§ Mr. Nicholas Brownasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what recent consultation the Government have had with British Shipbuilders concerning the level of support for merchant shipbuilding obtainable from the European Economic Community;
(2) if the Government have made a formal approach to the European Economic Community to request new and higher levels of support for merchant shipbuilding;
(3) if Her Majesty's Government will make it their policy when making representations to the European Economic Community on the level of support for merchant shipbuilding to seek to cover in total the cost price gap between European Economic Community yards and far eastern yards.
§ Mr. Norman LamontFollowing consultations with British Shipbuilders we have tabled proposals to the European Commission for a significant increase in the permissible level of Government support for shipbuilding orders. The need to bridge the gap between United Kingdom costs and far eastern prices is one of the main reasons for this initiative.