Mr. HaroldWalker asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state the dates, amounts, recipients and purposes of grants and loans of more than £1 million made during the last five years to companies under private control.
190WDepartments outside Greater London to be 35,500.
Under current plans over another 18,000 jobs will be moved from the area.
§ Mr. MacDermotThe following grants and loans have been made by Government Departments to private companies in the United Kingdom during the last five years:
- (a) Colvilles Limited. Under an agreement dated 29th September, 1959, £50 million has been loaned to Colvilles for a new strip mill at Ravenscraig.
191 - (b) David MacBrayne Limited. Annual grants are made to David MacBrayne Limited for shipping services in the Highlands and Islands. Over the last five years the grants have totalled £1.5 million.
- (c) Wiggins Teape and Company Limited. Assistance given under the Fort William Pulp and Paper Mills Act, 1963, up to 30th November, 1964. towards the construction and equipment of these mills, has amounted to £5.86 million (grants, £0.15 million; loans, £5.72 million).
- (d) Cotton Industry. Grants have been made under the Cotton Industry Act, 1959, towards paying compensation for the elimination of excess capacity under reorganisation schemes administered by the Cotton Board to which the industry are also contributing necessary funds; and for re-equipment. The payments from public funds from 1959–60. Awards to Fine Spinners and Doublers Limited have totalled £1.11 million. Similar payments to the Lancashire Cotton Corporation Limited have totalled £1.09 million.
- (e) Local Employment Acts. The total amount of grants and loans made under the Local Employment Acts 1960 and 1963 up to 30th November 1964, to promote employment in localities where high and persistent unemployment exists or is threatened (development districts), was £65.3 million (grants, £12.8 million; loans, £52.5 million). It is not the practice to divulge details of assistance given to individual firms under these Acts.
- (f) Shipbuilding Loans Scheme. During 1964 loans totalling £9.2 million have been made under the Shipbuilding Credit Act, 1964, to companies under private control for the financing of new shipbuilding orders. It is not the practice to divulge the loans made to individual firms.
During the five years December, 1959, to November, 1964, payments totalling £45.2 million have also been made to companies under private control for the purpose of assisting the development and proving of transport aircraft. Where projects receive support the Government will participate in the proceeds from sales.
Payments of more than £1 million have been made as follows:
Manufacturer Project Payment£m. British Aircraft VC 10 6.4 Corporation Super VC 10 3.4 BACl–11 8.7 Supersonic Transport (airframe) 5.4 Hawker Siddeley Aviation Ltd. Trident 5.0 British Siddeley Engines Ltd. Supersonic Transport (Olympus engine) 2.1 Rolls Royce Ltd. Spey engines 5.4 West land Aircraft Ltd. Rotodyne 2.4 Excluded from the above list is expenditure incurred by Defence Departments in giving capital assistance to Gove- 192W ernment contractors. Ownership of the capital assets financed in this way vests in the Departments concerned and a rental is charged to the contractor.