§ Mr. ThomasonTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what progress is being made on regional challenge; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. EggarFurther to my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade's announcement of 21 July,Official Report, column 538, I shall be launching a round of consultation with a range of bodies in each of the eligible areas. A copy of the draft guidelines for regional challenge has been placed in the Library of the House. It is my intention that this special competition should encourage greater partnership between the public, private and voluntary sectors and take full advantage of the talents and expertise of the local community in addressing the problems of the eligible areas. I look forward to receiving a wide range of views as a part of this consultation process.
As a result of currency movements and adjustments to the financial tables of the single programming documents during their negotiatin with the European Commission, the £160 million announce by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade on 21 July now represents 12 per cent. of the money available from the European regional development fund in each eligible area, plus 10 per cent. of that sum from the European social fund.