§ Mr. SalmondTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will give details of his Department's forecasts of the number of exploration and appraisal drilling wells in the United Kingdom continental shelf in each of the next five years(a) prior to the Budget and (b) in light of the Budget's proposed changes to the oil taxation regime; and if he will also break down the figures by sector of the United Kingdom continental shelf.
§ Mr. EggarMy Department does not publish five-year forecasts of the number of exploration and appraisal wells in the United Kingdom continental shelf. It does, however, conduct regular surveys of company intentions to drill wells looking up to two years ahead. The results of the last survey were published in the August 1992 issue of "Energy Trends", a copy of which is in the Library.