§ Mr. SwinneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the structures and methods used by Scottish Trade International for assessing the success rate of Scottish projects in winning assistance from the European Regional Development Fund. [52727]
§ Mr. WilsonScottish Trade International is consulted on all European Regional Development Fund applications for export promotion activity. The success of such applications is monitored through STI' s close involvement with the network of Export Partnerships, together with other relevant Scottish Office officials.
§ Mr. SwinneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what has been the sterling value of European Regional Development Fund assistance to Scottish Trade International in each of the last five years; [52725]
149W(2) if Scottish Trade International has made an application to access the European Regional Development Fund to support Scottish export promotion. [52818]
§ Mr. WilsonOver the past five years, there have been two projects for which Scottish Trade International has been successful in securing European Regional Development Fund assistance. In 1996, Scottish Trade International secured funding of £175,400 over three years for a project which will develop links with European development agencies to find foreign partners for Scottish companies in overseas markets. The project started on 1 January 1997 and £31,000 of the overall award was paid out in the year 1997–98.
In 1997, Scottish Trade International was also successful in securing funding of £225,000 over two years to establish Scottish Software Centres in California and Virginia. As the project did not commence until 1 January 1998, no payments have as yet been made.
Potential European Regional Development Fund bids for the current financial year are presently being considered by Scottish Trade International.
§ Mr. SwinneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the total overall budget for Scottish Trade International for the current year; and what proportion of that total is provided by(a) the Exchequer and (b) the European Regional Development Fund. [52724]
§ Mr. WilsonSTI' s budget provision for the current year, including running costs, is £7.4 million, of which £6.6 million comes from Scottish Enterprise, with the remainder provided by The Scottish Office. Figures relate to core STI activities and cover both staffing and programme expenditure. In addition, STI will receive about £138,000 this year as a result of previous successful bids for ERDF funding.