§ 15. Mr. Beswickasked the President of the Board of Trade whether in view of present balance of trade difficulties, he will review his policy with regard to importation of wood pulp for paper-making and utilise the paper salvage available in this country.
§ Mr. H. WilsonIn view of the need to maintain the competitive standards of the paper-making industry, I should not be justified in restricting the import of woodpulp which is available for currencies we can afford.
§ Mr. BeswickDoes that mean that my right hon. Friend is not prepared to see the genuine economies which have been effected by the collection of waste paper now utilised at a time when our need is so much greater?
§ Mr. WilsonSome is being utilised but it is a plain fact that in paper-making by and large it is cheaper to use the imported material rather than the salvage which has been collected.
§ Mr. J. Langford-HoltCan the right hon. Gentleman tell the House the percentage of waste paper in the total paper consumption of the Stationery Office?
§ Mr. WilsonThey do not consume the waste paper in that particular form.
§ 16. Mr. Beswickasked the President of the Board of Trade the estimated value of imports for the current year of wood pulp and paper-making materials; and what proportion of this represents dollar purchases.
§ Mr. H. WilsonIt is estimated that the total f.o.b. value of the imports of 1378 wood pulp and other materials for paper-making for the current year will be £36,800,000, of which about 10 per cent. represents dollar purchases.
§ Mr. BeswickAs it is most important for us to reduce this figure of imports of dollar material, would my right hon. Friend look into this matter again?
§ Mr. WilsonI am advised by those who know about these things technically that the salvage material would not be suitable for the substitution of particular kinds of dollar material, especially sulphite and things of that sort.