§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for Norfolk, North on 31 January, Official Report, column 163, and his subsequent letter of 8 March, he will publish the rates of return in nationalised industries in the Official Report.
§ Mr. Peter ReesThe table of rates of return on capital employed in nationalised industries for 1982 which I sent to my hon. Friend on 8 March, is as follows:
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Nationalised Industry Rates of Return 1982* Capital Stock Rate of Return Including subsidy Excluding subsidy £ million Per cent. Per cent. Air Transport (BA) 1,295 -3.0 -3.0 Coal (NCB) 6,761 3.6 -3.9
Capital Stock Rate of Return Including subsidy Excluding subsidy £ million Per cent. Per cent. Electricity (Electricity Council England and Wales; North of Scotland Hydro Board; South of Scotland Electricity Board; Northern Ireland Electricity Service) 30,429 0.7 0.4 Gas (BGC) 10,662 7.6 7.6 Posts and Telecom* (PO; BT) 18,959 †5.4 †5.4 Steel (BSC) 9,414 -6.1 -6.1 Shipbuilding (BS) 1,402 -7.2 -9.4 * No figures yet available for British Rail. † Initial assessment: may be subject to revision. The basis for the calculation of the figures, which relate to all the public corporations in particular standard industrial classifications, was set out in the Treasury evidence to the Treasury and Civil Service Select Committee in 1981 (published as appendix 12 of volume III of its report "Financing of the Nationalised Industries " HC 348-III). The rates of return given are based on national accounts statistics and, therefore, may differ from figures based on nationalised industries' published accounts.