§ 82. Mr. Asshetonasked the President of the Board of Trade to what extent the import of periodicals and certain classes of books from Australia is prohibited; and what is the reason for this restriction.
§ 90. Sir W. Smithersasked the President of the Board of Trade why there is a ban on the import of books from Eire to England; and if he will remove it immediately.
§ Mr. BelcherBooks, other than fiction and. children's books, can be imported freely from all sources under Open General Licence. Fiction and children's books can be imported freely under individual licence, provided that not less than 50 per cent. by value of the aggregate imports by any individual importer are re-exported. No licences are being issued for import of new periodicals from 181W any source and licences are being issued only for the import of limited numbers of other periodicals from Australia, Eire, or other countries. The restrictions have had to be imposed to safeguard our balance of payments, particularly since the main sources of supply, both of fiction and children's books and of periodicals, are dollar countries.