§ Mr. Rankinasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps are being taken by his Department to assist in producing a new generation of airliner to deal with short-haul, inter-city and inter-urban air transport, offering quiet short take-off and landing capability with a speed of 600 miles per hour and seating capacity for 150 passengers.
§ Mr. CorfieldThe Government and industry are carrying out wide-ranging studies to assess the prospects, embracing aircraft definition, the market and environmental questions ; manufacturers, however, have not yet felt able to put forward firm proposals for the development of a new project.