§ 13. Mr. Geoffrey Cooperasked the President of the Board of Trade what need there is for the 30 shortages inspection officers of his Department to be 1815 retained in so far as all sections of trade have channels through which they can report shortages to his Department without Government officials being specially appointed for this task.
§ Mr. H. WilsonMy Distribution Officers provide regular, comprehensive and reliable information—which I cannot get from any other source—not only about shortages and maldistribution but also on the general state of the consumer market. This work is of considerable value in planning the orderly relaxation and removal of controls.
§ Mr. CooperWould my right hon. Friend not agree that there is need for some overhauling in his Department to keep a check on such officials as do this sort of task, especially in view of his recent announcement of the elimination of some of the controls.
§ Mr. WilsonNo, Sir. The reports I get from these officers are very valuable, not only in connection with the relaxation of certain controls, but in order to answer the large number of questions which I get from hon. Members on the subject of consumer supplies in different parts of the country.