§ Mr. FoulkesTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment he has made of the effect of the agreement of GATT on the future prospects for the sale of Jetstream aircraft overseas.
§ Mr. SainsburyNo new agreement on civil aircraft —a category which includes aircraft of all sizes, aero-engines and equipment—was concluded at the end of the Uruguay round. The parties involved agreed to retain the status quo, and to continue negotiations for a further year on the basis of a text drafted by the chairman of the646W relevant GATT sub-committee. It is therefore unlikely that Jetstream's sales prospects will be affected in the short term.
In the long term, our aim is to put into place an agreement which controls all forms of government support to the aerospace industry in a balanced way. Such an agreement would be of benefit to Jetstream as well as to the rest of the United Kingdom aerospace industry.