§ 8. Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSasked the resident of the Board of Trade whether, out of 5,000 shares belonging to the Tudor Accumulator Company, 4,699 are held by a German firm in Berlin; whether a further 150 shares are held by Germans resident in Germany; whether the firm is doing Government work; and if he will explain why, when English firms could do the work, German firms should be allowed to continue to trade merely with a penalty of postponing their dividends until after the War?
Mr. RUNCIMANThe statement as to the shareholding in the Tudor Accumulator Company, Limited, is correct, except that the number of shares held by persons resident in Germany in addition to the German company is eighty instead of 150, as stated in the hon. Member's question. I am informed that some Government work is being done by the company. As the company is incorporated in this country it is entitled to trade here, but I may inform the hon. Member that, under the Trading with the Enemy Acts, an inspector of the company was appointed last October, and a supervisor was appointed last December in order to ensure that there should be no trading with the enemy.
§ Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSThe only result of that is that the Germans will get their dividends just the same after the War is over and the company is allowed to trade for the benefit of Germans?
Mr. RUNCIMANWe have not departed in this case in the slightest degree from the policy followed in other cases. I do not think that the hon. Gentleman is entitled to infer that the Germans will get all the dividends.