§ 8. Mr. Peter Walkerasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer by what amount the measures that he has taken will benefit the balance of payments for the year 1965.
§ Mr. CallaghanAlthough the full benefits of the Government's policies will not be felt in 1965, I nevertheless expect an improvement in our balance of payments of some hundreds of millions of pounds.
§ Mr. WalkerWill the Chancellor confirm that the estimate which he received from the Treasury on taking office of what would be the adverse balance of payments for 1965 if he did not take any measures was very similar to what the figures are likely to be?
§ Mr. CallaghanI certainly would not confirm such a figure. The hon. Member will, I am sure, be glad to know that in the first 11 months of this year, including today's excellent export figures, our trade deficit has fallen to £296 million compared with £535 million last year.