§ Mr. Spearingasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will set out in the Official Report two tables showing in £ sterling the minimum and maximum amounts likely to be received by the United Kingdom in respect of EEC regulations 7943/80 and 7944/80, together with associated payments that will be the responsibility of Her Majesty's Government.
§ Mr. HurdIt is not possible to state at this stage with precision the breakdown of the rebate to the United Kingdom under the 30 May Council agreement 43W between the two means of payment, the amended 1975 financial mechanism and the new article 235 regulation. The breakdown will depend on the precise form in which these two instruments are adopted and also on the outturn of the Community's expenditure in 1980 and 1981. The present rough estimate of what we are likely to receive under the revised financial mechanism in respect of 1980 is £285 million gross. Given the unpredictability of the variables which effect the repayment under this mechanism, it is not yet possible to given an accurate estimate of what it might produce in respect of 1981. The article 235 regulation will cover the residual amount of the agreed rebate to the United Kingdom under the provisions of the 30 May agreement, including, as appropriate, the risk-sharing arrangement, should our actual unabated net contribution in fact exceed the Commission estimates for 1980 and 1981.
The payments to be met by Her Majesty's Government in respect of programmes under the article 235 regulation will depend on the percentage level of Community participation in the programmes concerned. This cannot be decided until the regulation has been adopted.