§ 25. Mr. Wyn Robertsasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the Government's total foreign currency borrowing at 1st January 1977; and what steps he is taking to reduce it.
§ Mr. Robert SheldonTotal foreign currency borrowing by Her Majesty's Government and the public sector outstanding at the beginning of the year was $19 billion. The balance of payments prospects have strengthened and our external financial position is much improved. So dependence on external borrowing should diminish substantially from now on, and we shall soon be in a position of repaying foreign currency loans.