HC Deb 11 February 1954 vol 523 cc1346-7
23. Commander Donaldson

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will meet the representatives of the timber trade, the salmon packers and the fruit growers when he visits British Columbia following his opening of the Canadian International Trade Fair later this year.

Mr. P. Thorneycroft

I have not yet settled the details of my itinerary, but I intend to spend at least two days in British Columbia, and I certainly expect to meet representatives of these important industries.

Commander Donaldson

I thank my right hon. Friend for that answer, but will he bear in mind that there is a traditional trade between this country and British Columbia which has extended back to the time when it was a Crown Colony?

Mr. H. Wilson

I welcome the President's decision to visit Canada and British Columbia, and I offer him my good wishes for a successful trip—I assure him that any representative of this country will get the warmest possible welcome from the people of British Columbia—but will he also take some time off to visit industrial centres in this country, including Manchester?

24. Commander Donaldson

asked the President of the Board of Trade, in view of the large orders placed in Britain for underwater electric cable to be laid from Vancouver Island to the mainland of British Columbia, what goods have been, or are about to be, purchased from British Columbia in 1954; and what is the £1 sterling equivalent in Canadian dollars.

Mr. P. Thorneycroft

I am very glad that a British firm has been awarded this important contract. Although we do not try to link particular purchases with particular sales, contracts of this kind, whether secured in British Columbia or in other parts of Canada, help us to finance our purchases from British Columbia, which are, in fact, immensely larger than her purchases from us.

Commander Donaldson

Is my right hon. Friend aware that there are still other possibilities for trade between this country and British Columbia? Will he consider the possibility of consulting the Agent-General for British Columbia, with that fact in mind, before he leaves on his Canadian tour?

Mr. Thorneycroft

Yes, Sir.