§ 19. Mr. Collinsasked the President of the Board of Trade if he will make the figures of potato imports available privately, on a weekly basis, to the Potato Marketing Board.
§ Mr. P. ThorneycroftSuch information as is available to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food about imports of potatoes under open individual licences is already passed weekly to the Potato Marketing Board; further details of arrivals and expected arrivals based on information from the trade are published weekly in various trade publications.
§ Mr. CollinsBut is the Minister aware that figures of imports which are a month old are utterly useless to the Board in giving growers any reliable advice about lifting, and thereby having orderly marketing? If the right hon. Gentleman cannot give the figures I have asked for, will he at least give the figures of the weekly clearings by the Customs, because that would at least show the trend of imports? It is quite an important matter.
§ Mr. ThorneycroftI will look at the last point made by the hon. Member, which is a new one to me and might more appropriately be put to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. All the figures that are available are given to the Potato Marketing Board by the appropriate Ministry.