§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what United Kingdom firms have been supported by his Department to attend any military, security or police exhibition(a) within the United Kingdom or (b) overseas since 1979; and if he will detail the nature of the support and the number of companies which attended each event.
§ Mr. HeseltineThe Department of Trade and Industry does not provide support for United Kingdom firms to attend exhibitions within the United Kingdom.
The Department does provide support for United Kingdom firms to attend overseas exhibitions in the form of a subvention towards the cost of participation. Relevant information for the period before 1 April 1988 can be obtained only at disproportionate cost. For the period after that date, support for firms attending military, security or police exhibitions has been provided as follows:
Financial year Number of events Number of firms 1988–89 4 70 1989–90 4 114 1990–91 7 131 1991–92 10 151 1992–93 12 266 1993–94 9 95