asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he has received a memorial from the small traders of Longford town regarding the relevant hours of trading Order and also about supplies of commodities which they may be short of such as cigarettes; and, if so, whether he will try to facilitate these small traders whose business is their only means of livelihood.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Longford Trading Hours.
I have received a memorial from Longford traders protesting against the closing hours prescribed by the Hours of Trading Order, 1947, in the case of shops selling sweets, tobacco and similar commodities. These closing hours apply to the whole country, outside the four county boroughs, for which earlier hours are in force, and it is not possible to facilitate individual traders without relaxing the Order for the whole trade. I feel sure that such a step would be very unwelcome to the majority of traders.
Supplies of cigarettes are now available at a rate about 25 per cent. above pre-war supplies and are distributed by the manufacturers to traders on the basis of previous purchases. There is no official control over distribution and, therefore, there is no means open to me by which I could assist particular traders towards securing increased supplies of cigarettes. When approval was given in February for increased releases of tobacco from bond it was understood that the cigarette manufacturers would consider making provision for traders not already in receipt of quotas.