HC Deb 04 March 1948 vol 448 cc93-4W
Mr. T. Reid

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many food ration cards should have been issued in Malaya recently; and how many were actually issued.

Mr. Rees-Williams

There is no system of national registration in Malaya, and I am therefore unable to say exactly how many food ration cards should have been issued. Preliminary census results in the Federation of Malaya show an estimated population of 4,877,678, but this figure

Field End. Victoria Road
1938. 1946–7. 1938 1946–7.
Parcels posted 9,880 26,247 6,188 7,592
Registered items posted 4,495 36,912 4,945 17,476
Savings Bank transactions 13,141 47,782 14,725 38,026
Postage, etc., stamps sold £5,076 £16,881 £3,680 £14,009
Insurance stamps sold £6,306 £14,835 £2,525 £3,857
Postal Order transactions 73,021 82,187 85,389 71,277

is not final and is certainly an underestimate. The number of cards issued is 5,965,559. In the Colony of Singapore the respective census and ration card figures are 938,079 and 960,526. Immediate corrective steps are being taken in areas which show a substantial discrepancy between the census and the ration card figures.