Written question asked by Paul Flynn (Labour) on Thursday, 7 January 1999, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 21 January 1999. It was answered by Stephen Byers (Labour) on Thursday, 21 January 1999 on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry.

Dept of Trade and Industry

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, What proposals he has to improve the competitiveness of British hi-tech industry. (Failed OPQ). - Includes figure and ref to 'Our Competitive Future: Building the Knowledge Driven Economy'.

Answer: Mr. Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals he has to improve the competitiveness of British high-tech industry. [65223] Mr. Byers: The Government set out their agenda for helping to improve the competitiveness of the whole of British industry in the recently published White Paper "Our Competitive Future: Building the Knowledge Driven Economy". In the White Paper, we also recognised the need to look to the future, to those high-tech industries that have strong growth potential. This is why for example, as part of the Enterprise Fund announced in the White Paper, we are working with major financial institutions to set out a national venture capital fund to support very early-stage, high technology businesses. It is also why the Government in partnership with the Wellcome Trust will spend an additional £1.4 billion to modernise the science and engineering base and help fund leading edge research projects.

Secondary information