The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Category: 1993

  • Mr Major’s Speech at Focus on Scotland Dinner – 29 January 1993

    Below are lengthened extracts from Mr Major’s speech to the Focus on Scotland Dinner at the Hotel Forte Crest, Bothwell Street, in Glasgow on Friday 29th January 1993. This text is from the Conservative Party press release issued on the same day.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    During the last week, I have been looking to the future – looking for trade, looking for exports. Looking for prosperity. Looking for jobs.

    That was why I took with me to India the most prestigious group of businessmen ever to accompany a British Prime Minister abroad. While we were there significant contracts were signed – a £100 million supply contract for British Gas; and a £140 million power transmission contract for GEC Alsthom. Even more important, we opened up export opportunities for the future. We established a new rapport with the Indian Government and the Indian business community that will bear rich fruit in trade, investment and jobs.

    After India – Oman and Saudi Arabia. And with them, orders for 36 Challenger Tanks for Oman and 48 Tornado Aircraft for Saudi.

    A huge boost for British industry – a huge boost for British jobs, some of them here in Scotland. One reason why I am so pleased to procure this Tornado order is that it will bridge the gap between the Tornado and European Fighter Aircraft – thus keeping together the army of skilled workers who service industry so well. It’s vital that we preserve these precious national skills.

    Whenever I come home there’s always one thing that strikes me: we really do have a genius for running ourselves down. It baffles our friends abroad. They see that in recent years we have achieved much. They see our strengths. A stable political system. A tolerant and open society. A rich heritage that gives us stability and continuity. They see a country which has great opportunities. And so do I. It’s time to start selling Britain abroad. And stop selling Britain short.

    Over the past two years, we have brought inflation down from nearly 11 per cent to under three per cent – well below the European average. And, with this week’s interest rate cut, we have brought base rates down from 15 per cent to only six per cent. It’s now cheaper for business to borrow and invest in Britain than it is anywhere else in the Community – and cheaper than it’s been here for 15 years.

    So we have a great opportunity to invest for our future. A chance to succeed at home – and abroad. The Single Market is open for business – and I know Scottish business will be in there, responding to the challenge. But we must look beyond Europe as well.

    The US market is expanding again – and the rise in the dollar has given us a new competitive advantage. In the Far East, and in all other key markets, we can succeed. In just the final three months of last year, our exports of manufactured goods rose five per cent, in real terms. We must build on that success. Manufacturing is not an optional add-on extra. It is a vital part of our economy.

    The 1990s will be the most competitive decade business has ever seen. There will be no prizes for coming second. No prizes for old technology. No prizes for poor training. Either we invest and thrive, or we stagnate and simply survive. The circumstances are right. And the need is obvious. We need merchant venturers, not merchants of gloom. The time has never been better. And the rewards have never been greater.

    The Government will help. The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement signalled our approach. In public spending, he protected the capital projects so vital to our economic future, and opened the way to joint public and private schemes to improve our roads and railways and the rest of our infrastructure. He gave extra encouragement to private investment; and abolished car tax which had hung like a millstone round the neck of one of our greatest manufacturing industries.

    We will continue to listen to industry – and respond. But – as I know industry would expect – we will do nothing to compromise our firm commitment to low inflation and control of public spending. These are the foundations of lasting growth; sustainable growth; growth that creates secure jobs, and will have a real and lasting impact on unemployment.

    Others recognise the virtues of Britain. That’s why we continue to attract more inward investment than any other country in Europe. Here in Scotland, there has been good news just this week. Motorola has announced that it is continuing to expand, creating up to 600 new jobs and bringing total investment up to £100 million. And Hoover have chosen to move from Dijon to Cambuslang, bringing an extra 450 jobs with them.

    It’s not surprising that people want to come to the UK. Our productivity has been rising fast – and industrial relations have been transformed. The number of days lost from strikes has dropped to record low levels. We’ve abolished the closed shop. We’ve outlawed secondary action. We’ve given the unions back to their members. And now, in Parliament, we’re strengthening rules on strike ballots and giving rights of challenge against unlawful strikes.

    But we can do more to help industry. We must cut a swathe through the jungle of regulation that stops people starting businesses – and stops businesses growing and creating new jobs. I have asked every Whitehall department to turn out its cupboards and throw out the fussy rules and restrictions that serve no purpose but to hold British business back.

    Next week Ministers will be joining me in No 10 for a bout of spring-cleaning. Whitehall too easily throws its weight about. We need to redress the balance in favour of enterprise. And we will.

    This year, too, we must press ahead with a revolution in education and training. It is good news that the latest CBI survey showed that Scottish manufacturers are planning to increase spending on training and re-training this year. We need those new vocational qualifications, new high-quality courses for young people that will spread the skills we need for the future. And we need to work together to break down the barriers and old divisions in the workplace, and in schools and colleges. We need to tackle the old prejudices against manufacturing and engineering that have hampered our performance ever since the time of the Industrial Revolution.

    That is the way to prepare Britain for a prosperous future. I am confident that you will succeed. Because Scotland has always been outward looking, Scottish businesses understand better than many others the opportunities offered by the EC Single Market. After 300 years of union with a bigger neighbour, Scotland knows it is possible to benefit from a larger association without losing its distinctive identity. And Scottish businesses recognise that the Union has been the foundation stone of Scottish prosperity. No-one knows better than you what damage separation would do to your prospects.

    I think you know where I stand on the Union. Some things in politics are non-negotiable. And for me the maintenance of the Union is one of them. I believe it is vital for both our countries. That’s why I put it bang at the heart of our election campaign – in Scotland and in England.

    Last April we succeeded in turning the separatist tide. We turned it further in the May Local Elections and in the months ahead we will turn it further still.

    The Union has always challenged insularity and inward looking nationalism. The Scottish men and women who brought the Union alive knew no frontiers to their ideas: Livingstone, Telford, Watt, Bell, Robert Louis Stevenson, James Clerk Maxwell, Hume, Lister, Baird – explorers, scientists, industrialists, writers. They combined the Scottish spirit of radical enquiry with that Scottish capacity for hard work, to become truly international figures. They are part of Scotland’s greatness and they rose on Britain’s greatness. They typify the spirit of the Union. Their achievements are a powerful source of national pride. Together the countries of the UK have shaped world history. Together we have always looked beyond our frontiers and have played our part right at the centre of the world stage. But even after 300 years in which we have shared our culture, shared our experiences and shared our interests, we still remain distinctive nations with our own culture and traditions.

    I believe that our defence of the Union during the Election stirred feelings and memories that we had left untouched for too long. Labour ended up looking shoddy, unprincipled and opportunist. They deserved to. That’s what they were. The credibility of their scheme was revealed for what it really was: a recipe for bitter conflict, enormous cost and ultimately, separation. The Labour Party should know that for so long as they put forward policies for short-term political gain that would lead to the division of England from Scotland, one Party will always stand in their way. The Conservative and Unionist party. And that is where we should be.

    From time to time in our history there have of course been strains. Separatism has fed on these strains ever since the Act of Union was signed. Distance from London has led some rightly or wrongly to feel a sense of isolation and neglect. And at times, let’s face it, both Scotland and England have been clumsy in their dealings with each other.

    I said during the Election that we would recognise and address these concerns. I said we would take stock of the way the Union works and Scotland’s place within it. We will be announcing our conclusions shortly. I will not pre-empt them tonight but I will give a few of our preliminary impressions.

    I do not believe there is a widespread desire for total separation or dramatic constitutional upheaval. Most Scots, like most English people – recognise the benefits of the Union. Economic benefits, cultural benefits, and the benefit too of being part of an influential voice in world affairs.

    But I do accept that there is a widespread feeling that Government is too remote. A feeling that it does not properly recognise Scotland’s status as a nation or provide enough opportunities for the Scottish voice to be heard. We will address these concerns.

    Scotland has its own institutions – its legal system, its churches, its universities, its financial institutions and learned societies. It has its own priorities and we, the Government of the United Kingdom, should respond to them because that is what the Union is all about.

    How do we do this?

    First we must build on the many distinctively Scottish institutions which give a focus to the political identity of Scotland. We need to make the institutions of government more visible and accountable. The Scottish Office is Scotland’s department in Government with responsibilities right across the field of domestic policy. The Secretary of State for Scotland sits on all the vital Cabinet Committees and he is never hesitant in putting the Scottish view. So we will be looking to build on this role and build up the status of the Scottish Office.

    It is vital also that Scottish people feel their interests are properly represented in Parliament at Westminster and in the Scottish Grand Committee. We took an important step in re-establishing the Scottish Affairs Select Committee whose job it is to scrutinise the work and policies of the Scottish Office and to explore key areas of particular Scottish interest.

    Our reforms to local government in Scotland are also central to the taking stock exercise. A new single tier of local authorities will enable local councillors to promote more effectively the interests of the people they represent and will help to reduce the sense of remoteness that some have felt in the past.

    But self determination is not just a matter of where decisions are taken in government or local government. It is about giving people more power over their own lives; devolving choice from government to individuals.

    We want to widen choice and give more power to the user of public services – patients, passengers and parents. If the trains are always dirty and late, or if you are fobbed off again and again by the bureaucrat behind the desk, you should be able to do something about it. Insist on better quality and insist on being treated with courtesy, openness and respect. You should be able to insist on redress or at least a full explanation when standards are not met.

    That is why we are increasing parent power in schools. Parent power has, if anything, even greater potential in Scotland than in England. Here, education enjoys a status that is the envy of schools elsewhere. Parent power in Scotland gives people the power to raise standards still further and develop Scottish schools along Scottish lines.

    The NHS trust revolution and the extension of GP fund holding in Scotland is bringing health services closer to Scottish patients. Two hospital trusts are already up and running. Fifteen more have been approved to start this year and there are 20 further applications in the pipeline – representing 90 per cent of the hospital and community budget in Scotland.

    Scotland pioneered the Rents to Mortgages Scheme – widening choice for tenants. I think back to all those years ago when we introduced the Right to Buy in Scotland – I remember being told that it wouldn’t take off in Scotland. Ownership wasn’t part of Scottish culture, they said. What patronising nonsense. Since 1979 home ownership in Scotland has risen from 35 per cent to 52 per cent. It remains our objective to encourage a home and share-owning democracy in Scotland. It is above all ownership that gives opportunity and choice and a share in the nation’s wealth. And it is what the majority of people in Scotland aspire to just as much as in England.

    The qualities that have made Scotland a great nation are qualities that lie right at the heart of Conservative thinking. Individualism, a strong sense of social responsibility, radicalism, a belief in high standards in education and throughout public services, a deep sense of history and patriotic pride, a desire for greater choice and ownership and wealth.

    Ian Lang has spoken of “bringing the Union alive”. Our task is to demonstrate, as we work together in the Union to bring economic recovery, that the UK Government is a Government for all the United Kingdom, for Scotland as well as for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We need to build a firm constitutional base that meets the needs of Scottish people to be heard and to participate in the democratic process. We must bring the Union alive for the future of a prosperous Scotland in a United Kingdom and in Europe.

    We have a full and radical programme for this Parliament, to the next Election and beyond. And we have a strong message: a message of choice and opportunity, wealth, ownership and social responsibility. The tide of ideas is still with us. It is our agenda that will signpost the way to the millennium. Our plans for our people will determine the future of our country. We need to take that message to every town, every village, every street and every home.

    That is why we won the last Election. Not because we believed the opinion polls – they were wrong – or because we listened to the Westminster pundits – they are often wrong. But because we won the battle of ideas on the doorstep. That is the key to our success. And with your help I’m confident that when the next challenge comes, it will once again unlock the door to the next Conservative Government.

  • Mr Major’s Comments on the Saudi Arabia Visit – 29 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s comments on his Saudi Arabia visit, held during an interview on board a flight back to London on Friday 29th January 1993.

    QUESTION:

    [The Prime Minister was asked about the important of the Saudi Arabia deal].

    PRIME MINISTER:

    The Saudi Arabia deal is very important of course, it secures 19,000 jobs and is part of a continuing relationship we have had with the Saudis for many years, a very good relationship.

    QUESTION:

    [Mr Major was asked about the poor trade figures].

    PRIME MINISTER:

    What is going to improve the trade figures? What will improve the trade figures is the fact that British industry is competitive, that British industry is exporting, and everywhere that I have been on this trip, whether it was in India, whether it was in Oman, whether it was in Saudi Arabia, they had several clear cut messages, British industry is now hugely competitive, British businessmen have now realised they do not sell their goods by sitting in the United Kingdom, they go abroad and display their wares. There is a tremendous opportunity and if we are going to take that opportunity, the lowest interest rates in Europe, a very low inflation rate, a hugely competitive exchange rate, businessmen with the assistance of government have got to go and sell the best of British abroad, that is what I have been doing, it is what I will go on doing and it is what I want British business to do.

    QUESTION:

    [Mr Major was asked if he intended on going on more similar trips in the future].

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Yes, there will be more of these trips, there will be many trips of course that will be purely political or diplomatic, but of course, where appropriate I will take businessmen with me.

  • Mr Major’s Comments en Route from Riyadh to London – 29 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s comments en route from Riyadh to London on Friday 29th January 1993.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, you have been concentrating obviously very much on foreign affairs throughout most of this month and particularly on this trip. Are you now determined to get back and concentrate on the domestic political agenda?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I have not left the domestic political agenda. Visits abroad that provide export provide jobs at home. Visits abroad that provide jobs promote British business. That is the export agenda. That is the way we will build prosperity in the 1990s. It cannot be done by sitting at home in Downing Street waiting for other people to come to you. It is necessary also to get up and go to them and tell them what is best in Britain and sell it for Britain.

  • Mr Major’s Press Conference in Muscat – 28 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s press conference in Muscat, given on Thursday 28th January 1993.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I have had the opportunity this morning and over lunch to have very wide ranging discussions with His Majesty Sultan Qaboos. I am most grateful to the Sultan for his hospitality and also for the unfailing help that we have had from His Excellency, Kai Sawawe [phon]. I last met the Sultan at Chequers in July. He is, as you know, a very close friend of the United Kingdom, a long standing political, commercial friend of our country.

    I met him this morning in rather unusual circumstances. His Majesty is in the middle of his “Meet the People” tour and we met this morning near Ibra in Eastern Oman in a tent in the middle of the desert and I suspect that is the first time that the British Prime Minister and the Sultan of Oman have met in such unusual circumstances. The Sultan is a very senior ruler in the region and I very much value the advice and assistance that we receive from him on so many matters.

    We had the opportunity this morning of discussing a very wide range of issues: the Gulf Cooperation Council, Iraq, Yugoslavia, Iran, the Middle East Peace Process and a number of other bilateral matters. I am delighted to say that during our discussions this morning the Sultan told me that the Government of Oman had selected the British Challenger II as the Royal Army of Oman’s next main battle tank. This is the first export order for the Challenger II which is manufactured by Vickers Defence Systems Limited. It is an excellent tank and a tank that has already been chosen for the British Army. The order is for an initial quantity of 18 tanks and 4 Challenger armoured report and recovery vehicles. The initial delivery is for 1995. The Government of Oman intend to purchase a further 18 tanks later.

    It is already clear that this multi-million pound contract will sustain employment at the company’s two facilities in Newcastle and Leeds where some 1,800 people are employed and also of course at the many sub-contractors involved in this programme. I am delighted at this further example of our very close defence cooperation with one of our oldest and most valuable allies in the Gulf,

    QUESTION:

    Oman has called for opening a new [indistinct] in the Gulf and for signing a new political agreement, including the whole Gulf states, even Iraq, do you agree with this call which clearly opposes your tough stand towards Iraq and did you discuss this with the Sultan when you reviewed the current situation in the Gulf? And is Britain going to support possible sanctions against Israel by the UN Security Council to force the Israeli government to take the Palestinian deportees back?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    On the latter point, the government supported Security Council Resolution, I think it was 799, and the Israeli government are aware of our position on that matter, we very much hope this matter will be resolved very speedily. On the first matter, the Sultan of Oman has been a leader in seeking cooperation between the Gulf states for some time, he has in the past put forward special proposals in the Gulf Cooperation Council, I believe he is right to put forward those proposals and they have our support.

    QUESTION (Oman News Agency):

    We have seen the Security Council resolution being implemented on a selective basis, that international body which is responsible for maintaining world peace and security, are we going to see some reforms being introduced to the Security Council with the international crises on their lists?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am not sure what reforms you might have in mind about the Security Council, it is certainly the position that the United Kingdom wish to see all UN Security Council resolutions implemented, and implemented in full. That has been our position in the past and I can give you that assurance it will remain our position in the future.

    QUESTION:

    We have been witnessing the United States and the UK taking international matters into their hand by continuing their air assaults on Iraq while at the same time ignoring what is happening to the Palestinian deportees, including the Security Council resolution on the matter. Today we learn that the Israeli High Court has supported the government’s decision. Do you have an idea whether your country is going to support sanctions against Israel

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I indicated some moments ago that we supported the Security Council resolution concerning the Palestinians. Just the other day it was British helicopters that helped remove some of the Palestinians who needed medical care and attention. We have made it clear to the Israeli government that we believe those Palestinians should be returned from whence they came, that is our continuing position and we will continue to examine that with our friends and allies in the United Nations and of course with the Israeli government.

    On the first point, the implementation of UN Security Council resolutions, it is precisely to implement those resolutions within the framework of international law that the United States, Great Britain and France have taken the action that they have done recently against Iraq. It was of course Iraq that were infringing Security Council resolutions supported right across the Gulf and indeed right across the United Nations.

    QUESTION:

    On a domestic matter, you have decided to take legal action against two publications in the United Kingdom, this is highly unusual for a serving Prime Minister, can we have your thoughts on it?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I issued a statement about that earlier today, l issued a statement concerning that I had instructed solicitors to issue Writs for Libel. I have nothing further to add to that now or later.

    QUESTION:

    On the same matter, when the Chancellor had to consult lawyers about possible libel actions it was decided to pay part of the lawyers’ fees out of public funds, why have you decided not to do that in this case?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    The Chancellor has dealt with that matter before, I have nothing further to add to that and I have nothing further to add to the announcement I made a moment ago. I have instructed solicitors to issue Writs for Libel, that is all I propose to say about the matter at this stage.

    QUESTION:

    Are you confident that the Middle East countries you are visiting today are behind the UK, the US and France in the action you have been taking against Iraq, does that go for the whole of the Middle East region?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Yes I do think I am content about that, there was very wide support for the Gulf war at the time and for the Security Council resolution subsequently. It is implementing those Security Council resolutions and international law that has actually led to the action to which you refer, so yes I am confident in that.

    QUESTION:

    What is the British government’s policy towards Iraq now?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We wish to see Iraq implement the Security Council resolutions, that is our policy, we have no plans for Iraq to dismember Iraq, know there has been concern, we wish to see Iraq remain as an entity but we wish to see it operate under international law and the international community has set out its wishes in a series of United Nations Security Council resolutions, they must be implemented.

    QUESTION:

    Can you expand on the concerns that may have been expressed to you by the Sultan about the position of Iran?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No I do not think I wish to expand upon our private conversations on that matter.

    QUESTION:

    Do you think that military action should be taken against the Serbs and when will that take place?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    What we are doing at the moment both in Bosnia in terms of humanitarian assistance and in terms of a political settlement is I think for the time being the way forward. The political settlement that is being sought that was propelled by the London Conference on the Yugoslav crisis that I chaired in the autumn is proceeding and Lord Owen and Cyrus Vance have made very good progress. There is more to be done but I think it is through that political process that we will get a satisfactory settlement to the very sad dispute that exists in Yugoslavia. In the meantime, while the dispute continues we must continue to provide the humanitarian assistance that is necessary and it is for that reason that the United Kingdom have provided not only a large amount of food but other aid as well, most notably medicines and also a large contingent of British troops to ensure that it is delivered where it is most needed.

  • PMQT – 28 January 1993

    Below is the text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 28th January 1993. Tony Newton responded on behalf of John Major.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Engagements

    Q1. Mr. Burns : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 January.

    The Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons (Mr. Tony Newton) : I have been asked to reply.

    My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister is making official visits to India, Saudi Arabia and Oman. I am pleased to advise the House that, following discussions with the Sultan of Oman, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has announced that Oman is to purchase the Challenger 2 as its new main battle tank, together with its armoured repair and recovery vehicles. I am sure the whole House will want to join me in congratulating Vickers Defence Systems on its well-deserved success in the first export order for Challenger 2.

    Mr. Burns : Notwithstanding that extremely good news, on a slightly different subject, has my right hon. Friend had time today to see the deeply disturbing allegations of fraud in Hackney, coming on top of the discovery of possibly record local government fraud in the Labour London borough of Lambeth? Will he assure the House of the Government’s determination to root out the systematic cheating and defrauding of charge payers?

    Mr. Newton : Yes. I can certainly assure my hon. Friend of our determination in that respect and I have no doubt that we shall be joined in it by the Opposition Front Bench. I have also, I may say, been doing some research on what the commentators have been saying and I came across this one which said :

    “in many areas Labour local government is lacklustre and incompetent. In a few it is simply corrupt and nepotistic. “This is nothing new. Ineffectual or rotten Labour councils … have been a feature of British political life for as long as anyone can remember”.

    That was in Tribune .

    Mrs. Beckett rose–

    Mr. Cryer : If that was in Tribune what about New Statesman ?

    Madam Speaker : Order.

    Mrs. Beckett : Is the Lord President aware that the December trade deficit of more than £1.5 billion is the worst for two and a half years and that whatever gloss he may put on it, the country is still in deep recession and deep trouble with no sign that the Government are prepared to do anything about it?

    Mr. Newton : What I am aware of is that the trade figures recently have shown that for the first time for a very long time our share of world trade in manufactures has stabilised and that the figures– [Interruption.] that is, after decades of decline. The figures today, which inevitably reflect to some extent the consequence on import prices of the depreciation of the pound, also show that export volumes were at record levels for the three months to December ; they were up 5.5 per cent. on the year before in the face of a slowdown in world trade, and there are particularly encouraging signs of a continuing increase in car and other manufactured exports.

    Mrs. Beckett : I suppose that that was the gloss. The reality is that, despite a huge devaluation, exports this month are down, while imports continue to rise. That is unprecedented during a recession. Is it not the case that we now have a payments deficit and a budget deficit, and that, for the past three years, 400 people have lost their jobs every day in London alone? Does not the right hon. Gentleman realise that the people of Britain are worried sick about this, and that the only people who are not are the Government?

    Mr. Newton : The reality is that inflation is at its lowest for six years, that interest rates are at their lowest for 15 years, that productivity is at an all-time high and that all surveys show an increase in business confidence. As I said on Tuesday, it is time that the Opposition stopped trying to talk that confidence down again.

     

    Q2. Mr. Amess : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 January.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Amess : Crime in Basildon has fallen over the past year. Does my right hon. Friend think it right for a mass murderer to be interviewed on television about his crimes, on the grounds that it is of educational value and in the public interest, when common sense tells us that it might well put ideas into the mind of a disturbed person? Does my right hon. Friend think that right? The majority of my constituents in Basildon do not.

    Mr. Newton : I think that I can safely say that the same is likely to go for the majority of my constituents in Braintree. I can do no better than reply to my hon. Friend by referring to what my vigorous right hon. and learned Friend the Home Secretary said on the radio this morning. He said :

    “it is in my opinion contrary to public interest for somebody who is a mass murderer of his kind”–

    of Nilsen’s kind, that is– [Laughter.]

    Madam Speaker : Order. Very amusing, but I think that the Leader of the House wants to get on.

    Mr. Newton : The Leader of the House wants to complete the quotation, Madam Speaker.

    My right hon. and learned Friend said that it was wrong for “a mass murderer of his kind to be allowed publicly to relate his offences in this way–it’s bad taste, bad judgment and it’s totally insensitive to the feelings of the victims of people he killed”.

    Mr. Ashdown : If things are so wonderful, as the Leader of the House claims, will he tell us whether he can recall a time when any Government have presided over unemployment of 3 million, while borrowing £1 billion a week and running up a trade deficit that is heading towards £20 billion a year? Is not that, by any standards, the mark of an economic policy that is floundering and a Government who have failed?

    Mr. Newton : I am somewhat surprised to find the right hon. Gentleman joining Labour Front Benchers in their exercise of talking the economy down again. I repeat that the conditions for recovery are in place, and confidence is growing. I would expect to have the right hon. Gentleman’s support in ensuring that that continues.

    Mr. Dickens : Will my right hon. Friend welcome the reduction in interest rates that was announced this week? It has saved British industry £1 billion. Is it not particularly helpful for our manufacturing industry, and to all those with mortgages and overdrafts? Is not some good news coming out of all the gloom? [Interruption.]

    Mr. Newton rose–

    Madam Speaker : Order. All this hilarity is a waste of valuable question time.

    Mr. Newton : The reduction in interest rates is indeed extremely good news. My hon. Friend might have extended the point that he made in his question by saying that, with the interest reductions that have taken place since 1990, we have seen £11 billion cut off the costs of British industry, and £160 off an average mortgage payment.

     

    Q3. Mr. Martlew : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 January.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Martlew : Will the Leader of the House inform the Prime Minister, when he returns, that in the western part of the United Kingdom there is a great deal of concern about the fact that the Government are failing to give British Rail the necessary resources to upgrade the west coast main line? Does he agree that, without that investment, the economies of the west midlands, north Wales, the north-west of England, Cumbria, Scotland and Northern Ireland will be grossly disadvantaged? Does the Leader of the House agree also that it would be nonsensical for the Prime Minister to underestimate the political influence of areas that account for one third of Members of Parliament?

    Mr. Newton : Should I be able to find the necessary extensive opportunity, in the wake of the hon. Gentleman’s question, I shall, of course, report his views to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister. I have no doubt, however, that my right hon. Friend will disagree with the hon. Gentleman just as much as I do, against the background of the fact that British Rail’s external financing limit next year is to be nearly £1.5 billion.

     

    Q4. Mr. Rathbone : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 January.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Rathbone : May I ask my right hon. Friend to request the Prime Minister to review the policies of the British Government and of the European Community towards Israel in the light of the horrible deportations that have taken place there and of the upholding of those deportations by the Israeli supreme court yesterday, and thus bring pressure on the Israeli Government to accept as swiftly as possible United Nations Security Council resolution 799?

    Mr. Newton : It is obvious from the response to my hon. Friend’s question that his concern is widely shared in the House. He will know that the British Government continue to urge the Israelis to comply with United Nations Security Council resolution 799. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary sent a personal message to the Israeli Foreign Minister last week, and they will meet in Brussels on 1 February, when, as my right hon. Friend has already told the House, he will emphasise the need for the Israeli Government to take urgent steps to solve the problem of the deportees.

     

    Q5. Mr. Gunnell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 January.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Gunnell : Will the Leader of the House give his estimate of the total number of jobs, in both the public and the private sectors, that are at risk through rail privatisation? Does he agree with Lord Prior’s assessment that there will be 12,000 potential job losses in the areas of rolling stock and signalling? While I welcome the news for Leeds about the Challenger tank, may I ask the Leader of the House whether he agrees that more Yorkshire jobs will be lost in railway engineering factories in Hunslet, York, Wakefield and Doncaster as a result of these threats, unless there is action within weeks, rather than months or years?

    Mr. Newton : I do not agree. On the contrary, my right hon. Friend’s proposals for rail privatisation and the development of competition are the best means of ensuring an effective and efficient railway system and of guaranteeing jobs for many people in the long term. I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for acknowledging that his area, Leeds, and Newcastle, because of the Vickers presence there, are among those that will benefit from the work that my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has done on his visit abroad.

     

    Q6. Sir Michael Neubert : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 28 January.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave some moments ago.

    Sir Michael Neubert : Will my right hon. Friend spare some sympathy today for our Community partners, the Irish, whose traditional luck seems temporarily to have deserted them? Whereas Irish overnight interest rates have gone up to 100 per cent., we in liberated Britain have the lowest rates for 15 years, to the great benefit of business, industry and millions of home owners.

    Mr. Newton : I very much share the pleasure that my hon. Friend has expressed in what we have been able to do over interest rates. It shows that we are now moving in the sort of direction that both British industry and the whole of the British people want to see in achieving economic recovery.

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview in Bombay – 27 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s doorstep interview with the press, held in Bombay on Wednesday 27th January 1993.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, you were criticised for coming here, how in retrospect do you see the value of your visit here?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I do not think there is any doubt whatsoever about the value of this visit. There is a tremendous opportunity for both India and the United Kingdom to expand their trade and to expand their investment relationship, here was an opportunity to grasp that and I think it is perfectly apparent from the discussions across a range of matters that the businessmen have taken that opportunity. We have had two very large contracts already, the British Gas contract and today it has been confirmed that GEC are going to be awarded a very large contract as well. So I think that in itself would probably have made the visit worthwhile but in fact a large number of other things are being discussed as well.

    QUESTION:

    But was it really wise to be out of direct contact with British politics for nearly a week?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I have not been out of direct contact with British politics. But I think I would put the point back to you the other way. Here is one of our oldest friends offering the British Prime Minister a position, the greatest honour they can offer as the quest of honour in their Republic Day, apart from the fact that I would have wished to come, it would have been very churlish to refuse and it would perhaps have done immense damage to the relationship between India and the United Kingdom. Even if there had been difficulties I would not have wished to have done that. As it was, I was delighted to accept and there were very many matters we were able to discuss.

    QUESTION:

    It is a great honour to have you here in India, is there any message that you have for Indians living in Britain from Indian soil?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am very pleased to make my first visit to India. We know at home the extent to which the Indian community plays a practical part in our community, not least of course in our business community. I have been able to see here how it operates locally and I am delighted to have done so.

    QUESTION:

    At your press conference in Delhi you spoke very positively about the Indians settled in the UK, whereas the successful ones have no problem, what is your government doing for the less fortunate?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think most people looking at the large number of Indians in the United Kingdom would see right across the range of income groups a tremendous increase in their quality of life and their standard of living in recent years and I think they will benefit, as will everyone else in the United Kingdom, as we move out of recession and back into growth.

    QUESTION:

    In the BCCI bank collapse many Asians lost everything and they are very unhappy with the way the government has handled it, do you not think the problem needs to be addressed?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think the problem has been addressed. If you recall the BCCI affair it was in fact a criminal fraud on a gigantic scale but the overwhelming majority of the investors have now got around three-quarters of their money back, three-quarters of their money back as the result of a protection scheme after a criminal fraud and of course a very careful investigation subsequently.

    QUESTION:

    What about the new immigration law that the government proposes, in effect it means that if a person from the sub-continent applies for entry to the UK and is refused leave to enter he loses the right to appeal, is this not against the rule of law?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No it is not against the rule of law and I think you slightly mis-state the position. The Asylum Bill is dealing with a substantial problem we have with the huge weight of people who are actually waiting a very long time for decisions, we now have administrative measures to deal with it and of course none of that prevents anybody reapplying again if they feel they have been unfairly treated.

  • PMQT Written Answers – 27 January 1993

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 27th January 1993.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    India

    Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy during his visit to India to raise the matter of the conditions under which India would join the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    During his visit my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, has discussed with Prime Minister Rao the attitude of the Indian Government towards the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and has emphasised the importance we attach to universal membership of the treaty.

     

    Machine Tools (Iraq)

    Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Amber Valley (Mr. Oppenheim), of 11 January, Official Report, column 555, what information he has on the sale of machine tools from Germany to Iraq in 1987, 1988 and 1989, based on the standard international trade classification.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade to the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, Central (Mr. Cousins) on 26 January.

     

    Genetically Modified Material

    Mr. Cousins : To ask the Prime Minister which Department has the responsibility for the licensing and control of premises using genetically modified material for research, development and production purposes for industrial, medical or educational uses.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    The Secretary of State for Employment has responsibility for the Genetic Manipulation Regulations 1989, which require all those intending to use premises for the first time for genetic modification work to notify the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Notification requirements also apply to the subsequent activities involving genetic modification.

    A range of additional requirements, which are the responsibility of a number of Departments, apply to specific products which may be genetically modified. The products include medicines, plant pathogens, food additives, veterinary medicines and agricultural pesticides.

     

    Correspondence

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister when he expects to provide a substantive reply to the letter sent to him by Mr. Barrington of Clist road, Bettws, Newport, on 30 November 1992.

    Mr. Newton : I have been asked to reply.

    A reply was sent by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s office on 10 December 1992. A reply to the hon. Member’s constituent’s letter of 13 January 1993 will be sent in due course.

     

    Iraq

    Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Prime Minister if he will seek time at the United Nations for reconsideration of sanctions against Iraq.

    Mr. Newton [holding answer 26 January 1993] : I have been asked to reply.

    The Security Council reviews sanctions against Iraq every 60 days in compliance with United Nations Security Council resolution 687. The most recent review meeting took place on 25 January at which the Security Council concluded that conditions did not exist for the modification or lifting of sanctions against Iraq.

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview at Indore Airport – 27 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s doorstep interview at Indore Airport, held on Wednesday 27th January 1993.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, what is your reaction to your visit to Indore?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think it is impossible to see it without realising the scale of the problem that needs to be dealt with. But what is clear as I saw the second and improved slum dwelling is the opportunity for what could be done and also the extent to which the people living there are prepared to contribute.

    QUESTION:

    But do you think that more work needs to be done?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think self-evidently for a long time there is going to be a great deal more work needed to be done and that will need funds from all sorts of areas.

    QUESTION:

    [Inaudible].

    PRIME MINISTER:

    ODA have got an on-going programme for this and for other projects like this, there are 8 projects like this and a number of other ones as well, it is for that reason that our commitment to India is so large.

    QUESTION:

    How do you think that the funds should be utilised in the development of this colony?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    It seems to me from what I have seen this morning that they are being utilised very wisely, not in grandiose projects but in practical methods that will improve sanitation, improve health and improve quality of life, that is far more important than large prestige projects.

    QUESTION:

    Are you aware of the mis-use of funds [indistinct].

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We always look very carefully through the ODA at what is happening to make sure the funds are used properly, it is a constant point.

    QUESTION:

    Are you aware of the report?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am not aware of the report but ODA officials here will be.

  • Mr Major’s Speech to Businessmen in Bombay (Mumbai) – 27 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s speech to the Businessmen’s Dinner in Bombay (now Mumbai) on Wednesday 27th January 1993.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    It is a pleasure to be with you today. This is my first visit to India though coming here has long been an ambition. Already it has made a deep impression on me and whetted my appetite to see more. I am sure this will not be my last visit to this great country.

    The first theme of my visit has been dialogue and partnership. I wanted to experience – to develop at the highest level – the increasingly close bilateral dialogue between our two countries. This of course owes much to ancient ties of history, culture, parliamentary democracy and personal contacts. But the changes in the world after the end of the cold war have made possible a new kind of partnership between India and Britain.

    To be truly worthwhile a partnership needs to reflect the interests and realities of today in the new international environment. Old history is valuable. But so is current reality. My discussions in New Delhi this week certainly met both those tests. I look forward to continuing and developing the dialogue.

    My visit was given symbolic meaning by the invitation of the Indian Government for me to be chief guest on Republic Day. The parade was a memorable spectacle. Standing there with the President and the Prime Minister of India I felt that the shadows that the past has sometimes cast over our relationship had been dispelled by a modern partnership between sovereign democracies.

    Another theme of my visit has been confidence – British confidence in India. In our country, as in yours, there is a deeply entrenched commitment to the principles of democracy, tolerance and the rule of law. India’s problems can be solved only by Indians: but, as you work them out, you can be sure of our close interest, sympathetic concern and confidence in India’s secular democracy.

    By the same token, the world has watched with dismay the disturbances and destruction that afflicted this great city earlier this month. I hope and pray that peace and harmony, now restored, can be maintained. You do not need me to tell you of the responsibility which rests with the leaders of the business community in helping to resist the forces of hatred and disruption and healing the social and economic wounds. I bring you today the hope and confidence of the British Government that Bombay, which has met so many challenges in the past, can meet this challenge also.

    And may I say a word about Maharashtra’s governor, Dr. Alexander. India has a tradition of sending her best to be High Commissioner in London. And we return the compliment. We have warm memories in Britain of Dr. Alexander’s time as High Commissioner. He has many friends and admirers and all of these friends wish him well in his new post.

    For your city has a special place in British hearts. The connection goes back to 1661 and has developed over the years as the city has become the vibrant heart of India’s economic and commercial life.

    London and Bombay are the financial capitals of our two countries. The effective provision of financial services is vital, not only for the health of the domestic economy but also as a source of foreign earnings. We are proud of the achievements of the City of London, and we depend on them to help earn our keep in the world. Bombay too has the potential to be a world commercial and financial centre.

    One of the main themes of my visit is the partnership which Britain and India can enjoy in the wider world economy. This is what I want to focus on tonight.

    World Economic Prospects

    The international economy is living through hard times. It is precisely at such times that the temptations of economic isolationism grow, together with the pressures on governments to give special help to their own industries and their own companies. It is precisely at such times that governments must be strongest in resisting these siren calls. For those policies would lead us into a downward spiral of beggar-my-neighbour. We can be sure they would do no one any lasting good and would damage most those who are already most vulnerable.

    Uruguay Round

    We need international co-operation – regionally and globally – to bring back growth to the world economy. The most important key to that recovery remains success in the Uruguay Round.

    An early and comprehensive settlement of these GATT negotiations is crucial for the future health of the international economy. According to OECD estimates it would mean a boost to the world economy of some 200 billion dollars per annum. That in turn means new income and new jobs for millions of people all over the world. It would be folly to put all that at risk.

    I sometimes hear that GATT is arranged to suit the developed countries. It is of course true that we have much at stake. But developing countries need free trade just as much, if not more. Their companies need the opportunity to sell those goods and products where they are competitive, and to buy the inputs they need at prices they can afford. The progressive liberalisation of trade in textiles and agricultural products promises enormous benefits for developing countries, including India. Protectionist barriers damage most those who think they are being protected. The developing countries which have opened their markets most have prospered most. The evidence is there for all to see, not least in Asia. Trade and investment are far more important than aid in promoting sustained economic growth in developing countries.

    So a GATT agreement will be good for India too. Like the rest of us, the Indian Government have seen that the whole settlement is greater than the sum of its parts.

    European Community

    Britain is not of course an independent actor in the GATT talks. The European Commission negotiates on behalf of the 12 members of the European Community. The EC is India’s largest trading partner, and an essential source of investment and development assistance. Britain has just completed its Presidency of the Community. At the Edinburgh Summit last month, we sorted out many of the Community’s own problems.

    The progress of the Community has been further underlined by the opening for business of the European Single Market on the first of this month. It is the biggest market in history. Barriers to trade and enterprise have been broken down. Europeans can now live where they like in the Community and buy goods and services freely in the country of their choice.

    The Community remains open to trade from all parts of the world, and should be increasingly open when Uruguay Round provisions come into force. No new barriers to trade arise from the Single Market. We want to destroy the barriers to trade, not just move them. And the increasing harmonization of standards in the EC makes life easier, not harder, for outside exporters. They have only one target to aim at, rather than 12.

    Last month, under the British Presidency, India and the EC initialled a new Co-operation Agreement. Proof of Britain’s determination to keep the Community open and outward-looking. The new text opens the way for increased co-operation in areas as diverse as trade, investment, development, the environment, agriculture, science and technology, energy, telecommunications and drug abuse.

    We hope that when the Agreement is signed, it will be accompanied by a Joint Statement on political dialogue. This second document – also negotiated under our presidency – enshrines arrangements for the Indian and EC governments to work together closely on a wide range of political and other issues.

    We are your natural partners and friends within the Community and are delighted to continue to make this count in practical ways.

    To sum up, my message on Europe is threefold:

    – the Community is moving forward with full British commitment;

    – the Single Market is emphatically not a barrier to Indian exports;

    – the relationship between the Community and India is set to develop further, with Britain as one of India’s friends at court.

    The British Economy

    It is against the background of these world and EC developments that we have to deal with the more immediate economic concerns of our two countries. A few words about the British economy first.

    1992 cannot be claimed as one of our vintage years. Signs of economic recovery were slow to appear. Unemployment continued to rise. Company and individual confidence remained stubbornly low.

    But behind the scenes I believe the stage is set for a decisive move towards our consistent economic objective: sustainable non-inflationary growth. The necessary underlying conditions for this are now in place:

    – inflation – at 2.6 per cent – is at its lowest for six and a half years;

    – interest rates – following yesterday’s reduction – are now 6 per cent, the lowest figure for 15 years and the lowest in the European Community;

    – confidence is beginning to return to house-buyers, consumers and investors; and

    – our exchange rate is highly competitive.

    All this provides a tremendous opportunity for British industry. The government will be working closely with industry, especially manufacturing companies, to maximise investment in modern equipment and increase exports. We shall also be redoubling our efforts to free up our own markets, and reduce the burdens of government and bureaucracy on our own companies. The cornerstone of our policies remains the conviction that the creation of wealth is most effective when economic and commercial freedom are greatest.

    Indo-British Economic Links

    India and Britain are two of the largest dozen economies in the world. British investment in India is estimated at about 2 billion pounds, significantly larger than that of any other country. At least 250 British companies are well established here with an important stake in India’s economy. Many more have tie-ups involving the transfer of technology and know- how. The open British market will provide ample opportunities for India’s increasingly competitive exporters, many of them from Bombay and Western India.

    British development assistance to India is almost twice as much as to any other country in the world. We are proud of our aid programme here, which combines support for projects aimed at encouraging economic growth with help for the poorest. I was able to see something of our aid programme earlier today when I visited two slum improvement projects in Indore. The project is transforming life for the people, enhancing their environment, their health, their education, their opportunities to earn a living, and above all their dignity. We are proud of our partnership with the Indian authorities in making all this possible.

    So we are already doing much together. But this is only a beginning. New perspectives are opened by the dramatic change in India’s economic management and policies in the last eighteen months. Prime Minister Narasimha Rao and his Government have made Herculean efforts to stabilise the economy after the crisis of mid-1991. And having achieved this stabilisation, they are set to change the policies which, however justified at the outset, would never have built prosperity.

    We have admired and applauded the sweeping away of so many of the bureaucratic obstacles – the so-called licence raj – to normal business decision-making. We have welcomed the attack on high trade tariffs and even more direct barriers to trade, and the shift to genuine encouragement of foreign investment. We believe the policies of reducing wasteful and irrelevant government subsidies, cutting the budget deficit, and redirecting government spending to where it is most needed – the basic needs of the poorest, particularly in education and health – are absolutely right.

    We all know the entrepreneurial talents of the Indian people. We in Britain know them particularly well from the immense and valued contribution to our economic and commercial life made by so many entrepreneurs, large and small, of Indian origin. These talents can now be fully liberated in India too. India can look forward to taking its place before long among the fastest growing economies of Asia.

    The land of the tiger can become an economic tiger herself. She starts with great advantages: a huge domestic market, a reserve of trained and inexpensive manpower, a thriving private sector with an established entrepreneurial tradition and great natural talent, most of the necessary financial institutions already in place, and an exuberant democracy.

    But – there is always a but – the fruits of reform will only arrive if reform is continued and deepened. The effort to liberalise the economy and expose it to international competition must not only be maintained, but increased. The UK government has supported the process wholeheartedly through extra balance of payments support, through the positions we have taken in the international financial institutions, through the encouragement we have given to our companies to look at investing in India.

    What goes for Britain, goes for India – free markets and competition increase prosperity for everyone. Opening up trade, including in consumer goods. Liberalising further industrial and agricultural markets. Confining the public sector to its proper role and make public sector enterprises free to act and accountable for their actions. Making your labour laws encourage job creation and investment, rather than giving an illusion of job security to a privileged few. The Indian people will be the winners.

    Future Co-operation

    I said that we have been encouraging our companies to take a fresh look at India. It is significant that I have been accompanied on this visit by one of the most senior British industrial delegations ever to be in one place overseas at one time. These are senior businessmen, seriously interested in what they can do in and with India.

    Most of them have come with me to Bombay and are here this evening. They will tell you of the welcome message they received from Ministers and senior civil servants of the Indian government’s determination to maintain the reform programme. They are already making plans to carry this message back to their fellow British businessmen at home. They have agreed with their Indian counterparts on an Indo-British Partnership Initiative to promote trade and investment in both directions. As long as the reform programme continues – and the Government will need the continuing support of industry in carrying through difficult political decisions – I have no doubt that existing British investments in India will expand, and other British firms will set up here.

    During my visit we have taken some big steps forward. Here in Bombay, British Gas and the Gas Authority of India agreed this week to collaborate in bringing natural gas on-shore first to industry, and then to private consumers – a deal worth £100 million. And today I was delighted to hear that the Indian authorities intend to award to GEC Alsthom a contract to link the electricity networks of the West and South of India, this time worth £140 million. These and other deals which I know are in the pipeline will bring employment and new technology to India, not least to Bombay, and jobs and continuing export business to Britain. It is a partnership from which we both stand to benefit enormously.

    At my meeting with Indian business leaders yesterday, the first question I was asked was about the scope for privatisation in India and how Britain could help. I am sure that there is great scope for making more use of private sector skills in many parts of the Indian economy. I believe that this is one of the areas that the Indo-British Partnership Initiative should focus on. Britain has enormous experience of privatisation – we have carried out the most far-reaching privatisation programme in the world. Our experts – banks, accountants, consultants, civil servants – stand ready to advise and help as and when you in India decide to go down the same path.

    I know there has been disappointment in India at the apparently slow pace at which foreign investment has been increasing. But investment depends not only on the right policies and general goodwill. It depends on policy implementation at all levels, on confidence that reform is here to stay on the certainty that the era of suspicion of foreign companies is over. The stability and clarity of policy objectives over time is what counts in persuading foreign investors to take decisions.

    If that vision is there, Britain and India have so much to offer each other. I have already spoken in Delhi of the enormous general improvement in our bilateral relations. Much of the practical benefit for both of us from these excellent links will derive from the breadth and depth of our joint economic and commercial activities.

    Governments cannot of course make this happen. The theme of my speech has been that at global, regional and national level it is competition and free markets which bring prosperity. The whole point of free markets is that individual companies and people decide for themselves where to invest and with whom to do business. But governments must create the right environment for free markets to flourish. We are on the right course. Let us both stick to it, build on what has been achieved so far, and together help to create a better future for all our people.

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview in Indore – 27 January 1993

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s doorstep interview with the press, held in Indore on Wednesday 27th January 1993.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, what are your impressions of what you have seen today?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I have now seen both the projects, the one that had no improvement work done on it and the one that has had some improvement work started, and I think there are several impressions. Firstly, you can see the enormous amount that needs to be done; and secondly, you can see as the improvement work proceeds the impact it is actually making on people, even the relatively modest improvements above ground and below ground have made a complete change to the Community. Much more to be done of course, but very valuable work.

    QUESTION:

    Now there are improvements in life and health?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Certainly in life and health. Many of the improvements you physically cannot see, it is the availability of proper sanitation, proper water, it is well below ground but it is there, it was not there elsewhere, the improvement of the medical facilities. And here, here is one of the extremely unimproved homes, but if you look around you now find there are clubs being formed, clubs for young wives, clubs for children, gymnasiums, there is a great deal of health activity, all of which would not have been apparent some time ago, It is desperately needed and very welcome.

    QUESTION:

    Some of this money comes from Britain although it is a drop in the ocean when put alongside India’s problems. Do you believe these people actually know who you are, that you are a representative of that country, do they know who John Major is?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    They seem to but whether they do or not the important thing is that the resources are here so that the help can be given, that is the thing that really matters, where the resources come from is entirely a secondary matter, the fact that they are here to help provide a quality of life that otherwise there would not be is desperately necessary. One only has to look around for a few minutes to see how much needs to be done.

    QUESTION:

    Does this make you think that you should be reaching the UN target for foreign aid more quickly?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Everyone would like to reach the UN target as soon as they can. The degree of need, we have seen it here in India, but we know it exists in other countries as well not all that far away, in Bangladesh you find it, you see it in many parts of Africa, there is a huge amount of need. It cannot all be met by aid of course, but aid often is the need towards tremendous domestic improvements. One of the attractive features of what is happening here that has been stressed to me several times going round, as the improvements have become apparent people have begun improving their own homes and their own quality of life as well, so I think the aid can play a very important part.