§ Miss Quennellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the factors which cause different ways of calculating the gross national product to produce widely different answers.
§ Mr. NottIt is impracticable to give an adequate answer in a short list. Two major factors are short-term timing differences in the statistics and problems of deflating information reported at current values to produce estimates of product at constant prices. Both of these factors have been accentuated in 1972 by the upturn in the growth rate, distortions due to strikes, and changes in the rate of inflation. The Central Statistical Office has available an article on problems in the measurement of GDP in 1972 which contains a detailed explanation and will be published in the April issue ofEconomic Trends. I will send my hon. Friend a copy.