Poland (Ministerial Visit)

HC Deb 25 October 1999 vol 336 cc657-8W

Mr. Mackinlay

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the Minister of State's visit to Poland. [94707]

Mr. Caborn

[holding answer 19 October 1999]I visited Poland from 21 to 23 September. My visit encompassed ministerial meetings, the opening of an all-British trade fair in Warsaw, visits to British businesses, a visit to Krakow to open the new British Council Offices and to support a project run by a British company to recycle the waste from the steel mill in Krakow.

The main reason for my visit was to raise the profile of British companies in Poland as part of British Trade International's strategy for encouraging more companies to consider the market. However, in meetings with Polish Ministers I also took the opportunity to raise the question of Polish coal exports to the United Kingdom and to underline our support for Poland in the EU accession process.