Timber and Wood Products

HC Deb 03 May 1989 vol 152 cc151-2W

Mr. Allen

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the current import cost of timber and wood products; what was the comparable cost in the years before the 1988 Budget; and if he will make a statement.

Optical precision instruments
SIC Activity 3732
	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987
Employment '000s1	—	—	—	5	5
Trade Balance £ million2	-156	-187	-274	-319	-243
Import Penetration per cent.2	49	52	65	56	50
Series expressed as index numbers referenced to 1987=1003

Mr. Alan Clark

The available information on the value of imports of timber and wood products for 1984–88 is given in the table:

United Kingdom imports of timber and wood products 1984–1988
£ million
	Timber	Wood products
1984	1,008.3	968.2
1985	893.8	1,012.0
1986	999.3	1,137.9
1987	1,197.2	1,253.8
1988	1,354.5	1,490.9

Source: Overseas Trade Statistics.

Notes:

1. Timber defined as Standard International Trade Classification Revisions 2 and 3 Division 24 less Item 244.

2. Wood products defined as SITC R3 Division 63 less Item 633, and Items 821.16 and 821.5 in 1988; and SITC R2 Division 63 less 633 and Items 821.11 (pt), 821.19 (pt) and 821.92 for the previous years.

3. 1988 figures provisional.