§ Lieut.-Colonel Dowerasked the Secretary for the Overseas Trade Department whether he is aware that his departmental report on Brazil, No. 723, dated December, 1938, was not available to the public till May, 1939, and will he arrange for a shorter interval in future between date and publication; and also that future reports shall contain less budgetary and statistical tables, and more detailed information as to specific openings in Brazil for British productions, similar to that contained in his Department's last report on Argentina?
§ Mr. R. S. HudsonIt is my constant endeavour to secure that such reports are made available as soon as possible after their receipt, but it is generally necessary to consider them and to consult other Departments of His Majesty's Government before they can be published. Moreover, though they deal with events up to a particular date (in this case 31st December) they obviously cannot actually be written until some little time afterwards. The suggestions made in the second part of the question will be borne in mind. It is, however, often advisable not to bring specific openings for trade to the notice of United Kingdom traders in published reports, which are available to their competitors, but to use other channels.