HC Deb 30 July 1998 vol 317 cc411-2W
Mr. Soley

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the international debt relief total is owed to the United Kingdom(a) Government and (b) financial institutions. [52246]

Ms Hewitt

[holding answer 28 July 1998]: (a) World Bank figures state that the total debt owed by the twenty countries identified by the IMF as eligible for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative is about $100 billion, of which the UK government is owed about $1.3 billion.

(b) The Government do not keep records of the debts held by private sector financial institutions.