Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what is the amount of coal which is being exported from Nigeria; what amounts are used in the Territory; and for what purpose.
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals were made during his recent talks in London with M. Faure for a definition of the attitude of the United Kingdom Government towards the problem of associating Ghana and Nigeria with the European Common Market.
Mr Sydney Irving: Whilst thanking the right hon. Gentleman for that Answer, may I ask him to bear in mind the very serious difficulties that would arise for both these countries competing against the overseas territories of other countries who are members of the European Common Market if they were allowed to bring in their goods Customs Duty free?
Mr Sydney Irving: I acknowledge with appreciation the presence of the right hon. Gentleman the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The issue I want to raise is that of the methods of disposal by his Ministry of 19,000 tons, or 167 million tins, of full cream, unsweetened milk, declared surplus to requirements after the end of control in March, 1954, and, in particular, the totally inadequate...
Mr Sydney Irving: I said 19,000 tons—or 167 million tins.
Mr Sydney Irving: I would ask the right hon. Gentleman if he denies the evidence given in the High Court, which led to a successful application by United Dairies in the case of United Dairies v. Thomas Robinson, Sons & Co. Ltd., which was concerned with the issue of that sort of milk. The evidence is available.
Mr Sydney Irving: May I ask the Minister whether there have been other foods of this kind issued by his Department in similar circumstances? At what stage were the public health authorities notified about this material being issued from his Department?
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what steps are being taken by the Government of Northern Rhodesia either to stabilise the production of maize or to secure other outlets for the rapidly increasing quantities being produced particularly by Africans.
Mr Sydney Irving: If the hon. Gentleman is consulting the Governor, would he bear in mind also that, if he does not do something and the Governor does not do something very shortly about the overproduction of maize in this territory, there will be a great deal of distress among African farmers, and will he ensure, if he cannot get other outlets, that there are other forms of production which could be usefully...
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what encouragement is being given by the Government of Northern Rhodesia to the dry land production of wheat; and what proportion of the total wheat consumption of Northern Rhodesia is imported.
Mr Sydney Irving: The House will be distressed at the hon. Gentleman's lack of information. Will he bear in mind, until such time as he gets the information, that there is imported into this territory a considerable quantity of wheat, and, having regard to the subject of the previous Question, namely, the overproduction of maize, would this not be an avenue for the constructive reorientation of crop policy in...
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies the proportion of cultivated land in Tanganyika which is farmed by Europeans and Africans, respectively; the proportion of the territory which is at present under cultivation; and the number of African farmers who are growing the main cash crop of Tanganyika, sisal.
Mr Sydney Irving: Would the hon. Gentleman not agree that there is an inordinately high proportion of cultivated land in the hands of non-Africans? Will he also bear in mind the remarks of the Economist of 29th June that a generous and constructive land policy is vitally necessary and would be in the interests not only of Africans but of non-Africans? Will he do everything he can to bring this initiative about?
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Education what steps he has taken to appoint the Committee to consider the future of the library service as proposed in the Local Government White Paper, Command Paper 161; and what interests he proposes to have represented on the Committee.
Mr Sydney Irving: Will the hon. Gentleman bear in mind that there is a very deep cleavage of opinion in the Library Association about the size of authority which ought to be allowed to maintain a library service, that this led to the rejection of a resolution put forward by the council of the association at its annual conference, the subsequent carrying of it on a postal ballot, and the subsequent rejection of...
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Education the percentage national averages of children admitted to grammar and technical schools over the last four years; and what he estimates these will be during the next four years.
Mr Sydney Irving: Will the hon. Gentleman answer the second part of my Question, which asked for an estimate about the future?
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the advice given to him by the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, he will make a statement on the future of the British Industries Fair and on the possibility of organising an international trade fair in Great Britain.
Mr Sydney Irving: In considering the whole question of the future of the international trade fair, would the President bear in mind—and members of the Chamber of Commerce bear in mind—the need to associate the Colonies and the Commonwealth in this sort of enterprise?
Mr Sydney Irving: asked the Minister of Health what steps he is taking to fix appropriate standards for the purity of iced lollies of all kinds.
