§ 28. Mr. Barnettasked the President of the Board of Trade if it is his policy to encourage barter deals in order to promote growth of exports; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Gwyneth DunwoodyWe gain from being paid wherever possible in money rather than in goods. But when firms need to enter into barter deals in order to secure export orders, the full range of normal Government services is available to them.
§ Mr. BarnettOne appreciates the difficulty of laying down firm rules in such cases, particularly when it depends, for example, on the ability of a person selling an aircraft to dispose of millions of tons of apples, but is there not evidence, in the amount of trade being done by international competitors in this direction, that we are perhaps losing trade because of additional help being given by foreign Governments to their exporters in this direction?
§ Mrs. DunwoodyWe have no definitive statistics on this point. British firms quite often enter into barter deals not brought to our attention because there is no reason why they should be. In a situation where a firm is likely to lose 1423 a contract altogether if it does not enter a barter deal, it is up to that firm to judge on commercial grounds whether it is worth accepting the terms offered. If we found that it was causing difficulty for businessmen we would be prepared to look at any evidence my hon. Friend has.
§ Mr. BlakerWhere goods come to this country as a result of a barter deal with a Communist country, do the anti-dumping laws apply in the same way as to other imports?
§ Mrs. DunwoodyMany such goods coming to this country are controlled by quota and anything brought into this country is subject to the normal legislation, which includes anti-dumping provisions.