§ Mr. MITCHESONasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that British shipbuilders have recently been compelled to decline to accept an order to build a ship for an Argentine company owing to the fact that that company was debarred by the Argentine Government from making payment in sterling; and what steps he proposes to take so that it may be possible for British shipbuilders to accept such orders in future, having regard to the fact that in the first six months of this year the imports into this country from the Argentine were nearly three and a-half times as great as the exports of British goods to the Argentine?
§ Mr. RUNCIMANI understand that the stipulation that payment for the ships in question should be made in pesos was imposed, not by the Argentine Govern-332W ment, but by the prospective purchasers of the ships, who are Argentine subsidiaries of a foreign concern. With regard to the second part of the question, I can only say that by the trade agreement recently concluded practically all the sterling arising in this country from sales of Argentine produce is made available for the payment of sums due from Argentina to this country. No other country is in so favourable a position to obtain payment for goods sent to Argentina.