§ 70. Sir W. Darlingasked the President of the Board of Trade what plans he has for increasing the supply of nylon hosiery for British consumers; and if these will be available in ample supply in October for the Christmas trading period.
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§ Mr. Bottomley:As the then President of the Board of Trade said in answer to a question by my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, North-West (Mr. Janner) on 1st March, there has already been a very large growth in supplies of nylon stockings for the home market. These supplies, which amounted in the first quarter of 1950 to 41 million pairs, had risen in the first quarter of 1951 to 8½ million pairs. But it is essential to increase our exports of textiles, and nylon products have a ready sale abroad. There are, in addition, some defence demands on our production of nylon. Total supplies of nylon yarn cannot be increased until new capacity for the production of polymer can be brought into operation in some three or four years' time. In these circumstances, I can hold out no hope of bigger supplies of nylon stockings for the home market for a considerable time to come.