§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what is the shortfall between the cost of the liabilities which remain the responsibility of the public sector and the amount of moneys available to Magnox, excluding the proceeds from the sale of the advanced gas-coded reaction and pressurised water reactor nuclear power generation stations; and if he will make a statement on how that shortfall was to be met(a) in May 1995 and (b) at present. [35617]
§ Mr. Ian Lang[holding answer 4 July 1996]: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 22 May 1996, Official Report, column 269. The estimated cost of meeting Magnox Electric's liabilities are given in the company's report and accounts for the year ended 31 March 1996, published on 10 June 1996, as £8.9 billion discounted at 3 per cent. real and £18.2 billion undiscounted. Magnox Electric's liabilities have always been in the public sector and will remain so after the privatisation of British Energy.