§ Mr. Hooleyasked the Secretary of State for Trade if he will list in the OFFICIAL REPORT the estimated expenditure of the private sector of manufacturing industry on new machinery and equipment, excluding buildings, in each financial year 1963–64 to 1973–74, inclusive, at current prices, indicating the percentage of the gross national product which these figures represented in each year.
§ Dr. GilbertI have been asked to reply.
The information which is readily available relates to calendar years and is given in the table below:
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR GROSS DOMESTIC FIXED CAPITAL FORMATION ON PLANT AND MACHINERY £ million Percentage of GNP at factor cost 1963 … 749 2.7 1964 … 863 2.9 1965 … 1,007 3.2 1966 … 1,110 3.3 1967 … 1,085 3.1 1968 … 1,119 3.0 1969 … 1,317 3.3 1970 … 1,502 3.5 1971 … 1,495 3.1 1972 … 1,362 2.5 1973 … 1,637 2.6