HC Deb 27 July 1961 vol 645 cc585-6
17. Mr. Lipton

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action he will take on the Food Standards Committee's Report on Bread and Flour.

Mr. Soames

I am hoping to circulate my proposals in the autumn.

Mr. Lipton

Will the right hon. Gentleman bear in mind that it took some years for the Government to set up this Committee to make the investigation and that the Commmittee took another few years to finalise its Report? While we appreciate that the Government are in a bit of a mess at the moment, will not the Minister make up his mind to issue his final decision long before the autumn, because in the meantime this staple article of food is being chemically tampered with for the benefit of the millionaire milling combines.

Mr. Soames

Comments were invited in the early part of this year and very many sets of comments were received from a number of manufacturers, local authorities, trade organisations and private individuals. We will get on with this as soon as we can, but it is a complicated, technical, and scientific subject.