§ Mr. BakerTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if she will estimate the annual turnover of British companies derived from the manufacture and supply of covert surveillance and listening equipment.[15680]
§ Mr. Battle[holding answer 17 November 1997]The information is not available. It is not possible to extract information from official statistics on UK manufacturers' sales of covert surveillance and listening equipment, as the PRODCOM system of collecting sales data does not include separate headings for these products. A number of Trade Associations represent firms which manufacture, install and service security products. However, although the Department has commissioned the collection of data on manufacturers of security products, which included closed circuit television equipment, a similar study has never been undertaken in respect of manufacturers of covert surveillance and listening equipment. To approach all the firms involved would incur considerable cost.