Milk (Hansard, 20 May 1957)

§ 42. Mr. Willey
asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was the consumption of full price fresh milk for the month of April.

Mr. Amory
It is provisionally estimated to have been 104 million gallons in the United. Kingdom.

§ Mr. Willey
In view of the substantial decrease in the consumption of milk, will not the right hon. Gentleman review his price policy? Does he realise how absurd it is to expect the Milk Marketing Board to advertise the sale of milk when he is preventing the sale of milk by his price policy?

Mr. Amory
The hon. Gentleman is off the beam a bit. Consumption for April is not down on consumption for March. There were thirty days in April and thirty-one days in March. The retail price of milk was reduced on 1st April from 8d. to 7½d.

§ Mr. Willey
Does not the right hon. Gentleman realise that the figures he has given show a decrease of more than three million gallons compared with April of last year? We have to compare month with month. That is a serious decline. Surely he should recognise it, and recognise also his own responsibility for that decline.

Mr. Amory
I fully recognise my own responsibility, but again, comparing 1957 with 1956, I would point out that in the current year the whole of the Easter holidays fell in April.

Mr. Wiley
In view of the unsatisfactory reply of the right hon. Gentleman, I beg to give notice that I will endeavour to raise this matter on the Adjournment at the earliest possible moment.