§ Mr. PatnickTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether he has anything further to report on progress with privatisation of British Shipbuilders' facilities.
§ Mr. NewtonBritish Shipbuilders successfully completed the sale of its Clark Kincaid facility on 23 December and its Appledore yard on 26 January. Discussions with the preferred bidder for Marine Design Consultants are continuing. BS has invited bids for Sunderland Forge Services by 24 February.
In the case of the Ferguson yard at Port Glasgow, for which the firm of Ailsa Perth Ltd. was named as preferred bidder on 14 November 1988, I regret that detailed negotiations have not resulted in agreement on a satisfactory basis for the sale to proceed. In these circumstances, I have accepted the advice of the BS chairman that BS should invite new bids for Ferguson to be in place by 31 March 1989. Ailsa Perth Ltd. may offer a further bid if it wishes.