§ 59. Earl Wintertonasked the Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs if he will confer with the other Departments concerned, such as the Post Office and Board of Trade, to see that every possible facility is given, under existing law and regulation, for gift food parcels from the Dominions to reach this country as rapidly as possible, in view of the disappointment and resentment felt by donors overseas at the high percentage of parcels lost or delayed in the past.
§ Mr. BottomleyI am satisfied that the many authorities concerned, both overseas and in this country, are doing all they can to ensure that gift parcels reach their destinations as rapidly as possible. But, as the noble Lord will appreciate, conditions at the ports and on the seas are still far from normal and inevitably result in congestion and delays. As has been stated in answer to previous questions, there is no evidence that of the large number of gifts sent by post from4W their Dominions any significant number is stolen or lost.