§ Lieut. - Commander KENWORTHYasked the President of the Board of Trade if he is aware of the waste of good fish that is going on owing to the poor facilities existing for its conveyance to 251W inland towns and cities; and whether any steps are being taken to provide cold storage and refrigerator railway wagons in order to avoid this loss of food?.
Similar questions were also addressed by the same hon. Member to the Minister of Food and the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture.
§ Lieut. - Commander KENWORTHYasked the Minister of Transport whether any steps are being taken to provide more refrigerator trucks for the conveyance of fresh fish?
§ Mr. NEALI have been asked to reply to these questions. As the hon. and gallant Gentleman is aware, this Ministry and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries have been in consultation with the trade associations upon the general question of facilities for transport and distribution of fish, with the result that a conference is to be held on the 15th instant for the purpose of seeing what the difficulties are and what improvements can be introduced. I would point out, however, that the railway companies are carrying a very heavy fish traffic, as is instanced by the fact that the deliveries of rail-borne fish at Billingsgate are now more than double the average volume for 1913, whilst at the same time they have not overtaken the arrears of construction of wagons caused by the War. The Minister is already investigating with them the adequacy of the present and prospective provision of rolling stock for the conveyance of fish. I am informed that freezing fish for storage is a difficult operation, but experiments in that direction are at present being conducted. The Minister of Food is enquiring into the question of the provision of suitable accommodation for such fish as cannot be immediately disposed of in inland markets.