§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what action the Scottish Office will be taking to ensure that grant assistance paid to Connor Peripherals (UK) Ltd. to set up its Irvine plant is recouped by the Exchequer.
§ Mr. StewartThis has been covered in discussions with the company. The details are commercially confidential.
§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much Connor Peripherals (UK) Ltd. has received in grant assistance from the Government since coming to Irvine.
§ Mr. StewartDetails of grant payments made to individual companies are commercially confidential and are not divulged.
§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations were made by the Scottish Office to Connor Peripherals (UK) Ltd. prior to the company's announcement of job losses at their plant in Irvine.
§ Mr. StewartMy officials in Locate in Scotland were in direct contact with senior executives of Connor Peripherals both here in the United Kingdom and in the United States in the months preceding the company's announcement. Moreover, I met Connor's senior management at their Californian headquarters during my recent visit to the United States.
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§ Mr. DonohoeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement concerning the recent announcement of redundancies by Connor Peripherals (UK) Ltd. in Irvine.
§ Mr. StewartI am disappointed by the redundancies recently announced by Connor Peripherals but encouraged that the company is to retain its European repair and distribution facility at Irvine. This facility remains an important part of the infrastructural support for Scotland's personal computer industry. The redundancies derive from overcapacity and price competition affecting disc-drive manufacturers on a worldwide basis. It is important to note however that Conner's manufacturing operations in Irvine have been suspended pending improvements in world market conditions, and at this stage it is not possible to predict if these job losses will be permanent.