equipment to be taken overseas, the DTI would consider any application for an export licence in the normal way.