Colonel NEWMANasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he will say the number of tons of butter that are at present in cold storage in Ireland; whether the inhabitants of Ireland are rationed in their consumption of butter; and at what price is the butter controlled by Government being placed on the market?
§ Mr. McCURDYI have been asked to reply. The amount of butter at present in cold storage in Ireland is approximately 2,000 tons. As the population of Ireland is mainly agricultural, and to a large extent actual producers of butter, it has not been thought advisable to introduce a scheme of rationing such as that in operation in Great Britain. The maximum retail price of butter in Ireland is 3s. 2d. per lb.