§ Sir JOHN SPEARasked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he has any official information showing that the newly imposed Indian Export Duty on raw jute will increase the cost of raw material to the jute mills of Dundee, and that the Export Duty on jute manufacturers will injure the Calcutta jute industry; and, if so, will he say whether any Excise Duty is to be levied in order to countervail the protective effects of the new tax in the great inland markets of India, which are supplied by rail from Calcutta?
§ The UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE for INDIA (Mr. Montagu)The official information is that the Export Duty on Indian jute and jute manufactures exported by sea from Calcutta will fall at the rate of 5s. per £100 of value. It is not expected that this will injure the trade of Dundee or Calcutta. As no jute goods are imported into India, no question of protection as regards the foreign manufacturer arises.