72. Mr. Baker Whiteasked the Minister of Food why he is permitting the import of cauliflowers when there are adequate supplies of the home-grown product.
§ Mr. StracheyThe object of permitting the import of cauliflowers is to keep the price down. If it should turn out that home supplies are adequate, the price will stay down, in which ease it will not pay to import them. It must be remembered that, rightly or wrongly, imported cauliflowers have to pay a duty of 3s. a cwt. plus, of course, heavy freight charges.
Mr. Baker WhiteWill the Minister watch the situation very carefully as at the moment it is developing in the same way as did the onion situation, which has been referred to in an earlier Question?
§ Mr. StracheyWe shall certainly watch the situation, and part of our watchfulness will be to keep down the price of cauliflowers.
§ Viscount HinchingbrookeWill the right hon. Gentleman take the earliest opportunity of addressing the Labour Party on his new Liberal economic thinking, because there are a number of glum faces behind him?
§ Major Legge-BourkeIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that growers are only receiving about twopence for a cauliflower now, whereas a retailer can sell it for tenpence? Will he take some action?
§ Mr. StracheyIn answer to both those supplementary questions, my economic thinking, which is by no means new to me or anyone else, tells me that economic competition is the sole safeguard while the trade is in private hands.
§ Mr. Collinsis my right hon. Friend aware that the silence on this side of the House was because of the knowledge that it costs about sixpence in freight and duty to import a cauliflower, without any allowance for the foreign grower or exporter, which is at least a fairly adequate safeguard for the home grower?