asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the basis for the order of priority which decides that the coal allocation for the wool textile industry shall be 50 per cent. against that of the cotton textile industry at 75 per cent.

As my hon. Friend will be aware, the basic coal allocation to industry as a whole is now 50 per cent. of winter requirements, and this figure, therefore, applies to both cotton and wool textile industries. Supplements from the regional pools have brought the figure for the cotton industry in Lancashire up to 75 per cent., and in Yorkshire the following sections of the wool textile industry up to the same level: wool combers, worsted spinners, dyers and finishers, and carbonisers and scourers.

Is the hon. Member aware that the 50 per cent. voluntary reduction was made by the wool industry at the beginning of the war, and that there was no voluntary reduction on the cotton side?

That is a rather different point. I should be glad to look into that if my hon. Friend would put down a Question.