British International Investment
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of British International Investment’s use of public funds to support private equity activity on levels of wider retail participation in equity investment.
Answered by Seema Malhotra
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) holds British International Investment (BII) to account for delivery of its five-year strategy through well-established governance arrangements. As part of these arrangements, the FCDO receives comprehensive access to information on BII's performance across a range of areas, ensuring BII provides value for money. This includes ensuring BII operates within an agreed target for its operating costs, and delivers on its financial return and development impact targets. By reinvesting reflows from its existing investments and mobilising private capital alongside its own, BII extends its impact and delivers value for the UK taxpayer.
BII invests to support productive, sustainable and inclusive private sector development in eligible developing countries. In its current five-year strategy, BII is aiming to mobilise up to £7.5 billion in private capital alongside its own investments, working with investors to deepen their understanding and engagement in developing economies.
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