HC Deb 13 June 1995 vol 261 c502W
Miss Lestor

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what value in export benefit to British manufacturers arises from each pound contributed in multilateral aid in each year since 1979. [26868]

Mr. Baldry

Data on sources of procurement by the multilateral agencies are subject to various qualifications. The quality and coverage varies from agency to agency; there are considerable fluctuations from year to year in procurement from single countries and the data made available to donors are often late. 1982 is the earliest year for which the comprehensive data are available.

There is no direct link between donor contributions and procurement, but we estimate that over the 10 years between 1982 and 1991 the agencies procured about £1.20 of UK goods and services for every £1 contributed by the UK to the agencies. Estimates for individual years are unreliable.

We are currently compiling estimates from the data provided for 1992 and 1993 and will provide data shortly.