§ 72. Sir A. V. Harveyasked the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to alleviate the difficult trading position of the furniture manufacturing industry.
§ Mr. J. RodgersI assume that my hon. Friend is referring to the effect on the furniture industry of the current hire-purchase restrictions. Those restrictions were necessary as part of the measures taken by the Government to preserve economic stability and they must be retained so long as is necessary for that purpose. I would add that sales by furniture manufacturers in the five months following the imposition of this control were in value slightly more than they were in the same period of 1959. I understand however that orders on hand at the end of September 1960 were down on those at the same date last year. We shall of course be watching this position.