§ Mr. VazTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on his recent visit to China; and what United Kingdom participation there will be in the 1998 International Horticultural Event in Kunming, Yunnan. [42349]
Dr. John CunninghamDuring April, I led a UK agricultural trade mission to China and our participation in the agricultural trade exposition AGRO EXPO China '98. I also had bilateral meetings with senior representatives of the Chinese government including Vice Premier Li Lanqing and Minister of Agriculture Chen Yaobang and representatives from the Hong Kong administration. I was highly impressed by the wide range of UK technical expertise on the mission and understand that new commercial business was agreed during the visit.
The Government hope that the International Horticultural Exposition due to be held in Kunming in 1999 will include a United Kingdom exhibit. A proposal for an exhibit is currently the subject of discussion between the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh.