§ Lord Trefgarneasked Her Majesty's Government:
What are the criteria employed in determining which overseas trade missions to support with official funds, and why in particular a recent application relating to Malaysia from the Federation of Manufacturers of Construction Equipment and Cranes was rejected while one from the Suffolk and Ipswich Chamber of Commerce was accepted.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Baroness Denton of Wakefield)My department receives many applications from trade associations and chambers of commerce for supported missions. In drawing up an annual programme of 120 missions, we pay particular attention to the priorities for markets and industrial sectors identified in the BoTB forward plan, the relative chances of sponsor organisations attracting a satisfactory number of participants and the number of missions which an overseas post can handle.