§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will give figures for (a) Stoke on Trent, (b) the west midlands and (c) the United Kingdom showing the percentage change between 1979 and the most recent year for which figures are available for (i) manufacturing output and (ii) investment in manufacturing industry; and if he will list the steps he has taken in the last 12 months to improve the figures.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonI shall reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible.
£'000 Regional Development Grant Expenditure Gross payments Refunds Net payments 97,587 3,157 94,430* Regional Development Grant Supply Estimate Gross Provision Appropriations in Aid Net provision 188,050 10,000 178,050 Regional Selective Assistance Expenditure Gross payments Refunds Net payments 41,000 — 41,000† Regional Selective Assistance Supply Estimate Gross Provision Appropriations in Aid Net provision 61,599 — 61,599‡ * A further £65 million had been approved for payment by 31 December 1985 but was subject to the four-month moratorium on payments of old-style regional development grants announced on 17 January 1985. This sum will be paid between 1 January and 1 May 1986.
† This figure relates only to expenditure under section 7 of the Industrial Development Act 1982, that is expenditure on project grants, interest relief grants, office and services grants, and training grants.
‡ The published Estimate for regional selective assistance was £83,601,000 gross and £68,552,000 net (with £15,049,000 for Appropriations in Aid) but these figures include miscellaneous items such as European Investment Bank contingent liability, exchange risk guarantee scheme, small and medium-sized units and export assistance not related to expenditure under section 7 of the Industrial Development Act 1982.