§ Mr. HallTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what sums were received by the Exchequer from the pension funds of each Government asset prior to privatisation of that asset. [10630]
§ Mr. JackNo sums have been received prior to the privatisation of any public sector industry, but in three cases a pension fund surplus, or part of it, has been, or is being, paid to the Exchequer after privatisation. In the case of the National Bus Company, a £120 million surplus on its pension schemes was paid to HM Treasury in 1990, two to four years after the privatisation of the various NBC subsidiaries. In the case of the British Coal Corporation pension fund, a first payment of £39.5 million was received in 1996—more than a year after privatisation; in the case of Harland and Wolff, which was privatised in 1989, it was agreed that Harland and Wolff Holdings plc would repay to the Department of Economic Development a £6.5 million pension fund surplus: £1.15 million has been repaid to date.