HC Deb 04 November 1946 vol 428 cc1034-7
27. Mr. W. Fletcher

asked the President of the Board of Trade what progress has been made towards reopening the rubber futures market in London.

Mr. Marquand

I would ask the hon. Member to await the statement which I propose to make at the end of Questions.

Mr. Gallacher

Can we take it for the purposes of this Question that "rubber" and "robber" will be interchangeable terms?

Later—

Mr. Marquand

The Government have given careful consideration to the future purchasing arrangements for rubber, in accordance with the statement of my right hon. Friend the Lord President on 28th March, in the course of the Debate on the closing of the Liverpool Cotton Market, that the case of each primary product would be examined on its merits. The main world market for rubber was, before the war, in London. The rubber in which it dealt was largely from sterling sources, but the greater part of its transactions related to rubber for consumption elsewhere than in this country; at the same time the sales in this country were distributed over many different industries. After considering all the circumstances the Government have decided to restore a private trade in rubber and to permit the re-establishment of the London Rubber Market. The market will be free to resume its normal activities from 18th November next; this will enable the importation of rubber on private account into the United Kingdom as from 1st January, 1947, by which date the Board of Trade will have ceased to purchase rubber.

These decisions follow on the rapid improvement in the natural rubber supply position during the past few months. The supplies in the Far East have exceeded all expectations, and in particular it is encouraging to observe the rapid recovery of Malayan production despite several years of Japanese occupation. Consequently, the period of continuing shortage of natural rubber has not been as prolonged as was generally expected, and at their meeting in Washington in October the Combined Rubber Committee agreed that international allocation should cease as from the end of this year. There have been discussions between the appropriate Departments and the Rubber Trade Association of London so as to allow the effective functioning of the market under conditions of exchange control, and so as to limit, as far as possible, undesirable speculative financial transactions under cover of the market. The rules of the Association are being strengthened to secure regular returns by its members to the Bank of England, and to enable the market to deal effectively with any undesirable position to which their attention may be drawn by the bank, while the market will require a substantial contract deposit in the case of transactions with non-members other than bona fide consumers.

Mr. W. Fletcher

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that this scheme, which has been worked out carefully and objectively by the Government Departments and the rubber trade, may well serve as a pattern in due course for other commodities; and that the Rubber Trade Association, who will be the partners of the Government in drawing up this scheme, will, as they have always done in the past, when they have been a credit—during the importation of rubber during the war and after-wards—carry this scheme out most loyally?

Mr. Marquand

We shall watch the development of the scheme with great interest, and I hope the forecast of the hon. Gentleman will be correct.

Mr. Oliver Stanley

If the only difference between an open market for rubber and an open market for cotton is that rubber is no longer in short supply, are we to understand that the position of the cotton market will be reconsidered as soon as raw cotton is not in short supply?

Mr. Speaker

We are only dealing with rubber, and not cotton.

Sir Hugh O'Neill

Does the statement mean that it will now be possible to buy rubber forward without restrictions?

Mr. Marquand

Yes, Sir, it will. There will be a necessity for reporting to the Bank of England what is being done, but that is all.

Mr. Gammans

Can the hon. Gentleman give the House figures of the losses which have been incurred by the British taxpayer, because up to now the Government have been buying rubber?

Mr. Marquand

I do not think that arises on this Question. That refers to the past, and this Question to the present. I did, as it happens, take charge of the negotiations when we fixed the price of 1s. 2d., and all the advice that we had from the representatives of the industry was in favour of a price of 1s. 6d.

Lieut.-Colonel Sir Thomas Moore

What is really of interest to the British public, arising out of that satisfactory reply, is whether the people as a whole will now be able to buy rubber tyres, golf balls and other things without this interminable filling up of forms, paying excessive duties and wasting an excessive amount of time.

Mr. Marquand

No, Sir. The shortage of tyres at present is not due to a shortage of rubber but to an inability to increase production sufficiently fast to turn over from the giant tyre moulds used during the war to the smaller moulds necessary to produce the smaller sizes.