§ Mr. Ron Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection if she will introduce legislation to prohibit the practice of shops refusing to supply goods which are in short supply to customers who do not wish to purchase other goods at the same time.
§ Mrs. Shirley WilliamsNo. I have already asked retailers not to apply such conditions when selling sugar to known regular customers and to old-age pensioners. To impose an absolute ban would be unlikely, in my view, to achieve a fairer distribution of goods in short supply and might facilitate hoarding.