§ Mr. A. ALEXANDERasked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in connection with the Miners' Welfare Fund, the Mines Department issued an inquiry concerning banking facilities, which was sent only to Messrs. Barclays, Lloyds, the London County, Westminster, and Parr's, the London Joint, City, and Midland, the National Provincial and Union, the Liverpool and Martin's, and Williams, Deacons banks; whether, subsequently, a circular was issued to district welfare committees giving the terms proposed by these banks; and on what grounds the inquiry as to banking terms was confined to the five banks in question?
§ Lieut-Colonel LANE-FOXThe facts are as stated in the question. The banks named were selected as being representative of the banking interest in order to ascertain whether certain banking facilities (including the allowance of interest on credit balances on current accounts) could be secured for local allocations from the Miners' Welfare Fund;? it would obviously have been neither possible nor desirable to address an inquiry to every bank in the Kingdom. But district committees have been informed that accounts may be opened with any bank that will accord the same facilities.