asked the Minister for Agriculture whether his attention has been drawn to a statement that the report of the Milk Costings Commission is being deliberately withheld, and, if so, if he will make a statement in the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Milk Costings Commission Report.
I have seen the statement and there is no truth whatever in it. The Milk Production Costs Committee was established by my predecessor in 1952 with a technical director. The committee's terms of reference provided that the technical director would be responsible for the detailed administration of the investigation, the calculation of the final figures of cost and the compilation of the report of the investigation. It was further provided that the technical director would furnish the report to the committee who would transmit it to the Minister for Agriculture with such comments as they deemed desirable. The committee has not sent that or any report to me, but, as I have already repeatedly stated in public, I understand that the report, both in respect of milk in the Dublin and Cork liquid milk supply areas and in respect of creamery milk, will be available before the end of March, and the chairman of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association, Mr. C. H. Fletcher, received the following letter from me on the 25th January last, informing him of these facts:—
"Dear Sir,
The Government has given careful consideration to the representations made at our conference on milk prices designed to secure an interim increase in the price of milk pending the receipt of the report of the Milk Costings Commission.
The Government regrets that it cannot accede to this request but must postpone a decision in regard to milk prices until the report of the costings commission has been received.
I understand that the commission's report, both in respect of milk in the Dublin and Cork liquid milk supply areas, and in respect of creamery milk, will be available before the end of March, and no time will be lost in giving full and sympathetic consideration to this report the moment it is made available to me by the commission, who I am sure will do all in its power to expedite the completion of this report and the commission's comments upon it.
Yours truly,
James M. Dillon
Minister for Agriculture."
Will the Minister say if there is any truth in the suggestion that he, or Professor Smiddy, has agreed to postpone the publication of this report, or to give it any slant in one direction or another?
There is no scintilla of truth in the suggestion that there has been any agreement, or discussion, between myself and Professor Smiddy, designed to attain the delay of the publication of this report, or to give this report any slant in any particular direction. In fact, there has been no discussion between me and Professor Smiddy at any time about any aspect of this report, except in so far as I wrote to ask him when he expected to be in a position to make it available. I have from the beginning maintained the position that this commission was set up by my predecessor as an independent and autonomous body and that I had a special duty to refrain most scrupulously from any interference with its deliberations, one way or the other.
Will the Minister give the Dáil an assurance that, following the publication of this report, he will not reintroduce the old scheme of 1/- a gallon for milk?
Do I take it then that the propaganda of Fianna Fáil in North Kerry is lies, and damn lies?
Might I ask if it has ever been anything else?
One shilling a gallon was the price.
Mr. Lemass
Has the Minister not described the report as "all cod" before he has got it?
No answer to that!
One shilling a gallon.