§ Mr. Wilkesasked the President of the Board of Trade why there is an average delay of eight months between approval by Panel A and Panel B of schemes for factory development within the North-East Development Area; whether he will outline the procedure which results in this delay; and whether he will institute a new procedure dispensing with such delay.
§ Sir S. CrippsMy hon. Friend is under some misapprehension. Factory developments in the North-Eastern Development Area are normally considered by a regional panel which usully deals with them in about a fortnight. In those cases which are referred to Panel A at Headquarters, the time taken by Panel A is on the average to days. Panel B is not concerned with new industrial building developments.