Article No. 94.

94. Unless and until the Board of Trade shall otherwise determine the following provisions shall apply: —

1. (a) Government Directors.—Two of the directors shall be persons appointed by the Board of Trade, and each of them and his successor for the time being in office appointed under this Sub-clause shall be called a Government director. A Government director shall not require any qualification and shall be entitled to hold office for three years unless previously removed by the Board of Trade, and accordingly shall not be bound to retire by rotation nor be liable to be removed from office by an extraordinary resolution of the company or be liable to the operation of paragraphs (d) or (f) of Article 101. The Board of Trade may from time to time remove a Government director. Upon the death of or vacation of office by a Government director the Board of Trade shall be at liberty to appoint another director in his place, and any such appointment or removal shall be in writing served on the company and signed by the President of the Board of Trade for the time being. A retiring Government director shall be eligible for re-appointment. If there shall be only one Government director in office he shall be entitled to exercise all the powers of the Government directors.
2. (b)Power of Government Directors.—The Government directors jointly or if only one be present at a board meeting then that Director shall in addition to their or his ordinary votes or vote as directors or director have absolute power to veto any proposal or resolution of the board the result of which if carried into effect would having due regard to the main object with which the company has been formed in their or his opinion tend to encroach unduly on the trade or business of any British manufacturers of products other than dyes or colours or to give undue preference as regards supply price or otherwise to any customer or consumer of the company's products and to veto the formation or making of any contract or agreement between the company and any foreign 1703 competitor of the company provided always that such veto shall not be used in such a manner as to prevent the manufacture or rendering marketable of products incidental to the manufacture of dyes or colours.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether a Committee has been set up inquiring into supplies, costs, and profits in the dyestuff industry; how many meetings have been held; from whom evidence was taken; and whether he has seen the evidence in question?

A Sub-committee of the Standing Committee on Trusts has been appointed to ascertain to what extent supplies, prices, and costs of dyes and dyestuffs in this country, and profits thereon, are affected by any trade combination, and, further, to ascertain to what extent the processes of dyeing, finishing, bleaching, and printing are affected by any trade combination, and to investigate the effect of any such trade combination, if found, upon supplies, prices, costs, and profits at all stages of such processes. I am informed that this Committee have held sixteen meetings, and that evidence has been taken from dye makers, consumers, and others. The answer to the last part of the question is in the negative.

May I ask whether it is not a fact that this Committee inquired into other matters than mere profiteering, whether the ground that they covered is not the same as the ground covered by the Bill, and whether this information should not be available before the Bill is proceeded with in this House?

Until I receive the Report of the Committee, I am not able to say what scope is covered in the inquiry. I have read to the House the Committee's terms of reference, and I imagine that the inquiry will have been in accordance with those terms of reference.

Does not the hon. and gallant Gentleman consider that it should have been his business to find out about the proceedings of this Committee before bringing a Bill before the House?

No, Sir, I do not. I consider that it was the business of the Board of Trade to give effect to the pledges given by His Majesty's Government both before and during the last Election. The findings of this Committee will be, no doubt, as valuable after we have redeemed our pledges as before.

Has the evidence given before this Committee been printed, or will it be printed?

It is certainly not published yet.

Is it printed?

I do not think so. It may have been printed or typed for circulation to the members of the Committee. I think that the House is rather under a misapprehension as to the procedure of this Committee. The Central Committee appoints sub-committees to deal with these questions, and until a sub-committee makes its report to the Central Committee, and that report is forwarded by the Central Committee to the Board of Trade, it really does not come under our jurisdiction at all.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether it is the policy of the Government to exclude dyestuffs from America, Switzerland, and France; whether, during the War, these counties assisted materially in maintaining the supply of dyestuffs for this country; and whether this is the best method of establishing cordial trade relations with Allies and friendly neutrals?

The provisions of the Bill are general. I am fully aware of the assistance which was rendered during the War as regards the supply of dyestuffs by Switzerland and, to a much smaller degree, by the United States and France. As regards the last two countries, however, I would point out that the obligation was reciprocal, and that the British industry was able to be of very substantial assistance to consumers in those countries, whilst, as regards Switzerland, the industry was largely maintained by supplies of materials from this country. I would further point out that both France and especially the United States, in particular, are taking active measures to safeguard the development of domestic dyemaking industries either by prohibition or increased tariffs.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether any representations have been received from users of dyestuffs adverse to the principles embodied in the Dyestuffs (Import Regulation) Bill; if so, from what persons or firms they have been received; and what was their nature?

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he has received any representations from the Calico Printers' Association and the dyers of leather goods on the subject of the restriction of imports of dyestuffs; and, if so, what is the nature of the representations?

I have received representations from the Calico Printers' Association and Messrs. J. & J. Crombie, Limited, who are opposed to the general policy laid down in the Dyestuffs (Import Regulation) Bill, on the ground that, if carried into effect, it might place difficulties in the way of their obtaining any kind of dyestuff required by them at the lowest possible prices. Such representations as I have received from the Federation of Curriers, Light Leather Tanners and Dressers, Incorporated, related, not to the proposals contained in the Bill, but to the present general shortage of certain dyes. I ought, however, to add that the Calico Printers' Federation has passed a resolution endorsing the action taken by the Colour Users' Association.

Major BARNES:

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether the Dewsbury Chamber of Commerce, which represents the heavy woollen dye trade, the largest users of dyestuffs in the country, were consulted as to the provisions of the Dyestuffs (Import Regulation) Bill, and expressed its approval?

No chambers of commerce have been consulted regarding the Bill to which the hon. and gallant Member refers, but a large number of the users in the Dewsbury districts are members of the Colour Users' Association, which has been consulted throughout and which has expressed its approval of the principles of the Bill.