§ MR. LOUGH (Islington, W.)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India what is the present actual value of the rupee; and, seeing that the maintenance of the exchange value at 1s. 4d. is calculated to injuriously affect the export of Indian tea in its competition with exports of to similar prices from China and other silver-using countries, where there is no fixed standard, whether he can do anything to alleviate this alleged grievance.
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA (Mr. BRODRICK,) Surrey, GuildfordAt, the present price of silver the bullion value of the rupee is approximately 9d. The suggestion that the maintenance of the exchange value at a higher level is injurious to the Indian tea trade in its competition with China is not in accordance with the opinion expressed in 1899 by the Committee on Indian Currency, over which the right hon. Member for Wolverhampton presided; nor is it borne out by such statistics of the export of tea from India and China as have been brought to my notice. There is no intention of modifying the Indian currency system.