§ Mr. Onslowasked the Minister of Overseas Development what is the total forward commitment of United Kingdom overseas aid, on a year—by—year basis; and what amounts are involved in each of the bilateral or multilateral commitments which make up its total.
§ Mrs. HartForward commitments are based on pledges to Governments and multilateral organisations normally covering periods of between two and three years. These pledges do not generally specify year—by—year commitments. However, I estimate that over the next three years disbursements arising from existing firm commitments will be as follows:
£ million 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 Bilateral aid … 282 244 211 Multilateral aid … 213 220 225 Total … 495 464 436 It is not my practice to publish a detailed breakdown of forecast disbursements.