HC Deb 03 December 1979 vol 975 c1W
19. Mr. Hooson

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what additional steps he proposes to take to offer advance factories to their tenants, and to use the funds realised for further factory construction.

Mr. Michael Marshall

In appropriate cases, the tenants of the English Industrial Estates Corporation now have the opportunity to purchase their freeholds or obtain a long lease of 125 years instead of the 99 years granted previously. Mortgages are available where desired. The proceeds will enable the Government to reduce the net costs of the factory programme.

Million square metres
1977 1978 1979
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2
Cotton cloth 118 106 93 109 112 118 98 112 120 109
Man-made fibre cloth 203 184 170 189 182 175 156 181 196 184
Source:Textile Statistics Bureau—converted from liner metres.

Comparable information by value is not available. Figures collected by the Business Statistics Office relate to sales of cloth in the loom state and finished.

£ million
1977 1978 1979
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1* Q2*
Cotton cloth 29 30 27 30 28 28 26 29 31 30
Man-made fibre cloth 80 74 71 83 88 83 76 91 95 91
* Small change in classification of cloth.
Source: Business Monitor PQ 413.

Mr. Frank R. White

asked the Secretary of State for Industry what was the level of import penetration as a percentage of domestic sales, by volume and by value in each quarter of 1977, each quarter of 1978 and the three quarters of 1979 in

Forward to