§ MR. THOMAS O'DONNELL (Kerry, W.)I beg to ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether he will state the number and approximate value of store cattle exported from Ireland annually into Great Britain; the number and approximate value of stores imported from other countries; whether he is aware that this Irish industry, on the security and protection of which the payment of their annuities by the small peasant proprietors mainly depends, would suffer injury if store cattle from foreign countries, where disease is known to exist and cannot be easily detected, were admitted; whether he is aware that stores have been sold in Ireland during the past year at low prices without any appreciable reduction in the price of the finished article; and whether, before coming to any decision, he will have regard to the feeling shown in Ireland on this question by all classes and sections of the community.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGE (for Sir EDWARD STRACHET)The average number of store cattle exported annually from Ireland to Great Britain during the last five years is 476,000. No official information is available as to their value. No store cattle are imported from other countries. The Government take note of the reasons urged by the hon. Member in support of the maintenance of the existing law as to the importation of store cattle from abroad.