§ Mr. JackTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made towards signature of the main development contracts of the European fighter aircraft; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. YoungerI am pleased to inform my hon. Friend that Spain signed yesterday the memorandum of understanding for full development of the European fighter aircraft (EFA). This follows its signature by Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom earlier this year, and represents an important step in the successful progress of European collaboration in aerospace. Very few contractual issues now remain to be resolved, and I hope that it will be possible to sign the main contracts for full development of the EFA in the next few days.