§ 52 and 53. Mr. Cordleasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what is the effect so far on our balance of payments of the cutting off of oil supplies to the United Kingdom by Middle East countries;
(2) what he estimates to be the effect on our balance of payments for each month the Suez Canal remains closed.
§ Mr. DiamondFor the costs arising from the Middle East situation as a whole I would refer the hon. Member to the Answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the right hon. Gentleman the Leader of the Opposition on 26th October.
It is not practicable to distinguish between the costs attributable to the closure of the Canal, to the cutting off of oil supplies to the United Kingdom by certain Middle East countries, and to the loss of Nigerian production. The closure of the Canal is certainly by far the biggest factor.—[Vol. 751, c. 1882–4.]