7 July 1982]
[Mr Crowther Contd.] fight for ket.
THE INDUSTRY AND TRADE COMMITTEE
MR G T CHECKETTS, MR R T Fox, MR P J GODdard and MR A G B YOUNG
an increased share of the mar-
Mr Cockeram
127. Could I ask to what extent you consider youselves representative of British industry. Take, for example, Mr Goddard whose company is in the lead, I understand, in a public transport system in Singapore and is a member of your Committee: to what extend do other British exporters feel they are not on the inside but their competi-
tors are?
(Mr Checketts.) I am happy to say that membership of SEATAG is sought. That is a compliment to the body and the work that we do. With 10 or 15 industrial members I cannot hope to cover every aspect of British business, but we do take the sectors we take insurance and banking consultants, manu- facturers, merchant bankers -
we try to cover those. Am I answer your question?
128. Yes, you are exactly. If you take one insurance company and one banker by definition the other insurance companies and other bankers are on the outside rather than the inside. To what extent are they disadvantaged?
(Mr Checketts.) That is very clear: we put on a UK hat, all of us.
Mr Crowther
129. I am really coming back to the Japanese position: I would just like you to comment, if you would, on the Minister's use of the word "sacrificial prices". Can you give any example of how this is disadvanta- geous to Britain?
(Mr Checketts.) I would say that the practice is possibly five years old. We call it kamikaze you have heard of it I expect. Even the Japanese cannot afford that today. They have to make a profit just like anybody else. I hope my colleagues are agreeing I find in my business there is less of that; there is still competition but not the kamikaze type, they are not 25 under to win something, where they would have been 25 under they will be 5 under today.
Mr Cockeram
130. You say in your paper that ATP is one of the most important factors in win- ning significant contracts. would you care to comment on the efficiency or effectiveness of Government support and whether you think it is correct to come under the Department of Trade rather than that of Overseas Development?
[Continued
39
(Mr Checketts.) It was, I thought, a most interesting discussion this morning. The one aspect that was not mentioned by anybody was time. There were restraints on this and developmental that and the one aspect not mentioned was time.
131.
Sir Peter Emery Reaction?
(Mr Checketts.) There was no mention of the word "time". I think Mr Benjamin said they would still have the same developmen- tal tests performed but in what time could they be performed? That was my question. If it was in their hands, if they were in the driving seat rather than the passenger seat I would expect the consultative processes which have to go on could be very much quicker and, if you are on the end of a bid where your customer is demanding a little bit more than he was quoted, you have to have a quick consultative process to get the answer out of Her Majesty's Government. Having said that, I am not complaining that it does not come, we get very good support at ATP, but sometimes it is a matter of time. That is why I would like to see it switched.
Mr Cockeram
132. Do you feel the DOT are not sufficiently nimble-footed and if your Gov- ernment assistance was handled through the ODA it would be more nimble.
(Mr Checketts.) No-the other way round. It is now with the ODA who are well, I will not say any more but they are not as nimble as the DOT.
133. I had it the wrong way round. (Mr Checketts.) As defined, I think, in their Act of Parliament or whatever it is.
Chairman
134. Can you tell me how our speed of reaction to matters regarding bids compares with the French and German reactions?
(Mr Fox.) Perhaps I could pick up one word, the word "reaction" used by Mr Checketts. In this country all our processes are to react to what other people are doing rather than lead with anything. I think this has been a great disadvantage in the past, perhaps particularly against the French through certainly other nations as well. Everything is reaction. Mr Benjamin re- ferred to the way we had to reconsider the use of our aid programme because of what other people were doing. We are reacting all the time. The same thing happens in the