FOOD CONTROL IN BRITAIN

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2931, 17 November 1916, Page 5

FOOD CONTROL IN BRITAIN

DRASTIC PROPOSALS A DICTATOR OF SUPPLIES ;i ASKED FOR MPORTANT STATEMENT IN '...* PARLIAMENT ; ÜBtralian-New Zealand Cable Association.' (Rec. November 16, 7.10 p.ni-) •• -,_ : . London, November 15. , ' In the House of Commons, Mr. AY,- j .. Hewins (U.) moved:— "That it is the Government's ...". '■ duty to adopt further methods of :■ organisation to increase the ria- l ; tional food supply, and so dumn- j ish the risk of shortage m the • event of the war being pro- ". : '■ ': longed." The mover stated that wo were faced. j ly a permanent increase of prices,; • : vhich would last for many years. The •* iroblem was primarily one of produc- .. ion. We should adopt a national .■■■•; igricultm-e policy. ' • '. ■ The Minister's Reply. v , . Mr. Runciman (President of th« - : j Board of Trade) said that the_ straw. J -his country would have to bear in 1917 .; vould primarily he in regard to food ' ,; supplies.. Tragic as it might.be, rt\ : ■ ..; rould be more so with Austria and, ..:.;.,; Sermany. He doclared thafifc was .-;,; mnecessai-y to stimulate production ot , i ivheat in Canada and Australia. , ;: ida's crop ti-as abundant, and transport, was easv. Next year we, would : > have to depend on Australian The fact that we had commandeered a. large fleet at artificial rates, and had ..-.,-.; facld the problem of transport had fUo ~ -,; encouraged Australian production, ioe ;. ,| food prohlom was shared by. Franco and , 5 Italy. The Allied Governments re-. , , garded the whole shipment of wheat ;. ~ for tho Allies as ono problem, to be dealt with by one requisitioned Seet. • ..;;", He expected that the haf-years pro- :: ; ductiou of shipping would approaoh • ! half a million tons. The Government r ,) was arranging to pool an fingmeermg • , i effort on the Tyne and elsewhere^ .and ~ • ;; . was bringing back p hundrcds of sWted; .. ■.-;; workers from the front. ;In one nor- ■. j mal year, we oould build practically the , whole of tho tonnage lost since the out- ~.;.; . ; , brealc of the war. Germany knew we .... ■•■ had ehartered neutral ships, hence the ; J submarine warfare. The &"f»m e nt . : , was taking powers to prevent undue profits by,potato-growers and milk-sell- ■•■ .;:,( A Food Controller. .- ', ',' ; It would be necessary, -continued the, ■■ /■ -.;i Minister, to dispense with some top* :.y of food, especially elaborate eonfecticm-, . ery, and a food controller would be. necessary in order to 3 ' activities. Powers would be taken .to ,-■ ; ~ prescribe" purposes for which artides ~, . would be used, and to prosecute pa- ■ [> sons caught wasting or destroying tpoej-; . - f . If a voluntary effort at economy failed, ~ - ; dTastic measures would bo necessajy.;.- ~. : ., .-, The Government proposed to prohihiG . the milling of fine whits flour, thus . , ; raising th? yield Si percent. The . ■; ,4 Government, also, was taking powers jto regulate the market to P»»ent ;..= cornering, and to deal with the sale . . . ~■, and distribution of articles in order ... .. that the authorities would be in a , -~ position to act Tmmediately- lt™>;' ~;j necessitv arose, he would iise food tickets. 'He did not propose to fix minimum prices, but' asked for power to fix .; fair prices. Be had been told that theoountrv wauted to begovemed. ,-• ~ i He askerT -the House to give Cabinet ~ power to govern it. . ■..,■,' „••„ "-; ; Mr. Runciman explained that a oiu. would be passed at the .earliest'oppor-. . , ~i tunifcv emhod.Ti7ig fhe Governmeat-8 ~ ; proposals. Some of these \ M diately practicable under the _Govern- r . ~1 ment's existing-powers, notally those ■ .j relating to milk contracts, V<tex° ~'; stocks, and flour milling. ■ The Food .- :j Controller would be appointed immediately a suitable man could be found-He-would have drastic powers. . .', '.j The Shipping J»roWem, The Board of Trade, would regard »■■; him .as the most essential mitt in the., :• a; Empire. Demonsteating the iecessit-y. - :; or treating the big shrpbuilding centres . ■'." ; as one concern, -the Minister instanced- • ; j the fact that sixteen vessels in /the . -...■.-,.; . Wearside yards were lying awaitinz . ~j their engines.- He had. arranged '.-to . \;i concentrate -upon the most advanced.. •..,;.•:-; vessels, and -hoped by the end of fh® .' v j year' that no- vessels .would. Kb "in a' : . -.'.-' : | half-finished "condition.: He ' regaTded ... -. ■,/.,; the'new'construction, as the most'im- \- : ;'':^ portant part of the shipping problem r '.: %;..^ , There was.a temporary shortage of > v.■,'.-] steel, but he hoped that as the result--,-:- : .j ! of action "by the Ministry of Munitions .;.. j 1 ample supplies would be forthcoming ..".] , in the New Year. ' '■'■■... - ;: :'! I Hot Drastic EnoughV:: : ' : '-<'M Sir Edward.Carson said that .il<s .'•; ; ■ House 'expected -more orastic proposals.- •:' I The country should be told of ioe diffi-. . j culties,..and. whether these were "dne_ to ;. .': a. reduction of tonnage by the .action,, ;. * of the enemy's submarines, rather tlan. ; • ;. from illegitiina to-profits: He. hoped v:-| the food .controller would be a. dictator, '.-. y.| , with power io snub Departmehts if -'•. /j they failed to do what he required. '•■ : i Mr. ■6.:':J:-"War-aie' (Labour), on be-. Vi ,;i , half of ■ Labour,': welcomed the proposals. 1 :: ':■. j '' He espresse.d the opinion that ihe/ ; •% .■'} country's resouirces ought to have beeni.-.:' : ,1 \ organised at tho. outbreak of war. He." ..-: ;] expefcted. that Mr. Runciman. would,. >;•..:' ■■' have io. go yets further in this direc-. ,;.:,>! tion. ■'• •■ V: ; ; 1