asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he will state whether he has received any reports as a result of the industrial and other surveys made under the technical assistance projects agreements with the United States; and, if so, whether he will make copies of such reports available to Deputies.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Industrial and Other Surveys.
Reports have been received in the case of certain surveys carried out under the E.C.A. technical assistance programme which was terminated at the beginning of this year. The degree or kind of publicity to be given to such reports must be determined in the light of the contents. It is my intention generally to publish such reports, as well as reports of surveys financed out of the Technical Assistance Vote, as fully as is consonant with the necessity for preserving confidential information such as, for example, information about individual firms. I will arrange that any material published will be placed in the Oireachtas Library for use of Deputies.
I take it that, far from giving any confidential information concerning any particular firm, the Minister will agree that these reports, even if they are on the present system of industrial organisation, should be published? I take it that is the case.
The general intention is to publish. I assumed that the Deputy's question related not merely to these reports on investigations carried out here by foreign experts but to reports which I have received from a group that went from this country to America under the E.C.A. technical assistance programme.
Are we likely to see the report which is stated to have been made by American experts on restrictive practices before the Second Reading of the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill?
There was no such report. There were, in the reports to which I have referred, some general comments about restrictive practices but no report on restrictive practices.
Could we have the benefit of seeing these observations on general restrictive practices in advance of the Second Reading of the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill?
I could not undertake that. Whatever publication is possible will be carried out as soon as it is feasible.
And, if possible, before the Second Reading of the Bill?
I do not think so. The Restrictive Trade Practices Bill relates only to one group of restrictive practices—restrictive practices in the sale of goods—and I do not think that these reports would have any bearing on the debate on that Bill.
That is not the impression that has been conveyed to the public through the newspapers in the last two or three weeks. As a matter of fact it has been played up in the daily papers that the Minister's case—I know this is not so—is based on the reports or comments of these American experts. The Press, however, has so put it in the last two or three weeks that the Minister's intentions in regard to this matter have been strengthened very considerably by the comments or reports made by these experts.
The comments to which I made reference related to restrictive practices generally and not merely to the sale of goods.
Quite so, and naturally that is the reason why we are so anxious to get this.
The Minister must have seen the report of his own speech on this subject in which considerable publicity was given to the fact that he was rather startled by the observations of the Americans and that that was an impelling reason. Perhaps it is. All I want to do is to judge the Bill against the background of whatever observations these folk made.
On the contrary, I made it quite clear that these observations were not directly related to the Bill and my own view is that the Bill deals only with one narrow section of the problem.
Would the Minister undertake to re-read his own speech before we discuss the Restrictive Trade Practices Bill.
I will if the Deputy promises to do the same.
I certainly will. I will take very, very good care to do so.