§ Mr. Gryllsasked the Secretary of State for Industry whether he will lay before the House, prior to consideration of any requests for future public funding of BL Ltd, any studies which may have been made of the feasibility of raising part of BL's requirements by way of the sale to the private sector of viable companies within BL.
§ Mr. Gryllsasked the Secretary of State for Industry whether Her Majesty's Government apply the same principles to the financing of expanded facilities at BL Ltd. as they do to paying for a new steelworks or shipyard, or for extra plant in other industries suffering from gross world overcapacity.
§ Mr. Michael MarshallBL's investment plans, which are currently being considered by the Government, are primarily concerned with new model development, rather than with additions to existing capacity. The decision to provide discretionary Government finance for investment in any industry is taken on the merits of individual cases. The nature and extent of existing capacity is one of the factors taken into account in arriving at such a decision.