§ Mr. FrenchTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the future sales potential of the European fighter aircraft.
§ Mr. AitkenWe expect that the EFA project will result in an even more exportable aircraft than Tornado which has created tens of thousands of jobs in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. FrenchTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the capacity of the United Kingdom defence industry to construct the European fighter aircraft on its own.
§ Mr. AitkenWe are confident that our requirement for a new fighter aircraft can continue to be met through collaboration with our European allies. In the now unlikely event that this is not possible it would be technically feasible to complete the project on our own, although the cost implications would need careful consideration.