asked the President of the Board of Trade how many cotton mills, spinning and weaving, closed under the wartime concentration scheme, still remain closed; how many have been re-opened; and what are the numbers of spindles and looms, respectively, involved.

On 31st May, 136 reopened cotton spinning mills, containing 10½ million mule-equivalent spindles, were in production; three mills, containing 200,000 spindles, had notified their intention of re-opening but were not yet in production, and another 48 mills, containing nearly 2½ million spindles, were still closed. As regards weaving, 193 sheds, containing 82,000 looms, had been licensed to re-open and some 250 sheds containing 73,000 looms, still remained closed.