HC Deb 01 June 1954 vol 528 cc1076-7
46. Captain Duncan

asked the Prime Minister if he will now name a date for the abolition of the Ministry of Food.

The Prime Minister

Not yet, Sir.

Captain Duncan

Can my right hon. Friend go as far as this: will he give an assurance that before the end of this Parliament the Ministry of Food will be abolished?

The Prime Minister

That has certainly been well within the horizon which we have contemplated in the past.

Mr. Shinwell

Does not the right hon. Gentleman recall the extravagant promises about the abolition of the Ministry of Food made two years or more ago? Why this reluctance, this hesitation, this reserve, on matters of this kind?

The Prime Minister

I hope that when and if this result is achieved the right hon. Gentleman's anxiety may be matched by his gratitude.

Mr. Shinwell

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that my anxiety is not about the possible closing of the Ministry of Food—there could be a very useful debate about that—but about the position of this Government in declining to implement their promises to the electorate? Will the right hon. Gentleman answer?

The Prime Minister

Some questions are so obvious that they do not need an answer.