§ Mr. Sillarsasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what a man would have to earn now to obtain the same purchasing power as a wage rate of £23.86 earned in March 1970.
1970 1971 1972 1973 Nil Swiss Franc … 629 million Nil Swiss Franc … 556 million Deutschemark … 177 million Deutschemark … 100 million United States Dollar … 2,517 million Belgian Franc … 475 million It is not possible to estimate precisely the amounts payable in interest on these borrowings since a large part of the money borrowed is on floating rate terms. At present interest rates, the total cost of servicing these borowings in 1974 is estimated to be about US dollars 270 million.