§ 22. Mr. Nabarroasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that the Federal Association of German Industry has recently issued a West German export directory printed in German, English, French and Spanish, listing the names of firms and all their products for promotion of West German export trade; and, in view of the heavy public expenditure incurred in recent years by the statistics of trade sections of his Department, and their possession of all relevant data, if he will take steps to initiate a comprehensive British industrial directory for use by Britain's customers and prospective customers oversea, and comparable in scope to the West German publication.
§ Mr. P. ThorneycroftNo, Sir. There are already a number of trade directories published in this country; and I do not think it necessary, or appropriate to the functions of a Government Department, to take responsibility for initiating a new one.
§ Mr. NabarroMy right hon. Friend will observe from the Question that I merely asked him to initiate such a directory. Has he seen this extraordinarily comprehensive and useful document which will add to the West German prospects of securing exports for their country very considerably, possibly with detriment to many British engineering companies' prospects, noticeably in Latin-American countries?
§ Mr. ThorneycroftAll I would say is that I do not propose to publish any such report myself. A number of directories of this kind are published by firms in this country, as my hon. Friend knows, and I think they serve a very useful purpose, but I do not think it is appropriate for the Government to publish them.
§ Mr. Anthony GreenwoodIn view of the right hon. Gentleman's refusal or inability to answer the last three Questions, I beg to give notice that I shall raise the conduct of his Department on the Adjournment at an early date.