§ Lord Diamondasked Her Majesty's Government:
What are the amounts of public expenditure on overseas aid at constant prices for 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1982–83 and 1983–84, taking 1979–80 as 100.
§ Lord BelsteadThe value of public expenditure on overseas aid in cost terms for the five years 1979–80 to 1983–84, taking 1979–80 at the base year, is as follows:
£ million Cost terms Net Aid Gross Aid 1979–80 788 834 1980–81 751 819 1981–82 734 777 1982–83 682 731 1983–84 701 749 The figure for 1981–82 is based on a cash outturn estimate which will be subject to minor technical adjustment, that for 1982–83 is based on the latest available estimate of cash provision for this financial year, and that for 1983–84 is based on the public expenditure plans for that year given by my center 1171WA honourable friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his Autumn Statement of 8th November. The figure for1983–84 will be subject to further adjustment, for example in respect of the statement made in another place on 8th December about the Falkland Islands.
Expected repayment of capital on past aid loans makes up the difference between the net and the gross aid programme.
There is no single way of expressing cash provisions in constant prices. The above figures are calculated by making adjustments to the cash figures to cover general United Kingdom inflation as measured by the GDP deflator, and using the forecast increase in this deflator of 7½ per cent. in 1982–83 and 5 per cent. in 1983–84, as shown in the Autumn Statement.
Lord Oramasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether for each of the last 10 completed financial years they will state the amount of overseas aid expenditure in cash terms, in real cost terms and as a percentage of the gross national product.
§ Lord BelsteadThe figures in respect of the net aid programme are set out below. The figures reported to and published by the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and usually used to calculate official development assistance (o.d.a.) as a share of GNP differ from those derived below. The differences arise mainly from the use in DAC o.d.a. figures of the value of promissory notes deposited with certain international financial institutions (i.e., IDA and the regional development banks) whereas net aid figures show the amounts drawn against those notes. There are also other, less significant, differences between the two sets of figures.
Cash Constant 1981–82 prices Share of GNP £m £m % 1972–73 252 882 0.38 1973–74 266 869 0.35 1974–75 325 885 0.36 1975–76 428 932 0.38 1976–77 496 955 0.38 1977–78 600 1,016 0.40 1978–79 723 1,105 0.42 1979–80 788 1,030 0.39 1980–81 888 983 0.38 1981–82 960 960 0.38