What we may or not have done for the Saudis would be a question for the Ministry of Defence not us

What we may or not have done for the Saudis would be a question for the Ministry of Defence, not us, because they would have been the interface with the Saudis.'Mr Loney maintained that any alleged conspiracy to allow British companies to make US designed weapons under licence in the UK to get round the US arms controls would not work because the companies would need US approval for each consignment for export.If the companies said the end user was in the Middle East, Congress would refuse permission.Allegations uncovered by the Independent have led to an intriguing theory about the Westland affair, which led to the resignations of two Cabinet ministers, Michael Heseltine and Leon Brittan.The controversy centred on rival European and American-backed bids to rescue Westland when it was in severe financial difficulties in 1985 and 1986.Michael Heseltine, then Secretary of State for Defence, galvanised the European consortium and Leon Brittan, then Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, supported the American offer from Sikorsky. In a natural, instinctive sense I feel that the buck stops with her. MARK TAYLOR was appointed captain of Australia yesterday, succeeding Allan Border who retired earlier this month after 10 years in charge. They're called that because they wear green belts when they attack A chap called Denis leads them. LILLEHAMMER'S persistent moose problems, touched on previously by Almanack, have been worsened by record snowfalls.

The Liberal Democrat opposition abstained on the budget vote, lending guarded support to Labour's claim that yardsticks used by Whitehall to allocate grants to local authorities produce 'grotesque' results despite changes this year. Three out of four Liverpool households, occupiers of homes in the band valued at up to pounds 40,000, will receive demands next month for pounds 577.81 - an increase of pounds 94.34.In the median Band D (pounds 68,000-pounds 88,000), council tax will increase to pounds 866.72 from pounds 725.20. Three days ago 120 influential Palestinian figures from inside and outside the occupied territories signed a petition calling on Mr Arafat to exercise his authority more democratically.HEBRON - Israel yesterday released some of the 197 exiled Palestinians it allowed to return last week from banishment in south Lebanon, Reuter reports. Whenever it is played, Mike Walker, the City manager, knows that his side must be wary of all 11 opponents, not just the likes of Dennis Bergkamp and Ruben Sosa.'It's not the big names that concern me, more the supporting cast,' Walker said. It marks a relapse following last year's recovery to a DM133m profit from a loss of DM128m in 1991. In those days the courts were grass and susceptible to wear and tear. Its share price has soared to more than 280p from a low earlier this year of 183p.

The service was quick once we found someone to swap with, and matters were completed within six to eight weeks.'Property exchange has grown in popularity as house owners have encountered more difficulty selling their properties during the recession.It has a number of advantages over the conventional method of buying and selling houses. There she wrote a series of stories about her life which she read on Woman's Hour. In the evenings I go twice a week to the office and write letters or answer the phone.'She denies any suggestion that she is being exploited, emotionally or otherwise. Besides, perhaps as much as a third of the wastage can be traced to individual homes through dripping taps, overflows and leaking service pipes.Which leaves metering: making people curb their consumption by charging them according to how much they use.

However, once the bowling moved up a couple of notches, the all-rounder looked out of sorts with the bat.The only other change to the batting should involve the order, with Gooch resuming at the head of it, where he is at his most imperious, and Stewart coming in first wicket down, a much more convenient place to exhibit his natural aggression.Who handles the ball - and the bowling - at Headingley is even more pertinent after Lord's and not solely because of the dirt dug up by the captain. But he promised to consider the plan, which now appears to have some chance of survival.(Maps omitted). IN 1972 Robert Hecht bought a hatbox full of Greek vase fragments, had them glued back together and sold the resulting vase to the Metropolitan Museum in New York for dollars 1m, the highest price that had ever been recorded for a work of classical antiquity. So the dangers are that it will be narrow, ill-educated and corrupt. He neglected to send his daughter to school, so that at 10 she still could not read. Mr Temple explains that the focus will be on California beach life in the 1950s and 1960s, with products that include stationery and clothing.Nostalgia is also an important element in the licensing activities developed by Cadbury, which has changed its strategy.'At one time, the Cadbury trademark could be found on mashed potato, savoury snacks and canned meat products - but not any more,' says Chris Wood, managing director of CLK, the brand development company.