§ 38. Mr. Emrys Hughesasked the President of the Board of Trade why an import duty of 20 per cent. was imposed on prefabricated wooden houses im- 1323 ported from Finland by the Scots Forestry Commissioners.
§ Mr. H. WilsonImport duties are chargeable on prefabricated timber houses, as on other dutiable items, whether the transaction is on private or public account. I am informed that the houses in question were correctly charged under the Tariff Schedule with the rate of duty appropriate to those items.
§ Mr. HughesIn view of the serious shortage of houses in rural Scotland, and the statement made by the ex-Secretary of State for Scotland that these import duties are absurd, will he urge the Chancellor of the Exchequer to abandon them?
§ Mr. WilsonIf they were unnecessary we would have no hesitation in going to the Treasury about it, but the import duties have not stood in the way of these houses being available.