HC Deb 22 November 1972 vol 846 cc427-8W
Mr. Bruce-Gardyne

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what study he has given to the proposal contained in the latest issue of the National Westminster Bank Quarterly Review, a copy of which has been sent to him, for a more broadly based monetary indicator, M5; if he will make a statement; and if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a table showing the percentage increase in M1, M3 and M5, respectively, in each of the last ten financial years.

Mr. Nott

The suggested M5 is only one of several possible wider definitions. Many would question whether holdings of liabilities of financial institutions other than banks, for example building societies, can be properly treated as "monetary" assets. For this reason, and because of certain technical problems connected with double counting of deposits, I do not think that it would be helpful to publish this as a new series. Information about the liabilities of a wide range of financial institutions is, however, published in Financial Statistics.

Following is the information:

Increase in money stock, M1 and M3
M1 M3
Financial Year per cent. per cent
1963–4 7.3 7.7
1964–5 3.1 5.8
1965–6 5.6 91
1966–7 0.2 3.3
1967–8 6.6 9.4
1968–9 1.6 7.3
1969–70 2.1 2.4
1970–71 14.0 12.6
1971–72 11.1 15.5

NOTE: Comparable figures for 1962–3 are not available.