§ Sir Smedley Crookeasked the President of the Board of Trade Whether he is aware 1441W of the exorbitant charges for toys, generally composed of bits of wood with nails and screws and painted and then classed as toys at exorbitant prices, chiefly owing to the profits made by manufacturers; and will he take immediate steps to protect the public by tightening up the governing regulations?
§ Mr. DaltonControl of the manufacturers' prices of toys present exceptional difficulties in view of the very large number of toys which are made by the very small manufacturer working with his family or by other persons in their spare time. I have, however, made an Order, after consultation with the Central Price Regulation Committee, fixing manufacturers' prices for toys at the current price on the 30th September, 1942, and compelling them to keep certain records in future. Wholesale and retail margins have also been fixed by the Order, and I am advised that the combined effect of these provisions should be to secure fair margins for traders and reasonable prices to the public.