§ Mr. Geoffrey Finsbergasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state the amount of foreign loans outstanding on 1st March 1974, 1st March 1975 and 1st December 1976; and if he will state over what periods the loans are repayable.
§ Mr. Robert SheldonThe total amount of medium and long-term foreign currency borrowing by Her Majesty's Government and the United Kingdom public sector outstanding on those dates was as follows:
The figure for 1st December 1976 does not include the short-term drawing on the $5.3 billion standby credit, which were repaid on 9th December 1976, but does include the drawings on the IMF oil facility, and credit tranche.
1st March 1974 $7.8 billion 1st March 1976 $10.8 billion 1st December 1976 $18.9 billion These figures are sums of many individual loans each with differing repayment dates. The bulk of the amount outstanding falls to be repaid within the next 10 years, but some of Her Majesty's Government's long-term debt is not due to be repaid until after the year 2,000.