§ 40. Mr. Swinglerasked the President of the Board of Trade how many cinemas have closed in each of the last five years; and what proportion of these cinemas was in rural districts.
§ Mr. J. RodgersTotal closures in the years 1954 to 1957, were 72, 93, 224 and 216 respectively. For the year 1958 the provisional figure is 261. The number exempt from Entertainments Duty as being in rural areas for the purposes of the Finance Acts and having less than 400 seats which closed in 1958 was 17. Figures for earlier years are not available.
§ Mr. SwinglerIn view of the Chancellor's extraordinary failure to notice in his Budget the slump in trade, would the hon. Gentleman inform his right hon. Friend of these figures which reveal a decline in the number of cinemas and in particular the seriously declining opportunity to go to the cinema in rural areas?
§ Mr. RodgersI am sure that my right hon. Friend is well aware of the change in public taste as shown in cinema attendances.