HC Deb 17 April 1947 vol 436 cc470-80

Motion made, and Question proposed, "That this House do now adjourn."—[Mr. Snow.]

10.5 p.m.

Mr. Baldwin (Leominster)

On many occasions the Minister of Food has declared, that so far as food and distribution are concerned his policy is that it shall be fair shares for all. We on this side of the House thoroughly approve of that principle. It is in an attempt to show the Minister of Food that at the present time it is not fair shares for all that I am occupying the time of the House this evening. I am endeavouring to prove that farm-workers and their families arc a long way from getting their fair share of the rations which exist at the present time. On several occasions the Minister of Food has declared that the nation is being fed as well today as it was in prewar days, at least to the extent of, shall we say, 70 per cent. The Minister has said that the top class is getting a little bit less, the middle-class the same, and the lower class more. I do not know how the Minister has divided the community into those three classes. I think it would be somewhat difficult today to say which is the top class. I suggest that so far as food is concerned, the division is into two classes; one, the class which has the opportunity of feeding at restaurants, hotels and other catering establishments, and the other the class which has not the opportunity of feeding there. It is in that latter category that I place farm workers and their families.

I do not think the conditions under which farm workers and their families live are realised. It is sometimes thought they have the same opportunity of drawing their rations as the ordinary person who lives in the town. But I suggest that anyone who has the opportunity of going to restaurants, hotels, or other catering establishments can get all the food they wish to buy. There is nothing to prevent anybody in this great city of London, or indeed in this House, from getting four meat meals a day if they wish to make gluttons of themselves. I claim that before it is possible for this section of the community to obtain this abundance of food, better opportunities should be given to the farm worker to live at a better rate than he is doing at the present time.

If it is a question of supplies not being available for him, and if it is necessary to continue food rationing for a number of years, the Ministry of Food should adopt a different principle with regard to rationing. I believe that during and just after the last war it was compulsory for anyone who went to a restaurant to give up a coupon. If there is any shortage of meat, steps should be taken to see that those who have the chance of getting it should not gorge themselves with meat, thus making it impossible for the farm worker to get his share.

I want to make it quite plain that it is sometimes not realised that the farm workers and their families have no opportunity of going to a catering establishment during the 'week. They have not the opportunity of going to a fish and chip shop to supplement their rations. More than that, the housewife herself is at this disadvantage. If she lived in a town she could drop in at the butcher's every morning to see if there were a few oddments not on the ration. But the farm worker's wife does not get that opportunity; nor does she get the opportunity of going to the fish shop every morning to get a little extra fish. Her opportunity is once a week, when she goes to the local town, probably arriving lateish in the day, after the townspeople have had the chance of picking up the oddments in the butcher's shop. I do claim that that is not fair.

I know it is sometimes said that the farm worker has the opportunity to supplement his rations with pigs and poultry. Well, to some extent that may be so; but certainly during the last 12 months, since the feeding rations have been cut down for the small poultry keeper, that opportunity has not arisen. I know a few farm workers do still keep pigs, but if their pigs had to rely on the rations to which they are entitled, I am afraid their pigs would be rather lean, and it is only when the farmers themselves help the workmen out with some of their rations that the men are able to keep pigs at all. I did not want to be met with the statement that the farm worker is already getting extra rations. I have listened to that statement on too many occasions in this House, and I want to hear something fresh this time. I am well aware that the farm worker does get certain rations for what is termed "seasonal" work—bread, cheese, jam and tea; but he gets no extra meat.

I want to call attention to the method which is adopted before a man does get those extra rations. The farmer himself has to draw those rations. Strictly, he should hand them out to his men in the way of tea already brewed, and bread and cheese sandwiches, and so forth. But anyone who has had the practical job of distributing those rations knows that that method is very difficult. When one has men working in three or four different parts of the farm at once, it is entirely impracticable to expect the housewife to cut sandwiches, and to make the tea, and to send them to all four corners of the farm. What most of us do is to distribute the rations to the men as fairly and squarely as we can after measuring them on the scales. It was said in this House a short time ago that farmers had not been very co-operative. I think it was said that 20 per cent. of them had not drawn those rations for their men. I have some hesitation in accepting that statement, because I cannot understand that any workman who works for a farmer who refuses to draw his extra rations would remain in his employ for very long. If there are a few cases where the farmers do not draw those rations I think it is simply because of the difficulty in keeping within the law, and of acting as a sort of catering establishment.

I am asking that the farm workers and their families should be treated as fairly as the miners. I ask for them the same rations as were stated on 24th March to be allotted to the miners. I think that is the least one can expect, because even if the farm workers do get more rations they will not have the opportunity of going to a canteen as the miners have. It has been stated that the miner will have extra food at his canteens as well as extra rations for home consumption. On 6th March, the Prime Minister was asked a Question with regard to extra rations for farm workers, and his reply was: The environment and distribution of the agricultural community are so different from those of the mining community as to preclude the extension to them of certain measures proposed for increasing the supply of some foods and consumer goods to miners."—[OFFICIAL REPORT, 6th March, 1947; Vol. 434, c. 645.] I look upon that as a very weak excuse. If it is possible to issue these rations to miners in their canteens, it should be possible to get them out to the farm worker. I want to make it quite plain that I do not grudge the miner his extra rations. Good luck to him, he does a dirty and hard job, and is entitled to all he can get. I claim, however, that the farm worker is entitled to just as much consideration as the mine worker. If it is fair for a man who is going to work a five-day, 40-hour week, it can only be fair that a man who does a seven-day, 70-hour week should be entitled to receive the same rations. There arc many farm workers who do 70 hours a week, and I think it is distinctly unfair that these men should get a piece of meat each week which they could consume at one meal, and, for the rest of the week, have to eat bread and cheese. I do not see that there is any difficulty about the provision of this meat. If there is, then the catering establishments should be cut down, and the meat made available to the farm worker.

It has been stated that it is a question of how much meat it will take to provide this extra. To give the farm worker an extra pound of meat a week would take 21,000 tons of meat a year, and the cost would be just over £2 million. Today £2 million is not a very large sum of money, and, if I may make a comparison, during the months of January and February, we imported very nearly 2 million pounds worth of grapes and pears into this country, and let it be remembered that three quarters of that importation was from the hard currency areas. I hope it will not be suggested either that the meat is not available or that the cost is too high, because, if we can afford to spend £2 million on grapes and pears in two months, I think we can afford to spend £2 million per annum on the farm worker and his family.

I think I should also say that the record of the farm worker of this country is not equalled by that of any other class of worker. For seven or eight years, he has worked cheerfully through very difficult times, with no strikes and very little absenteeism, and I think the community owes a great debt of gratitude to him. One way in which they could show their gratitude to him would be by giving him the extra rations to which he is entitled. I hope the Parliamentary Secretary will be able to give us some hope that these extra rations will be granted. If we do not get such a promise, I am afraid I shall be a nuisance on many occasions in the future until the Ministry does recognise the importance of this request.

We have to remember that one of the important questions facing this country today is that of the provision of food. We have been through a fuel crisis, and we are now facing a food crisis. We can produce the food we need if we get the men on the land. We have to face up to the fact that, very shortly, 130,000 prisoners of war will be returning to their own countries, and will have to be replaced by other workers. In a short time, the Essential Work Order will be done away with, and I am glad it will be, because I do not want any of my men to stay with me if they can get the chance of a good job elsewhere. The only way to get these men to their jobs is to make life more attractive in the way of extra food and extra houses in which they can live.

10.20 p.m.

Mr. Gooch (Norfolk, Northern)

I am glad to have the opportunity of adding a few words to what has already been said in pleading for even better treatment for farm workers. I spend most of my weekends in rural England addressing rural audiences; I shall do it again this weekend in Buckinghamshire, where I shall be meeting representative farm workers from all parts of that county I am sure that one of the main topics to be discussed, as on every previous occasion, will be the possibility of securing more food for the men who produce the nation's food. I want to say that I do not rise in any critical spirit in regard to the attitude of the Ministry of Food; the Minister has been very helpful and the extra rations which have hitherto been allowed for harvesting periods are now available in view of the stress of work on the farms. We are very glad of that concession, but I want to stress the point that the farm workers of this country will earn every bit of extra food the Minister is now prepared to give them.

I speak for at least 150,000 farm workers, and in their name I want to plead with the Parliamentary Secretary to give a little further thought to this very important matter. The extra food that is now supposed to be available for farm workers in many thousands of cases never gets to them. Despite what the hon. Member for Leominster (Mr. Baldwin) said with regard to the nonco-operation on the part of the farmers, there is a considerable amount of nonco-operation on the part of farmers who do not apply for the extra rations for their men. I have said it before in this House and I repeat it again tonight, these rations should be made available direct to the farm workers' wives. Whether they get their extra food or not should not depend on the good will or co-operation of the farmer.

Mr. Joynson-Hicks (Chichester)

The hon. Gentleman has made a very serious allegation against farmers in stating that he believes they are not co-operating. Can he produce any evidence?

Mr. Gooch

We have had hundreds of cases reported to us by our local farm workers of cases where farmers have deliberately refrained from applying for the extra rations.

Mr. Joynson-Hicks

Who investigated those cases?

Mr. Baldwin

May we have a specific case?

Mr. Gooch

I could give the hon. Member dozens of cases, and other hon. Members on this side of the House could supply further evidence. A difficulty of this kind will only be overcome if the Ministry agree to devise some ways and means of getting the food direct into the cottage homes. I do not see why farm workers should be dependent on their employers for getting the extra food or not. I had an opportunity of giving a broadcast the other night in which I referred to this matter, and I said then that the farm workers should be given further consideration. That produced a letter from a housewife in my county, and I should like to read two or three sentences from it: Dear Sir, I listened to your radio talk and it would be a good thing if we farm workers wives could buy our own husbands' extra rations. I am sure it would improve morale if we were sure of the bit we are entitled to, instead of which— This is for the benefit of hon. Gentlemen opposite— we are left guessing, are we to get it, will the boss apply for it? Surely this point could be pressed and we could be issued with emergency cards for such? The Parliamentary Secretary has heard what the hon. Member opposite had to say, and I add my plea to his. Farm workers should get the extra rations, but I think they want a little more food with substance in it. Cheese, butter and margarine are all right, but if the Minister could look in the cupboard and find a little more meat I am sure that in return the farm workers, who are the food producers of the nation, would give back compensation four-fold in the amount of work they themselves contribute.

10.25 p.m.

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food (Dr. Edith Summerskill)

I fully endorse all that has been said in praise of the farm worker. My Department have, shown in practical fashion that we appreciate the very great services that they are giving to the country because we have made a special allocation to the farm workers. I am very surprised to hear the hon. Member for Leominster (Mr. Baldwin) say that he does not know any farmers who are not co-operating in our schemes. I think most hon. Members will agree that the schemes that we have devised would be more successful if there were more co-operation between farmers and farm workers.

Like my hon. Friend the Member for North Norfolk (Mr. Gooch) we have information that about 20 per cent. of the farmers are not co-operating. I understand that agricultural workers who are thereby denied their special allowances have a certain grievance. The information that we have leads us to believe that the majority of agricultural workers get their fair share. The minority who feel that they have been neglected, will, now that we have made adjustments in the scheme, benefit with the majority, I hope. I shall tell hon. Members about those adjustments very soon.

I must draw the attention of the House to the special allowances which the agricultural worker is receiving today. That will show hon. Members from agricultural constituencies that the farm worker is in a really favourable position compared with the urban worker. The agricultural worker gets all the normal rations of the manual worker, plus 6 oz. of bread in addition to the 15 oz., and three-quarters of a pound of cheese. My hon. Friend and others who have studied balanced diets will agree that cheese is a very important protein, and cannot be altogether disregarded. Then there is the rural pie scheme. In December last nearly 1½ million pies were distributed in the villages of Britain. We have testimony that the agricultural worker appreciates very much this addition to his diet. The hon. Member for Leominster affects to despise the allowances which are given.

Mr. Baldwin

I do so.

Dr. Summerskill

The farmer can obtain all these allowances. He gets enough tea and sugar to enable him to give two mugs of tea daily to his workers. During periods of special activity he can get additional bread, cheese, margarine, jam, points foods, tea and sugar. I agree that farmers have found it rather difficult to distribute these commodities in the way which the Ministry have asked them to do in the past, but we have changed our policy recently and now every farmer can distribute these rations weekly. If it is found that a farmer is reluctant to do it a foreman or a workman nominated by the foreman can do it, and distribute the food to the agricultural labourers at the end of the week. Furthermore, they can take the food home, and their wives can make these special foodstuffs up into sandwiches or any kind of pie they wish. That will ease, I am sure the hon. Gentleman will agree, this acknowledged difficulty of the farmer.

Major Mott-Radclyffe (Windsor)

Could the hon. Lady tell us how the meat ration of the agricultural worker compares with the ration for other people?

Dr. Summerskill

I am coming to that. I want to remind the hon. Gentleman of the ration which the agricultural worker already enjoys. It must be remembered that they can kill one calf every three months and a pig at set periods—two pigs a year—and they can kill extra sheep. [An HON. MEMBER: "They cannot feed them."] The hon. Gentleman says that they cannot feed them, but they have these powers, and I would say to the hon. Member that many farmers exercise these powers very effectively. Furthermore, in the country districts, farm workers find it much more easy to keep poultry, and to form pig clubs, and so on, than urban workers. It has also to be remembered that extra rationed foods are supplied to supplement the domestic swill of these poultry and pig keepers.

Mr. Collins (Taunton)

Could the hon. Lady say whether it is departmentally impossible for the men to receive the "chits" instead of the farmer? It would seem easier if the man could go to the shop than for the farmer to go and then distribute the "chits" to the men.

Dr. Summerskill

The reason we have not done this is because we have tried, so far as possible, to avoid differential rationing, and we have felt that it would be unfair in certain parts where the wife of a man doing work which calls for as much energy and endurance as that shown by an agricultural worker has to do her shopping side by side with the wife of an agricultural worker who is enjoying extra personal rations.

Mr. Hurd (Newbury)

And who has canteens?

Dr. Summerskill

I am coming to that. We are anxious not to discriminate and we supply the extra allowances in this way as a substitute for canteens.

Mr. Baldwin

rose—

Dr. Summerskill

I have only a few moments, and I do wish to finish my reply. We are anxious now to see how this new scheme works. I am sure that, if every farmer this time co-operates with the workers, we shall be very successful. But, of course, it does depend upon the farmers, and I deplore the fact that some farmers have failed to introduce this service which is available.

The hon. Member asked me a question about canteens. I agree that it is not so easy in the agricultural districts to pop into a canteen, but I would remind hon. Members opposite that we have invited farmers to set up canteens. [HON. MEMBERS: "How on earth can they?"] Many farmers have set up canteens.

Mr. Vane (Westmorland)

Farmers employing one man?

Dr. Summerskill

It is a question of finding farmers who are willing to co-operate. When they are prepared to do so, we are prepared to give them the maximum meat ration for a canteen. [An HON. MEMBER: "Farmers employing two men?"] If they were employing only two men they would not set up canteens. Many farmers in the country do not employ only two men. Many farmers in the country employ many more, and the hon. Member opposite talked about groups of men working in different parts of a farm. Those men could come together in a canteen operated on the farm.

The hon. Member asked me why we did not give an extra meat ration. In our opinion that would be neither provident nor just. We have not the extra meat, and besides the farm worker receiving the extra ration of cheese, there are 30 other categories of worker who also qualify for the extra ration of cheese, and who could quite well come to us and say that, having given three quarters of a million farm workers extra meat, they must have it also. For that reason I feel that we cannot take this step.

The Question having been proposed after Ten o'Clock, and the Debate having continued for half an hour, Mr. DEPUTY SPEAKER adjourned the House without Question put, pursuant to the Order made upon 13th November.

Adjourned accordingly at Twenty-four minutes to Eleven o'Clock.