§ Sir John StanleyTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the amounts of official debt to the United Kingdom country by country that will fall within the ambit of the scheme to ease the official debt burden of the poorest and most heavily indebted countries in sub-Saharan Africa agreed in Berlin last month.
§ Mr. Lawson[holding answer 3 November 1988]: Official debt comprises debt owed to the ODA and to ECGD. The old aid loans made by the ODA to countries which are now eligible to benefit from the special Paris Club reschedulings for the poorest most heavily indebted countries which are following approved adjustment programmes, have already been converted to grants. For reasons of commercial confidentiality, ECGD does not reveal its exposure country by country. ECGD's total exposure to the countries now thought to be eligible is estimated at around £1 billion.