§ Mr. Wallerasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state the number of cases where textile goods imported into the United Kingdom have been seized under the provisions of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 on the grounds that they contravened section 16 of the Trade Descriptions Act 1968, for each of the past five years.
§ Mr. BrookeIn each of the last five years the number of cases where textile goods have been seized under the provisions of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 on the grounds that they contravened section 16 or the Trade Descriptions Act 1968, were as follows:
Number 1982 nil 1983 nil 1984 82 1985 97 1986 149 Prior to 1984, Customs practice was not to seize goods imported contrary to the Trade Descriptions Act 1968, but to detain them and then release them when the offending marks had been removed or altered.