§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will invite the Crown Agents to publish their holdings in property sites in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. WoodI understand that the Crown Agents have no holdings in undeveloped land. They have a few small investments in property in various parts of the country. I am asking the Chairman of the Crown Agents to write to the hon. Member and tell him what they are.
§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the total value of funds placed with the Crown Agents for investments by the Governments of British dependent territories.
§ Mr. WoodVirtually all the investment portfolios managed by the Crown Agents are for their overseas principals. The total nominal value of them is about £875502W million. It would not be desirable to reveal the separate holdings of individual principals or groups of principals.
§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has now taken with regard to the tax liability of the Crown Agents; when his decisions on this were announced; and how they apply to the property at 196 and 198 Bedford Hill, S.W.12.
§ Mr. WoodI shall refer to decisions about the Crown Agents' tax liability when I make the further statement which I mentioned in answer to the hon. Gentleman's other Question. The property referred to is to be run as a hostel for Crown Agents' junior staff on a nonprofit-making basis and on lines similar to the London Hostels Association, which provides hostel accommodation for public servants. The question of taxation will not, therefore, arise. The hostel will pay rates.
§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Crown Agents have had any association with the National Bank of Kuwait, which advanced funds to Redsprings Limited for property speculation in London.
§ Mr. WoodI am advised that the Crown Agents have never had a financial interest in the National Bank of Kuwait. Their only association was occasional money market dealings and the Crown Agents have not placed money with this bank since early last year.
§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the present value of funds raised for investment in their own right by the Crown Agents for the application of which they are not answerable to overseas Governments.