§ Sir R. Glynasked the Minister of Transport how many ships of 2,000 tons and over are still requisitioned by his Department; and of these, what is the tanker tonnage immediately available; how much tanker tonnage is on charter; and what is the capacity of oil and spirit represented by these figures.
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§ Mr. A. BarnesOn 22nd January, 1948, 51 ships of 2,000 gross registered tons and over, including 23 now in process of reconditioning. No tankers are under requisition. Foreign flag tanker tonnage on charter to British interests at the same date amounted to 89 ships totalling 1.16 million deadweight tons. None of these is on charter to His Majesty's Government. Carrying capacity varies according to the area of employment. They would carry to the United Kingdom in one year approximately 7.7 million tons of oil from the Netherlands West Indies or 5.2 million tons from the Persian Gulf.