§ Mr. Lewisasked the President of the Board of Trade why, in view of the readily available natural rubber supplies at reasonable prices from non-dollar sources, he allowed imports of synthetic rubber last year of 58,000 tons from Canada and the United States of America at a cost of 36 million United States and Canadian dollars; and whether he will take action to prevent this waste of dollars in the future.
§ Mr. Vaughan-MorganIt is the Government's policy, so far as the balance of payments permits, to allow United Kingdom manufacturers a free choice of materials. I do not accept the implication of the latter part of the Question. For some uses synthetic rubber has technical advantages and our manufacturers must have it in order to compete on level terms in world markets.