HC Deb 19 April 1951 vol 486 cc1978-80
4. Mr. Awbery

asked the President of the Board of Trade what information he has as to how many local authorities have discontinued the practice of collecting waste paper salvage; what reasons were given; what effect this discontinuance has upon the tonnage of salvage collected; and what action he now proposed to take in this matter.

5. Wing Commander Bullus

asked the President of the Board of Trade what progress is being made in the salvage of waste paper by local authorities and other public bodies.

Mr. H. Wilson

As a result of the salvage drive, more than 1,200 local authorities are now collecting, or have decided to collect, waste paper separately, as compared with the 1,767 authorities who were at one time obliged to make separate collections under the Defence Regulations. The direction was withdrawn in 1949 and the number fell to about 700 at the end of that year. Almost all of those which are still not collecting are in districts of scattered population where it is difficult to organise collections on an economic basis.

The average weekly tonnage of all waste paper received by the mills was greater in February this year than any figure previously recorded. Receipts reached the rate of 987,000 tons per annum, as compared with the target of 1,000,000 tons which the Waste Paper Recovery Association had originally set for 1951. The Waste Paper Recovery Association, with my support, is now planning an intensified publicity campaign for increased collections.

Mr. Awbery

In view of the urgent need for waste paper and scrap iron, will my right hon. Friend make it incumbent upon all local authorities to collect this waste, especially those who have discontinued the practice during the past year or so?

Mr. Wilson

My right hon. Friend the Minister of Local Government and Planning and I have been taking this matter up with the local authorities who have not come back into the picture, and I think that the increase in the number now collecting from 700 to over 1,200 is a rather good achievement.

Wing Commander Bullus

When stimulating the collection of salvage, will the Minister emphasise the value of cartons and cards in addition to newspapers? It is generally accepted by the public that newspapers and old correspondence are the salvage which is required, but cartons and cardboard have their value, too.

Mr. Wilson

I am sure that the Waste Paper Recovery Association will be glad to follow the advice of the hon. and gallant Gentleman.

Mr. E. Fletcher

Will my right hon. Friend bear in mind that one way to increase the supply of waste paper would be to give the newspapers more newsprint?

Mr. Wilson

The newspapers are, as they have been for some time, perfectly free to bring in all the newsprint they can from Europe, and for some time past there has been a very big allocation of dollars if the newsprint is available in North America.

Major Guy Lloyd

Does the authority of the right hon. Gentleman in this respect extend to Scotland? If it does, is he aware that a great many local authorities there are doing absolutely nothing at all about it?

Mr. Wilson

I should be very glad to look into that.

Mr. Nabarro

Has the right hon. Gentleman yet formed an opinion whether the target, set tentatively some months ago, of one million tons of waste paper salvage per year will prove adequate in view of the increased demands of the defence programme?

Mr. Wilson

I understand from the trade that it is considered adequate, but we shall review the position from time to time.