HC Deb 08 April 1952 vol 498 cc200-1W
62. Mr. Osborne

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer in which industries he expects that the extra estimated £250,000,000 national production for the current year will be achieved: and what percentage increase in volume will be required.

Mr. R. A. Butler

As I made clear in my Budget speech, it is more than usually hazardous to estimate the increase in production this year. It has not been the practice in past years to give a detailed forecast of production in each industry, and it would be even more difficult to do so in the year ahead. We have therefore taken it as a general aim to work for an increase of national output overall as large as or larger than the increase of £250 million that occurred between 1950 and 1951. Between these years the interim index of industrial production showed an increase of about 3 per cent.