§ Mr. BluntTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what scale of funding was offered to LG Electronics in seeking to attract the firm as an inward investor for their operations in Newport, South Wales; [105607]
(2) if he will list each grant given to (a) LG Electronics and (b) LG Semiconductors from public funds for their operations in Newport, South Wales, and the dates on which they were given. [105608]
§ Peter HainIn 1997, the right hon. Member for Richmond (Mr. Hague) co-ordinated offers to LG Electronics Wales Ltd. and LG Semicon Wales Ltd., public sector funding packages of £129.5 million and £117.5 million respectively. The combined package of £247 million comprised
Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) of £69.5 million;£10 million infrastructure work funded by the WDA;WDA property grants of £118.9 million;Site development support of £17 million;Land to the value of £14.2 million;Training support of up to £17.6 million;This related to anticipated investment of over £1.6 billion and the creation of 6,100 jobs.
With regard to payments made, companies dealing with the Welsh Assembly Government expect such details to be handled confidentially.
§ Mr. BluntTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much funding was (2) how much funding was(a) offered and (b) provided to LG Semiconductors following the offer aimed at attracting the firm as an inward investor for their operations in Newport, South Wales. [105609]
§ Peter HainIn 1997, the right hon. Member for Richmond (Mr. Hague) co-ordinated offers to LG Electronics Wales Ltd. and LG Semicon Wales Ltd., public sector funding packages of £129.5 million and £117.5 million respectively.
With regard to payments made, companies dealing with the Welsh Assembly Government expect such details to be handled confidentially.
§ Mr. BluntTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on grant aid given to LG for their operations in Newport, South Wales. [105610]
§ Peter HainFollowing the announcement of the Welsh Office's intentions by the then Secretary of State, the right hon. Member for Richmond (Mr. Hague), a package of support to LG Semicon Wales Ltd. and LG Electronics Wales Ltd. was approved by the European Commission in 1997. However, responsibility for administrating RSA in Wales has now passed to the Welsh Assembly Government. Since then, I understand that considerable private sector investment has gone into the Newport site in terms of infrastructure, buildings and equipment with assistance from the public sector. A significant number of jobs were created by LG Electronics Wales Ltd. and subsequently the joint478W venture LG Philips Displays, but the volatility of the semiconductor sector and issues in the Korean economy, meant that the semiconductor plant has not proceeded into production.