§ Mr. BurnettTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assistance is available from(a) the Government and (b) its agencies for shipyards in (i) England and (ii) Scotland competing for orders to construct ships. [125562]
§ Jacqui Smith[holding answer 14 July 2003]Financial support is available to help UK shipyards win new orders through my Department's Home Shipbuilding Credit Guarantee Scheme (HSCGS). The HSCGS provides soft credit finance facilities to UK resident purchasers of ships in the form of loan guarantees of up to 80 per cent. of contract value for the construction and conversion of vessels. The HSCGS is currently under appraisal, in line with the DTI's wider review of existing business support schemes.