asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the rate of industrial production each year since 1945, taking the year 1945 as 100.

I regret that figures for industrial production in 1945 are not available. I would, however, refer the hon. Member to the figures based on 1946 given in the first column of my reply to a Question from the hon. Member for West Ham, North (Mr. Lewis) on 13th July last.

Was the rate of industrial production between 1946 and 1955 much higher than the rate of industrial production from 1951 to the nearest current date? Why has the rate of industrial production in the past nine years slowed down considerably compared with the previous period?

This subject has been argued over and over again, but one reason for the apparently good figures in the early post-war years was the changeover from war-time to peace-time production.