HC Deb 19 May 1949 vol 465 cc586-7
6. Mr. Shephard

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware that the registrar of trade marks is taking eight to 10 months to investigate and report on applications for registration of trade marks; and what steps he proposes to take to speed up the process.

Mr. Bottomley

The average period between the filing of an application for the registration of a trade mark and the official report is now about six months. The period is being steadily reduced as the result of the recruitment and training of new staff, and is now four months less than it was a year ago.

Mr. Shephard

Would not the hon. Gentleman agree that having to wait six months for the registration of a trade mark is most frustrating? Surely it is a very simple matter, and would he take some steps to shorten this period very considerably?

Mr. Bottomley

I am told that in the period covering the whole of last year and also in pre-war years, the total number of applications considerably increased and there has always been a time-lag. That is why we are training and recruiting more personnel to speed up this matter.