§ Mr. Kenneth Clarkeasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth whether it is his policy that any grants made in future to the poorest developing countries will be fully tied to the procurement of British goods and services.
§ Mr. PrenticeI have been asked to reply.
Yes, but in exceptional cases I am prepared to consider untying a limited part of our grant aid to these countries for the purpose of meeting the local costs of British aid-financed projects where this is appropriate. I will also be prepared to consider, as in the past, waiving procurement restrictions to allow the purchase of goods from third countries when exceptional circumstances justify this.