§ 24. Mr. Gowerasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to provide separate returns of income derived from Wales by direct and indirect taxation to provide a reasonable basis for comparison with England and Scotland.
§ Mr. R. A. ButlerI have carefully considered this matter again, but I regret that the preparation of such returns would involve an inordinate amount of labour and in the result would not provide a fair basis for comparison.
§ Mr. GowerWill the Chancellor bear in mind that while the Welsh economy is closely linked up with that of England, so are the economies of Scotland and Ulster? Will he carefully note the views expressed by moderate opinion in Wales, by members of all parties, including spokesmen like the noble Lord, Lord Ogmore?
§ Mr. ButlerI have not actually studied the noble Lord's view, but I am aware of the answer given by my right hon. and learned Friend the Home Secretary on this matter, in which he drew attention to the very great difficulty of collecting the figures and statistics to provide us with the necessary picture.