§ Mr. Ridleyasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out for each year from 1947 to the latest convenient year the capital investment of the Exchequer in the nationalised industries taken as a whole, and the interest paid by them on that capital to the Exchequer.
§ Mr. DiamondThe following table, based largely on information published each year in the Finance Accounts of the United Kingdom, shows the net amount issued in each year since 1946 in Exchequer Loans to the Nationalised Industries, and the interest paid to the Exchequer by the industries.
79W
NATIONALISED INDUSTRIES EXCHEQUER INVESTMENT AND INTEREST PAID—1946–47 to 1966–67 Financial Year Net Advances from the Consolidated Fund Interest Paid £m £m 1946–47 … … 33.0 — 1947–48 … … 27.2 2.3 1948–49 … … 16.7 3.4 1949–50 … … 10.0 3.6 1950–51 … … 2.1 4.1 1951–52 … … 11.5 6.0 1952–53 … … 36.3 8.9 1953–54 … … 36.4 11.8 1954–55 … … 67.3 16.2 1955–56 … … 78.0 19.0 1956–57 … … 362.0 24.8 1957–58 … … 429.7 37.5 1958–59 … … 962.0 63.9 1959–60 … … 970.0 97.3 1960–61 … … 385.6 123.8 1961–62 … … 464.1 183.4 1962–63 … … 340.2 243.8 1963–64 … … 424.2 245.5 1964–65 … … 564.8 264.1 1965–66 … … 590.7 276.1 1966–67 … … 812.9 317.0 NOTES
1. Advances are made from the Consolidated Fund to finance capital investment and repayment is usually made over a period of years. The amounts shown are net of repayments.
2. Prior to 1956–57 only the National Coal Board was financed by advances from the Consolidated Fund.
3. The Post Office was not financed by borrowing until 1961–62 following a change of status under the Post Office Act 1961.
4. Under the Transport Act 1962 the British Transport stocks which were formerly serviced by the British Transport Commission were taken into the National Debt and serviced by issues from the Exchequer. The Commission's capital liabilities were divided between the new transport undertakings created under the Act in the form of a commencing capital debt for each undertaking. For the Railways Board a sum of £487 million was written off and of the remaining capital debt of £1,562 million, £705 million was placed in suspense.
5. Under the Coal Industry Act 1965 the National Coal Board's liability for capital advances was reduced by £415 million.
6. The Air Corporation Act 1966 extinguished as from 1st April 1965, the liability of B.O.A.C. for capital advances amounting to £124 million and at the same time transferred to the Treasury the responsibility for the Corporation's stock. B.O.A.C. assumed liability for an Exchequer advance of £31 million and Exchequer Dividend Capital of £35 million. On the latter a dividend of £3.5 million was paid in respect of 1965–66.