§ My right honourable friend the President of the Board of Trade is introducing from Monday next a further improvement in the Export Credits Guarantee Department bank guarantee facility, by reducing the 1188 qualifying contract value from £50,000 to £25,000.
§ Arrangements are also being made to reduce the cost of shorter-term credit. This will affect a much larger volume of exports, and help many more companies. For shorter-term credits of at least 30 days and less than two years, guaranteed unconditionally by E.C.G.D., the banks have agreed in principle to make finance available at bank rate. This compares with rates of around 1 per cent. above bank rate at present. The scheme will involve a large extension of E.C.G.D.'s unconditional bank guarantee facility.
§ Details will be announced as soon as possible.
§ Urgent action will also be taken to increase efficiency in the docks and to improve access to them.
§ Together with the other measures the Government have taken previously, these further steps will reinforce our position and enable us to continue with the tasks of balancing our payments and reconstructing the economy.
§ My Lords, that is the end of the Statement.
§ 4.7 p.m.
§ VISCOUNT DILHORNEMy Lords. I am sure that your Lordships are grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Shepherd, for communicating the contents of this long Statement made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to-day in another place. It is indeed a grave Statement, and I am sure your Lordships would not expect me, or indeed wish me, to comment on any aspect of it at the present time; indeed, I have only just had an opportunity of seeing it. But I am sure your Lordships will desire an opportunity, before we rise for the Summer Recess, of discussing these serious proposals, their implications and their likely effects; and I hope that an opportunity will occur, because this Statement is made towards the very end of this Session.
I would ask the noble Lord whether, before the end of the Session, we can at least be given a statement as to what is intended by the words in the Statement:
Urgent action will be taken to increase efficiency in the docks and to improve access to them.1189 I would ask that we should be told what it is proposed to do and when it is proposed to do it. Apart from that, I will not at this moment put any further questions to the noble Lord.
§ 4.10 p.m.
LORD REAMy Lords, I should like from the Liberal Benches to extend our thanks and appreciation to the noble Lord, Lord Shepherd, for repeating this Statement. It is, of course, a Statement of serious proposals in respect of our present economic situation. While we sympathise with Her Majesty's Government in the position in which they find themselves, following a long term of Conservative Government, it seems to us on these Benches and to a lot of people in the country by no means clear how much of this is propter hoc and how much is post hoc.
§ LORD SHEPHERDI beg the noble Lord's pardon?
LORD REAHow must is propter hoc, because of it, and how much is post hoc, because of you. I would agree with Viscount Dilhorne that it would indeed be inappropriate to pursue the matter now, and therefore we on the Liberal Benches propose to reserve our observations for the Second Reading of the Finance Bill on Wednesday of next week.
§ LORD SHEPHERDI am most grateful for what the noble and learned Viscount has said. I personally hope that the House will respond and leave this matter to a discussion. It is a very important Statement which needs to be digested by each and every one of us. The noble Viscount will know that the Finance Bill is due for its Second Reading in this House to-morrow week. That is an occasion upon which, as well as discussing the Finance Bill, we take the opportunity to discuss the economic situation. It would seem to me that that is the occasion on which this matter should be discussed. I will not rise to the opportunity provided by the noble Lord, Lord Rea, to discuss the problems which have faced Her Majesty's Government. We will leave that until Wednesday.
§ VISCOUNT DILHORNEMy Lords, next Wednesday might be a suitable opportunity for discussing some of these matters. Perhaps we can have further discussions through the usual channels. I am sure that a great many noble Lords will wish to discuss the contents of the Finance Bill and what it does. To discuss at the same time both the massive Finance Bill and also these important proposals may be somewhat difficult. I have no doubt that we can have talks about that and see what will best meet the convenience of Members.
§ LORD SHEPHERDI am quite willing to have discussions, but the noble Viscount will appreciate that the timetable is pretty full. It would be possible to find another day only if a gesture could be made by noble Lords opposite in regard to other Business. This is a matter which we could no doubt discuss through the usual channels.
§ VISCOUNT DILHORNEWould the noble Lord seek, before the Finance Bill debate, an opportunity to tell us what is the action which it is proposed to take urgently in the docks?
§ LORD SHEPHERDI have taken note of the point and will certainly draw it to the attention of the appropriate authorities.
§ LORD NEWTONMy Lords, may I ask the noble Lord one question, on a matter of information? I understood him in his statement to say that, so far as hospitals, roads and schools were concerned, the present programmes would be contained within the present levels, or words to that effect. Are we to understand from that that the major school-building programme, as already published for 1966–67, will remain unchanged?
§ LORD SHEPHERDMy Lords, as I received the Statement only a matter of a few minutes before the other side received their copy, I am not in a position to answer that question. I will make enquiries and will write to the noble Lord. But, again, this is a matter which could be raised in the debate next week.