Vince Cable

In response to the findings of the WTO Appellate Body, Business Secretary Vince Cable, said:

"I greatly welcome today's findings from the WTO Appellate Body. The WTO has finally rejected the US' main allegations of illegal EU support to Airbus, and has endorsed the principle of European Governments providing repayable loans to companies to contribute towards the development of new aircraft.

"I am pleased the report also reverses a number of the other findings made by the original panel, and concludes that any adverse impact on Boeing is far lower than has been alleged. The findings that remain against Europe are now much more limited in scope but we will, of course, work to address them.

"The WTO's conclusions confirm that this has been an unproductive and costly process, which has not served the interests of taxpayers or industry in either Europe or the US."