§ 37. Mr. Martenasked the Minister of Transport what effect the proposed reduction of the 15 per cent. import surcharge is having on the transit of goods in the Port of London.
§ Mr. SwinglerVery little. We understand from the Port of London Authority that its announcement of a special transfer charge on goods not cleared within a reasonable time has helped to prevent congestion in the transit sheds.
§ Mr. MartenApart from that extra charge, is it not true that the transit sheds were cluttered by the imposition of the surcharge when people were waiting for the reduction of surcharge in order to bring their goods forward to Customs and that this had an effect on exports? Will the Government bear this in mind next time they are contemplating imposing a surcharge?
§ Mr. SwinglerThe slow clearance of transit sheds has nothing to do with the surcharge but is a long-standing prob- 448 lem with which the P.L.A. has had to grapple. The P.L.A. has grappled skilfully and quickly with what is undoubtedly a difficult situation. The report we have had is that there has not been serious congestion.