§ Mr. Kilroy-Silkasked the Secretary of State for Industry if he is yet in a position to announce the amount of public money given to the top 25 firms.
§ Mr. HefferMy right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Industry gave details of the amount of Government grants paid to 10 leading companies in the years 1970 to 1973 in answer to a Question from my hon. Friend the Member for Dun-
352W
GOVERNMENT GRANTS TO 20 LEADING COMPANIES: 1970–73 (in £'000) Company Group 1970 1971 1972 1973 Total Allied Breweries … … … 730 680 380 310 2,100 Bass Charrington … … … 550 560 430 2,550 4,090 Bowater(iii) … … … 2,300 1,770 300 480 4,840 BICC … … … … 3,050 1,920 400 1,180 6,550 BLMC … … … … 8,250 7,930 2,520 820 19,520 Courtaulds … … … … 9,540 10,460 5,590 3,350 28,940 Esso … … … … 6,390 5,980 9,420 9,500 31,290 Fords … … … … 3,530 8,510 2,860 1,810 16,710 Gallaher(iii) … … … 290 340 180 80 890 GEC … … … … 3,700 3,050 2,030 1,230 10,010 GKN … … … … 2,330 3,120 1,630 1,150 8,230 Grand Metropolitan … … 430 440 340 1,420 2,630 ICI … … … … … 27,770 26,090 7,840 13,040 74,730 Imperial Group … … … 1,880 1,650 870 770 5,180 Rank Hovis McDougall … … 1,250 880 290 130 2,550 Reed International … … 1,110 1,590 1,320 440 4,460 Sears Holdings … … … 370 320 250 140 1,080 Tate & Lyle … … … 900 680 2,720 1,040 5,350 Unigate … … … … 900 870 270 160 2,190 Unilever … … … … 4,010 3,480 1,230 640 9,360 Totals … … … 79,290 80,330 40,860 40,240 240,700 (i) The figures which relate to calendar years, are given correct to the nearest £10,000. They are individually rounded and may not therefore add up exactly to the totals shown. (ii) Kinds of grants considered: Investment grants Regional development grants Local Employment Acts: Building grants Plant and machinery grants Operational grants. Removal grants. Industry Act 1972, Sections 7 and 8: Interest relief grants. Removal grants. Grants under Section 8. Shipbuilding Industry Board grants. Construction grants for ships (Industry Act 1972 s. 11). Any grants under special schemes of assistance to shipyards. Grants under the Hotel Development Incentive Scheme. (iii) The figures for Bowater and Gallaher have been provided by the companies themselves The basis of the Department's calculations was explained to the companies, who had expressed their willingness to help in this matter, and the results are broadly consistent with the Department's figures. bartonshire, Central (Mr. McCartney) on 29th July 1974.—[Vol. 878, c. 14–17.] Equivalent information on a further 10 companies was released by my Department in a Press notice on 12th September 1974. The attached table provides information of the amounts paid to all 20 companies. The Secretary of State also announced in reply to a Question from my hon. Friend the Member for Bolsover (Mr. Skinner) on 31st July 1974 our intention to institute a system of regular quarterly publication of payments of regional development grants and offers of selective financial assistance to individual firms and establishments. The first of these quarterly lists will be published in the first half of this year.