§ 58. Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of gross national product was spent by Her Majesty's Government on official development assistance in the financial year 1982–83.
§ Mr. RaisonThe figures are available for calendar years only. The preliminary estimate is that 0.38 per cent. of gross national product was spent as net official development assistance in 1982.
The decline from the 1981 figure of 0–44 per cent. reflects a decrease in net disbursements of bilateral official development assistance. A major factor in this was the uneven pattern of disbursements to India. In calendar year 1982 gross aid to India was only £54 million compared to £169 million in 1981. Disbursements of aid to India for the whole of the financial year 1982–83 are however expected to be on target at about .105 million (1981–82 .102 million).