§ 5. Mr. Willeyasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the maximum retail prices of price-controlled foodstuffs on 1st November, 1951; and what are the latest maximum retail prices of those foodstuffs according to the inquiries of his marketing officers.
Mr. AmoryAs the list of prices on 1st November, 1951 is extensive, I will, with permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT. My marketing officers normally report wholesale prices only, but exceptionally—as recently for potatoes—they may be asked to make a special report on retail prices.
§ Mr. WilleyWill the figures which I receive contain the retail prices for which I have asked?
Mr. AmoryNo. The figures which I am providing contain the 1951 prices, but I have no detailed figures of the retail prices today for the reasons I have given; my marketing officers do not investigate or record retail prices in general.
§ Mr. WilleyWould not the right hon. Gentleman agree that if he has this staff it would be better if they gave us the information we wanted? Is he aware 963 that those figures would reveal the Government's very sorry record and explain many of the difficulties which we now face?
Mr. AmoryThe Government's very solid record, to which the hon. Gentleman refers, I think, with appreciation, in my opinion speaks for itself. To carry out the detailed records which the hon. Gentleman has mentioned would require a staff very much greater than my present staff of marketing officers.
§ Following is the information:
§ A list of maximum retail prices operating on 1st November, 1951, is given below for those foods for which a single price or a relatively simple range of prices can be quoted. For other foods where the price varied by cut, size or type of pack or the area in which the sale was made, the number of the relevant Statutory Instrument is shown. Bread and milk are now the only foods for which maximum prices in this sense still exist.
| FOOD PRICES CONTROLLED ON 1ST NOVEMBER, 1951 | |
| Items for which a single price or simple price range may be given | |
| Bananas: | Statutory Instrument |
| 1s. to 1s. 1½d. according to area | 1951 No. 525 |
| Bread: 14 oz. loaf 3½d. Other loaves at the rate of 3d. per 14 oz. | 1951 No. 592 |
| Butter: 2s. 6d. per lb. | 1951 No. 801 |
| Cheese, including processed cheese: 1s. 2d. per lb. | 1950 No. 1069 |
| Cream: 6s. 6d. per lb. | 1951 No. 1160 |
| Dripping: 1s. 4½d. per lb. | 1951 No. 1251 |
| Eggs: 3d. to 5d. each | 1951 No. 1689 |
| Lard: 1s. 4d. per lb. | 1951 No. 783 |
| Milk: Ordinary milk, 5½d. per pint | 1951 No. 1157 |
| Rice: Whole or flaked, 9d. per lb. Other, 10d. per lb. | 1950 No. 1617 |
| Sugar: Granulated for domestic consumption, 6d. per lb. | 1951 No. 1209 |
| Cooking fat: 1s. 4d. per lb. | Controlled by agreement with the trade |
| Margarine: Special, 1s. 2d. per lb. | Controlled by agreement with the trade |
§ Items for which prices on 1st November, 1951, varied according to cut or variety, size of pack or area
| Statutory Instrument | |
| Bacon | 1950 No. 1460 |
| 1951 No. 1523 | |
| Biscuits | 1951 No. 607 |
| Canned fish | 1951 No. 1561 |
| Canned fruit | 1951 No. 1400 |
| Canned meat and meat products | 1951 No 1317 |
| Chocolate and Sugar Confectionery | 1951 Nos. 417, 2067 |
| Coffee | 1951 No. 860 |
| Condensed milk | 1951 No. 1722 |
| Dried fruit | 1951 No. 771 |
| Flour and semolina | 1951 No. 1042 |
| Flour confectionery | 1951 No. 1078 |
| Meat | 1951 No. 1313 |
| Potatoes | 1951 No. 1724 |
| Syrup and treacle | 1950 No. 872 |
| Tea | 1951 No. 727 |
| Cocoa | Controlled by agreement with the trade |
§ NOTE: A detailed list of prices would be extremely long. There were, for example, some 300 prescribed retail prices for meat alone operating in November, 1951.