Public Dividend Capital

Part of Industry Bill – in the House of Commons at 10:30 pm on 6 February 1980.

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Photo of Dr Jack Cunningham Dr Jack Cunningham Shadow Spokesperson (Business, Innovation and Skills), Shadow Spokesperson (Industry) 10:30, 6 February 1980

I beg to move amendment No. 9, in page 3, leave out lines 16 to 42.

I shall be brief, as usual. Clause 3 gives the NEB the power to pass to the Secretary of State, with a consequential reduction of its capital, the proceeds of disposals that could be directed by the Secretary of State.

The way in which the clause is drafted leaves open the possibility, which the Secretary of State mentioned, that the NEB will retain some of the proceeds of its disposals for reinvestment. Without the clause, the NEB would have no power to remit the proceeds of disposals to the Government, and the much-publicised but now doubtful raising of £100 million as a contribution to the reduction of the public sector borrowing requirement would not be possible.