§ Sir W. Smithersasked the Minister of Food what was the cost of bringing four summonses against Messrs. R. Silcock & Sons of Liverpool, and W. J. Pearce of Redruth, Cornwall, and two others, under the Feeding Stuffs (Rationing) Order, 1949, which were recently dismissed; what costs were awarded against his Department; and what disciplinary action has been taken against those responsible for charging firms with offences before the Regulations they were alleged to have broken came into force.
§ Mr. WebbThe reply to the first part of the Question is £3 16s. Od. The reply to the second part is 10 guineas. The reply to the third part is that the Order under which the offences fell was described in error as the 1949 Order Whether the inadvertent writing of 1949 instead of 1943 calls for disciplinary action is not for me to answer as the Treasury Solicitor's Department conducted the proceedings and drafted the informations.