§ 14. Mr. Bullardasked the President of the Board of Trade what tonnage of sugar has been imported from Poland in the 12-month period up to the latest convenient date under the Anglo-Polish trade agreement.
§ Mr. MaudlingDuring the 12 months to 30th September, 1960, imports from Poland amounted to approximately 16,000 tons of refined and 400 tons of unrefined sugar.
§ Mr. BullardIs my right hon. Friend aware that these imports cause considerable mystification in the home sugar-growing areas, as producers have always been told that their industry could not expand because of our commitments to the cane sugar-producing countries in the Commonwealth? Is my right hon Friend satisfied that the barter arrangements under which this sugar is imported are really necessary to our trade, or is it merely that we need a sweetener far East-West trade relationships?
§ Mr. MaudlingThere is no question of a sweetener. This is not a barter arrangement. The position is that Poland, like the United Kingdom, is a member of the International Sugar Agreement, and imports of sugar from countries participating in the Agreement come to this country without quantitative restrictions.