§ Mr. Livseyasked the Secretary of State for Wales what information he has as to how many communities in Wales
478Wachievements of his Department in helping small businesses over the last three years; and if he will publish the performance indicators by which his Department monitors those achievements and the statistical results of such monitoring.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe Department has a relatively small purchasing budget and the scope for helping small businesses is limited. In 1986–87 we purchased from small firms goods to a total of £955,000, mainly in the information technology field. Information is not available for earlier years. The Department will continue to use small firms when it is appropriate to do so. The introduction of performance indicators is under consideration.