asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he is aware that a concrete brick manufactured in the Six Counties was coming in here at £14 per 1,000; and that importation was stopped when a firm here started to manufacture them and the price went up to £20 per 1,000; and if this factor will have the effect of increasing the price of houses.

As far as I am aware, concrete bricks have been manufactured here for over 30 years and a customs duty has been chargeable on imports of these bricks for that period.

According to the information in my Department, the ex-factory prices here for concrete bricks range from £9 to £15 15s per 1,000. The prices charged by the principal manufacturers of concrete bricks have been recently investigated and I have no evidence to indicate that these prices are unreasonable.