§ Mr. Nieldasked the Minister of Food how many persons are employed by his Department to interrogate housewives; how many such interrogations were made during 1946; how many successful prosecutions were brought as a result; and how many unsuccessful prosecutions.
§ Mr. StracheyI assume that the hon. Member refers to my Department's long-established practice of inviting housewives in various parts of the country to give information on questions of nutrition and distribution and has nothing to do with enforcement. No officials are employed in my Department to interrogate housewives. Nine officers and a small clerical staff are engaged in collating the information, which is collected by outside market research agencies working under contract to the Ministry. The information is given voluntarily and in confidence, the name of the volunteer housewife not being disclosed to the Department. Without considerable research, I cannot say how many housewives helped us in this way in 1946, but since 1941 many thousands have volunteered to do so and have given us valuable facts which we could not obtain otherwise. No prosecutions, successful or otherwise, have resulted or could result from this research, which is designed solely to promote the efficiency of my Department.