§ 57. Mr. Reevesasked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the closing down of the National Film Studios, he will arrange for them to be requisitioned so that they may be used for the production of British films, or undertake that if no producer is prepared to produce films in these studios, to consult with the trade unions in the industry for the purpose of finding ways and means whereby the services of film technicians can be mobilised upon a co-operative basis to produce films so urgently required.
§ Mr. BelcherAccording to my information the owners of the National Studios at Elstree are closing them down for the time being because no film producer can be found at present to rent space there. Requisitioning the studios would not make good this lack of a tenant. I do, however, now look forward to an early revival of confidence in this industry—among those responsible for financing production as well as among British film roducers—as a result of the Government's recent Agreement with the motion picture industry of America. That Agreement has dispelled the prospect of British cinemas closing down for want of American films to show—a factor which has of recent months been causing widespread unsettlement in the studios.