§ Mr. Squireasked the Secretary of State for Industry to what extent those State enterprises for which his Department is responsible may carry over a percentage of capital expenditure from one year to the next in the event of an under or over spend.
§ Mr. ButcherExternal financing limits for the nationalised industries are not allocated between capital and current expenditure. On 4 August 1980 my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a measure of end of year flexibility which came into effect in 1981–82. This allows the nationalised industries to exceed the current year's external financing limit by up to 1 per cent. of forecast turnover and fixed investment expenditure on condition that an equal deduction is made from the following year's external financial limit. There is no comparable provision in the case of an underspend.
In the case of BL and Rolls-Royce, it is for the company to decide the allocation of capital expenditure between one year and the next, within the context of its approved corporate plan.