§ 31. Mr. Errollasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what prices are at present being paid to East African growers of raw cotton; how these prices compare with those received by growers in other parts of the world; and whether he is satisfied that the prices are fair and satisfactory to the native growers.
Mr. Creech JonesThe price paid last season to East African growers for the principal grade of East African cotton, known as B.P.52, was 2.4 pence per lb., with lower prices down to 1.9 pence for the inferior grades. These prices were decided by a local representative committee, which had in mind the prices received for other agricultural products and the general local economy, and I understand that they were fair and satisfactory to the native growers. The cotton was resold by the central purchasing authority at higher prices and the resultant profits have been placed in a fund to be used for the benefit of the areas in which the cotton is grown. The price to be paid for the next crop, which will be marketed early in 1947, has not yet been settled.
In Nyasaland prices to African growers ranged from 1⅞d. to 2d. per lb. These prices also were regarded as satisfactory. It is not possible to compare these prices with the general average of prices prevailing in other parts of the world owing to differences in quality and the incompleteness of information as to the actual prices paid to growers in other areas, which frequently bear little relation to the f.o.b. price of the cotton.