HC Deb 26 November 1991 vol 199 c444W
Ms. Mowlam

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if any institution which provided a presentation for becoming a retail outlet in the BT share sale was rejected.

Mr. Maude

The Government selected eight organisations to act as share shops in the sale of shares in BT plc from among the various proposals received.

Ms. Mowlam

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list those institutions which made presentations with regard to the second BT share offer, in response to his invitation.

Mr. Maude

It is for the organisations concerned to disclose whether they made a submission in response to the Chancellor's invitation in his Budget speech for proposals from private sector organisations for a high street share dealing network.

Ms. Mowlam

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what criteria were used to evaluate the eight retail institutions' ability to undertake at relatively short notice the sale of BT shares, referred to in his answer of 22 October 1991,Official Report, column 505.

Mr. Maude

The Government's objective was a network of share shops which, together, could respond to the high volumes of a public share sale while giving the public a choice of institutions. This was achieved with the selection of the eight firms who are participating in the BT share sale. The Government intend to build on these arrangements in future public share sales.

Ms. Mowlam

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list those institutions which wrote to his Department stating an interest with regard to the second BT share offer but did not make a presentation.

Mr. Maude

The proposals received from organisations in response to the Government's share shops initiative ranged widely in the extent of detail in which they were made.