§ Mr. E. JARDINEasked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that the War Trade Department of the Foreign Office has made arrangements for the issue of export licences permitting Manchester fabrics, required by English embroidery manufacturers, to be exported to St. Gall, Switzerland, for manipulation and special finish, such licence to be conditional upon the finished piece-goods being returned intact to this country; that the power to refuse the reimportation of these goods rests with the Department of Import Restrictions under the beard of Trade; and whether he will explain why there has been such division of authority?
§ Lord R. CECILThe answer to the first two paragraphs of this question is in the affirmative, and I may say that the Regulations of the War Trade Department relating to the export of these fabrics are printed on page 21 of the "beard of Trade Journal" of the 6th July. At the end of these Regulations there is a paragraph as follows
In the case of the re-import of articles, the import of which into the United Kingdom is prohibited, an import licence must be obtained from the Department 2496W of Import Restrictions, 22. Carlisle Piece, London, S.W., and the issue of an export licence by the War Trade Department must not necessarily be taken as an assurance that an import licence will subsequently be allowed by the Department of Import Restrictions.The Controller of the Department of Import Restrictions stated in a letter of the 24th June last that to enforce rigorously the prohibitions in cases where fabrics are exported under the Regulations would handicap the export trade of this country, and I am informed that the present practice of that Department is to admit as a rule prohibited goods of British origin which have been sent abroad for manipulation and special finish in cases where the British origin can be proved.
The division of authority is due to the fact that when it was decided to place restrictions upon the import of goods, it was judged desirable to keep the control in the hands of the beard of Trade.