§ Lord Stoddart of Swindonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, further to their Answer of 31st March (WA 68) they will now ensure that, since they accept that the purpose of oral questions is to obtain information in an easily understood and quickly assimilated form in order that supplementary questions may be fewer and shorter, answers to all financial questions relating to the EC are given in British currency.
§ The Minister of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Strathclyde)No. My Answer of 21st March (WA 20) explained that it would be misleading to give primacy to pounds sterling, because the Community budget and proposals with budgetary implications are denominated in ecus, which have a variable value in pounds sterling.