§ Mr. Marlowasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what will be the effect on the retail price index of the elimination of underpricing by the nationalised industries,
§ Mr. Biffen[pursuant to his reply, 9 May 1980, c. 280]: The moves towards the correction of underpricing in the energy industries—that is, the gas price increases above the rise in the retail price index and the electricity price increases in excess of the industry's costs announced by the Secretary of State for Energy on 16 January—will add less than 0.2 per cent. to the retail price index in 1980–81. The impact in future years will depend on the increase in prices generally and in fuel costs in particular, about which there is too much uncertainty to give an accurate forecast.