asked the Minister of Agriculture the amount of the feeding-stuff rations allowed for 100 laying hens in October, 1945, July, 1947, and October, 1947, assuming that the farm qualified for the full basic rates.

The specified fraction of the basic number of poultry eligible for rations and the acreage deduction have varied according to the supplies of feedingstuffs available. The number of birds eligible for rations on any one farm would not be exactly 100 in all the three months mentioned. If the Question means what were the rations in each of the months mentioned for a holding registered as having 100 poultry in 1939, assuming that the holding was not subject to acreage deduction in any of these months, the answer is: October, 1945, and October, 1947, 1 cwt.; July, 1947, 1¼ cwt.

If I may attempt to disentangle that complicated answer, does it mean that in fact the man with 100 birds will get less feedingstuffs in October than he is getting now?

As the hon. Member will appreciate, there was a very serious reduction last year. The new increase which has just been made means that his increased ration for October of this year will be based on one-fifth of the poultry he had in the 1939 period as against one-eighth.

It is still going to be rather less than last time?

No, rather more.

Cutting through that rather unintelligible cackle, is it not a fact that the number of poultry has declined by two million since this Government came into power?