§ Mr. Leeasked the Secretary of State for Industry if he will make a statement on the proposal by Armstrong Equipment Ltd. to acquire Triumph Motorcycles (Meriden) Ltd.
§ Mr. David MitchellArmstrong Equipment Ltd. proposed to acquire Triumph Motorcycles (Meriden) Ltd. and provide continued employment for 150 out of the present labour force of 462, on condition that the Government would release Meriden from certain obligations. The proposal—on which Armstrong Equipment has felt unable to negotiate—would involve some £11.25 million on top of £1.25 million of grants already provided to Meriden with taxpayers' money by the previous Government. Not only would the Department of Industry have had to cancel its loans and interest due to it, but the Export Credits Guarantee Department would have had to cancel recourse for all outstanding sums under its guarantee, including giving up recoveries from future sales of the 2,000 motor cycles held in stock in the United States of America and Australia and returning more than $2 million from the proceeds of export sales already made. The effective cost to the taxpayer and ECGD of agreeing these conditions was thus large.
The Government have therefore decided that they would not be justified in agreeing to Armstrong Equipment's conditions.