asked the Minister for Supplies if he will state the present position and the prospect for the immediate future in regard to the supply of tea, sugar, petrol, paraffin and candles; the extent to which the rationing of these commodities has taken place, or is in contemplation, and the steps taken to ensure the equitable distribution at reasonable prices of the supplies of these commodities available or procurable.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Supply of Household Requisites.
The present position is that the available supplies of raw materials used in the manufacture of candles will not generally permit of a higher distribution than on a basis of 33? per cent. of normal pre-war deliveries, for the next three or four months. I am in constant touch with the manufacturers on the question of their getting supplies of raw materials from the U.S.A. and some small quantities are actually on their way to this country. The rationing of candles has not so far been found practicable and in view of the nature of the demand as well as of the circumstances connected with it, I am afraid that it may not be possible to evolve any workable or satisfactory scheme for the rationing of candles. The matter of the retail price of candles is under consideration but this is also a matter of great difficulty owing to the wide disparity between the prices at which candles of similar quality are at present available to distributors.
As regards the rationing of tea, sugar, petrol and paraffin, I would refer the Deputy to the various orders restricting the distribution of these commodities.
As to the prospects of supplies for the future, I have at present nothing to add to my previous public statements on the subject.
Is the Minister aware that candles, purchased by traders in some parts of the country at 1d. each, are being sold at 6d. and 7d. each, and is it not possible for him to stop that kind of racketeering?
So far as individual complaints are concerned, my Department is prepared to investigate any brought to its attention.
Have you received any such complaints?
Undoubtedly.
What has been done about them?
They are being investigated.
Mr. Byrne
Would the Minister make inquiries with a view to finding out who has concered the supply of candles in the city, and who is distributing them to small traders and charging ten times the usual price for them?
If the Deputy has any information on that subject, I shall be very glad to get it.
Mr. Byrne
The Minister has at his disposal a staff who could make these inquiries from those who have candles and who are charging 6d. each for 1d. candles, and who could ask who is supplying them, and who is getting the difference between the 1d. and the 6d. which housewives have to pay.
The Deputy has suggested that somebody has cornered the supply of candles. I shall be very glad to receive the information on which he bases his suggestion.
Mr. Byrne
I have no staff to do it.
But the Deputy must have had some information before he made the suggestion.
Mr. Byrne
The Minister could ask those who have the candles where they got them and what price they paid for them before they sell them to the poor people, who have to divide them into six parts, for 6d. apiece.
Does the Minister not know that candles are being sold in the City of Dublin at 6d. each for the past six weeks and that they are still being sold at that price? What steps has his Department taken to stop that racketeering?
I have tried to explain to the House that the question of fixing a price for candles is under investigation. It is a matter of great difficulty. There are available candles manufactured from materials obtained in Great Britain; there are available candles which were imported manufactured from Great Britain; there are available candles manufactured from materials imported from the United States of America; and there will be, possibly, also candles imported as such from the United States of America. The candles in each class, although of the same quality, are available at widely different prices. One candle might be available at half the price of another. In these circumstances, the fixing of a maximum price is obviously one of great difficulty. If we were to fix a price at the highest price which would be fair to those who are paying the most for them, it would allow exceptional profits to those who can produce at a lower price, while if we were to fix a lower price it would dry up by more than 50 per cent. the present supply. We are investigating the possibility of making some arrangement with regard to prices, but it would not have been practicable to fix maximum prices.
Would the Minister consider linking up the rationing of paraffin with the rationing of candles so that the person who presents a coupon for a half pint or pint of paraffin, or a half gallon of paraffin, will also be entitled to get a packet or a half packet of candles from the same supplier at the same time? Let that person then use his quota of candles and paraffin to illuminate his house as best he may, at least in rural Ireland, apart from whatever may be the most acceptable form of rationing for Dublin. Is the Minister aware that while there is profiteering going on in the sale of paraffin wax candles at 6d. apiece, there is a perfectly legitimate trade being prosecuted in selling Mass candles, or 65 per cent. beeswax candles, to domestic users for 6d. apiece, and that 65 per cent. candles at 6d. apiece are not excessively dear? Will the Minister take steps to differentiate clearly between the honest trader who is selling Mass candles to the country person for 6d., and the dishonest racketeer who is selling paraffin wax candles to the consumer for 6d.?
It must not be assumed that because some candles of similar quality are available at a much higher price than others that the trader who is selling the dearer candle is profiteering. An investigation shows quite clearly that candles of similar quality imported into this country can only be sold without loss at prices substantially higher than some candles produced by other manufacturers who have been more fortunate or have had greater advantages in the matter of obtaining supplies of materials. There are supplies of materials for the manufacture of candles coming from America. When they arrive here candles manufactured from them will be available at still higher prices than the price of some of the candles which are now available. There is comparatively less difficulty in the rationing of paraffin because the distribution of it is controlled here. Paraffin is imported by one organisation and is distributed by that organisation under our supervision. That is not the position in regard to candles.
Is it not true that half the candles distributed in the country are distributed by the oil lorries to the paraffin dealer? I think it is true to say that a great part of the wax candles distributed here are delivered by the oil lorries.
I know that the oil companies are themselves manufacturers of candles, but I think that more than half the candles at present available are imported as candles from outside, and not through any channels that are under our control. I have given considerable thought to the possibility of devising a rationing system for candles, but I must confess that I have not yet discovered one that will work satisfactorily.
A partial solution of the difficulty might be to do what I have suggested—to notify the oil companies which deliver candles and paraffin to the small shops through the country that each holder of a paraffin coupon will be entitled to get a packet or a half packet of candles. That would ensure that householders in rural Ireland will have the maximum amount of light that the Minister is in a position to place at their disposal at present.
Has the Minister either knowledge or evidence of the fact that candles which have been purchased by traders at 1d. each are being sold to consumers at 6d. each, and will he say what is the difficulty of dealing with that situation?
If the Deputy has either knowledge or evidence that such a thing is happening, why does he not come forward and place the information before my Department?
Have not complaints been made?
Any complaints made have been investigated.
How long will it take to investigate the complaints?
It is sometimes impossible to do that, because Deputies will not give their co-operation.
In view of the admitted scarcity of candles, and the great hardship that it is going to cause, particularly in country districts, does the Minister propose to take any steps to provide alternative supplies of native material, reference to which is being made every other day in the Press? We see in the Press references to the use of bicycle pumps as moulds for candles produced from ordinary fat, which is to be obtained in the country. Has that aspect of the question been considered?
asked the Minister for Supplies if increased supplies of tea are now being imported, and, if so, if he will consider increasing the tea ration.
There has been no increase in the allocations of tea coming to this country from the United Kingdom, but a limited quantity has been purchased in the United States of America, which is not sufficient, however, to warrant any increase in the existing household ration.
Is it not true that a considerable cargo of tea has been bespoken from the far East?
It is still in the Far East.
Has a boat been chartered yet to take the cargo here?
The shipping arrangements are not yet complete.
But steps are being taken to get ships to bring it here?
Would the Minister consider making an additional tea allowance for threshing and potato digging and other agricultural operations? As he knows, it is necessary for farmers to employ additional casual labour for these operations.
There is no possibility of increasing the allowance at present.
Would the Minister say why it is that many of those who hold ration cards have no tea to give to their customers? What is the use of having a rationing system at all if the shopkeepers have not supplies to meet the ration?
asked the Minister for Supplies whether he is aware that retailers of tea living in country districts have to pay postage on tea sent to them by wholesale tea merchants and whether he will make an order permitting the sum so paid for postage to be added to the price of tea sold retail.
The maximum price which may be charged by wholesalers to retailers for tea is 2/10 per lb. This price was fixed by order after consultation with the wholesale trade and it is intended to cover the costs of delivery to retailers, Retailers who are charged sums in addition to 2/10 per lb. for tea to cover postage or carriage should report such overcharges to my Department and appropriate measures will be taken to ensure the wholesalers' compliance with the order.
Does that mean 2/10 per lb. carriage paid?
The 2/10 includes delivery charges.