§ Mr. Hargreavesasked the Secretary of State for Transport when he will publish his study of freight rate disparities; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. David MitchellThe objective of the study is to compare deep sea freight rates out of the Unite Kingdom and the Continent and to account for any differences observed. In the absence of ready sources of data, my Department has to rely heavily on interviews with shippers, forwarders and shipping lines. These are almost complete and I expect to receive a report shortly. Much information has been provided in confidence but I propose to make the general conclusions available in an appropriate form.