§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had with(a) British Aerospace and (b) his French counterpart concerning the potential sale or merger of the United Kingdom interest in Airbus. [91204]
§ Mr. BattleI have regular discussions with both industry and my European counterparts on the future structure of Airbus. All sides are committed to transforming the existing Airbus consortium into a single corporate entity working along fully commercial lines in order to maximise its competitiveness. The Government hopes this will happen in the near future. However, it is for the industrial partners to lead the process and to determine what steps are necessary. At a meeting of the Airbus Governments and industry at the Paris Airshow last month, Ministers asked the partner companies to report by the end of the Summer on their proposed way ahead in transforming Airbus.