§ 19. Mr. Willeyasked the President of the Board of Trade what action he proposes to take to bring new industry to Sunderland.
§ Mr. MaudlingThere are over 3,000 new jobs in prospect in the Sunderland area, though it will be two or three years before many of them mature. I will continue to do all I can to encourage new industrial development in the North-East and, as the hon. Member knows, the facilities of the Local Employment Act are available to firms establishing themselves in Sunderland and other parts of the area.
§ Mr. WilleyThe right hon. Gentleman will appreciate our present high level of unemployment and our prospects. In spite of the fact that we have vacant factory premises, will he consider the provision of an advance factory? If he did so, it would indicate that the Board of Trade was willing to meet industrialists' needs.
§ Mr. MaudlingWe would be prepared to consider that, but we already have an empty Board of Trade factory on the Pallion Estate. The difficulty is not so much in getting factory space but the people prepared to go to this area I agree that the problems of the North-East Coast are very worrying in view of the outlook for the shipbuilding industry.