§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection whether he is aware that a major brewery has announced a further increase in the price of beer and that a spokesman of the company has publicly declared that this has been a regular practice on its part every three months; and whether this is in accordance with the Government's prices and incomes policy.
§ Mr. MaclennanI deplore the regularity with which beer prices have been raised. The Price Code limits the interval between price increases to a minimum of three months, but this does not mean that companies should automatically raise their prices so often. Nevertheless, the recent price increases by the major brewers have been scrutinised by the Price Commission to ensure that they are justified under the terms of the Price Code. It will be open to the Price Commission to investigate future price increases under its new powers.