§ Mr. Chris Patten asked the Secretary of State for Trade what was the percentage of the total sale of textiles represented by imports in each year since 1945.
§ Mr. Peter Rees:The available information is as follows:
Imports of Textiles as a percentage of total sales* (in terms of value) 1963 12.7 1968 14.6 1970 14.3 1971 16.8 1972 18.6 1973 21.0 1974 24.5 1975 23.9 1976 26.4 1977 28.3 1978 31.3 1979 33.1 1980 34.9 * Total sales are calculated as sales by United Kingdom manufacturers of products principally produced by the textile industry, defined as Order XIII of the Standard Industrial Classification (Revised 1968), plus imports less exports. The activities of the textile finishing industry, Minimum List Heading 423, are not appropriate to the calculation and have been excluded from the figures.