Special Committee Pigs and Bacon Bill, 1934 debate -
Wednesday, 10 Apr 1935

SECTION 101.

Minister for Agriculture

I move amendment No. 90 :—

Before Section 101 to insert a new section as follows :—

101. —Where—

(a) a production notice in relation to any premises has been duly served on the licensee in respect of such premises, and

(b) the quantity of bacon produced in such premises during the production period to which such production notice relates exceeds by more than five per cent. the production sub-quota for such premises in respect of such period,

such licensee shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine calculated at the rate of ten shillings for every hundredweight which the amount of bacon produced at such premises during such production period exceeds the production sub-quota for such premises in respect of such period.

This provides a penalty for overproduction which was not in the Bill before.

Deputy Belton

What is the penalty ?

Minister for Agriculture

Ten shillings per cwt.

Deputy Belton

What is the over-production figure ?

Minister for Agriculture

Five per cent.

Deputy Belton

Five per cent. is the penal line for underproduction ?

Minister for Agriculture

It is.

Deputy Belton

It is hardly fair to penalise equally.

Deputy Dillon

The Minister said he would consider, between now and the Report Stage, increasing the overproduction margin to 10 per cent.

Minister for Agriculture

We can look into it again.

Amendment No. 90 agreed to.

Question proposed: " That Section 101 stand part of the Bill."

Deputy Dillon

I have a great deal of matter to raise on the old section.

Minister for Agriculture

I am willing to delete that now. Amendment No. 91 will have the effect of replacing Section 101.

Deputy Dillon

Does it implement the contents of the old section ?

Minister for Agriculture

No; it makes the home-sales order voluntary instead of mandatory on the Board.

Deputy Dillon

The Board may make a home-sales order ?

Minister for Agriculture

Yes.

Deputy Dillon

I want to raise the point that if there is no customer available to purchase the bacon, at what price will the Board take it ? The Minister will remember that when the Board makes a home-sales order and the curer will not sell his bacon, the Board says: " You are asking too much money and that is why you cannot sell it," and they proceed to take over the bacon ; but the Bill does not say at what price they will take it over.

Minister for Agriculture

That is Section 106.

Deputy Dillon

Do not Sections 106 and 101 hang together, because it is in pusuance of a home-sales order that he purports to act in Section 106 ?

Minister for Agriculture

I think that an amendment of a new section replacing the present section can better be dealt with on Report Stage.

Deputy Dillon

I have no amendment down. I wanted to question this whole business of the home-sales orders on the ground that you must provide that, if the Board can take over bacon, they will take it over at a certain price.

Minister for Agriculture

It would be much better to discuss it on Section 106.

Deputy Dillon

But, in the meantime, you have consent to the general principle of home-sales order in Section 101.

Minister for Agriculture

That is true. If you like, we can stop before that.

Chairman

We will stop at Section 100, and amendment No. 91 will be the first business at the next sitting.

The Committee adjourned until 3.30 p.m. on Thursday, 11th April, 1935.