§ 66. Mrs. Joyce Butlerasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will review the present support machinery of the Potato Marketing Board to ensure that fair prices are charged to consumers.
§ Mr. HoyUnder the arrangements agreed in June, 1965 between the agricultural Ministers, the Farmers' Unions and the Potato Marketing Board, Exchequer-financed support buying of potatoes only takes place when the pressure of supplies is such that the guaranteed price for the season might not be achieved. The consumer would not benefit in the long run if matters were allowed to take their course and, as a result of low prices for the crop, less potatoes were planted in the following season and there was a shortage of supplies. For most of the past two seasons, in each of which there were substantial buying programmes, retail prices were at their lowest level for some five years.