§ Mr. Peter Bruinvelsasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether his officials have had any recent discussions with Lear Fan Ltd. about future funding; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. BoysonDiscussions have been taking place with the private sector investors who entered into a financial commitment to Lear Fan Ltd. in 1982 about the future funding of the project.
Agreement in principle has been reached that Zoysia Corporation, the private sector consortium, will make a substantial additional sum of money available to the company. This is a welcome sign of the investors' confidence in the project and of their confidence in Northern Ireland.
A project which started out being heavily dependent on public funds, has moved through the 1982 agreement, when the new funding was on the basis of £2 from the private sector for every £1 put up by the Government, to a stage when all the new funding now proposed is to come from the private sector. The Government's remaining commitment under the legally binding 1982 agreement consists of $9.14 million of further funding and a loan guarantee of $15 million. The overall size of the project has been reduced significantly and the planned number of jobs in Northern Ireland has been adjusted in consequence from the 1982 prospective figure of some 2,800 to a new and more realistic figure of 1,100. The company's finances are being restructured to reflect the smaller size of the project now planned and to enable the private sector to make its further investment. Central to the agreement is the prospect of the Government's overall financial exposure to the project being reduced and the confirmation of Northern Ireland as the base for the principal manufacturing facility.
It is my hope that the agreement in principle will be implemented quickly so that the work in the Northern Ireland factories can be restarted as soon as possible.