§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade how many responses his Department received to the consultation document "Industry and the Chemical Weapons Convention" by the close of the consultation period on 31 March; and what progress has been made in assessing the responses. [31122]
§ Mr. HeseltineOver 2,500 copies of the discussion document were issued widely to industry, largely through trade organisations. We received 33 responses. Of these, 15 were from trade organisations, who were responding on behalf of their membership. The responses, overall, supported the approach my Department proposes to adopt in implementing the convention. The results of the consultation were included in a speech given to the House on 24 April,Official Report, columns 638–42, by my hon. Friend, the Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Technology.