§ 4.51 p.m.
§ EARL FORTESCUEMy Lords, in the absence of my noble friend Lord Dudley, who is ill, I beg to ask the question standing in his name.
§ To ask His Majesty's Government how many reports have been submitted to them by British and Allied Commissions on the present condition of German industries and the technical and other developments which have been revealed by their investigations; and whether, in view of the importance of these documents to the parallel British industries, they will make immediate arrangements for their circulation.]
LORD PAKENHAMMy Lords, by arrangement with the Allied Control Commissions, teams of industrial experts have investigated the main fields of German industry and are continuing to do so. Their reports, as and when they are completed, are printed by the Stationery Office and distributed to the trade associations concerned, universities, professional institutions and the chief public libraries throughout the United Kingdom. Copies are also available at the Stationery Office for others who may be interested. To date, the publication of 121 reports has been announced in the Board of Trade Journal. The current rate of release is about thirty reports weekly, but it is hoped to effect a substantial increase in this rate in the immediate future.