§ 58. Mr. Gourlayasked the President of the Board of Trade if he will state the number of firms transferring their plants to Scotland at the request of his Department which were involved in paying legal expenses to his Department, and the amount of expenses in each case, for the period from January, 1962, to the latest available date.
§ Mr. D. PriceIn the year 1962 the Board of Trade offered loans to twenty-six firms developing in Scotland on the condition that they took a charge on property in Scotland. In such cases the Board of Trade Solicitor has no power to act. In accordance with normal practice he employed his Scottish solicitors to draw up the legal documents. The loans involved amounted to about £3.7 million, and the legal fees which went to the Scottish solicitors to about £5,300. I cannot give the figures in individual cases.