§ Mr. Wilkesasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware of the grave shortage of gas mantles in Newcastle-on-Tyne; whether he will state the basis of distribution; and whether distributors take into account the approximate number of houses within the area dependent solely on gas for lighting purposes.
§ Mr. H. WilsonNo. My information is that the local gas company had a reasonable stock of mantles at the end of January and further supplies have been delivered since then. There is no statutory control of distribution. Manufacturers base distribution on the rate at which they supplied different areas before the war, with necessary adjustments for variations of demand from those areas dependent solely on gas for lighting purposes.