§ 63. Sir N. GRATTAN-DOYLEasked the President of the Board of Trade in reference to the agreement with the Italian Government to take 1,000,000 tons of coal from this country, what proportion of that coal has already been shipped; how much has been carried in Italian vessels; how much in British ships; and how much, if any, in ships of other nationalities?
§ Mr. W. GRAHAMI am advised that 21,400 tons of this coal has already been shipped, all in Italian vessels.
§ Sir N. GRATTAN-DOYLEDid this arrangement made with the Italian Government give them absolute and uncontrolled discretion as to the freight and as to what ships the coal should be carried in?
§ Mr. GRAHAMThat question hardly arises, but I negotiated this matter personally at The Hague in August, and it was a concession to get a firm order for 1,000,000 tons of coal a year for the British coalfields. I could not possibly, get any further concession as regards the ships in which it was to be carried.
§ Sir N. GRATTAN-DOYLEWill the right hon. Gentleman make representations to the Chancellor of the Exchequer; and, in view of the obvious hardship that is inflicted upon British shipping by this arrangement, will representations be made, and some chance given to British shipping?
§ Mr. WALLHEAD rose—
§ Mr. SPEAKERHon. Members prefer that their supplementary questions should be answered without intervention by other hon. Members.
§ Mr. GRAHAMThe short reply is that this matter was negotiated in all its details, and I can only tell the House that the agreement that we got was the limit of the concession that could be obtained.
§ Sir N. GRATTAN-DOYLEDoes this mean that British shipping is to get none of this tonnage until the available Italian shipping is filled up?
§ Mr. GRAHAMThe order for coal is a definite concession, and we could not push it an inch beyond that into the question of shipping.
§ Mr. WALLHEADIs the condition of British shipping worse now than it was when the previous Government was in power?