asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if, in conjunction with interested Scottish trade and commercial associations and the President of the Board of Trade, he will invite selected representatives of each of the Dominions in turn to come to Scotland with a view to increasing her trade with the Commonwealth.

While my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade is primarily responsible for making official arrangements for Commonwealth trade representatives who visit this country under the sponsorship of their Governments, my right hon. Friend will be very glad to co-operate in making them welcome to Scotland at any time, and so, I know, will the Scottish Council (Development and Industry).

Is my hon. Friend aware of the great amount of good will there is in all the Dominions towards Scotland, and will he, not the President of the Board of Trade, take the initiative in this matter? Does he realise that by some bold imagination we have a chance here of helping Scotland to help herself?

My right hon. Friend is aware of the considerations that my hon. Friend mentioned, but this is a matter primarily for the President of the Board of Trade.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland, in view of the fact that the capital expenditure on the generation of electricity by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board has exceeded by millions of pounds the amounts approved by Parliament, if he will take immediate steps to withdraw his sanction for new schemes and to halt schemes in course of construction unless they are nearing completion.

The reasons why the completed costs of the Board's schemes have in the past exceeded the estimates given to Parliament when the schemes were approved have been most carefully examined but these increases do not, in my right hon. Friend's view, justify taking the action suggested by my hon. Friend. Clearly, my right hon. Friend must consider new schemes on their merits and once a scheme has become operative the Board has a statutory duty to proceed with it.

Is the Secretary of State aware that the twelve schemes completed were approved by Parliament at a cost of £21 million, but that they cost £44 million? Is he also aware that the eleven schemes now in progress were estimated to cost £60 million, that they are still uncompleted, and that the estimated completion cost is £98 million? In the interests of the Board, as well as of the people of Scotland, is not it desirable that the Board should stop and rest awhile consolidating?

I do not think that the second part of the supplementary question follows from what my hon. Friend said. The Select Committee on Nationalised Industries pointed out that constructional works take a long time to complete. Undoubtedly in the early stages the Board had less experience of these matters than it has now, but the mere fact that the estimates have been exceeded in the past is not a reason for not going on with schemes at present.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that a great deal of this is not the responsibility of the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board but is due to changes in prices? Further, is he aware that the greatly increased cost of interest is landing the Hydro-Electric Board in much greater capital expenditure?

Yes, Sir, I am aware of both those things.

Is not it the case that the Secretary of State for Scotland is responsible to Parliament for the Hydro-Electric Board, and not the Select Committee on Nationalised Industries?

Yes, Sir, but the Select Committee on Nationalised Industries recommended that these figures should be given to the House of Commons. It gave the figures in its Report and my right hon. Friend has made arrangements to lay a statement in the Library showing the estimates and the ultimate out-turn.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has noted that the balance sheet and accounts of the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board for 1957 record a small profit in spite of increased purchases of electricity, much less than a full year's benefits from increased charges for electricity, £2,292,118 charged against revenue for redemption of capital, £798,677 for capital depreciation and £4,929,706 for interest on borrowing; and if he will now therefore withdraw the request to the Board to reduce capital expenditure on distribution to which reference was made in the House by his predecessor on 10th July, 1956.

The present restrictions on the Board's total capital expenditure do not specify separate amounts for expenditure on distribution. They were fixed in relation to the total amount of capital investment that the country can afford and my right hon. Friend sees no reason to withdraw them.

Is not it amazing that the country can afford excess expenditure of £60 million and £70 million on generation while my constituents and others in the Highlands are unable to get that to which they are entitled under an Act passed by this House—electricity connections—and that the Board should be able to take advantage of a request made under the credit squeeze policy to avoid expensive connections?

My hon. Friend will be glad to hear that the Board intends to spend rather more in the current year than it did in the past year.

Can my hon. Friend ask the Board to arrange some programme when various people will be likely to get electricity connection in the more remote areas, as at present it appears that many of them will have to wait for many years?

No doubt the Board will take note of what my hon. Friend has said.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether a firm decision has yet been taken as to how many lines of traffic the Forth road bridge will carry abreast.

Yes, Sir. Two 24 ft. carriageways each capable of carrying two lines of traffic will be provided. There will also be two 9 ft. cycle tracks and two 6 ft. footpaths.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the reason for the delay in remedying the state of diligence in Caithness and Sutherland which has been under active consideration by the Lord Advocate and at least two Committees since November, 1953.

As my hon. Friends knows, the problems to which he alludes are not confined to Caithness and Sutherland. In 1956, my right hon. Friend's predecessor appointed a Committee to undertake a complete review of the law and practice of diligence. My right hon. Friend understands that the Committee has made good progress and he hopes to receive its Report within the next few months.

Is not this delay of nearly five years bringing the law of Scotland into complete disrepute? Is my hon. Friend aware that in the Highlands of Scotland creditors are unable to sue for money owing to them, that the Queen's Writ does not run in the Highlands, entirely due to the unreasonable delay of nearly five years? What does the Secretary of State intend to do about that?

I do not think that my hon. Friend would expect the Secretary of State to take action just at the moment when a Report is about to be received.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what procedure he will adopt to ascertain whether his warning to landlords is effective; and what measures he will adopt if it fails.

As my right hon. Friend has already indicated, he will continue to watch the position closely, but he does not propose to add at this stage to what he said in the debate on 3rd March.

May we take it that the right hon. Gentleman has no intention of doing anything and that if he had had, he would have done so before the Kelvin-grove by-election? Are not his statements mere propaganda? If he is to watch anything closely, is not it the evictions which he intends to watch?

My right hon. Friend has no power to call for returns on what is essentially a matter between the landlord and the tenant. I cannot add to what he said in the debate.

Will the Joint Under-Secretary say what powers the Secretary of State has to take action to deal with problems arising from the Rent Act, without new legislation?

That is an entirely different question, but I remind the hon. Member that if he and the Labour Party are sincere and really believe that there will be trouble, they should withdraw their threat to nationalise homes and to pay inadequate compensation for them.

That is a promise, not a threat.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is aware of hardship to tenants particularly aged people contained in new agreements made under the Rent Act, 1957; and if he will set up a tribunal to deal with cases of hardship and evictions.

A new tenancy agreement of a decontrolled house is a matter of negotiation between landlord and tenant, but my right hon. Friend has made it clear on several occasions that he looks to landlords to act reasonably.

If a landlord refuses to negotiate—and many are refusing to negotiate—will the Secretary of State intervene at that stage to prevent old people being evicted? Would not it be a very small request that he should establish a tribunal just to deal with urgent cases?

This matter was very fully debated and the Government made their position quite clear in what my right hon. Friend said on 3rd March. After very careful examination, it is my view that if there is hardship and if there are evictions the Labour Party, with its nationalisation proposals, will be largely responsible.

Does not the Under-Secretary appreciate the inconsistency of what he is saying? He says that the Labour Party promise to municipalise houses is causing houses to be sold, while his right hon. Friend says that they are not being sold, but relet. Does not he see the inconsistency?

My right hon. Friend has corrected the figure to 25 per cent. not relet, but that is still a very high percentage. It was not a promise, it was a threat.

Does not the Under-Secretary realise that it is not very much use placing reliance on the reasonableness of a set of people who even supplied the Secretary of State with quite wrong figures, which he took no opportunity to verify, and which may be even more wrong than he has admitted?

That is another question and my right hon. Friend has quite properly made a statement on that.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland the nature of the protests he has received from the tenants at Merrick Gardens, in the constituency of the hon. Member for Govan, in regard to the operation of the Rent Act, 1957; and what reply he has sent.

My right hon. Friend had last week a letter from one tenant who has entered into an agreement with his landlord but regards the new rent as excessive. The reply sent by his Department drew attention to recent Government statements on the working of the Rent Act but indicaed that my right hon. Friend has no power to intervene in an agreement between landlord and tenant. My right hon. Friend also had a letter from another tenant in November containing a protest in general terms not calling for a reply.

Is the Secretary of State fully aware of the nature of the increase which has been imposed on this tenant; that, prior to the Rent Act, she was paying £40 a year including rates, and that she is now faced with the payment of £191 including rates? Does he regard that as reasonable, and does he realise that there were no negotiations here whatsoever, but that this was imposed, not only upon this tenant, but upon every single tenant in the area which I have indicated?

I appreciate the sincerity of the hon. Gentleman, but I do not think he would expect me to comment on an individual case without full investigation. My right hon. Friend looks to landlords to act with humanity and intelligence.

Could the Minister clear up some of the confusion on this matter? At one time, the Government are saying that they intend to do something to prevent landlords from abusing their powers, but the next time we have a Minister making a declaration that they do not intend to alter the terms of the Act. Under what powers can they interfere with landlords once they have given them power to take this inhumane action?

I am not at all sure that that is relevant to the hon. Gentleman's Question, but the answer is contained in columns 861 and 862 of HANSARD of 3rd March, when my right hon. Friend the Minister of Housing and Local Government made a statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland how far the 3,267 houses which were relet during a specified period last year included council houses, exchanges of tenancies, and transfer of tenancies obligatory under the Acts.

This figure, which I quoted in the debate on 3rd March as a sample of the houses decontrolled under Section 11 (2) of the Rent Act, 1957, does not include council houses or transmissions of tenancies by succession under the Rent Acts. I regret that the related figure, which I quoted at the same time, of the number of houses becoming vacant, which was supplied to me by the Glasgow Property Owners and Factors Association, should have been 4,310 instead of 3,310; this makes the percentage of houses relet in this sample 75 per cent. instead of 98 per cent. This mistake was brought to my notice by the Association yesterday evening, and I have taken this first opportunity to ask the House to accept my apologies.

Does not that indicate how wrong it is for the Secretary of State to place any reliance whatever on the property owners of Glasgow, on either their promises or on the figures they submit? Could not any man in the streets of Glasgow have told him that 98 per cent. was a fantastic figure?

I remind the hon. Lady that I emphasised very clearly at the time that this was a sample and did not represent the figures for the whole of Glasgow. I have pointed out that as soon as the Property Owners Association realised that a mistake had been made, it got in touch with me; and I have informed the House at the first opportunity.

Is the Secretary of State sure that the property owners are not misleading him on this question? How many houses which were free to be sold have been relet and how many were transferred to other tenants by obligation?

No, I think not. The Answer I gave was very carefully examined. The figures did not include council houses or transmissions of tenancies by succession under the Rent Acts, which is the point which the right hon. Gentleman has in mind.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland why there has been such delay in preparing the Statutory Instrument embodying probation rules to authorise new salary scales agreed upon by the Probation Officers' Committee of the Scottish Joint Industrial Council on 25th October, 1957.

My right hon. Friend made these Rules on 27th February, bringing the new scales into effect as from 1st July, 1957. The delay arose mainly because on 15th November the Negotiating Committee added a recommendation about scales for senior probation officers, and the application of these scales to women proved difficult.

Why is there always this delay when dealing with Scottish probation officers, when the English Minister can always deal rapidly with probation officers in England? Can the hon. Gentleman give the date from which the new scales will operate and can he say whether the delay will have any effect on retrospective payment?

I cannot answer for previous occasions. I cannot affirm or deny that there has been delay in the past. I can only give, as I have given, the reason on this occasion. The Scottish basic scales back-date to 1st July and the senior officers' scales to 1st March.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what request he has received from Inverness County Council for financial assistance for the construction of jetties and the provision of a vehicular ferry service between Kyles Scalpay and the Isle of Scalpay in Harris; and what reply he has made.

No such request has been received.

Would not the Joint Under-Secretary give a little prompting to the county council, in view of the fact that the service is desperately needed in the islands, that young people are drifting away and that this provision of a vehicular ferry service would quite revolutionise the whole system of transport between the islands, which is now highly inconvenient and very costly to everybody concerned?

I am sure that the hon. Gentleman's intervention will have been noted.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps the Herring Industry Board is taking to develop herring processing in the Isle of Barra; what financial aid is being given by his Department towards the cost of construction of a pier at the north end of the island and in Eriskay; and what other measures he is taking to revive the fishing industry in the two islands.

The Board has taken no steps because it does not consider that a processing plant on Barra could be economic.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that that is a pretty deplorable record for any Department to have to publish? Is he aware that there is no manufacturing industry on the island, that there is no regular insurable employment, and that there is only small-scale crofting, which provides no livelihood for the men concerned, who have to go to the ends of the earth in the Merchant Navy in order to get jobs at all? Cannot he take some sort of action and initiative, as one of the proprietors in this area, to promote a revival of this industry which fits naturally into the way of life of the area

Nobody can gainsay the economic facts of life on the island as they exist. With regard to the last part of the hon. Gentleman's supplementary question, we should be very glad to see more advantage taken by the Barra fishermen of the facilities at Oban for storing and marketing lobsters under the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society.

The question relates mainly to herring fishing, and the Herring Industry Board has a responsibility here for which the hon. Gentleman is answerable in this House. Will he approach the Board and ask it to reconsider the whole question of reviving the fishing industry in Barra, in view of the fact that the Herring Industry Board has been complaining of the shortage of herring to meet the requirements of the market?

The important fact about herring, as far as Barra is concerned, is that they are not now found where they used to be.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is taking to encourage visitors to come to Scotland in connection with the celebrations for the bi-centenary of Robert Burns.

Tourism is a matter for my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade, but my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State keeps in very close touch with him and with the Scottish Tourist Board, which intends to give the celebrations of the bi-centenary all possible publicity.

Is the Minister aware that the best possible publicity that he could give to this celebration would be to help us to get a Burns stamp? Is he aware that millions of letters will be going out from Scotland to all parts of the world between now and 25th January next year, and that that would be the best way of drawing attention to it? Will he, as the hon. Member who represents Dumfries, where Burns is buried, impress upon the Secretary of State for Scotland and the reactionary Postmaster-General the need for doing something in this way?

As the hon. Gentleman knows, this is a matter for the Postmaster-General, and no doubt the hon. Gentleman will take steps to impress it upon him himself.

Adverting to the Question on the Order Paper, would my hon. Friend also inform these visitors that they will receive a warm welcome from the hon. Member for Ayr, in whose constituency this unique poet was born?

Yes, Sir, and also in the constituency in which this unique poet died.

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what road construction schemes are now proceeding with financial aid from his Department in the islands of Barra, North and South Uist, Harris, and Lewis, respectively; and what reply he has made to Ross and Cromarty County Council's most recent request for grant-aid for the construction of the Tolsta-Ness road in the Isle of Lewis.

I will, with permission, circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT a statement giving the information requested in the first part of the Question. As regards the second part, my right hon. Friend has received no request for financial assistance for the construction of a road between Tolsta and Ness, but he informed the County Council of Ross and Cromarty in July last that he did not think that the inclusion of such a road in its development plan would be justified.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that in the islands there are over 2,000 people unemployed, mostly men, and that the figure now stands at about 33 per cent., which is several times the next highest in Scotland? Is not it a fact that if construction could now proceed on some of these schemes, it would give employment to a considerable number of people in the islands? Why does not the hon. Gentleman take the initiative in this matter instead of waiting for a backward county council to do it? In reference to the second part of the Answer, may I ask whether the hon. Gentleman is aware that the construction of this road would open up some of the best land in the area for land settlement, would open up the tourist industry, would be a great economy in transport and improve employment in the whole area? Will he take the initiative himself in view of the difficult situation in regard to unemployment?

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will make a statement about the progress of his Department in carrying out the responsibilities laid upon it by the provisions of the Restrictive Trade Practices Act.

The Board of Trade has now called up for registration all the restrictive agreements covered by the Act. Directions have been issued to the Registrar to bring before the court about 200 registered agreements; another direction will be issued shortly.

While I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that information, may I ask him if he is aware that whereas the mere arrival of this important Act on the Statute Book undoubtedly did have a most useful effect in loosening up some of these agreements and arrangements, none the less there is a general feeling that the Act has lost some of its

The answer to both those supplementary questions is the same—the initiative rests with the county council in these matters.

I think those concerned realise how significant and important the Act is. Of the 200 registered agreements to which I have referred, no fewer than 21 have been withdrawn rather than be proceeded with.

Is not the hon. Member's request very reasonable? As, nearly two years after the passing of the Act, no case has come before the court at all, is not the Board of Trade in danger of bringing this Act into complete disrepute?

No, I do not think so.

Is the Minister aware that one of the consequences of the passing of the Restrictive Trade Practices Act has been a growth in amalgamations designed to avoid the provisions of the Act, and will the President of the Board of Trade refer that subject to the Monopolies Commission for a general inquiry?

It would not be practicable to refer such amalgamations to the Monopolies Commission if they do not constitute monopolies within the terms of the Act.

asked the President of the Board of Trade (1) if he will make a statement on the decision of the Australian Government to ban imports of printed cotton textiles; and what representations he has made to the Australian Government as to the effect this decision will have on the British textile industry;

As hon. Members may have seen, the Australian Minister for Trade has announced that licensing of printed cotton piecegoods will be resumed on 1st April. My right hon. Friend has received representations from the Cotton Board and the Manchester Chamber of Commerce in respect of orders which may have been frustrated by the temporary suspension of licensing and our Senior Trade Commissioner in Canberra has been asked to pursue this question with the Australian authorities.

asked the President of the Board of Trade, his intentions with regard to the authorisation of a supplementary quota for the twelve months' period ending 26th June, 1958, for the importation of baths from Hungary.

I am sorry that I cannot disclose details of this kind while the negotiations are still in progress; but my hon. Friend may be assured that full weight will be given to the representations which have been made to us by this industry.

Will my hon. Friend give consideration to the fact that there is considerable capacity for United Kingdom manufacturers and to the need for consultation with British industry?

We give full weight to the representations made by industry but, while there may be sufficient capacity, imports at the present level of about £35,000, in 1957, are quite insignificant compared with the domestic production of £7 million.

Does the hon. Gentleman realise that this industry, particularly in my constituency, is part of the ironfounding industry which is working short-time and has been for years? Will he consult the industry about any steps of this sort?

Is my hon. Friend aware that the Borough of Barking is specifying Hungarian baths for the houses which it is building? Is he aware that in my constituency there is a firm which would be only too pleased to manufacture these baths and will he consult the Ministry of Housing and Local Government about what steps can be taken to restrain local authorities which are building subsidised houses from preventing British firms from tendering for fittings?

That is an important point. There is a later Question on the Order Paper addressed to my right hon. Friend the Minister of Works.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that the publication, the Shopper's Guide, is a quarterly periodical with a subscription of 10s. per annum which is not in immediate supply at either stationers' shops or bookstalls; and, in view of the subsidy which he is paying towards this periodical, what information he possesses concerning the number of its circulation and its methods of distribution, and the extent to which this publication is used as a guide by the average shopper.

The special Government grant of £10,000 to the British Standards Institution is a contribution towards its general work for the domestic consumer and is not specifically for Shopper's Guide. I understand that about 23,000 copies are distributed to subscribers to the associate scheme of the Consumer Advisory Council of the Institution.

Is my hon. Friend aware that when his right hon. Friend answered a Question a few weeks ago it was specifically stated that part of the subsidy was for the Shopper's Guide? Is he aware that when I endeavoured to obtain a copy of this periodical from my stationers, I found it was not available? Cannot he insist on a better distribution in return for the subsidy which is being paid?

The method of distribution is, quite properly, decided by the Consumer Advisory Council. The advantages of this method are that distribution is very cheap and efficient.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will instruct the Registrar of Restrictive Practices to bring the Restrictive Practices Court immediately the distribution scheme agreement of the British Motor Trade Association.

My right hon. Friend will very shortly issue a third direction to the Registrar about cases to be taken before the court and he will deal with this matter then.

Is not it urgent to get a decision on this agreement. If it is legal under the Act for manufacturers collectively compulsorily to raise a levy for enforcing higher prices, surely the Act means almost nothing at all?

I asked the right hon. Gentleman to wait a few days until he sees the third direction.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that garages in various parts of the country are becoming as much "tied" as licensed premises and that something should be done if the convenience of motorists who desire to purchase proprietary goods is to be served?

I do not accept what the hon. Gentleman has said, but I ask him to wait a few days until he sees the third direction.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what evidence he has that young people within school ages have occasion to use flick knives for employment or industrial purposes; whether he is aware that a boy aged 13 years recently pressed a flick knife against the clothing of another boy near the region of his heart, and stabbed a 13-year-old girl in Leicester; and whether he will now prevent the importation of these knives

We have no such evidence. The answer to the other parts of the Question is in each case "No, Sir."

If the Board has no such evidence, why are not steps taken to prevent these knives getting into the hands of youngsters? Is not the President of the Board of Trade yet aware that there is concern about this? The Leicester Mercury, which has made a careful and close study of the matter, and other papers indicate that there is this grave concern. If the President of the Board of Trade has advised the trade not to sell them, there must be some reason. Does he propose to allow further assaults and perhaps murders to be committed with those instruments without doing something?

My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has already said in the House that traders have responded well to the appeals to confine the sale of flick knives to persons known to have a legitimate use for them.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will make a statement on the recent application to his Department by the National Farmers' Union and the Milk Marketing Boards for the imposition under the Customs Duties (Dumping and Subsidies) Act, 1957, for an anti-dumping duty on imports into the United Kingdom of butter originating in Sweden, Finland, Austria and the Irish Republic.

This application is still under consideration, and I cannot make any statement about it at present.

Is not the Minister aware that the spring flush will shortly be with us and any action which is to be effective this year must be taken speedily?

We fully appreciate the need for speed in this important matter, but there are a number of considerations which we must take into account before arriving at a decision.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what percentage proportions of world trade were the United Kingdom's shares in 1951 and 1957, respectively; and what was the highest figure for the United Kingdom's share after 1951.

The United Kingdom's share of total world imports and exports—excluding Eastern Europe, U.S.S.R. and China—was 11·7 per cent. in 1951 and 10·3 per cent. in the first nine months of 1957. The highest figure for the United Kingdom share after 1951 was 11·3 per cent. in 1952.

Does the hon. Gentleman appreciate that the steady decline in Britain's share of world trade since his party took office is a source of dismay and apprehension to everyone concerned? What does the Government intend to do to remedy the situation?

The hon. Gentleman should remember that total world trade has gone up and he should not be deluded by percentages.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to improve trade between the United Kingdom and Mexico.

My right hon. Friend since his return has taken the opportunity on a number of occasions to make known to industrialists the opportunities which exist in the Mexican market in the hope that they will follow up his own visit. The services of the Board of Trade and of our Embassy in Mexico are at the disposal of those who contemplate entering this market. In addition, Her Majesty's Government are inviting a number of important Mexicans to visit the United Kingdom so that they can be in no doubt of our ability to meet their requirements.

Is the hon. Gentleman satisfied that British bankers are taking full advantage of the opportunities offered by trade with Mexico?

I should like to look into that point.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will indicate the value of exports from the United Kingdom to Mexico and the value of the imports from that country during the last three years to the latest convenient date.

The figures are published in Account No. 4—page 347—of the "Accounts Relating to the Trade and Navigation of the United Kingdom" for December, 1957, to which I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend.

asked the President of the Board of Trade why his Department referred only two new matters to the Monopolies Commission in 1957 and referred nothing to it during the second half of the year; and whether he will make a statement of Government policy on the future employment of the Commission.

The references made to the Commission in 1957 were those which in the Board's view were required by the public interest; the Board will continue this policy. With the passage of the Restrictive Trade Practices Act the scope for making such references has been reduced.

Will the hon. Gentleman bear in mind that for many months raw material prices have been falling, without any corresponding benefit to the consumer? Is not this a situation in which attacks on monopolies should be stepped up and not slowed down?

While raw material prices have fallen, certain other costs have risen.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will give an assurance that he does not intend to de-schedule the North-East Coast Development Area under the Distribution of Industry Acts.

No, Sir. The Distribution of Industry Act, 1945, made specific provision for de-scheduling and I cannot give an assurance, whether in regard to this Area or any other, that my right hon. Friend will not make any proposals to Parliament for such action.

Will not that Answer cause a lot of anxiety in these cases? Would not the present moment, when the shipbuilding outlook is more uncertain than at any time since the war, be an unwise time for any action?

My Answer should not give apprehension to those Development Areas which are now enjoying unprecedented popularity.

Is the Minister aware that unemployment is increasing through, out the whole of the North-East and that there is great apprehension at present about possible unemployment even in the mining industry, apart from shipbuilding and other industries? Further, is he aware that there is a Motion on the Order Paper, subscribed to by nearly all the hon. Members for North-Eastern constituencies, asking the Government to give urgent attention to this matter?

My right hon. Friend was putting forward the suggestion, which he said needed careful consideration. In that consideration he intends to be guided by the terms of the Motion tabled by hon. Members.

Does not the Minister realise that the statement made the other week by the Minister has created grave apprehension and that the statement now made by the Parliamentary Secretary will accentuate that apprehension in the North-East? Does he realise that several ships are now laid up on the Tyne, that many of the light industries that have gone to the Tyneside are now working short time and that in the engineering industry in particular several people have been paid off because there is no available work in their industry on the Tyneside? Cannot the Minister again give the assurance for which we are asking?

This statement, or suggestion as it was, has undoubtedly given hope to those unfortunates who are unemployed outside Development Areas.

If the Minister really doubts that there is anxiety in the area, will he go there and see the people for himself'?

Yes. I shall be very glad to do so when I get a suitable opportunity.

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many commodities and groups of commodities produced in the United Kingdom are listed in the wholesale price index, published monthly in the Board of Trade Journal; what has been the average percentage increase in price, counting 30th June, 1949, as 100; and what has been the rise in the price index of drugs and pharmaceutical preparations.

Index numbers for 114 commodities and groups of commodities produced in the United Kingdom are listed in the latest monthly article on wholesale prices in the Board of Trade Journal. The price index for all manufactured products—other than fuel, food and tobacco—was 41·6 per cent. higher for January, 1958, than at 30th June, 1949. The index for drugs and pharmaceuticals has risen by 6·6 per cent. over the same period.

Does my hon. Friend appreciate that had the pharmaceutical industry not been so strikingly successful in keeping down wholesale prices in the last decade the annual drug bill would be many millions of pounds higher?

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will publish, in the OFFICIAL REPORT, a table showing the annual value of exports of proprietary pharmaceutical preparations since 1948.

Precise statistics are not available, but I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the Trade and Navigation Accounts which give the statistics for the total of all drugs, medicines and medicinal preparations, and for the total of those classified as "proprietary medicines, not elsewhere specified", which are thought to include the bulk of proprietary preparations.