§ 1. Commander BELLAIRSasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he can give an approximate estimate of the relative value of the home, Imperial and foreign markets in the trade of the country?
§ The PRESIDENT of the BOARD of TRADE (Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister)As I pointed out on Monday week, questions such as that raised by my hon. and gallant Friend cannot be answered with any 1040 certainty until the results of the Census of Production, now proceeding, are available. In 1907, when the first Census was taken, the values of the goods produced in this country (from native or imported material) which were disposed of in the home market, in foreign markets and in the markets of the British Empire were, approximately, in the proportions of 100, 31 and 15. In the year 1924, the proportions of the foreign markets to those of the British Empire were approximately as 31 to 19, exports to the Irish Free State being omitted from the latter figure in order to render it comparable with that given for 1907. The corresponding figure for the home markets cannot be given, as pointed out previously.
§ Mr. H. WILLIAMSDo these statistics include anything for services, or do they relate solely to goods?
§ Sir P. CUNLIFFE-LISTERThis question relates entirely to goods, and the answer relates solely to goods.