We are grateful to the hon. Member for Walsall, North (Mr. Hodgson) for the way in which he so factually raised this agonising story. I want to make it absolutely clear at the outset that the Government are deeply concerned about the distress that has been caused to a number of British families following this accident.

The hon. Gentleman mentioned a number of hon. Members on both sides of the House who have shown an interest in the issue. Amongst those prominent in concern immediately spring to mind the names of the hon. Member for Harrow, East (Mr. Dykes) and my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe (Mrs. Dunwoody), as well as of the hon. Member for Walsall, North himself.

On a number of occasions, both I and my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Trade have had a chance to hear these representations on behalf of constituents, and on behalf of those who have dependants who are suffering as a result of the accident. My hon. Friend and I have always appreciated these opportunities because they have enabled us to build up a far better acquaintance with the facts of the whole sad story. We entirely share the hon. Gentleman's anxiety about the financial hardship and frustration experienced by the relatives of the victims in their attempts to secure full compensation. For a long time, my hon. Friend and I have taken, and continue to take, a close personal interest in this issue. I assure the hon. Gentleman that we remain anxious to do everything we can to help.

The hon. Gentleman sketched out the story. I do not think there is much disagreement about the facts. It is certainly true that on 5 March 1973 there was a mid-air collision over Nantes between two Spanish aircraft—an Iberia DC9 flying from Palma to London and a Spantax Coronado flying from Madrid to London. All seven crew and 61 passengers, 46 of whom were British, on the DC9 were killed when the aircraft broke up and crashed. The Spantax aircraft managed to make an emergency landing, and fortunately the crew and passengers escaped uninjured.

The disaster took place during a strike of the French air traffic controllers, which certainly at the time led to speculation in the French and British media that the military ground controllers, who temporarily took over the jobs, may in some way have been responsible because they were unfamiliar with the civilian equipment and procedure.

The circumstances in which this crash occurred were unusual. It is likely that the responsibility for the disaster is divided. On the basis of the official report of the commission of inquiry, the judge in Nantes was unable to attach blame for criminal negligence exclusively to either the Spantax pilot or the military ground controllers. The consequent decision by the French authorities that they could not institute criminal proceedings has certainly made it harder for the claimants to pin down who was to blame and to recover compensation.

The hon. Gentleman will recall that Iberia's liability for passengers was limited under the terms of the Warsaw convention, as amended by the Hague protocol, to a maximum of £10,780. We understand that payments were offered to the dependants in fulfilment of this obligation without undue delay. As the hon. Gentleman has pointed out, relatives are seeking to recover additional sums from the French Government on the ground that the crash was largely caused by negligence on the part of the French air traffic controllers.

The hon. Gentleman may feel that the limit of liability to which I have referred is too low—£10,780. I assure the House that the Government share this view and that British carriers, as a condition of their licence, must contract for at least the equivalent of $58,000. Similar limits are offered by the carriers of many other countries. I understand that Iberia also recently agreed to contract for a higher limit of liability of the same order.

The Embassy in Paris has on repeated occasions emphasised to the French authorities the importance that the British Government attach to the resolution of this longstanding problem, and has pressed for it to be treated as a matter of priority. Hon. Members will know that it was in response to these repeated representations by the Embassy and to a personal approach I made to the French Ambassador that the French conveyed to us on 28 July last year their decision to propose on overall compromise settlement.

The House will, of course, understand that it is for the claimants and their lawyers to decide how to respond to this proposal for an out-of-court settlement and to any offers that may be made in this framework. The alternative is for them to pursue their claims through the appropriate French courts. It would, frankly, be improper for me to offer any comment from this Dispatch Box on what they might decide to do.