§ 60. Major Legge-Bourkeasked the Minister of Food when he expects his Potato Division will have settled their 1941 accounts; and what are the prospects for the accounts of the years intervening between then and now being settled.
§ Mr. StracheyI assume that the hon. and gallant Member is referring to the outstanding ledger balances of merchants' transactions on the 1941 crop. The clearance of these has been delayed by inadequate records, due partly to a fire. The same difficulty of records has affected settlements for the two or three following years, but it is being overcome and we expect to clear the accounts soon.
§ Major Legge-BourkeWill the Minister try to avoid what happened in my constituency not long ago, when an official came from his Ministry and, having had a very nice holiday in the area, went back again without giving any solution to the problem?
§ Mr. StracheyIn view of the difficulty which I have mentioned, one must send an official down to try to clear it up.