§ MR. FENWICK (Northumberland, Wansbeck)To ask the President of the 1231 Board of Trade whether it is intended to publish this year extracts from the Reports of His Majesty's Diplomatic and Consular Officers abroad, relating to particular trades and industries received during the year 1903, if so, can he state when the extracts will appear in relation to coal, in continuation of Parliamentary Paper [Cd. 1409], 1903.
(Answered by Mr. Gerald Balfour.) Extracts from Reports of His Majesty's Diplomatic and Consular Officers on matters of special interest to British traders are published on receipt in the weekly Board of Trade Journal. The information contained in these Reports with regard to particular trades and industries is also collated for convenient reference in the Commercial Intelligence Branch, and if the hon. Member will move for the publication of a collection of such extracts as refer to coal in the Reports received for the year 1903, I shall be prepared to grant the Return. The question of publishing annual summaries of these extracts for all important groups of trade is receiving consideration, but it is feared that the length of time that must necessarily elapse before such summaries could be completed and issued would tend to diminish their practical value.