§ Mr. CryerTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what representations he has received from the textile industry about the effect of subsidies by the Wallonian region to textile companies in Belgium; and if he will make a statement;.
(2) what assessment he has made of the uniformity of a common policy in the European Community on control of state aids to the textile and clothing industry.
§ Mr. Sainsbury[holding answer 4 November 1992]: Representations have been made by the British Textile Confederation about alleged subsidies. We are considering these allegations carefully.
There continue to be isolated cases of aid approved to manufacturers in the textile and clothing industries on which we make our concerns known to the Commission. In general, progress appears to be being made in the enforcement of the EC treaty obligations controlling and limiting state aid.