I move:—
That Dáil Éireann approves of the Sugar (Prohibition of Import) Order, 1949.
The Sugar (Control of Import) Act, 1936, empowers the Government to prohibit, by Order, the importation of sugar except under licence. Import licences may be granted to the sugar company only. The first prohibition Order on the importation of sugar was made in May, 1936, and since that time the importation of sugar has been regulated by an annual prohibition Order. The current prohibition Order, which is the 14th Order of the series, prohibits the importation of sugar during the period from the 1st May, 1949, to the 30th April, 1950.
Section 3 of the Sugar (Control of Import) Act, 1936, provides that every prohibition Order shall cease to have effect at the expiration of six months from the date thereof unless the Order has been approved by resoultion of the Oireachtas, passed before the expiration of the said six months. The current Order was made on the 22nd April, 1949, and consequently it will require to be confirmed not later than the 21st October next.
In normal times, when sugar is freely available in the world markets, it is necessary to restrict imports in the interests of the local sugar factories. The annual demand for sugar is at the rate of approximately 100,000 tons a year and the local factories have been able to supply about 80 per cent. of this figure. It is necessary, therefore, in the ordinary way to import about 20,000 tons of sugar per annum. This is imported by the sugar company. That enables the imported and the home-produced sugar to be sold at a uniform price. During the emergency, there was a world-wide shortage of sugar, and, consequently, a prohibition on the imports of sugar during that period was not necessary. Nevertheless, it was considered advisable to maintain the prohibition on the import of sugar throughout the war and only allow it in under licence.
There is an exemption from the prohibition in the case of sugar not exceeding 14 lbs. in weight which is intended for the personal use of the importer or of his household and samples of sugar. The quantities which it was possible to import during the war years were limited. In the last two years, 1947 and 1948, there has been a substantial improvement. Last year, 40,000 tons were imported. The total consumption last year was 101,768 tons which was the highest consumption since 1941, and which is little short of the annual consumption between the years 1938 and 1941.