§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Minister of agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the difference in each of the past three years and the current year to date between the support price for sheepmeat and the market price; and if he will estimate the effect on the quantity of sheepmeat consumed if the market price were raised to the support level.
§ Mr. MacGregorThe difference between the average market price and the average guide price in each of the marketing years requested is as follows. A Commission estimate of the average market price for the whole of the current year has been used to calculated the 1983–84 figure.
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Kilograms 1980 41p 1981–82 18p 1982–83 56p 1983–84* 61p *Estimate. The effect on consumption if market prices rose to the level of the guide price would depend on a number of factors, in particular the circumstances giving rise to the price increase, and it is not possible to give an estimate; but it is obviously likely to be less.