§ Mr. CannTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the basic elements of specification, with special reference to length, breadth, draught, gross tonnage and propulsion, of the proposed replacement for the royal yacht Britannia. [14421]
§ Mr. ArbuthnotThe outline specification for the new yacht is currently being drawn up. We expect this process to take about a year, following which an invitation to tender, specifying the detailed requirement, will be issued.
§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many miles members of the royal family have travelled(a) in the royal yacht Britannia and (b) by other modes of transport supported by public funds in each of the past five years. [14638]
§ Mr. Soames[holding answer 6 February 1997]: The information for royal travel is not available in the form requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the benefits to the United Kingdom of the attendance of the royal yacht Britannia at Cowes; how many days the yacht has attended Cowes in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement. [14509]
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§ Mr. Soames[holding answer 10 February 1997]: In the last 10 years Britannia has spent the following number of days at Cowes:
Year Number of days 1987 0 1988 6 1989 7 1990 6 1991 7 1992 8 1993 7 1994 9 1995 8 1996 8 Britannia's attendance at Cowes has continued the traditional royal patronage of this event, and contributed to the growth of this prestigious international regatta. This in turn benefits the local community around Cowes, in addition to the yachting industry.
Mr. Alan WilliamsTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the places where the royal yacht has been used to promote British exports and to attract inward investment since 1989, indicating the number of days and dates at each place. [14642]
§ Mr. Soames[holding answer 6 February 1997]: The information requested is as follows:
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Date City Country Organisation involved/event 1989 9 March London UK British Invisible Exports Council (BIEC) 5 October Port Klang Malaysia BIEC 1990 30 October Rio de Janeiro Brazil BIEC 11 December London UK General Council of British Shipping 12 December London UK General Council of British Shipping 1991 26–27 April Belem Brazil Environmental Seminar hosted by HRH The Prince of Wales 16 May Miami USA The Motor Industry in Britain 21 May Tampa USA Anglo-American Aerospace Summit (Non-military) 13 June Lisbon Portugal Scottish Financial Enterprise/Locate in Scotland 25 September London UK BIEC 1992 2 June Civitavecchia Italy BIEC 26 June Leith UK Scottish Financial Enterpise/Locate in Scotland 21 October Stockholm Sweden BIEC 1993 25–26 March Palm Beach USA, Martinique/St. Lucia Locate in Scotland/Scottish Office CARITAG— British Overseas Trade Board 12 May London UK London Forum
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Date City Country Organisation involved/event 8 October Istanbul Turkey BIEC 12 October Piraeus Greece Anglo Hellenic Chamber of Commerce 10 November Abu Dhabi UAE Energy Seminar 16 November Bombay India Sea Day—Indo British Partnership Initiative 17 November Bombay India Sea Day—Indo British Partnership Initiative 17 November Bombay India Seminar 18 November Bombay India Sea Day—Indo British Partnership Initiative 18 November Bombay India Seminar; 5 commerical (DTI/FCO) receptions; contract signing ceremonies 1994 10–16 February New York USA British Invisibles Sea Day Scotch Whisky Museum of Scotland Reception 9 May Southampton UK DOT Agency Launch 23 May Pembroke Dock UK Commercial Reception 24 May Swansea UK Commercial Reception 21 June Helsinki Finland British Invisibles Seminar British Invisibles Reception 22 June Helsinki Finland Trade Reception 28 June London UK London Dockland Development Corporation 29 June London UK Lord Mayor Reception KGFS Reception 18 October St. Petersburg Russia British Invisibles Seminar British Invisibles Reception 1995 7 March Abidjan Ivory Coast DTI 14 March Walvis Bay Namibia FCO 28 March Cape Town South Africa DTI/British Invisibles/South African British Trade Association 29 March Cape Town South Africa DTI/Institute of Education 30 March Cape Town South Africa DTI Seminar 31 March Cape Town South Africa Africa 95 20 April Tema Ghana Overseas Development Agency 21 April Tema Ghana DTI 25 April Dakar Senegal DTI 27 June Dundee UK Locate in Scotland 17 August London UK British Invisibles 4 October Piraeus Greece British Invisibles 7 October Piraeus Greece British Hellenic Chamber of Commerce 8 October Piraeus Greece Britain in Greece Festival 25 October Lisbon Portugal DTI and FCO 1996 19 March Savannah USA Northern Ireland Office 19 March Savannah USA British Olympic Committee 1 April Boston USA BBC, Public Radio International and Public Broadcasting WGBH 1 April Boston USA British Olympic Association 2 April Boston USA Welsh Tourist Board/British Tourist Authority 3 April Boston USA British American Business Council
Date City Country Organisation involved/event 3 April Boston USA Welsh Development Agency 15 April Toronto Canada British Invisibles 16 April Toronto Canada Lieutenant Governor of Ontario Commercial Reception 17 April Toronto Canada British Canadian Chamber of Trade and Commerce 18 April Toronto Canada Locate in Scotland 11 July Amsterdam The Netherlands British Invisibles 12 July Amsterdam The Netherlands Lunchtime Reception hosted by Her Majesty's Ambassador for winners of the Queen's Awards for Exports. Britannia's programme for 1997 includes commercial events between mid-January and August in Malta, Dubai, Doha, Karachi, Bombay, Madras, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangkok, Manila, Nagoya, Kobe, Korea and Gibraltar.
§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many events on the royal yacht Britannia have been sponsored by outside bodies in each of the last five years; if he will list the sponsoring bodies, categorised as in(a) commercial, (b) charitable and (c) other organisations; and if he will make a statement. [14510]
§ Mr. Soames[holding answer 6 February 1997]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave today to the right hon. Member for Swansea, West (Mr. Williams) for the list of sponsored events held aboard Britannia since 1989. Due to the wide variety of organisations represented during individual engagements, it is not possible to categorise the list by groupings.