§ Mr. HarveyTo ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) who decided that his Department should make a public statement on 7 July that Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare was the subject of an inquiry into alleged insider dealing;
(2) what were the reasons for his Department's statement on 7 July that Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare was the subject of an inquiry into alleged insider dealing.
§ Mr. HeseltineOn 8 February 1994 I appointed two inspectors under section 177 of the Financial Services Act 1986 to investigate possible insider dealing in relation to an agreed bid made by MAI plc for Anglia Television Group plc. On 7 July 1994 I was informed thatThe Times newspaper had informed my Department that it intended to publish the existence of the investigation and that Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare was concerned with the investigation. On the same day I was also informed that MAI plc had confirmed the existence of the investigation.
I took the decision to issue a statement in the light of these circumstances.
§ Mr. HarveyTo ask the President of the Board of556W Trade what has been the (a) budgeted and (b) total cost of the inquiry into the allegations of insider trading involving Lord Archer of Weston-super-Mare.
§ Mr. HeseltineIt is not my Department's practice to disclose details of individuals from whom legal advice is obtained. Both the advice and its source is regarded as confidential.