To ask the Prime Minister what guidelines exist in respect of the receipt, recording and disposal or otherwise of gifts received by Ministers acting in their official capacity.
It is a well-established rule that no Minister should accept gifts, hospitality or services from anyone which would, or might appear to, place him or her under an obligation. The recording and, where appropriate, disposal of gifts received is a matter for Departments.
To ask the Prime Minister (1) where the synthetic sapphire presented to her in her official capacity by the British Scientific and Technical Trust is held;(2) if she will make it her policy to refuse any gift offered to her in her official capacity which contains
(a) ivory, (b) fur, (c) tropical hardwoods or (d) chlorofluorocarbons;
(3) what gift she presented to President de Klerk on the occasion of his recent visit to the United Kingdom;
(4) what gift she presented to President Gorbachev on the occasion of her recent visit to the USSR in June;
(5) what gift she presented to President Bush on the occasion of her visit to the United States of America in November 1989.
It is not my normal practice to provide information of this kind concerning gifts given or received.