§ Mr. Stonehouseasked the Secretary of State for Trade whether he will establish appropriate liaison with the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia to establish machinery for securing the accountability of United Kingdom-based multinational corporations, whether publicly or privately owned, for their operations in Australia; and, in particular, what contact has been established with regard to the future Australian operations of the British Leyland Motor Corporation, British Petroleum Limited and Rio Tinto Zinc Limited.
§ Mr. DeakinsAccountability for the operations of multinational enterprises in Australia is primarily a matter for the Australian Government. They have not proposed any special liaison on this matter, either generally or in relation to particular operations. However, the United Kingdom and Australia are both participating in international discussions aimed at developing guidelines for multinational enterprises.