§ 80. Mr. T. WILLIAMSasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give a comparative statement in English currency of the annual charges for national debt services in Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, and Great Britain; and what percentage these figures constitute of the Budget for each country?
Mr. GUINNESSThe figures are being prepared, and I will circulate a tabular statement in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Following is the statement:
| — | Expenditure. | Debt Charge. | Per Cent. | ||
| United Kingdom (1925–6) | £799,400,000 | £355,000,000 | 44.4 | ||
| France* (1925) | … | Fcs. 32,690,000,000 | Fcs. 15,350,000,000 | 47.0 | |
| Italy (1924–5) | … | Lire 20,861,000,000 | Lire 7,131,000,000 | 34.2 | |
| Belgium (1925) | … | Fcs. 6,470,000,000 | Fcs. 1,829,000,000 | 28.3 | |
| Germany (1925–6) | … | Reichsmarks 6,743,000,000 | Reichsmarks | Debt— | 18.2 |
| 132,000,000 | |||||
| Reparations— | |||||
| 1,095,000,000 | |||||
| * Budget as passed by the Senate on the 30th May, 1925. Amending proposals have since been introduced. | |||||
| The figures for foreign countries are given in their own currencies. The value in sterling depends on the choice of the rate of exchange. | |||||
| The figures include Debt Redemption in those cases where it is provided for in the ordinary Budget. | |||||
| It should be added that inferences should only be drawn from these figures with great caution, and subject to many qualifications. |