HC Deb 26 October 1992 vol 212 cc460-1W
Mr. Austin Mitchell

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the United Kingdom qualifies for contributions from the EEC cohesion fund on 1991 and 1992 gross domestic product figures.

Mr. Nelson

The cohesion fund envisaged in the Maastricht treaty will be a structural fund; and the usual method of calculating relative wealth for these funds is to use purchasing power parities. On that basis, the United Kingdom would not qualify on 1991 gross domestic product figures, the latest year for which outturn data are available, or forecasts for 1992.