Turning from long-term lending to short-term lending, Sir John Simon declared that foreign short-term lending of a non-commercial character involved considerations and raised special difficulties, which rendered it generally undesirable.
The Chancellor concluded his statement with a tribute to the work of the Advisory Committee and to the loyalty and helpful spirit of the financial community in implementing the Government's policy on foreign lending, by voluntarily responding to the requests which had been made to it from time to time.
The Opposition leader, Mr, C. R, Attlee, and several other members of the House expressed doubt and concern whether the change of policy, ab announced, might not encourage lending to Powers which mere rearming with aggressive intention, The Chancellor replied that he was "surprised at these suspicions." The general purpose of the policy, he added, was to enlarge foreign trade, while individual cases would continue to be scrutii
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.