§ Sir J. Duncanasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will consider the payment of a small reward for the proved shooting of wood pigeons.
§ Mr. Scott-HopkinsNo. We already pay half the cost of cartridges supplied by rabbit clearance societies. There is now no limit on the amount of grant which the societies can earn in this way.
§ Sir T. Beamishasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to what extent, in connection with the official experiments on control of wood pigeons by narcotics, the effects of cumulative doses of alphachloralose on human beings, animals and birds of prey which may happen to consume other birds that have assimilated this chemical, have been considered; and whether he will give the findings on this matter.
§ Mr. Scott-HopkinsThe advisory committee on poisonous substances used in agriculture and food storage agreed in November last to the use of alphachloralose in the official experiments for a period of two years. As alphachloralose is a readily metabolised and excreted chemical, not accumulated in the animal body, the Committee accepted that there would be no danger to human life from these experiments. They are being carefully supervised, so that it is unlikely that stupefied birds would be picked up by predatory birds or mammals.