§ 14. Mr. Willeyasked the President of the Board of Trade if he will present a White Paper on the Development Areas.
§ Mr. P. ThorneycroftAs the right hon. Member for Huyton (Mr. H. Wilson) was informed on 27th October, I will certainly consider the desirability of publishing from time to time a White Paper on progress in the Development Areas, but in view of the full discussions which have taken place in the House during the last year I doubt whether a White Paper is called for at present.
§ Mr. WilleyDoes the right hon. Gentleman realise that his doubts are misplaced? Did he not, more than a year ago, express himself as sympathetic about the issue of a White Paper? The Development Areas would very much appreciate such a White Paper now for the purpose of reviewing the progress made in recent years.
§ Mr. ThorneycroftI will certainly consider the matter. We have had very full discussions on the subject.
§ Mr. Fletcher-CookeWill my right hon. Friend bear in mind that such a White Paper may well reveal that progress in the Development Areas has been such that it might be time to deschedule some of them?
§ Mr. ThorneycroftThere is nothing in the question about descheduling.
§ Mr. ChetwyndDo we understand from the right hon. Gentleman that he is not considering removing any of the areas from the schedule at the present time?
§ Mr. ThorneycroftThat would be rather too broad a deduction to make from my answer.
§ 18. Sir W. Wakefieldasked the President of the Board of Trade how many claims have been received from firms moving into development areas for grants under Section 3 (i) of the Distribution of Industry Act, 1950, in respect of expenditure or loss arising in connection with the transfer of industrial undertakings to such areas; how many such claims have been admitted; and what has been the amount of the grants made.
§ Mr. P. ThorneycroftThirteen applications for grants have been made, two of which the applicants did not proceed with. Two grants have been approved in principle, but the detailed examination on which payment would be based has not yet been completed in either case.
§ Sir W. WakefieldCan my right hon. Friend indicate, for the guidance of industrialists generally, what would be considered exceptional circumstances for the payment of a grant for moving into an industrial area?
§ Mr. ThorneycroftI should like to help my hon. Friend, but circumstances differ so widely between one case and another that I would find it very difficult to define "exceptional circumstances."
§ Mr. BottomleyCan the right hon. Gentleman say what plans he has made and settled for dealing with the matter?
§ Mr. ThorneycroftNot without notice.
§ 22. Mr. Willeyasked the President of the Board of Trade how many new factories have been licensed and commenced since 1st November, 1952, in the North-Eastern Development Area.
§ Mr. P. ThorneycroftAccording to the latest available information, 12 new factories and 38 extensions to existing factories, all exceeding 5,000 sq. feet have been licensed since 1st November, 1952. Of these, work has commenced on four new factories and 26 extensions.
§ Mr. WilleyDoes the right hon. Gentleman realise that though this seems to be a considerable improvement on last year, it is still inadequate for our needs in the North-East? This is another reason why we should have a White Paper so that we can see what progress the Government's policy has made.
§ Mr. ThorneycroftI had hoped that the answer showed such a substantial improvement on last year that the hon. Gentleman would not press me further.
§ Mr. S. SilvermanWill the right hon. Gentleman give the corresponding figures for the latest addition to the development areas, namely, the one in North-East Lancashire, or shall we have to wait for the publication of the White Paper which he does not yet wish to publish?
§ Mr. ThorneycroftIf the hon. Gentleman puts down a Question, I will try to give him the information he wants, but I think it is true to say that something substantial has already been done in that area.