§ Mr. Campbell-Savoursasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will list all hospital contracts advertised, tendered for and handled in any way on behalf of Saudi Arabia by his Department acting as agents for the Saudi Arabian Government; and which firms either tendered for or were awarded those contracts.
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§ Mr. PattieThe King Khalid National Guard hospital in Jeddah is operated by International Hospitals Group, a British company under contract to the Ministry of Defence. No other British companies tendered for this work. The responsibilities laid upon the Ministry of Defence are defined in a memorandum of understanding signed between the two Governments on 23 May 1981. No other hospital contracts in Saudi Arabia have been awarded to British contractors by the Ministry of Defence under Government-to-Government arrangements, although the Ministry of Defence has supported other British companies who have tendered for direct commercial contracts with Saudi Arabian Government agencies as part of our normal export promotion activities.