§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will estimate the public expenditure on the ECGD's business for(a) 1998–99, (b) 1999–2000, 291W (c) 2000–01 and (d) 2001–02, (i) in aggregate, (ii) with highly indebted land mine developing countries and (iii) related to defence. [105418]
§ Mr. CabornAggregate public expenditure on ECGD operations is estimated as:
Year £ million 1998–99 1318.7 1999–2000 1,025.4 2000–01 947 2001–02 947 1 Outturn These public expenditure estimates relate to a number of financial facilities which ECGD provides in support of its main trading operations. The vast majority of the amounts relate to the refinancing with public funds of export finance loans and will be repaid as the loans mature. The balance is accounted for by the cost of interest rate support to banks under ECGD's Fixed Rate Export Finance (FREF) Scheme.
Costs arising from these public expenditure facilities are not estimated or recorded on a basis which allows them to be broken down by country or industrial sector. Fuller details of these facilities can however be found in ECGD's Annual Report and Trading Accounts for 1998–99 of which there is a copy in the Library of the House.
ECGD's main trading operations are not scored against public expenditure since ECGD looks to cover the cost of claims arising from this business through premium and recoveries of claims paid.
§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the(a) countries and (b) bodies which have bought arms from the United Kingdom in the last five years under the export credits guarantee scheme and defaulted on their payments, indicating the amounts involved in each case. [105337]
§ Mr. CabornThe only defence business covered by ECGD in the last five years where the country has subsequently defaulted was with Indonesia. The value of defence business in the last five years to Indonesia is £529 million and the current value of the defaults on this business is £55.9 million.
§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the estimate prepared for the Defence Committee concerning annual ECGD net costs attributable to arms exports. [105338]
§ Mr. CabornI refer the hon. Member to the response by my hon. Friend the Minister for Defence Procurement on behalf of the Government to the House of Commons Defence Commitment's Report of 31 March 1999. This welcomed the Committee's invitation to the Ministry of Defence to undertake further work on the costs and benefits to the UK economy of defence exports. This analysis, which will include ECGD costs, is under way and the results will be published in due course.
§ Ann ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what support the Export Credits Guarantees Department has given for Land Rover to establish a licensed production agreement with Otakar in Turkey; and if ECGD support contained(a) export control and (b) human rights criteria. [104159]
292W
§ Mr. CabornIn March 1998 ECGD finally concluded financing arrangements through the Supplier Credit Facility in relation to Land Rover's supply to Otakar in Turkey. The financing arrangements, inter alia, include a specific condition that Land Rover has to provide a warranty that all relevant government approvals including export licences where appropriate have been obtained and remain valid.
Production equipment and technology, components and sub-assemblies whose export from the UK is subject to control are set out in a range of headings in the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994, as amended, and the Dual-Use and Related Goods (Export Control) Regulations 1996, as amended and Council decision 94/942/CFSP, as amended (which has effect through Council Regulation (EC) 3381/94). While a valid export licence is needed for the export of controlled goods or technology, exporters are not required to obtain one before they conclude an agreement for production overseas.
§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of the sum paid out in claims authorised by the Export Credits Guarantee Department on exports to Nigeria between 1996–97 and 1998–99 was for defence-related exports. [105930]
§ Mr. Caborn[holding answer 24 January 2000]: None of the claims authorised between 1996–97 and 1998–99 were for defence-related exports.
§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what amount of money underwritten by the Export Credits Guarantee Department in each of the past 10 years for defence-related equipment has been claimed by manufacturers but not recovered from(a) Indonesia, (b) Jordan, (c) Kenya, (d) Egypt and (e) Algeria. [105935]
§ Mr. Caborn[holding answer 24 January 2000]: From information readily available, the balances of claims outstanding for defence-related exports are as follows:
£ million Indonesia 131 Jordan 253 Kenya 16 Egypt 46 Algeria 98