§ 4. Mr. John Evansasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection when she intends to pay her next official visit to the Council of Ministers.
§ Mrs. Shirley WilliamsI have no firm plans to do so at present.
§ Mr. EvansI am disappointed with that reply. Does the Secretary of State accept that the British people expect her to impress on the Agriculture Ministers in the Community the absolute necessity of bringing about a fundamental change in the CAP to ensure that the consumer gets as fair a deal as the farmer? When my right hon. Friend last attended a meeting of Agriculture Ministers, were any other Ministers with consumer responsibilities present? If not, will she impress on other countries in the Community the importance of the attendance of consumer Ministers at EEC meetings?
§ Mrs. Shirley WilliamsOn the first point, my hon. Friend will be aware that I was present at a stocktaking meeting on CAP. It would not be appropriate for me, as a non-Agriculture Minister, to be present at price fixing meetings. Those occasions would be restricted to Agriculture Ministers.
On the second part of my hon. Friend's supplementary question, I have a great deal of sympathy with what he said. I believe that the consumer interest needs to be taken more note of in future discussions about the development of the CAP. Although I was the only consumer Minister attending the stocktaking meeting, I would inform my hon. Friend that Her Majesty's Government approached the capitals of all the member countries of the EEC with a view to seeing whether they could send consumer Ministers, or Ministers with consumer responsibilities, to EEC meetings on future occasions. I very much hope that they will do so.
§ Mr. MartenWhat attitude did the Secretary of State take on behalf of the consumer when discussing the stocktaking document in regard to the Commission's proposal for a two-tier price system for fresh milk supplies during the winter? Does she not agree that such a proposal would be very damaging to the consumers in this country?
§ Mrs. Shirley WilliamsThe matter did not arise in detail on the stocktaking document. Matters discussed included surpluses in certain commodities, including dairy products; disposal of those surpluses; the basis on which prices should be fixed, for example, on a modern and efficient farm; and the question how far consumer consequences of pricing decisions should be set out in documents on the Commission's initiative in the future.