§ 26. Major GLYNasked the Minister of Agriculture whether his attention has been drawn to the quantity of meat ordered by the War Office, Air Ministry, and Admiralty, for the use of the forces those Departments administer, during the months of August, September, and October, at home; whether any representations have been made by his Ministry as to the advantage that would accrue to British agriculture if for those three months British-grown fresh meat could be supplied to the troops, airmen, and sailors instead of foreign or imported frozen meat: and whether, as an aid to farmers, this proposal may he further investigated?
§ The MINISTER of AGRICULTURE (Mr. Guinness)The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. As regards the second part, the question of supplying home-produced meat to His Majesty's Forces has been carefully considered by the Departments concerned, but in view of the very large extra cost involved, I regret that I cannot see my way to take any further action in the matter.
§ Major GLYNDoes the Minister of Agriculture realise that, if this concession can be given, it would he a very real help to agriculture during these particular months of the year?
§ Mr. LAMBDoes the right hon. Gentleman also realise that there is a great deal more wastage on foreign meat than there is on meat supplied by home producers?
§ Mr. GUINNESSThis is a matter for the Departments concerned, and in the ease of the Admiralty alone I am told that the extra expenditure would be from £150,000 to £200,000 a year. In the ease of the Army it would be much more but it would be very difficult under present conditions to press the Services to face the extra cost.
§ Mr. A. V. ALEXANDERWill the right hon. Gentleman remember his statement about increasing the cost to the consumer, when he is considering Amendments to the Merchandise Marks Bill upstairs?
| Dominion. | No. of Migrants sent from Great Britain and Northern Ireland. (approximate.) | Total amount of assistance towards passages by British and Dominion Governments and Voluntary Societies. (approximate.) | Borne by British Funds. | Borne by Dominion Government Funds. |
| £ | £ | £ | ||
| Australia | 25,596 | 580,836 | 295,779 | 283,821 |
| Canada | 10,266 | 143,563 | 78,437 | 60,768 |
| New Zealand | 8,225 | 190,894 | 91,703 | 98,742 |
| South Africa | 127 | 1,930 | 965 | 965 |
| Totals | 44,214 | 917,223 | 466,884 | 444,296 |
§ The above expenditure relates solely to assistance given towards the cost of passages. There is other expenditure, e.g., for cost of after-care and training, which cannot be related to the individuals who sailed during the year ended 31st March last. In addition to the proportion of cost borne by the Dominion Governments, free railway facilities are granted, with some few exceptions, to all assisted migrants arriving in Australia and New Zealand.
§ 29. Major GLYNasked the Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs what was
§ Mr. SPENCERMay I ask the Government., before they invite other people to do so, to put into practice their own precepts?