§ Mr. Piratinasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is satisfied that in all cases where the cost of clothing has increased as a result of the withdrawal of subsidy, no extra profits have been obtained by the manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers because of the higher price of the material; and will he publish the relative percentage of profits of the three categories in relation to the cost of material before and after the subsidies were withdrawn.
§ Mr. BelcherIncreases in manufacturers' prices have been limited so far as possible to the amount of the subsidies that have been withdrawn and, in some cases, have been less than that amount, 73W while distributors' percentage margins have been reduced so as to leave them with about the same cash margins as before. The information asked for in the last part of the Question is not available since the amount of profit earned varies from firm to firm with such factors as relative efficiency and the extent to which sales are made at the full permitted price.