"Britain in Figures"

HC Deb 04 November 1968 vol 772 cc37-8W

Mr. Jopling

asked the President of the Board of Trade how many copies of "Britain in Figures" have been produced and at what cost to public funds.

Mr. Dell

135,000 copies of the card were printed at a cost of £1,274.

Mr. Jopling

asked the President of the Board of Trade, in view of the fact that nearly all telephones in possession of householders are owned by the Post Office, and that many cars, television sets and other consumer durables are owned by finance or rental companies, what steps he is taking to correct the statements contained in the Standard of Living table published in "Britain in Figures".

Mr. Dell

The wording on the card should be generally understood. Never- theless I will bear the hon. Member's point in mind in relation to any future issues.

Mr. Jopling

asked the President of the Board of Trade what criteria he adopted in selecting the years 1961, 1966, and 1967 for inclusion for publication in "Britain in Figures".

Mr. Dell

1966 and 1967 were the two most recent years for which the information was generally available when the cards were prepared Figures for 1961 allow longer term comparisons to be made.

Mr. Jopling

asked the President of the Board of Trade what market research was done in advance of the publication of "Britain in Figures"; and what main types of people were identified as needing such a publication.

Mr. Dell

Market research would have appreciably increased the relatively small cost of this project which was designed as a simple work of reference for a wide range of people concerned with Britain's interests, especially businessmen export organisations and officials overseas.