§ MR. D. A. THOMAS (Merthyr Tydvil)To ask the President of the Board of Trade if his attention has been called to the falling off in the shipments of coal from this country to Baltic ports since the imposition of the coal duty; if he will state what growth the coal shipments from this country to Holland and Belgium showed during the years immediately preceding 1901; and if he can afford any explanation for the decrease of one million tons, or over 60 per cent., in the shipments of coal to Holland in the first ten months of this year as compared with those in the corresponding period of 1900, or for the reduction to less than one-half of the coal shipment from the north-eastern ports to Belgium up to 31st October of this year as compared with the shipped in the same period of last year.
(Answered by Mr. Gerald Balfour.) The facts stated in the Question as to the recent falling off in coal exports from the United Kingdom or particular ports to certain places appear to be correct. The shipments of coal to Holland and Belgium during the years immediately preceding 1901 were as follows: 1898, 1,204,588 tons; 1899, 1,936,517 tons; 1900, 2,964,366 tons. I am unable to assign reasons for the fluctuations which are continually taking place in particular branches of our coal exports. Generally speaking, I may say that the year 1900
† See preceding volume, page 1350.236 was quite exceptional as regards our exports, not only of coal, but of other commodities, and any decline in coal exports since that year has accompanied, as usual, the general decline in trade activity which has taken place both in the United Kingdom and abroad. If bunker coal be added to coal exported, it will be found that the total quantity shipped from the United Kingdom has actually increased since 1900.