§ Mr. Hastingsasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he is satisfied with the present working of the BS 9000 system of quality assurance and inspection for electronic equipment; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. David PriceYes. The BS 9000 Scheme for electronic components is being implemented by the British Standards Institution, with Government support, and is making good progress.
The administrative framework of the Scheme is complete and is working well. So far, 42 manufacturers, 13 distributors and eight test laboratories have been approved and about another 50 firms have applied for approval.
The Scheme is already being used wherever practicable for defence procurement and for procurement by several of the nationalised industries. Government specifications for electronic components are progressively being withdrawn as 14W specifications issued under the BS 9000 Scheme become available.