§ Mr. Cohenasked the Secretary of State for Defence what action is being taken upon the findings of his Department's investigations into the allegations that Marconi, or its four subsidiaries in Portsmouth, made excessive profits on Ministry of Defence contracts; how much public money is involved; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. SainsburyInvestigations by the Ministry of Defence police into allegations of irregularities over contracts with Marconi Defence Systems began in October 1986 and are continuing. Responsibility for the direction of the investigations and the prosecution of any cases which arise from them was referred to the Director of Public Prosecution's fraud investigation group on 19 August 1987. As this is now a matter for the Law Officers of the Crown I am unable to comment further about these investigations.