§ Mr. Hollisasked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that carpenters' pencils are at present unobtainable, and that the consequent use by carpenters of ordinary pencils involve an unnecessary waste of timber; and whether he will take steps to improve the supply of carpenters' pencils.
§ Mr. BottomleyTimber supplies have for some time been barely sufficient to meet the pencil demands of consumers as a whole and an extension of the Utility range to provide for such- extra items272W as carpenters' pencils would have reduced supplies for general needs still further. There are now signs of future improvement in Empire pencil timber supplies and some production of pencils for special needs should be possible later in the year. In the meantime supplies of solid graphite sticks which have proved an excellent substitute for carpenters' pencils are available.