§ 13. Mr. Benceasked the First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Economic Affairs if he will take steps to reduce the margins between producers' prices and retailers' prices.
§ Mr. George BrownThe White Paper on Prices and Incomes Policy published last April has left managements, including retail traders, in no doubt about the need to increase efficiency, to avoid cost increases and, wherever possible, to stabilise or reduce prices. The work of the Economic Development Committee for the Distributive Trades aims at helping to increase efficiency. The elimination of retail price maintenance in all but exceptional cases will also help to reduce retail prices. I have no other steps in mind at present.