§ 29. Mr. Peter Millsasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what interim assurance he will give to milk producers concerned at the dilution of the pool price owing to increased production this summer.
§ Mr. HoyMilk producers already have an assurance, given at the 1966 Review, that dilution due to expansion to meet the beef requirements of the selective expansion programme will be taken into account at future reviews within the period of the programme.
§ Mr. MillsDoes the hon. Gentleman realise that the forecast for the autumn is that the pool price will be much lower and that this, combined with the drop in the price of calves and barren cows, means that the total returns to dairy farmers are dropping considerably? What is he going to do about it?
§ Mr. HoyThe hon. Gentleman put to me a Question about the price of milk, and if he does not mind, I will stick to that at the moment. It is true that on present indications the pool price, as I said in reply to an earlier Question, will be about 3s. 4d. a gallon, and this is about ¼d. a gallon more than the record level last year.
§ Dr. John DunwoodyCan my hon. Friend say whether the proposed increase 729 in welfare milk prices is expected to have any effect on the dairy industry?