§ Mr. Gregory CampbellTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much public money was spent on assisting small businesses in Northern Ireland during 2003. [176633]
§ Mr. GardinerInvest NI records and reports information on a financial year basis as opposed to a calendar year basis, therefore this response relates assistance to Invest NI clients in the financial year 2003—04.
In 2003—04 a total of £56.45 million was offered to companies falling within the definition small businesses (less than 50 employees). This figure reports assistance offered rather than money that has actually been paid. Information on offers is more indicative of the current activities and policies of Invest NI as most of the payments in any one year relate to offers of assistance made in a number of previous years.