Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 22 Nov 1961

Vol. 192 No. 4

Control of Exports (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1956 (Continuance) Bill, 1961: Second Stage.

Minister for Industry and Commerce (Mr. J. Lynch)

I move that the Bill be now read a Second Time.

Under the Control of Exports (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1956 (Continuance) Act, 1958, the Control of Exports (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1956, which was due to expire on 9th February, 1959 was continued in force until 31st March, 1962. The purpose of this Bill is to continue the 1956 Act in force until 31st March, 1965.

The Act empowers the Minister for Industry and Commerce to prohibit by Order the exportation of industrial goods save under a licence issued by him. At present a number of goods are subject to export control under the Control of Exports Order, 1961, the Control of Exports (No. 2) Order, 1961, and the Control of Exports (No. 3) Order, 1961, which were made under the powers conferred by the Act. Orders made under the Act have a life of twelve months, and are required to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after they are made, and if a resolution annulling any Order is passed by either House at any time during the currency of the Order, the Order is annulled accordingly.

I consider that the time has not yet come when the export controls may be dispensed with. Accordingly it will be necessary to continue these powers for some further time, and to enact legislation to that end. The need is threefold:

(a) to conserve, for the benefit of home industry, raw materials continuing, or likely to continue in short supply:

(b) to ensure that strategic materials are not exported from this country to Iron Curtain countries or that this country is not used as a base through which such materials may be sent to the Iron Curtain countries from other countries, and,

(c) to have immediately available a means of dealing with the situation in the event of an international emergency developing in which the country could be drained of essential materials before corrective legislation could be enacted by the Oireachtas.

For these reasons, sir, I commend this Bill to the House.

Mr. Cosgrave

I have no objection to the enactment of this Bill but I should like to get some idea from the Minister what goods are at present the subject of controls and also the materials which are restricted because of the shortage of supplies or those restricted because the supply is likely to be short. I know that there is a restriction on the export of certain strategic materials. Can the Minister say if there are any materials in that category which are exported to countries other than Iron Curtain countries?

Mr. Corish

I have no objection to the passing of this Bill, either, but I should like to re-pose the questions addressed to the Minister by Deputy Cosgrave. Perhaps the Minister would tell us briefly—I do not think anybody wants him to detail them—the Orders he has found it necessary to make in the last 12 months or two years. We appreciate the purpose of the Bill but it would I think be enlightening to the House and to the country to know if the Minister has occasion to limit or prohibit the exportation of raw materials from this country. I wonder also if the Minister, as Minister for Industry and Commerce, considered whether it was desirable to prohibit the export of wheat from this country last year. This may be primarily a matter for the Minister for Agriculture. Last year, many people in this country took exception to the fact that the wheat, which millers described as being unmillable, was sold abroad for what was considered to be a cheap figure. I am sure that the Minister, in consultation with the Minister for Agriculture, will have to consider the making of an order in respect of wheat. It would be interesting to know whether it was considered that wheat was an essential raw material in that it provides a cheap foodstuff for the Irish farmers.

An Leas-Cheann Comhairle

This Bill relates to the export of industrial goods.

Mr. Corish

The Chair is absolutely right. There is no necessity for the Minister to answer that question but perhaps he would answer the second one? Could he define "Iron Curtain countries"? I do not know how loose the term is. People generally have an appreciation of where the Iron Curtain falls across Europe. Is Jugoslavia, for example, considered to be one of the Iron Curtain countries? If the Minister would tell us what these countries are, I think it would be of advantage to us.

Mr. J. Lynch

Let me give an indication of the type of goods in question. I think I could take the obvious example of scrap metal. The purpose is to conserve the arisings of scrap metal in the country for our own engineering and foundry industry, particularly Irish Steel Holdings. There are exceptions whereby people engaged in the breaking up of ships they might purchase for that purpose outside the country are given licences to export the arisings from that breaking up outside the country. The reason is that they would have been in competition with other ship-breakers for the purchase of these ships and would, therefore, be expected to get the best price they could for the material arising from the breaking up. In the case of much of that material, licences are permitted for its export.

Another example is timber. It is necessary to control the export of timber in order to conserve the limited stocks of native timber for native sawmill and allied industries.

The most recent Order was made in respect of fertilisers. First of all, as a result of the comparatively cheap fertilisers available in this country, and, secondly, as a result of the subsidy paid by the Department of Agriculture for the benefit of our farmers, there would be an inclination to export the fertiliser and thereby make a profit at the expense of our taxpayers. Last year, it was found necessary to impose an export control on it. Examples of strategic goods are arms, ammunition, military and naval stores, graphite, aircraft and parts thereof.

I do not think it is necessary for the purpose of the Bill to define "Iron Curtain countries" because export controls are in force in respect of strategic goods to countries other than Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In the event of export facilities being sought for export it would be a matter for decision as to whether the countries to which, say, ammunition was being exported, were countries that would be from our point of view countries to which to grant a licence.

Mr. Corish

Why is it necessary to include Iron Curtain countries at all when it would mean practically every country outside Britain and Northern Ireland?

Mr. J. Lynch

I cannot give the Deputy a firm answer to that. I think the reason should be pretty obvious generally.

Question put and agreed to.

Agreed to take remaining Stages today.