§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress he has made in encouraging collaboration between businesses. [77788]
§ Mr. ByersThe increasing importance of collaboration for successful businesses was a major theme in the Competitiveness White Paper. Many of the commitments in the paper are designed to help UK businesses to learn from others, including their competitors. These include the promotion of benchmarking, the spread of best practice and other schemes to encourage UK businesses to collaborate sectorally, regionally and locally.
Details of the relevant commitments are set out in the White Paper Implementation Plan, which sets out the progress made on each commitment. For example, the DTI has already issued draft guidance to Regional Development Agencies for their review of the coherence and quality of business support in their areas and has agreed support for 22 Centres of Expertise in the Business 363W Link partnership network in 1998–99, and is committed to the development of further Centres over the next three years.
Both the White Paper and the Implementation Plan are available in the Library of the House and on the DTI web site at www.dti.gov.uk/comp.