§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing what consumer subsidies are at present payable on basic foodstuffs; and how this compares with the subsidies payable in 1974–75, taken at present values.
§ Mr. MacGregorThe information requested is as follows:
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Consumer foods subsidies expressed at May 1983 values At present Average level in 1974–75 (range shown in brackets)* Milk (p/pint) —† 6.5 (5.9–7.3) Butter (p/lb.) 14.3 21.8 (16.2–32.3) Bread (p/large loaf) — 6.6 (1.5–8.8) (p/small loaf) — 3.7 (1.5–5.9) Household flour (p/lb.) — 1.7 (0–2.9) Cheese (p/lb.) — 25.0 (0–35.2) Tea (p/lb.) — 13.7 (0–23.5) Notes:
* Adjusted by the change in the retail price index between 1974–75 and May 1983.
† A Community subsidy is paid on milk and certain milk products provided in schools(eg 11 p/pint rising to 12½p/pint on milk from the start of the autumn term).
Consumers also benefit from the beef and sheep variable premiums, but their effect on prices at the retail level cannot be exactly quantified. It is relevant to point out that retail food prices rose by 122 per cent. between February 1974 and May 1979 and by 36.4 per cent. between May 1979 and May 1983.