§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what estimate he has made as to the adequacy of the supply of home-produced or imported steel; and if he will publish a table showing(a) United Kingdom production, imports and net home disposals of steel in each month in 1989 and in this year to date, (b) the rate of return on capital required to make it profitable for United Kingdom steel manufacturers to invest in new capacity in the United Kingdom at current rates of exchange and (c) the actual rates of return on replacement and historic cost in 1993 generally and for the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. SainsburyEstimates of the adequacy of steel supply are a matter for industry. The available figures of production, imports and net home disposals are published in the monthly digest of statistics—table 10.2—a copy of which is in the Library of the House. It is for companies to decide what rate of return is required to make investment in new capacity profitable. There are no official data on rates of return, but information may be available from commercial organisations that analyse company accounts.