asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if any progress has been made to remove the technical barriers to international trade, for example in the area of merchandise marks.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - International Trade Barriers.
1.
At the meeting of Ministers held in Tokyo in September last the decision was taken to undertake a new round of multi-lateral trade negotiations. Elimination or reduction of non-tariff barriers to international trade is an important element in these negotiations. Preparatory work on non-tariff barriers and on the other aspects of the negotiations is proceeding but it is in the course of the negotiations proper that agreed solutions may be expected to be reached.
Surely the Minister is aware that there has been no decrease? Steak is as dear now as it was last May even though cattle prices have fallen by £50 per head.
The Deputy, possibly unconsciously, is doing an injustice to certain butchers. There are butchers who have passed on the decrease. They deserve the credit and respect of the public for doing so. There are butchers who, far from passing on the decrease, have increased their prices. It is a much more complicated situation than to say there has been no decreases. Some butchers have increased their prices. Some prices have decreased. We will have an inquiry and get the facts.
Will the Minister accept that there is always a danger that by the time his committee of inquiry report to him the damage will have been done and the consumer will not have had the protection which he required at the appropriate time? As the Minister knows, it is possible that the price of beef may increase in the weeks ahead. This may be offered as an excuse for not having reduced the prices at the appropriate time.
Why was there such a delay in making the decision to have an inquiry?
I do not accept that there was a delay. It is always possible in retrospect to say that one should have acted sooner. There was not a serious delay. One does not lightheartedly enter into an inquiry. Such inquiries must be carried out justly. Where inquiries are public, it is desirable that the statements that emerge are valid and not just made for propaganda purposes. I had to be satisfied from an examination of the figures coming to me that the divergence between the drop in the price of cattle and the failure of meat prices to drop was real before I thought it proper to act.
Would the Minister indicate what benefit he anticipates will come from the committee of inquiry which he has set up?
The difficulty with meat is that no two beasts are the same. Neither are the cuts of meat the same. It is extremely difficult to have retail price control in regard to meat. In the United States last year it was found that the important factor in depressing meat prices was the awareness of the consumers. Consumer awareness must be increased here. I have asked the various consumer bodies and the Consumer Advisory Council to advise me and the public on forms of public pressure on the butchers. This pressure must come from the consumers themselves.
Deputy Wyse rose.
I have given Members a lot of latitude and I must pass on to the next question. There are many questions to be dealt with. I gave Deputy Wyse an opportunity to ask a supplementary question. Has he a quick final question?
Is the Minister aware that the price of cattle dropped last September? It was last week before the Minister decided to hold an inquiry. Is that delay unreasonable?
It is too simple just to say that the price of cattle dropped last September. The price of cattle had been coming down for months in a series of steps. It is easy to say now with hindsight that the beginning of the decline was at that time, but it was not so easy to see it last September. Contrary advice was given as to the possible evolution of cattle prices at the time.