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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 23 May 1928

Vol. 23 No. 16

CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. Oral Answers. - BAKING INDUSTRY ALONG BORDER.

asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce whether he will institute inquiries into the state of the baking industry in counties of the Saorstát adjoining the Border, in view of the fact that many bakers are idle owing to the large importations of bread from the Six Counties.

I am aware of the competition in the baking industry in those counties of the Saorstát adjoining the Border. But no representations have been received in my Department from the bakers affected, who appear to be meeting this competition effectively. Should any representations be received from them they will be given careful attention.

Is the Minister aware that in this industry there is from £500,000 to £800,000 worth of bread coming from the Six Counties into the Saorstát per annum, and is the Minister aware that the bakers did not make representation because they were afraid it might not be successful and they were waiting on the report of the Tariff Commission in regard to the question of flour? I think that was the cause that they did not come forward in regard to bread.

The Deputy has doubled the imports of bread across the frontier. The total did not come to £500,000.

That was like the figure that I heard.

The figure would be somewhere about the region of a quarter of a million. No representations have been made. An examination of the position was made some time ago, and it was found that the bakers along the border area were standing up to the competition quite effectively.

Has the Minister considered a statement made in that connection before the Tariff Commission— a statement to the effect that the Great Northern Railway Company were giving goods train rates for passenger services for the conveyance of bread into the border counties, and also that special discounts were being allowed, up to 30 per cent. in some cases, for the purpose of putting the border bakeries out of business, and some of the bakeries have actually gone out of business?

None of the bakers along the border has complained.

Is the Minister aware that small bakeries in Donegal are being detrimentally affected owing to the fact that the Minister for Defence has given certain Army contracts for bread in connection with the Finner Camp to bakeries outside the 26 Counties?

I do not know that.

If evidence is given to the Tariff Commission, is it not an official complaint?

Quite definitely not. Individual bakers have been interviewed, and they are meeting competition effectively. If you were to ask them what puts competition of the strenuous type up against them, they would put the goods rates and that sort of matter very low down on the list.

Is the Minister aware that one of the bakers who gave evidence at the Tariff Commission told me that——

No, I am not.

The Minister will be aware of it in a minute. He told me that he could employ 20 additional men if this unfair competition were stopped. If 20 additional men could be employed in one company, probably 150 could be employed all along the border in the different factories.

That is on a line with the £500,000 or £800,000, mentioned a while ago.

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