§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will give a detailed list of the number of factors which will affect the price of imported Australian mutton and lamb, on the introduction of the proposed import tax arrangements; and whether he has discussed these factors with the National Farmers' Union and the Farm Workers' Union.
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§ Mr. PriorThe price of imported mutton and lamb will be affected not only by the levy arrangements, which are still under discussion, but also by such factors as variations in domestic and imported supplies; costs and efficiency of meat processors and distributors; and the effect on consumer demand of changes in population, taste, spending power and the availability and prices of alternative foods.
The levy proposals on meat have been discussed with the National Farmers' Union but not with any farmworkers' unions, although details of all the schemes were handed to the National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers at a meeting of their executive which I attended on 25th November.