§ Rev. Ian Paisleyasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much financial aid was provided for the textile and clothing industries, respectively, by various Government agencies in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.
§ Mr. ButlerThe information is not readily available in the form requested or for all the years requested. The total amounts offered or paid to companies in the textile and clothing industries by the Department of Economic Development (formerly Department of Commerce), Industrial Development Board, Local Enterprise Development Unit and the former Northern Ireland Development Agency was as follows:
£ 1979–80 22,703,903 1980–81 32,613,658 1981–82 16,360,355 1982–83 20,503,131 In addition, public funds were made available to the appropriate industrial training boards as follows:
Textiles ITB Clothing and footwear ITB £ £ 1978–79 140,322 140,632 1979–80 139,551 180,663 1980–81 131,926 178,608 1981–82 203,331 218,739 1982–83 111,280 122,260 The preceding figures do not include information on employment and training schemes administered by the Department of Economic Development which could be provided only at disproportionate cost.