§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will place in the Library the briefing provided to Mr. John Kerby at the EBRD on LNM Holdings. [39139]
§ Clare ShortNo. All such briefings are provided on a confidential basis between officials.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment her Department made of LNM Holding's credit rating before supporting their application for a £70 million bank loan. [39145]
§ Clare ShortAdherence to sound banking is one of EBRD's three core principles. The bank routinely prepares rigorous financial analysis for all investments. DFID does not duplicate EBRD systems, as this would be wasteful and unnecessary.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she had discussions with the Prime Minister's Office before supporting the £70 million EBRD loan to LNM Holdings. [39108]
894W
§ Clare ShortAs I have made clear, the proposed loan was uncontroversial and within published and approved EBRD and UK objectives. Officials therefore did not consult Ministers.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether officials from her Department consulted the British Embassy in Bucharest before approving the £70 million EBRD loan to LNM Holdings. [39138]
§ Clare ShortNo.
§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she was informed of LNM's application for a loan from the EBRD when officials from her Department asked Mr. John Kerby to support it. [39144]
§ Clare ShortAs I have repeatedly made clear, Ministers were not consulted about this loan because it was judged by officials to fall within published EBRD and UK objectives and was uncontroversial.